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Solution if you are in Stress while Trading

1. Think positively. Being optimistic helps in stressful situations. Do not let stress affect your mind and keep focusing on the positive side of your trading. What we think may result in decisions that can lead to better or worst situations. Thinking positively helps in making good decisions.
2. Change your response to stress. Being able to manage stress means developing strategies to deal with stress. Think of stress as a reaction rather than an event. It makes it easier to identify healthier ways to manage stress. Learn to Reframe Your Brain when adrenaline kicks in as the result of a win or a loss.
3. Task division. No man is an island. As a human being, we cannot survive being on our own. Having a trading mentor or trading buddy can provide both a sounding board and a support system. 
4. Manage your time. Time is such that once you lost it, you can never get it back. Managing and limiting your trading time will help to keep your emotions and trading on track. 
5. Learn your priorities. Our behavior towards ourselves and others may also contribute towards stress. Sometimes it is important to say no towards requests that you find it hard to meet. Keep in mind that by saying ‘yes’ to everything may please everyone but you may add on more stress and cause disappointment if the target is not meet. (more…)

Life and Trading Lessons from Hemingway

As I work on brushing up writing skills for a potential book on my journey as a caregiver to my wife for 30+ months, I happened across a collection of advice for writers Hemingway sprinkled through his correspondence with colleagues over the years. Wisdom for the ages?

Life lesson:

“Listen now. When people talk listen completely. Don’t be thinking what you are going to say. Most people never listen. Nor do they observe. You should be able to go in to a room and when you come out know everything that you saw there and not only that. If that room gave you any feeling you should know exactly what it was that gave you that feeling. Try that for practice. When you’re in town stand outside the theatre and see how the people differ in the way they get out of taxis or motor cars. There are a thousand ways to practice. And always think of other people.”

And for traders as well as writers:

“Dostoevsky was made by being sent to Siberia. Writers are forged in injustice as a sword is forged.”

It makes me think of all the injustices bestowed upon newer traders; complexity, bad prices, one’s own emotional state, the non-obvious inner circle game– the list is endless.

5 Signs You’ve Matured as a Trader

1) Are Self Reliant: When you stop asking other people: “What do you think of the market?” While I respect the opinions of my colleagues, I DO NOT rely on them. I prefer to do my own homework, research and analysis. I LET THE MARKET tell me if I’m right or wrong.

The ultimate goal for traders is to make confident decisions on your own and trade with complete independence. You should not have to rely on the opinions of others because you should have conviction in your OWN ideas.

2) Stop Celebrating Winners: When you stop feeling the need to pound your chest every time you make 30 cents on a stock. (It is the flip side  of not getting depressed over every loss). Recognize what you did correctly and move on to the next trade.

The great Pittsburgh Steelers coach Chuck Noll used to say, after you score a touchdown there’s no need to start dancing. Simply hand the ball to the referee, head back to the bench and “Act like you’ve been there before!”

Same thing goes for the stock market. Don’t act like you’ve never had success trading before.

3) Let the Trades Come to You:  When you stop feeling the need to trade every day and you get over the “fear of missing out.” This is the downfall of most traders.

It took me a while to shift my focus from worrying about “missing out” to playing great defense. Once I did this, I noticed an increase in my confidence level as a trader. Keep in mind, there will ALWAYS be opportunities and it’s okay if you miss a few.

4) Feel No Need to Brag: Those traders who compulsively tell everyone about every winner are over compensating for their insecurities. It is a sign of lack of confidence. When you make a good trade or a good call on the market, and you don’t feel the need to remind everyone — its because that is what is supposed to happen.

The key is to be consistent and to separate your ego from your trading. If you are doing a good job, people will notice.

5) Loss Management: When you learn to cut losses without hesitation. No one likes to lose, but cutting losses is part of the game. I have studied the best traders throughout history and they all have the same number one rule: CUT YOUR LOSSES! Learn to accept when you are wrong and move on!

The 12 Steps and Counting

 I admitted I was powerless over my affliction to taking small profits.

I made a decision to turn myself over to the care of those who affably might help me as God has helped others.

I made a searching inventory of all the losses I have taken.

I admitted to other human beings especially the spec list the nature of my wrongs.

I am ready and willing, but perhaps not able, to remove these defects.

I humbly ask all my supporters and friends to help me remove them. (more…)

If You Have to Be Right, Trouble Ahead

“I confess, I think about the future. So do my colleagues. If someone who’s spent decades investing doesn’t have an opinion about what lies ahead, there’s something wrong. I believe our clients want us to apply the benefit of our experience in gauging and reacting to the opportunities and risks that lie ahead.
But I have a mantra on this subject, too: “It’s one thing to have an opinion; it’s something very different to assume it’s right and act on that assumption.” We have views on the future. And they can cause us to “lean” toward offense or defense. Just never so much that for the results to be good, our views have to be right.”
–Howard Marks, Oaktree Capital Management January 10, 2012

Marks is not a technical trend follower, but wise words about not worrying about being right.
The Dead saw it too:
Drivin’ that train
High on cocaine
Casey Jones you better
watch your speed
Trouble ahead
Trouble behind
and you know that notion
just crossed my mind

 
Trouble with you is
The trouble with me
Got two good eyes
but we still don’t see
Come round the bend
You know it’s the end
The fireman screams and
The engine just gleams

Desire and Fear in Trading

Desire and fear alternate in the minds of traders as they go through the day.  But let me ask you whether desire or fear dominates your thoughts and feelings as you trade? 

For many traders the primary emotion is fear.  They fear loss: losing profits, losing money, losing equity and even their margin.  Some fear losing their touch, their feel for the market, their focus, their luck, the respect of their boss, colleagues, or mate, or worse, their own self esteem.

