Macro dashboard - your decision cockpit

A professional does not guess the regime. They read it off the dashboard in 3 minutes. You will too.

This is an implementation lesson. We turn the 6 previous lessons into a single daily and weekly operating process. Without a dashboard, all macro knowledge is a curiosity. With a dashboard, it is an edge.

What the macro dashboard is and why you need it

A dashboard is a single A4 page (or a spreadsheet / TradingView layout) where 8-10 fields give you the answer to one question: what regime are we in, and can I trade according to plan today?

Without a dashboard:

• You check 15 tabs, 5 accounts on X, 3 calendars and you get lost.
• You forget about the Fed speaker at 17:00 and you enter at 16:55.
• You do not know whether your exposure is 0.5R or 2.5R to USD.

With a dashboard:

• 3 minutes in the morning = you know whether today is trend, range or cash.
• Every entry decision passes through the DXY/VIX/correlation filter before you click.

The architecture of an ideal dashboard

Split into 4 blocks:

1. CALENDAR - what can blow up today?
2. REGIME - risk-on/off and where are we?
3. DOLLAR AND RATES - where is liquidity flowing?
4. EXPOSURE - what do you have open?

Block 1: Calendar (15 seconds)

Format in the journal:

CALENDAR 2026-05-13: CPI 14:30 Tier1 USD, Claims 14:30 Tier2, Waller 17:00. Earnings: none. Geo: stable.
DECISION: No new USD positions 14:15-15:15. Regime analysis after CPI.

Block 2: Risk-on/off regime (60 seconds)

4 numbers + 1 assessment.

Overall assessment: REGIME: Goldilocks Risk-on / Hawkish Risk-off / Deflationary Risk-off / Transition

You write 1 of 4. Done.

Block 3: Dollar and Rates (60 seconds)

Decision: DOLLAR: Weak / Strong / Neutral + RATES: Cuts priced in harder / softer / unchanged

Block 4: Exposure and Correlations (45 seconds)

The most important block. This is where accounts die.

PORTFOLIO OPEN:
1. EURUSD long 0.5R, beta_DXY -0.9, beta_SPX 0.6
2. AUDJPY long 0.5R, beta_SPX 0.8

Exposure_USD = -1.0 (short USD) → OK (<1.5)
Beta_SPX sum = 1.4 → OK (<1.5)
Max correlation in the portfolio = 0.65 EURUSD/AUDJPY → Moderate, allowed but 0.75R max each
Portfolio Heat = 1.0R → OK (<3R)

DECISION: I can add 1 position max 0.5R if the driver agrees.

If Heat >2R or Exposure >1.5, the first action is REDUCTION, not a new trade.

Daily process - 5 minutes in the morning

05:00-09:00 CET (before London):

1. Open the dashboard (spreadsheet or notebook).
2. Fill in Block 1 Calendar (15s).
3. Fill in Block 2 Regime (60s) - data from the previous day’s close.
4. Fill in Block 3 Dollar and rates (60s).
5. Fill in Block 4 Exposure (45s).
6. Write 1 decision sentence:

DECISION OF THE DAY 2026-05-13: Regime Goldilocks Risk-on, Dollar Weak, Calendar CPI 14:30. Plan: longs on risk-on only until 14:15, then cash, analysis after 15:30. Max 1 new position.

This sentence is your plan telling you when not to trade.

Weekly process - Sunday, 20 minutes (deep dive)

On Sunday:

1. Calendar review for the week: Mark every Tier1 in red. Decide: is an FOMC/CPI week a defensive week (smaller size)? Write it down.
2. FedWatch change T-7 days vs today: Has the market increased the odds of cuts? If so, your risk-on longs have a tailwind for the week.
3. 20D correlations: Calculate the Correlation Coefficient for the main pairs in your portfolio. Write down where correlations are >0.7. The banned-duplicates list for the week.
4. Commodities and geopolitics: Check the Brent, TTF, Copper and Gold D1 trend. Is anything breaking a 20D high/low because of geopolitics? If so, add a filter.
5. Review of the previous week: What % of decisions were in line with the regime? How many R were lost fighting the regime? Write down 1 lesson.

Weekly review formula:

Winrate in line with the regime: ___%
Winrate against the regime: ___%
Average R in line: ___
Average R against: ___
Conclusion: Does fighting the regime have negative EV in my execution? YES/NO

In 90% of cases the answer is YES.

