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Strategies & Market Trends : Trade What You See, Not What You Think -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?


To: Threei who wrote (357)1/26/2001 6:14:13 PM
From: Threei  Respond to of 867
 
As promised, I continue to discuss practical things and tricks for psychological tune-up. Following is exrept from interview in our training session.

<Chris> As I listened to this, I normally ask myself how does one create such an inner feeling..it's not as easy as "just doing it". Are there any specific tricks you do to prepare yourself mentally?
<Threei> ummm...
<Threei> yes :)
<Threei> OK, first thing is commonly known,
<Threei> and many traders use it.
<Threei> However esoteric it may sound,
<Threei> it's meditation.
<Threei> There are special techniques of it, fairly simple,
<Threei> not requiring years of learning in Tibet :)
<Threei> I even have URL with one of such a descriptions at my home computer,
<Threei> will share it after hours.
<Threei> Second trick is mine,
<Threei> I will try to describe it.
<Threei> On early stages of my development as a trader
<Threei> I realized that I need to do two things:
<Threei> 1. Create some kind of "role model" which I want to follow.
<Chris> A real life role model or one of a person "you'd like to be"?
<Threei> 2. Create ability to observe market and make my trading decisions being in somewhat "detached" state of mind.
<Threei> Person I want to be, trader I want to be.
<Threei> So, what I did was:
<Threei> I created this trader in my mind,
<Threei> with all his traits, trading habits,
<Threei> with proper discipline etc.
<Threei> I even gave him a name,
<Threei> in order to achieve this disctinction:
<Threei> it's him who trades, not me.
<Threei> I can see members murmuring: "hmmm, multiple personality disorder" :)
<Chris> lol
<Threei> Next step was:
<Threei> If he is trading, what am I doing?
<Threei> Logical solution was:
<Threei> I am his coach!
<Threei> Idea was:
<Threei> I know how to trade, I can teach him, I can monitor his behavior being not in the market
<Threei> and being emotionally not involved in trading.
<Threei> So, when he is doing something wrong,
<Threei> I can correct him,
<Threei> give him an advice.
<Threei> You know this feeling:
<Threei> you can call them great,
<Threei> it's when you go ahead and put your money in line
<Threei> you lose your calm detached approach.
<Threei> So, that was my trick
<Threei> to stay detached,
<Threei> to remain cold blooded,
<Threei> to observe market action from sideline
<Threei> and to make my trading decisions machine-like
<Threei> not getting involved emotionally.
<Threei> When I saw some flaw in "his" trading
<Threei> it was relatively easy to put it in words
<Threei> and to tell "him" what to correct.
<Threei> It also helped to keep ego in check
<Threei> since it was not "me" who was trading.
<Threei> I realize that every trader might have another set of tricks
<Threei> or modify this one
<Threei> as he/she feels more appropriate.
<Threei> That's what works for me...



To: Threei who wrote (357)1/26/2001 6:54:42 PM
From: Moving Sphere  Read Replies (1) | Respond to of 867
 
Vadym,

"HOW" to do is a personal journey that must come from an internal motivation to learn. If one is really motivated, there will be tons of materials and methods at your fingertips without really trying.

One of my best strategy is to read, read, and read. By flooding my mind and ego with new information from different writers and traders, my thought process began to form a mental blueprint of what it takes to be a great trader. After so many books, my mind began to discover a common theme of what will work for me. The other aspect of continuous reading is that it kept your mind and thought process occupied with relevant and productive information. If one read a single book (or even several) and stopped at that point, one's mind might get off-track again after several down day. Doubt began to resurface... the regular day-to-day ego began to dominate again... and it would take great effort to redirect that negative energy away.

Reading provides the disciplined ego a support system that is a total sum of all the excellent stories of human spirits. This support system encourages our disciplined ego to strive for excellence; therefore, providing the basic foundation for one to be patient, to be persistent, and to be able to endure.

Personally, I have read book range from autobiography of our Presidents, great sportsmen and athletes, hunters (Jim Corbett being my favorite), professional traders (commodity and stock), and survivors of different dire circumstances. All their histories and experiences provide a major source of inspiration for me.

Unfortunately, in today's modern society, the habit of reading has many competition. Computers, internet, video games, movies, TV, etc. all provide a very legitimate threat to usurp our time. Thus, finding time to read, by itself, require a strong motivation on our part. This bring us back to square one:

"HOW" to do is a personal journey that must come from an internal motivation to learn.

Another benefit of reading is that it fortifies the habit of focus.

If you don't focus, you will not absorb what you read. It's that simple. Trading/hunting/Sporting all require good solid focus to succeed. Trading requires a LOT of focus to find the setup. Hunting requires a LOT of focus to find the prey among all the bushes and trees. I leave the sporting example to yourself... <g>

The unique thing about trading is that those setups you are looking for only materialize in a matter of seconds and disappear. Like a cloud that formed a shape and then disappeared when you looked up again. So, if you are not focusing, you will miss the setup.

Another strategy I like to do is to listen to music. In my case, I prefer classical music. Have you try to flow with the music without thinking about something in your head? Sound easy but actually pretty difficult. What I do is to relax myself and see how long I can flow with the music before I start thinking about something. The longer I can flow with the music without thinking, the better I get in focusing. After all, watching the tape or flowing with the chart take the same kind of discipline in listening and flowing with the music. It requires the same principle of focusing except that one require your hearing sense and the other require your visual sense.

