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Strategies & Market Trends : Strictly Buy and Sell Set Ups -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: chowder who wrote (8275)	3/30/2006 9:58:36 AM
From: chowder	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 13449

Back On the Right Course .......................... Have you ever found yourself frustrated or angry, but didn't know why? Perhaps you were innocently monitoring a position and the market suddenly turned, and when it did, you watched half of your potential profit evaporate. You would have thought a commonplace event such as this would be taken in stride, but it was not. For some reason, you felt threatened, upset, and scared. It was as if a centrifuge of emotions took over, and there was no warning. It just overtook you. You didn't expect it. You were not sure why you were so incredibly upset, but all you knew was that you lost concentration and could no longer focus on following your trading plan. You couldn't think clearly. You were in a daze. Once you lose control, it's hard to regain your concentration and focus, but unless you do, you can't trade profitably. Why do we over-react at the wrong time? Our expectations often control our emotions. When our expectations don't match what actually happens in the markets, we react emotionally and impulsively. We have a natural human desire to win, but the markets don't always cooperate with us. When we are caught off guard, our knee jerk reaction is to think that the markets have treated us unfairly. We start thinking that things should go our way, and when they don't, we get angry. But trading is a profession where you should work under the assumption that things are not always going to go your way. Trading events may not go your way, but you don't need to let this fact of trading overwhelm you. If you are caught off-guard, a losing trade or unexpected setback will disappoint you. If you anticipate such events, however, you'll stay calmer and more relaxed, ready to take decisive action to remedy the situation. It's vital to anticipate adverse events rather than react impulsively and emotionally. Don't expect everything to go your way. If you believe that such adverse events should never happen, you will react with frustration and anger. And if you are too angry and frustrated, you will not be able to act decisively. You will not be able to respond quickly to potential problems. Rather than get angry, frustrated, and become distracted, you need to think calmly about how to take evasive action to protect yourself. If you anticipate the problem, you will calmly think of an alternative plan, and put it into practice. When trading the markets, setbacks and adverse events are the rule, and without the proper mindset, such setbacks can be paralyzing. As a trader, it's vital to have the right mindset. If you realistically anticipate setbacks and adverse events, you won't be caught off guard psychologically. Instead, you'll be able to bounce back quickly, make new profitable trades, and come out ahead in the long run. Innerworth.com (This message is linked to previous articles.)

To: chowder who wrote (8275)	4/5/2006 10:40:33 AM
From: chowder	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 13449

It's Not the Money, But the Challenge ................... Why do you trade? Most people would think it's obvious. It's for the money, right? What many winning traders know, however, is that money is a poor motivator in the end. It's much more satisfying to pursue trading for the pure joy of mastering the markets, regardless of how much money you make. Winning traders are motivated more by the process of trading than by the profits they are making. It's common to hear traders say, "I love trading so much that I would do it for free if I had to." Indeed, when one looks into the backgrounds of top traders, the story seems to be the same: They all tried to get a job in the trading industry as soon as possible, any job as long as it involved trading in some way. The markets fascinated them. The money was either secondary or not an issue at all. Successful traders love the challenges the market offers and view their work as meaningful. Consider what Alex, a successful trader, said about money to our Innerworth staff, "Money doesn't make a person happy. Trading is what I do and I enjoy doing it. The money aspect of it is obviously cool and everybody wants that, but I don't know how to do anything else." Staying detached and apathetic towards money can help put you in the proper mindset. Curt, a successful winning trader interviewed by Innerworth says, "One of the reasons I was successful was because money wasn't the reason I wanted to trade. Because the allure of money wasn't the reason I was trading, it was a lot easier for me to withstand the ups and downs of the market, and to execute without that affecting the way I was executing." When you aren't worried about the money, you can take a more carefree approach to trading. You feel that you don't have to win, and knowing you can make a mistake here and there allows you to relax and trade more creatively. In modern society, we are pushed to make money. We think we need money, and see trading as a way to make a lot of it. Ironically, if you are focused only on the money, you will become disappointed and eventually fail. Pursuing trading as a passion is a more satisfying way to trade. It's more useful to focus on pursuing goals that are intrinsically interesting and personally meaningful. One should pursue trading because he or she enjoys the intellectual challenge. Market action is intrinsically interesting. It is a rewarding intellectual challenge to devise innovative new trading strategies and to see how well your ideas pan out, just for the fun of it. Viewing trading from this perspective can powerfully motivate you. Whether it's art, sports, or business, the folks at the top are not primarily motivated by fame, glory, respect, or status. They are driven by the pure love of the game. Winning traders, similarly, have strong interests in the markets, and this passion is the driving force that puts them at the top, year after year. Those who find trading intrinsically satisfying, enjoyable, and meaningful will put in the necessary hard work and achieve high performance levels. So don't focus on the money and status that successful trading may bring. Enjoy the process of trading. Seek out challenges and the satisfaction of meeting them. You'll end up more profitable by doing so. Innerworth.com (This message is linked to previous articles.)