# How to Find Your Trading Entries with the ICC Method from SCI

Learn how to find trading entries using the ICC method from SCI's Trading Course 003. Step-by-step: identify the impulse, correction, continuation and time your entry.

Source: https://fxning02.top/how-to-find/ · based on the channel [SCI](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClsS3T1SnsX__1g9COtfKCQ) · Video: [How I Find My Trading Entries | Trading Course 003](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mh85H9D7gXo) · 2026-10-16

![How to Find Your Trading Entries with the ICC Method from SCI](https://fxning02.top/how-to-find/how-to-find.webp)

## Key takeaways

- ICC stands for Impulse, Correction, Continuation — a three-phase framework for reading price.
- Entries are taken only after a correction in the direction of the higher-timeframe impulse.
- The method works on any market, including XAUUSD and major forex pairs.
- Risk management and emotional control are the two most common reasons traders fail even with a valid entry.
- SCI's Trading Course 003 focuses specifically on entry timing and execution.

To find trading entries with the ICC method, you wait for an impulse move, let the market correct against it, and then enter when price continues in the original direction — ideally from a key level or order block. In practice, that means marking up the chart on a higher timeframe, dropping to a lower timeframe for precision, and only pulling the trigger when the correction is clearly complete. SCI's Trading Course 003 walks through exactly this process, and the channel's free resources are linked from his [Instagram page](https://www.instagram.com/tradesbysci), where you can also follow the trade recaps.

## What ICC actually means for entries

ICC is a three-part read of price: Impulse, Correction, Continuation. The impulse is the strong, one-directional move that shows where the real orders are. The correction is the pullback that follows — it is not a reversal, it is the market refuelling. The continuation is the leg that resumes in the impulse's direction, and that is where you enter. Most traders lose money because they enter during the impulse (chasing) or during the correction (guessing the bottom). ICC forces you to wait for the third phase, which is why the entry has a much higher probability of following through. The method is timeframe-agnostic: you can apply it on a daily chart for swing trades or on a 5-minute chart for day trades, but the logic never changes.

## The three steps to time an entry

1. Identify the impulse on your higher timeframe. Mark the origin of the move and the extreme it reached. If the move was choppy and overlapping, it is not an impulse — skip it.
2. Wait for the correction. The correction should be visibly weaker than the impulse: fewer candles, smaller bodies, and ideally it should retrace into a known area such as an order block, a fair value gap, or a previous structure level.
3. Enter on the continuation. The trigger is a lower-timeframe shift in momentum — for example, a break of the correction's internal structure or a bullish/bearish engulfing candle at the level. Place your stop beyond the correction's extreme and target the previous impulse high or low.

## How to mark up a chart before you look for entries

Marking up the chart is the step most people skip, and it is the reason their entries feel random. Before you look for a trade, mark the last clear impulse on the higher timeframe, then mark the zone where the correction is likely to end. On XAUUSD, for example, that zone often lines up with a previous day's high or low, or with a liquidity sweep of Asian session lows. Once the zone is marked, you do not need to stare at the screen — you wait for price to reach it. This is what makes the process mechanical rather than emotional. If price never reaches your zone, there is no trade, and that is a perfectly good outcome.

## Common mistakes that ruin otherwise good entries

Even traders who understand ICC keep making the same execution errors. The most common one is entering too early, during the correction, because the pullback looks like a bargain. The second is moving the stop loss to avoid a small loss, which turns a controlled trade into an account-damaging one. The third is trading every impulse they see, including low-quality ones that form during ranging markets. A fourth mistake is ignoring the higher timeframe: an ICC setup on a 1-minute chart against a strong daily trend is a coin flip, not an edge. Finally, many traders size positions based on how confident they feel rather than on a fixed percentage of the account, which is how a single bad day wipes out weeks of good entries.

## What to do when the setup does not appear

No setup is a valid answer. The market spends most of its time in conditions where ICC does not apply — choppy ranges, news-driven spikes, and low-volume sessions. During those periods, the correct action is to do nothing and preserve capital. Traders who feel they must be in a position every day are the ones who give back their profits. A useful rule is to set a maximum number of trades per session and stop once you hit it, regardless of whether you are up or down. This keeps your decision-making sharp and prevents revenge trading after a loss.

## Risk management and the psychology behind entries

A perfect entry with bad risk management still loses money. Before you take any ICC trade, define three numbers: your entry, your stop, and your target. The stop goes where the setup is invalidated, not where your comfort level is. Position size is then calculated so that the distance to the stop equals a fixed percentage of your account — typically 0.5% to 1% per trade for beginners. On the psychological side, the hardest part of ICC is waiting. The impulse already happened, the correction is boring, and the continuation has not started yet. That boredom is the edge. Traders who cannot sit through it end up entering during the correction and wondering why the method 'does not work'.

## Useful links

- Instagram (main): https://www.instagram.com/tradesbysci
- Live trades on X: https://x.com/tradesbysci
- Trading platform used: https://tinyurl.com/hideoutsci
- Discord community: https://discord.gg/tradesbysci
- Telegram (ICC Mafia): https://t.me/iccmafia

## Final thoughts on finding entries

Finding entries is not about predicting the market; it is about waiting for a specific sequence to complete and then acting on it with defined risk. The ICC framework gives you that sequence — impulse, correction, continuation — and SCI's Trading Course 003 breaks it down with real chart examples. If you apply the three steps consistently, journal your trades, and respect your stop loss, your entries will improve even before your win rate does. Start by following [SCI on Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/tradesbysci) to see the setups in real time, and treat every trade you skip as a victory for your discipline.


## Questions & answers

**What does ICC stand for in trading?**

ICC stands for Impulse, Correction, Continuation. It is a three-phase framework for reading price: a strong directional move, a pullback against it, and then a resumption in the original direction. Entries are taken during the continuation phase, not during the impulse or the correction.

**Can I use the ICC method on XAUUSD and forex pairs?**

Yes. ICC is timeframe-agnostic and works on any liquid market, including XAUUSD, major forex pairs, and indices. The logic is the same everywhere: identify the impulse, wait for the correction to reach a key level, and enter on the continuation. What changes is the timeframe you use for marking up the chart.

**Why do I keep losing money even when I identify the right setup?**

Most losses after a correct setup come from execution, not analysis. Common causes are entering too early during the correction, moving the stop loss, oversizing the position, or trading low-quality impulses in ranging markets. Fixing risk management — a fixed percentage per trade and a stop placed where the setup is invalidated — usually solves more problems than finding a new strategy.

**How many trades should I take per day with this method?**

There is no fixed number, but quality matters more than quantity. A useful approach is to set a maximum of one to three trades per session and stop once you reach it, whether you are up or down. If no valid ICC setup appears, taking zero trades is a legitimate and often profitable decision.