A mental model that fundamentally changed how I read candlesticks: think of every candle as a story, not a signal. A candle with a large bullish body and small wicks tells this story: "Buyers were completely in control from open to close. Sellers tried to push it down (lower wick) and failed. Buyers dominated. A doji with equal upper and lower wicks tells this story: "The battle was perfectly even. Price opened, went up, went down, and came back to open. Nobody won. This candle means absolutely nothing by itself — only context makes it significant. A bearish candle with a long lower wick tells this story: "Bears drove price down aggressively, but then buyers came in and pushed back significantly. Bears tried but couldn't maintain control. When you read candles as stories rather than looking for pattern names, you develop an intuitive feel for the market. Do you read individual candles this way, or do you primarily look for named patterns?