Monday morning had me questioning everything.

War headlines everywhere. Markets were gapping down. My biggest position, Fastly (FSLY), was sitting 70-80 cents lower in the pre-market while everyone was talking about missiles and oil spikes.

Here’s the thing about war news, though – and I hate saying this because war is awful – but from a purely trading standpoint, most of the time it’s just volatility theater.

The market already knew tensions were building. We had forces positioned for weeks. This wasn’t some total shock that changes how many burritos Cava sells or whether Fastly’s earnings matter.

But try telling that to pre-market sellers.

The News Cycle Mind Game

When you’ve been doing this long enough, you start recognizing the difference between news that actually moves markets and news that just creates temporary chaos. Monday felt like classic temporary chaos.

It’s natural to be glued to your phones, reading about Iran, watching oil pop, seeing defensive names spike. Meanwhile, I was sitting there thinking: “Does this actually change the AI trade? Does this impact Fastly’s earnings potential? Does this alter the technical setup I’ve been watching for weeks?”

The answer to all three was no.

But here’s where trading psychology gets tricky – even when you KNOW the news is noise, you still feel that gut check. You still wonder if maybe this time is different. Maybe this escalates. Maybe the gap down becomes something worse.

That’s the moment where you either trust your process or let the headlines hijack your brain.

Why I Loaded Up Instead of Backing Down

So there I am, watching my favorite chart get hammered, and I’m thinking: “This is exactly the setup I’ve been waiting for.”

See, Fastly had just painted this beautiful candle on Friday. Gapped down, tested the point of control, then closed at the dead highs. One of those classic “selling got bought” patterns that makes you want to back up the truck.

The daily chart still looked incredible. The 195-minute timeframe hadn’t broken. Squeezes all over the middle timeframes. All the technical pieces were there for a multi-day move back into the mid-20s.

But Monday morning? Pure gift wrap.

The war headlines gave me exactly what I needed – weak hands selling a strong setup. When everyone else is focused on missiles, they’re not paying attention to technical levels. They’re not seeing that this gap down was testing the exact support level I’d been watching.

The Moment of Truth

Then Monday opens and – boom – straight over $20.

Fastly was Profit Surge Trader’s March Pick of the month, and we were able to close it out for a 100% gain.

That’s the validation you live for as a trader. Not because you want to be right about geopolitics, but because you want to be right about reading setups when everyone else is reading headlines.

I’m not gonna lie, it felt pretty good watching that gap get erased in minutes while everyone else was still parsing war analysis.

Got out of my short-dated stuff with winners, then immediately started building right back in.

Today’s Reality Check: When “Theater” Becomes Real

Here’s where trading humility kicks in hard.

What I called “volatility theater” on Monday morning? Today proved me wrong. Dead wrong.

By this morning, we’re looking at actual war. The Supreme Leader killed. Oil infrastructure threatened. Trump projecting 4-5 weeks minimum of conflict. This isn’t temporary chaos anymore – this is the real deal.

And you know what? That’s exactly why I took profits on Monday.

Even when you’re convinced something is just noise, you never bet the farm on that conviction. Even when your technical setup is working perfectly, you respect that geopolitics can blow up any thesis in 24 hours.

The FSLY trade worked because I sized it right and took profits when I had them. If I’d held expecting more “theater,” Tuesday would’ve been painful.

The Real Edge on News Days

Here’s what I’ve learned about trading through news cycles: The market’s initial reaction is usually emotional, not logical. People sell first, think second. Especially on Monday mornings when they’ve had all weekend to worry.

But sometimes – like Tuesday proved – the initial reaction turns out to be right. Sometimes the selling makes perfect sense in hindsight.

That’s your edge – not predicting whether news is real or theater, but positioning so you can profit either way. Take what the market gives you, then reassess when new information changes the game.

With Fastly, what mattered was the setup AND knowing when to get out. Clean technical picture, clear levels, multiple timeframe alignment. The war news gave me a better entry price, then I let profits protect me when things escalated.

Your Action Plan

The technical setup that worked Monday doesn’t mean much when oil’s spiking and we’re in actual conflict.

This is when you step back, reassess, and wait for the next clear opportunity. Sometimes the best trade is no trade, especially when your Monday thesis just got blown up by Tuesday reality.

The market will give us new setups. They always do. But right now, I’m focused on preservation over aggression.

If you’d like to see more of my chart breakdowns, you can catch them on our YouTube channel here.