When To Follow Rules And When To Break Them

This morning I broke a rule and followed a rule. This is why I could never be a systems trader. I was short and had a stop of 1185.25. I only use mental stops -- no sense advertising my stops to the exchanges. The market was going against me, but it looked like it was trading heavy so I stuck with it. The rule I followed -- because when I don't follow it, I lose money far more consistently than when I don't honor a mental stop -- was that I DO NOT trade from 10:30 to 11:45 am. Thanks to that rule, I was able to lock in a profit at 1177 at 11:44 am, shortly after the market bounced off its low. Close enough for government work.