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The Path to Greatness

There is much wisdom in the following and I wish these were my words, but sadly they are not. This particular speech doesn’t even pertain to trading, but reminds me so much of what Mark Douglas teaches. However, I always seem to find ways to relate just about everything in my life to trading, as I’m sure most who read this blog. Therefore I thought you would find as much value here as do I.

You are where you are…you have a goal
As you move towards that goal, things will happen
Some of those things will eventually, trigger in you an emotion that is counterproductive to your goal
It will cause you to act in a way, that will take you away from where you were heading, and towards something more familiar in your life that has plagued you your whole life
We all have these areas of vulnerability

Those who master this vulnerability are the people who master their craft. The people who master that moment in time, where that reaction occurs, are the people who do extraordinary things with their life. Who overcome things that others can’t even imagine confronting. It’s because at that moment, they manage themselves through that triggered state in an effective way, rather than defaulting to their old system they developed at a very young age, that does nothing but protect them, but not advance them. If you can master those moments, your life will be catapulted into extraordinary experiences beyond anything you can imagine. 

The Gods are Human

Idolization is a basic function of human nature.  I don’t think it has to be proven any more.  From the little child that looks up to his or her older sibling or parent, to the full grown man sitting down on any given weekend watching his favorite sports figure in a state of awe, we all seem to idolize someone.  In my case any one of Jack Schwager’s personalities mentioned in his “Market Wizards” books,  Jessie Livermore, or any number of not so popular yet successful traders such as Chris Lori or Carolyn Boroden.  To distort Dylan’s words:  “it might be the devil, it might be the lord but your gonna have to <idolize> some one”.

In our natural idolization we forget that these extraordinary people are after all just people.  Even though in many cases they have been able to accomplish extraordinary things, in the end they are subject to the same influences to which we are subjected.  Though it may be hard to believe at times, yes they all put their pants on one leg at a time.

What the heck does this have to do with trading?  I’m glad you asked.

I notice that our trading terminology is littered with idolized lingo.  We talk of “smart money”, “institutional investors”, “market makers”, and such.  When we talk of these folks it’s as if they are gods that are somehow immune to the effects of human nature such as fear and greed.  I believe that it’s not so much that they are immune, as it is that they have learned to subdue and control their reactions.  They are active thinkers, not reactive thinkers.  Even then, they do all they do in a human body, with a human mind, that has human constraints and habits.

This tells me that even the “smart money” or the “institutional investor” is subject to patterns in his thinking and behavior.  The smartest of money managers goes to sleep at certain times of certain days of the week and is trading at certain times of the day.  Institutional guys have to create and deal with the markets patterns and behavior within the constraints of their own daily routines.  This creates opportunity for those willing to sit back and try to think about it. (more…)