Hiding… Behind Closed Doors...
3 Responses to “Hiding… Behind Closed Doors”
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One Single Word is Your Enemy in Trading...
5 Responses to “One Single Word is Your Enemy in Trading”
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thaitrader says:
I spent many thousands of dollars and years searching for a better system to improve my trading. It wasn’t until I started to look at myself that I realized I had to change my thinking and use the knowledge I had gain over the years to develop a trading plan of my own. I am finally on the right track to being a successful trader.
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Ken says:
After many years of trading, I completely agree with Jeff.
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Carter says:
True, tend to get in too late and out too early. Have tried many sites and systems and never seem to get better
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Robert Carr says:
I’m 70 years old and if I wait to get better I might not get there. You get better by trying to get better. Maybe be the best you can be would be better than waiting for things to get better or waiting for the better way or the better thing. Some things never get better, so make the best of what you have to work with. In trading you have to have a plan and work the plan. In life, it’s the same. If you ask for help from the Holy Spirit, He will guide you. He knows everything about everything, so what can be better than that?
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Roland says:
I could not agree more Jeff and Mr Robert Carr.
pefectionism is a circular momentum sucking path which never achieves its goal.
There is only One who is perfect, and it aint me!!!
Thank you Jeff for the forum and what you do!
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Panic Is Not A Strategy For Success...
3 Responses to “Panic Is Not A Strategy For Success”
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Tony Monk says:
A couple of years ago I was getting into trades feeling what you described, but than I decided that I would get to the root of the problem and educate myself to eliminate such fear and emotions. I started listening to Dr Wayne dyer, Dr Deepak chopra, I also read a great book called (the power of the subconscious mind) by Dr Joseph Murphy, and I have been on this path since than, and for me it has helped me get to know myself and has helped me realize that everything as we know it is nothing more than just learning experiences to get to our next level in life, and from these experiences we learn to try not to repeat the same mistakes. I learned from the book (The power of the subconscious mind) The sub mind is habitual, and that we need to replace it with good habits and once we repeat these good new habits, than they become the new norm.
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Good advice.I wrote on this subject almost exactly a year ago adding that the need for security enters into the mix and may be the underlying driver of the fear. It may be of interest to you and your readers. http://daytradingwithanni.blogspot.com/2009/01/fear-and-greed-or-is-it.html
And thanks for the Twitter visit. -
Dave says:
I think we all went through those trading phases when learning the ropes.
I for one dropped my fear and greed when I set a plan for what I wanted from the markets. That is, I decided that I wanted a specific profit target and no longer needed to swing for fences or squeeze every nickel from every trade.
With stops and profit targets adjusted to the current market, how much I would “take home” or “pay” was now simply a factor of position sizing. If I need more cashflow; I up the capital balance and thus the position sizes I take on.
Thus, my risk remains the same and my target remains the same relative to te market.
Don’t have the extra capital? Just plug away with what you have because at a 5-10% average per day return it doesn’t take long to accumulate a balance that could accommodate anyone’s income requirement.
Now I trade a “set it and forget it” strategy. Once the trade is in, I shut off the computer and go do something else for fun or profit.
It’s much easier that way because I know the outcome(s) in advance.
Your option strategies are very similar in that respect and I use them exclusively for my equity trades.
So, I control fear and greed by establishing pre-determined outcomes, set the trade, then go have fun at something else while the market moves the way only it can predict.
Once in a trade, risk is the only thing I can really control. Controlling risk and accepting set profit targets leaves no place for fear nor greed to take hold.
Dave
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Coaching Yourself to Trading Victory...
7 Responses to “Coaching Yourself to Trading Victory”
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Scott B says:
Great advice Jeff!!! I have recently picked up a book on the subject that you and others may find useful. “The Daily Trading Coach: 101 Lessons for Becoming Your Own Trading Psychologist” by Brett N. Steenbarger. I am just getting started on it but I highly recommend it. It breaks concepts into small quickly digestible subjects. It is nice for applying a kiazen approach to make small changes that are easier to stick with. For those not familiar with the term kiazen, the definition I use is: Continuous Improvement — slow, incremental but constant.