My other strategy I like to do is to practice martial arts. Martial arts require discipline, focus, and harmony with your body and mind. A perfect recipe to be a good trader. In my case, I practice Wu Style Tai Chi Chuan- a form of internal martial arts discovered in ancient China.

Meditation is also in my to do list. I use the breath following techniques as well as using Transcendental Meditation (aka TM) (http://www.tm.org/). I like TM because all I got to do is to repeat my mantra in my head and my body would begin to relax all on its own. I also use Silva Method to help me with my visualization exercise (http://r1.us.rmi.yahoo.com/rmi/http://shop.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/results.asp/rmivars%3ftarget=_top?sourceid=00339421582271887487&bfdate=01-26-2001+18:35:40&WRD=silva+method).

In summary, the above is my own personal way of training my disciplined ego. It helps me to strengthen my relationship with myself, my disciplined ego, and fortify an understanding with my regular ego. Perhaps, the word "control" is too harsh a word to use in the circular loop; thus, I'm going to modify the circular loop once again:

"If you can train your thought, you can train your emotion. If you can train your emotion, you can train your thought. Only if you have developed the discipline to train your thought to begin with."

Thus, IMHO, how well you do in trading will depend on your motivation. You can usually find out how motivated you are by asking yourself what you've done so far to train yourself for the purpose of trading well. Only you will know. There is no right or wrong answer, only a new resolve to pick up from where you left off.

All in my opinion only, of course.

Cheers!



To: Threei who wrote (357)1/29/2001 10:58:08 AM
From: h.g.  Read Replies (1) | Respond to of 867
 
Okay... extra long weekend for me....where are we? Oh yea, the "whats" and "hows". Before I say some stuff on the "hows" please allow me to share some more "what" and "why", for I feel that as people find a "how" to work with, it can help significantly if they understand as much as possible about the "what" and "why".

Let's look at the question of why isn't trading like driving? Under normal circumstances our Ego doesn't get trigger, so what's the difference?

It has to do with the Market's Reflection of Self:

The Ego must perpetuate, continue and SURVIVE! To survive the Ego's vital energy must not be removed or threaten. This energy can be water, air, food, physical body, shelter, etc... In a capitalist society, this includes money, for that is the exchange for acquiring these items. Another vital energy, is the energy received by the 3rd person perspective of one's self. If the Ego perceives this perspective to be lessor than it, then the Ego is considered weak and therefore threaten, for it stands ready for attack from the 3rd person. Anything that is paramount to the Ego's ability to perpetuate is viewed by the Ego as a vital energy.

When a trade is open, one is committing money and their decision (to enter trade) to a particular stock and a given direction of the stock. At this point the Ego has two vital energies committed to a particular function. One has the possibility of loosing money or being wrong! So, the Ego must feel as it is in control of this commitment or it feels threaten and the remaining subtle energy behind the emotion of the words of thought are triggered. Without any training or experience this Trader's subconscious or Ego, truly knows that it (Ego) has absolutely NO control over the movement of this stock. The conscious Trader will say he does, but the subconscious truly knows it doesn't. This creates a situation whereby two vital energies are put into a position of absolute no control and therefore a major trigger. This is the concept of perceived risk and control. At this point, the market will reflect where you are with yourself!

In driving, we have enough experience that the Ego feels it is in control and not threaten or its perceived risk is low.

So, as we have been discussing, one needs to find methods, the "hows", to lessen the energy behind the words to weaken the Ego.

With this said, there are methods that can help shift the aspect of the Ego or change the Ego's perspective.

For instance:

Threei has suggested that one can change their view point from "I know what the market will do" to "I don't know what the market will do, but I do know what I will do in reaction to the market." (Threei, forgive me if quote isn't exact.) If one can repeat this to themselves enough and practice it with great conviction, one begins to reprogram the subconscious perspective that they ARE in control. The Ego will no longer perceive that there are vital energies at risk and will not trigger.

Addtionally, Threei has shared that he created a "role model", a detached state of mind Trader to assist him in his beginning. This idea is tremendous for what one is doing is separating the power of the Seer (the intuitive) from that of the instrument of Seeing (the body-mind,Ego). This concept is based on the dual reality of self. When you separate the two, you empower the intuitive and weaken the Ego. The Ego's perceived threat does not trigger as the intuitive knows there is no threat to self, for the intuitive does not require these energies.

Either of these two "hows" is terrific for the beginning trader, for they enable you to begin experiencing this idea of perceived risk and triggers with small successes rather quickly while you continue to find your true "how" to dissipate the energy of emotions.

The ultimate state of mind to trade is the ability to trade in happiness. This state allows you to "feel" the market, it's undercurrents, peaks, valleys, etc... and just ride what is happening now. As someone said, it is like listening to music, you don't think (thought=emotions=Ego, etc..) as to where the music is going, you just go with where it is. This is the state of Beingness, not Doing!

In regards to looking for a "how", try to find something that you have an affinity with. There are many "hows", so don't get discourage if you can't work with one, just keep looking until you find something that works. This "how" should be something that does require some form of "self" examination or change, but not something that will be self-destructive. You want to eventually break the Ego, not the Spirit. I tend to see best results with people who find a "how" that confronts yet allows for small successes. Remember, the Ego is still intact and we ultimately use it to change self, which in turn leads to great changes.

Okay, that's enough for now, didn't mean for that to be so long. Great discussion everyone.....