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AI trading rules checklist: 10 house rules for using AI safely

A tool is only as safe as the rules around it. Here are 10 short house rules for using AI in your trading — and a prompt that turns your own trading rules into a checklist you'll actually use.

Beginner guide · 7-minute read · Updated 2026-10-21

Why you need house rules for AI

AI chat assistants (like ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini) are easy to use and hard to use well. Without a few rules, it's tempting to let them drift from "helper" into "decider".

So write the rules down once. Then you never have to argue with yourself about them.

The 10 house rules

Each one is a yes-or-no check. Print it, pin it, or paste it at the top of your trading notes.

What AI is for

1. I use AI to explain, summarise, check and review — not to decide.
2. I give AI the source. For reports, news and rules, I paste the official text instead of asking from memory.
3. I check every fact that touches money — rules, numbers, dates — against a primary source. See how to fact-check AI answers.
4. I redo every money calculation myself or with a calculator, like the position size calculator.
5. I test every line of AI-written code on past charts before I trust it. See how to use AI to write Pine Script.

What AI is not for

1. I never ask AI for buy or sell calls or price predictions. Nobody can make them reliably. Read can AI predict the stock market.
2. I never paste account numbers, passwords, login codes or personal details into an AI chat.
3. I never pay for "AI" that promises returns. Guaranteed or steady returns are a red flag. See AI trading scams to avoid.
4. I never let AI change my plan in the middle of a trading day. Plan changes happen in the weekly review, not at 10 am.

The last word

1. My plan and my risk rules make the decision. I own the result.

The checklist, ready to copy

Here's the same list in a box you can paste into a note:

MY AI HOUSE RULES
[ ] AI explains, summarises, checks, reviews. It doesn't decide.
[ ] I paste the source instead of asking from memory.
[ ] I check money facts against a primary source.
[ ] I redo all money math myself.
[ ] I test AI code on past charts first.
[ ] No buy/sell calls or predictions from AI.
[ ] No account numbers, passwords or personal data in chats.
[ ] No paying for AI that promises returns.
[ ] No plan changes mid-day. Changes happen in my weekly review.
[ ] My plan decides. I own the result.

Now: turn YOUR trading rules into a checklist

The house rules above are about using AI. Your trading rules are about trading. AI is great at turning the second into a checklist.

Write your rules down first, roughly is fine. For example:

• I trade 2 markets only.
• I look at the daily chart first and trade in its direction.
• I enter only after a candle body closes past a level.
• My stop goes beyond the last turning point.
• I risk 1% per trade, sized from the stop.
• I stop for the day after 2 losses.
• No new trades 15 minutes before or after big news.

Then paste them under this prompt:

Here are my trading rules. Turn them into a short yes/no checklist I can run before every trade.
- Put risk checks (stop, size, daily limit) first.
- Keep my wording where possible. Max 10 items.
- Add one final item: "How do I feel right now? If FOMO, revenge, bored or tired, wait."
- After the checklist, list any rule that's too vague to check with yes or no, and suggest a clearer version.
Don't add new strategies or indicators.

[paste your rules]

The last part is the most valuable. "I trade when the setup looks good" can't be checked. "I enter only after a candle body closes past the level" can.

An example result

Here's an illustration of what that prompt might return for the rules above:

1. Is my stop beyond the last turning point?
2. Is my size worked out from the stop, risking 1%?
3. Have I had fewer than 2 losses today?
4. Is it at least 15 minutes from big news?
5. Is this one of my 2 markets?
6. Does the daily chart agree with this direction?
7. Has a candle body closed past the level?
8. How do I feel? If FOMO, revenge, bored or tired — wait.

Any "no" means no trade. That's the whole point. For more on building one, see our pre-trade checklist guide and how to write a trading plan.

Use it, then review it

A checklist only helps if it's used. Two habits make that happen:

• Log it. In your journal, record whether every box was ticked. If you trade with a gap, note which one.
• Review it weekly. Ask AI: "In these 20 trades, which checklist items did I skip most?" Then make that item clearer or easier. Our journal review guide has the full prompt.

Practicing first? Run the checklist on every trade in bar replay. By the time real money is involved, it'll be a habit.

Common mistakes

• Letting AI write rules you don't understand. If you can't explain a rule, you won't follow it under pressure.
• Adding a new rule every day. Change one thing a week, in the weekly review.
• Treating ticked boxes as a promise. A checklist keeps your process consistent. Any trade can still lose.

Questions