Core Concepts
Failed Reaction
A zone produces a bounce but fails to break the previous structural high or low — indicating the zone lacks sufficient orders and will break on the next test
A failed reaction occurs when price reaches a supply or demand zone, produces a bounce or correction, but the move fails to break the previous structural high or low. This failure exposes the zone: the institutional orders were insufficient to reverse price. The low created by a failed demand reaction is a weak low (will be broken). The extreme of the failed reaction becomes new supply (a flip). Failed reactions create the natural setup for flip zone entries — the reaction extreme becomes the opposing zone.
✓How to Recognize
- •Price reaches the zone and bounces — but the bounce fails to break the previous structural high/low
- •The move from the zone is corrective (small candles, overlapping bodies) rather than impulsive
- •The reaction creates a weak low or weak high that will be taken on the next move
- •The extreme of the failed reaction becomes a new opposing zone (flip) — trade the flip, not the failed level
⚡How to Avoid
- →Re-entering at a zone that just produced a failed reaction — its orders are depleted
- →Holding a position from the zone after the reaction fails to break structure — take profits immediately
- →Confusing a successful reaction with a failed one — check if structure was broken, not just if price bounced
- →Ignoring the flip setup that a failed reaction creates — the reaction extreme is often a high-quality entry