Dashboard template to copy (markdown / Excel)

# MACRO DASHBOARD - 2026-05-13

## CALENDAR
Tier1: US CPI 14:30
Tier2: Claims 14:30
Fed Speakers: Waller 17:00 voter
Geo: stable, Brent 82

## REGIME
SPX: +0.6% close, VIX 16.2 -> Risk-on
DXY: 102.8 < EMA50 -> Dollar weak
US10Y: 4.25% flat
AUDJPY: +0.5% -> Carry ON
Risk Score: +2.1
Assessment: Goldilocks Risk-on

## DOLLAR AND RATES
DXY trend: down
FedWatch next cut: 72% (+7% vs yesterday)
Spread 10Y-2Y: -0.25% inverted
Spread DE-US: -1.8%
Decision: USD weak, cuts priced in harder

## EXPOSURE
Open: EURUSD long 0.5R, AUDJPY long 0.5R
Exposure_USD: -1.0 OK
Beta_SPX: 1.4 OK
Heat: 1.0R OK
Max Corr: 0.65

## DECISION OF THE DAY
In line with the regime, risk longs only, until 14:15, then no trading 14:15-15:15, max 1 new. No short USD x3.

Paste this into your journal and fill it in every day. It is 5 minutes that saves 5R a month.

When the plan says do not trade - based on the dashboard

The whole point of the dashboard is to say NO.

1. Risk Score < -2 and you want to go long SPX/AUDJPY. The dashboard says Risk-off. No longs by force. You can only short on a retest or stay in cash.
2. The calendar shows 2x Tier1 within <2h. The dashboard: no new positions from 30 min before the first until 30 min after the second. Observation.
3. Exposure_USD >1.5 and you see an “ideal setup” on GBPUSD that is also short USD. The dashboard: reduction, not addition. The setup may be pretty, but the portfolio will crack on one DXY move.
4. VIX >25 at the previous close and you want to hold a swing overnight at 1R. The dashboard: reduce to 0.25R or close. The VIX rule.
5. The DE-US spread and DXY contradict your EURUSD long. The dashboard: 0 of 3 screens in agreement = no trade. Do not argue with the dashboard.

The mistakes that cost the most

Measurable exercise

21 days with the dashboard - a challenge

Day 1: Build the dashboard in Google Sheets / Notion / on paper with the 4 blocks above.

Days 2-21:

• Every day fill it in and take a photo / screenshot of the entry with the time (proof).
• For every trade record: was it in line with the decision of the day? (Y/N) and the R result.
• At the end calculate:

Number of days filled in: __/21
Winrate of trades in line with the dashboard: ___%
Winrate of trades against it: ___%
Avg R in line: ___
Avg R against: ___
Exposure_USD exceeded how many times: __

Success = 18/21 days filled in + the difference between Avg R in line vs against >0.3R in favour of in line.

This is proof that the process matters more than the setup.

Check yourself

1. Why do you need a macro dashboard as a technical trader? a) So it looks nice b) To filter when the technicals have a high probability (in line with the regime) and when they have a low one (against the current) c) To predict the future

Correct: b) A filter, not a crystal ball.

2. What do you do when the Risk Score is -3 and your system gives a long SPX signal? a) I enter because the system says so b) I reject it or reduce to 0.25R as a counter-trend, because the regime is against it, in line with the dashboard plan c) I increase the size

Correct: b) A technical system + a regime filter = higher EV.

3. How many fields should an effective daily dashboard have? a) 30, the more the better b) 8-10 key ones, filled in within 5 minutes c) 2 is enough

Correct: b) Simplicity = executability. You will not fill in 30 fields and you will abandon it after 3 days.

Common questions

Q: Do I have to do the dashboard at the weekend? A: Not in the morning at the weekend, but the 20-minute Sunday weekly review is mandatory in order to plan the week. Without it you start Monday in chaos.

Q: Can I automate the dashboard in Python/TradingView? A: Yes, that is the perfect use for it. TradingView alerts on DXY/SPX/VIX + a Google sheet with GOOGLEFINANCE and Risk Score formulas. But automation does not replace the 1 decision sentence written by hand.

Q: What if the dashboard says Risk-on and I see a short on SPX? A: You can short, but as a counter-trend with a smaller size of 0.25-0.33R and a shorter horizon (intraday, not swing). The dashboard does not ban a direction, it only manages size and expectations.

Q: How long until I see results? A: 21 days of consistent filling in + 1 FOMC cycle (6 weeks). After that you will have hard data on whether trading in line with the regime improves your R. Most traders see +0.2-0.4R Avg after implementing the regime filter.

---

End of Course 15

You have gone through 7 lessons that turn macro noise into a process:

1. Calendar -> do not get caught off guard
2. Fed -> read expectations, not headlines
3. Risk-on/off -> measure the market mode
4. Intermarket -> look at 4 charts instead of 1
5. Geopolitics -> tell noise from a supply shock
6. Correlations -> do not hold 5 of the same position
7. Dashboard -> turn knowledge into a daily 5-minute habit

Your next step: 21 days with the dashboard. No new indicator. No new system. Only measuring the regime against your decisions. That is where your edge is.

Remember: You do not trade the economy. You trade expectations about the economy, discounted in price and filtered through liquidity. The dashboard is your translator.

---