Unfortunately, it is the sad reality that the majority of people reading this are not profitable traders. If I could single out the most common culprit for sabotaging your trading it would have to be not being able to take a loss. This is especially prevalent amongst new traders, but I’ve seen this single trading mistake cripple even more experienced traders. In fact, I’ve run across countless traders that are generally successful if not for a few outsized losses. The problem is that these outsized losses are what cripple your account and push you into the negative column. You will never be a successful trader, EVER, until you learn how to take a loss.
Archives of “mistake” tag
rss20 Skills for the Trader
1. Know the difference between trading and investing. We are traders, NOT investors. •• Disciplineis doing the right thing at the right time…every time! Survival in this business is dependent on the right decisions.
2. Don’t let losers run! Always use stops . Riskmanagement is very, very important in your trading. Don’t be stubborn in holding a position. Remember, while you may not be wrong often, The Market Is Always Right. The best traders are the first to admit (to themselves and the market) that they made a mistake.
3. Trade only price pattern set-ups.
4. Trade for skill, NOT the money. If you’re focused on the money aspect of trading…you’re not focused on the ‘trade’. And SCARED MONEY NEVER WINS!
5. Concentrate on what you are trade. Each market has personalities, habits and friends…get to know them all.
6. Focus on your executions. Remember, every execution is a trade. Money is valuable…don’t leave it on the table. (more…)
Profile Of The Successful Trader:
Trading is being young, imperfect, and human – not old, exacting, and scientific. It is not a set of techniques, but a commitment. You are to be an information processor. Not a swami. Not a guru. An information processor.
Participating in the markets can only develop your trading skills. You need to become a part of the markets, to know the state of the markets at any given time, and most importantly, to know yourself. You need to be patient, confident, and mentally tough. (more…)
The Seven Mistakes Novie Traders Make
MISTAKE ONE
Lack of Knowledge and No Plan
It amazes us that some people expect to trade the stock market successfully without any effort. Yet if they want to take up golf, for example, they will happily take some lessons or at least read a book before heading out onto the course. (more…)
Your Mails -My Answers
Q: Can you discuss the concept of drawdowns a bit? Novice traders seem to think experienced traders become proficient to the point that they are right much more than not and thus experience very small drawdowns. But talking to experienced traders this does not seem to be the case.
A: In my view, the biggest difference between a successful trader and one who is not is how they manage their mistakes. Note, I am of the opinion that those who trade well don’t make fewer mistakes but they simply have learned how to handle them when they occur. This opinion is based on years of experience but also more recently working closely one-on-one with other traders. The fastest way I’ve learned to be of help to others is to show them how to recognize, quickly admit, and then take aggressive action when a mistake has been made. Losers tend to make bigger mistakes out of small ones. They let their egos get in the way and double-down in losing trades and make matters worse when a mistake is made.
Ultimately, the best you can do in this business is try to be “more right than wrong,” especially at key turning points and be quick to repair and take remedial action when you are wrong as well as managing your risk through proper trading size, stop losses, and simple diversification.
Q: I know that Alexander Elder recommends trading less often for better results. And after reading your blog for the last couple of years I know that you follow this strategy for the most part as well. What do you do in a range bound time such as what we are experiencing, have you been doing more day trading?
A: I’ve been very inactive recently. In fact, when you see more posts at the website (especially those link posts that take so much time and energy to do), you pretty much can count on that I’m doing a lot of sideline sitting. In many ways, this blog helps me stay patient as it keeps me busy and focused without feeling the necessity to make trades that don’t offer exactly what I’m looking for. All good traders seem to have different ways to cope when the environment is not receptive and I recommend you find ways to cope as well. As for day trading, that is fine if you love doing that, but that’s never been my desire. Day trading for pennies a trade seems too much like work and I don’t need that kind of stress. I can afford to be patient and pick my spots.
To send in your question(s) for next mailbag, please send me e-mail at [email protected] Although I may not directly answer your question in these posts, it is extremely helpful to know what topics are of interest to you so that I can find links and look for opportunities to discuss and cover your interests in the future. Thank you!
