Trader | Trading Psychology Coach | Meditation Teacher |
I tweet on probabilistic thinking and emotional management in trading |
18+ years in the market
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I'm an introvert.
And one of the reasons why I became a trader is that, unlike most professions in life, you can do it completely alone.
Success or failure depends entirely on yourself.
A trader must reach a point of no return.
It's a point beyond which they've invested so much financially, emotionally, personally that quitting isn't an option anymore.
I feel this point has to be reached before the real learning begins and progress starts to accelerate.
The hardest parts of trading:
1. Patiently waiting for the right setup
2. Boldly pulling the trigger on the right setup
3. Calmly accepting the final outcome of the right setup
If you followed your trading plan but still lost money... you still won.
You won a psychological battle, and this should be celebrated.
Over time, consistent actions beget consistent results.
The worst outcome, if you fail at trading, is that you'll have to save up again and/or go back to a regular job.
The best outcome if you succeed is that you'll get to design the life of your dreams.
It's an excellent asymmetric bet if you ask me.
Fair downside; massive upside.
Over the years, I have found that trading isn't necessarily about what you know.
It's about how you behave.
And behavior is hard to teach, even to really smart people.
Over the years, I have found that trading isn't so much about what you know.
It's more about how you behave.
And behavior is hard to teach, even to really smart people.
Daytrading isn't a losing game.
Daytrading is hard.
It's an important nuance.
The reason why it's hard is that it's a high-performance endeavor much like free solo climbing or pro golfing.
The people that thrive as day traders are elite performers who've earned their mastery.
Hunger is the first element of self-discipline. If you can control what you eat and drink, you can control everything else.”
~ Dr. Umar Faruq Abd-Allah
Spent my 20s learning how to trade profitably while 'friends' were at clubs and bars living their best lives.
I've been called many things—an outcast, a loser, uninteresting, weird, a recluse...
The thing is, this was the best investment of my time and attention.
If we placed 100 traders in a room and had them trade a profitable strategy, the majority would still lose.
You know why?
At the most basic level, trading is a mental game —you are up against your insecurities, impulses, emotions, biases...
If you're a struggling trader, I can't preach enough about the importance of staying in the game.
Behavioral changes don't happen overnight; they happen incrementally over a period of time.
So, stay active in the market, trade small, and you'll slowly build expertise.
Don't be a jack of all trades, master of none.
Specialize.
Understand your risk appetite, funnel your focus in one or two asset classes, determine your trading hours, stick with one or two set-ups, be patient...
That's the money.
"The traders who can make money consistently on a weekly, monthly, and yearly basis approach trading from the perspective of a mental discipline."
~ Mark Douglas
When a risk management parameter is triggered, bite the bullet, take the loss and move on.
Don't hold on... don't get defensive... it's OK to be wrong... it's OK to lose small.
Done the right way, trading gives you freedom.
When you get a taste of that freedom, it's very VERY difficult to go back to a regular job―you become unemployable, and happily so.
I'm an introvert.
And one of the reasons why I became a trader is that, unlike most professions in life, you can do it completely alone.
Success or failure depends entirely on yourself.
Place your trade.
Maybe it'll work, maybe it won't.
You'll never know until it happens.
Be fearless in the face of uncertainty.
This is your ticket to success.
In a bull market, buy the dips and the breakouts.
In a bear market, sell the rallies and the breakdowns.
And cut your losses when things aren't going your way.
Don't overthink this, it's really that simple.
A little bit of transparency:
Over a span of just 11 years, I grew 14k into well over 7M. (my own personal money)
I rarely withdraw from my trading accounts.
Profits stay in the accounts and are methodically reinvested.
The hardest parts of trading:
1. Patiently waiting for the right setup
2. Boldly pulling the trigger on the right setup
3. Calmly accepting the final outcome of the right setup
1st rule of trading: Wait for the right opportunity.
2nd rule of trading: Accept what the market gives.
3rd rule of trading: Understand what you're risking.
4th rule of trading: Accept what the market takes.
5th rule of trading: Make your trading process your whole world.
You've decided to be a trader.
Know that a trader is not an expert predictor, a trader is an expert risk manager.
Get comfortable with failure and minimize the extent to which you are wrong.
That's your number one job.
"The traders who can make money consistently on a weekly, monthly, and yearly basis approach trading from the perspective of a mental discipline."
~ Mark Douglas
I'm an introvert.
And one of the reasons why I became a trader is that, unlike most professions in life, you can do it completely alone.
Success or failure depends entirely on you.
The hardest parts of trading:
1. Patiently waiting for the right setup
2. Boldly pulling the trigger on the right setup
3. Calmly accepting the final outcome of the right setup
The hardest parts of trading:
1. Patiently waiting for the right setup
2. Boldly pulling the trigger on the right setup
3. Calmly accepting the final outcome of the right setup
The longer you stay in the game, the more you'll realize that there are no real expert market predictors.
Instead, there are:
1. Expert risk managers
2. Expert mindset and emotional managers
Place your trade.
Maybe it'll work, maybe it won't.
You'll never know until it happens.
Be fearless in the face of uncertainty.
This is your ticket to success.
Trading ―if you're in it for the long haul, it will force you to fix your life.
• Get better sleep
• Eat healthier
• Stress and worry less
• Exercise more
• Develop a growth mindset
Trading is not only about money; money is simply a by-product.
Trading is a way of life.
Once concepts like uncertainty, risk management, probability, and asymmetric bets get fully integrated, they become the way you look at life.
The hardest parts of trading:
1. Patiently waiting for the right setup
2. Boldly pulling the trigger on the right setup
3. Calmly accepting the final outcome of the right setup
1st rule of trading: Wait for the right opportunity.
2nd rule of trading: Accept what the market gives.
3rd rule of trading: Understand what you're risking.
4th rule of trading: Accept what the market takes.
5th rule of trading: Make your trading process your whole world.
You're not bad at trading.
You're just in the process of earning your mastery.
And you can make that process difficult—by trading big sizes
(invites a lot of emotions)
Or you can make that process easier—by trading small sizes
(creates a more detached mindset)
Your call...
You're not bad at trading.
You're just in the process of earning your mastery.
And you can make that process difficult—by trading big sizes
(invites a lot of emotions)
Or you can make that process easier—by trading small sizes
(creates a more detached mindset)
Your call...
When the market is about to hit your stop loss, take a deep breath, switch off your ego, and let it happen.
Don't fight the market.
Accept its lessons and move to the next opportunity.
To excel in a field like trading, you need to unlearn a lot of what society has taught you about failure, happiness, perfection, and the meaning of hard work.
10 Rules of Trading
1: Know your edge
2: Know yourself
3: Forget $$, focus on trading well
4: Play the long game
5: Be intransigent with risk control
6: Tune out the noise
7: Set achievable goals
8: Let your profits run (as much as possible)
9: Stay humble
10: Relax
What else?