Other traders are flooded with the emotion of desire.  They look forward to what the day will produce.  They like the thrill of the chase.  They have a sense of unlimited potential and abundant opportunities for profit.  They anticipate improving their skills, intuition, and understanding as they go through the trading day and week.

Keep in mind that desire is not greed.  Greed is an inordinate wanting.  It is excessive desire and comes from a sense of scarcity, a feeling that there is not and will not be enough.  Desire is healthy: greed is unhealthy.

What you feel depends upon your mental focus.  Do you place your conscious and unconscious attention on the possibility of loss or the probability (hopefully) of gain?

What you hold in your conscious attention colors your reality and becomes the quality and fabric of your life and trading. In your life, do you look for what’s missing, or do you pay attention to what you have and can create?  Do you think about terrible things that have happened and could happen again, or do you think about wonderful experiences you’ve had and expect even better things ahead?  Trading is a microcosm of life.  What you do in life, you’ll do in trading.

You can through conscious volition change your focus from loss to gain.  You can imagine failure or success.  You can anticipate improving your skills and understanding, or you can worry about getting even worse. (more…)

The Goldman Sachs Careers Page

 gs-carrers
 

Look, I help my readers out. Here’s the Goldman Sachs “Careers” part of their website.

Be sure to tell them that you read this blog religiously — and you’ll be so in.

One more thing, here are the Do’s and Don’ts for your Goldman internship:

No matter where your summer experience takes you, you can benefit from these useful tips and hints. They may seem simple, but your colleagues will notice if you aren’t acting on them.The Do’s
* Be eager for a challenge
* Be yourself
* Be open-minded
* Be on time
* Know the dress code
* Observe and ask thoughtful questions
* Treat everyone you meet with respect and professionalism
* Understand that everyone makes mistakes
* Carry a notebook with you at all times
* Pay attention to the details
* Be proactive
* Show energy and interest
* Set goals for yourself
The Don’ts

* Let a bad day get you down
* Take on more than you can handle
* Pretend to know something you don’t
* Have nothing to do
* Ask everyone the same questions
* Take yourself too seriously
* Talk negatively about co-workers
* Focus all of your attention on senior management
* Bring your personal life into the office
* Surf the web all day (BWAHAHAHAHA – Eddy)
* Spend working hours on social networking sites or texting friends

Desire and Fear in Trading

Desire and fear alternate in the minds of traders as they go through the day.  But let me ask you whether desire or fear dominates your thoughts and feelings as you trade? 

For many traders the primary emotion is fear.  They fear loss: losing profits, losing money, losing equity and even their margin.  Some fear losing their touch, their feel for the market, their focus, their luck, the respect of their boss, colleagues, or mate, or worse, their own self esteem.

Other traders are flooded with the emotion of desire.  They look forward to what the day will produce.  They like the thrill of the chase.  They have a sense of unlimited potential and abundant opportunities for profit.  They anticipate improving their skills, intuition, and understanding as they go through the trading day and week.

Keep in mind that desire is not greed.  Greed is an inordinate wanting.  It is excessive desire and comes from a sense of scarcity, a feeling that there is not and will not be enough.  Desire is healthy: greed is unhealthy.

What you feel depends upon your mental focus.  Do you place your conscious and unconscious attention on the possibility of loss or the probability (hopefully) of gain?

What you hold in your conscious attention colors your reality and becomes the quality and fabric of your life and trading. In your life, do you look for what’s missing, or do you pay attention to what you have and can create?  Do you think about terrible things that have happened and could happen again, or do you think about wonderful experiences you’ve had and expect even better things ahead?  Trading is a microcosm of life.  What you do in life, you’ll do in trading. (more…)

Desire and Fear in Trading

Desire and fear alternate in the minds of traders as they go through the day.  But let me ask you whether desire or fear dominates your thoughts and feelings as you trade? 

For many traders the primary emotion is fear.  They fear loss: losing profits, losing money, losing equity and even their margin.  Some fear losing their touch, their feel for the market, their focus, their luck, the respect of their boss, colleagues, or mate, or worse, their own self esteem.

Other traders are flooded with the emotion of desire.  They look forward to what the day will produce.  They like the thrill of the chase.  They have a sense of unlimited potential and abundant opportunities for profit.  They anticipate improving their skills, intuition, and understanding as they go through the trading day and week.

Keep in mind that desire is not greed.  Greed is an inordinate wanting.  It is excessive desire and comes from a sense of scarcity, a feeling that there is not and will not be enough.  Desire is healthy: greed is unhealthy.

What you feel depends upon your mental focus.  Do you place your conscious and unconscious attention on the possibility of loss or the probability (hopefully) of gain? (more…)

Desire and Fear

Desire and fear alternate in the minds of traders as they go through the day.  But let me ask you whether desire or fear dominates your thoughts and feelings as you trade? 

For many traders the primary emotion is fear.  They fear loss: losing profits, losing money, losing equity and even their margin.  Some fear losing their touch, their feel for the market, their focus, their luck, the respect of their boss, colleagues, or mate, or worse, their own self esteem.

Other traders are flooded with the emotion of desire.  They look forward to what the day will produce.  They like the thrill of the chase.  They have a sense of unlimited potential and abundant opportunities for profit.  They anticipate improving their skills, intuition, and understanding as they go through the trading day and week.

Keep in mind that desire is not greed.  Greed is an inordinate wanting.  It is excessive desire and comes from a sense of scarcity, a feeling that there is not and will not be enough.  Desire is healthy: greed is unhealthy.

What you feel depends upon your mental focus.  Do you place your conscious and unconscious attention on the possibility of loss or the probability (hopefully) of gain? (more…)