Trading psychology
The market is always right–except at significant tops and significant bottoms.
Keep and open and flexible mind. When in doubt, get out.
If you must have a guru, take him or her with many grains of salt
Do not add to losing positions.
Try every day to make yourself stronger, better and more integrated as a person.
Stay true to yourself. Lying to yourself and others, and trading on hope and prayer do not work
Most importantly, accept and recognize that you are not perfect. You are human and are going to make mistakes. Trading is the only profession where losing is actually winning. BUT— unless you accept mistakes as mistakes and learn from them, you will not progress and be upside down. Unless you are able to get your trading brain out of the cave you will not accumulate regret. It is only through the true acceptance of a mistake as a mistake that we accumulate regret. This is how we learn and grow as traders and human beings.
8 Skill Every Traders must have
- Passion. The best investors I’ve seen truly love what they do. It’s the only way they are able to put in the time needed to become great.
- Experience. The pros have seen it all. They’ve been through all sorts of market cycles. Long periods of sideways choppiness, uptrends, and downtrends. And not just the short term 15-20% corrections but the big 50% corrections too.
- Adaptability. Markets change. And the strategies that were working in one market may eventually deteriorate. Good traders will change their methodology to match the new market conditions.
- No ego. None. If you go into trading with an ego the market will eat you alive. The elite investors are able to admit when they’re wrong. They even embrace it. Being wrong quickly means they can move on to being right faster.
- Emotionless. This goes hand in hand with ego. Along with pride, investors face a daily trio of emotions of hope, fear, and greed. The worst investors allow their emotions to control their trading; the best avoid any emotional attachment at all. (more…)
Every mistake a trader can make
Symptoms:
Trading with “scared” money
- Trading from a state of desperation and fear
- Ruled by emotions and unable to take a loss
- Changing her trading plan often
- Trying to be perfect
- Looking for medication to deal with emotional issues over trading
- Adopting a trading technique (scalping one futures contract) that is beyond her level of trading competence
- Attached to the outcome of each trade
- Not committed to the process of learning to trade—using trading as a temporary “stop-gap” source of income until something else becomes available.
Acting out personal dramas in the financial markets
Lessons from Martin Schwartz
To succeed in trading one must learn from the best, so it is wise to consider the advice of Martin Schwartz.
I highly recommend you read his book Pit Bull – Lessons from Wall Street’s Champion Trader.
“I took $40,000 and ran it up to about $20 million with never more than a 3 percent drawdown.” (Month-end data)
“By living the philosophy that my winners are always in front of me, it is not so painful to take a loss. If I make a mistake, so what!”
“My trading style was to take a lot of small profits rather than go for one big one.“
“After a devastating loss, I always play very small and try to get black ink, black ink. It’s not how much money I make, but just getting my rhythm and confidence back.”
“The market does not know if you are long or short and could not care less. You are the only one emotionally involved with your position. The market is just reacting to supply and demand and if you are cheering it one way, there is always somebody else cheering it just as hard that it will go the other way.” (more…)
When Things Go Wrong
The trade falls apart. The stop loss gets hit, but your dealer doesn’t get you out of the trade. Or the spreads widen. Or you forget you have an order in the system and it triggers, and you’re on vacation, and you’re just having a great time until you are on the White Knuckler roller coaster ride and you think to yourself:
Trading is much like holding a fire in your hand.
At the same time, it’s beautiful and mesmerizing (for some of you at least). It hurts, too. When you have a bad trade, you are holding fire in your hands, so to speak. What are you going to do with it? Take a picture of it? Hide from it? Close your hand on it? Blow on it? Pour gasoline on top of it?
We don’t always react in the best of ways to the unexpected trade. Especially if the trade is a loser, or a mistake, we are likely to try to hide from it first. We flee from the scene of the crime.
If things don’t go your way in trading, tackle the situation. Get on top of it. Figure something out, and do it with friends, and do it sooner rather than later. You’ll be happy you put out the fire in your hand.