Thanks for all of your efforts Jeff.
Scott B
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Hi Jeff,
Love your blog. I completely agree with you on coaching. Unfortunately I had to experience a loss in my portfolio to put more effort into proper coaching. I look at trading like a fight in a coliseum, me against the beast (Market). Am I mentally and physically prepared to win or am I just swinging my sword from side to side hoping to strike my enemy. Thanks for all the info.Ken
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Hey Ken,
Thank you!
Funny seems all of us have to experience a little dose of pain before we make the necessary changes. Been down that road to many times. Glad you are here.
JZ
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Hey Scott,
Thanks for book recommendation. Anyone who trades options needs self-coaching.
JZ
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Adam Moon says:
This topic makes for great debate. This ties into Jeff’s first posting about “Change or Transformation.” While making permanent change can be difficult I would disagree that it has to take time.It just takes enough reasons.Let me explain; Say 2 people are trying to give up smoking, we’ll call them smoker A and smoker B. Why is it that smoker A can put the cigerette down and never look back while smoker B puts the cigerette down but constantly struggles between the addiction, in and out of rehab, and tries all of the gimmicks available? Well, the answer is smoker A changed his/her “identity” while smoker B only changed his/her “behavior.” This is what Jeff was talking about when he refered to people going to the gym early in the year but giving up shortly after. To make an identity change, a permanent change, one has to relate more pain(reasons) into not changing than to the pain of staying the same. If you look in the mirror and say to yourself,”I only have an extra 10 pounds of “love” to lose, then that 10 pounds will always be there. Now if you look in the mirror with your shirt off and grab the 10 pounds around your waist and mash it together so you can really take a good look at it and say,” look at this!, this is disgusting!, repulsive!, and not sexy!”, then you are creating in your mind more reasons (pain) into not changing, then to your present state. Our minds are programmed to seek pleasure and avoid pain in everything we do. So it’s what we link to pleasure and pain that makes the difference. If one is trading options with only a behavior change and not an identity change, that trader will forever struggle and will eventually disappear. I accidently posted this in the gorilla blog. (sorry for the length of this posting Jeff)
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Jim says:
Likin’ the blog alot Jeff, but gotta tell ya it’s the Saints ALL THE WAY BABY!!!! Take care and keep the knowledge coming!!
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Dan says:
Hi Jeff,
I could share many thoughts, but one comes to mind. A broker once called me (from my brokerage), suggesting what appeared to be an opportunity on a futures spread. By this time in my trading experience I had decided – at least intellectually – to take sole responsible for my own trades. But, the attractiveness of a “professional’s” recommendation got the better of me. Well this “professional” violated one of the cardinal rules by legging me into the spread. As a result, by the time I was filled on both legs, I was already in a losing position. I was furious. But, after I calmed down, I simply pointed the finger right back at myself – for violating my own cardinal rule. The $ loss was relatively small, and I chalked it up as a cheap, but very valuable and powerful learning experience. The most valuable asset I have as a trader is the “right stuff” between the ears.
Thanks for the great stuff..
DH
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Hey Jeff,
I definately made some bad decisions in 2010. First of all, I went to a few workshops and learned all of the various option techniques and started just buying calls and puts. Of course, when my stop loss was hit, I just moved it down a few more points…needless to say I lost almost all of my capital. Now in 2011, I started just doing speads and have been successful on all of my trades and increased my capital by almost 50%.
Thanks again Jeff and maybe someday we will be neighbors sitting watching the mountains in Colorado.
Corey Crane
I did a credit spread on NDX last year. It was way over my head. Each strike price is $25, and the price was unreal. That day the market did a nose dive kind of like the last two days. I kept hoping things would improve but they never did. I finally got out of the trade about $7K lighter than the start of the day.
This was before I heard about your site. So, even though it was before I heard about you, I included it as my first journal entry. 1. Never more than 2-3% per trade, and have an exit plan before taking the trade.
Larry,
Know how you feel… been there and done that. Glad you are sticking to your money management rules now.
Jeff