So how do you deal with these emotions and find solace after the fight? Yes, trading for me is a battle both with the mind and emotions.
1.) Enroll in boxing and pour out all your trading emotions unto your ‘paring mate’?
2.) Place your top 10 most hated stock codes on the bowling pins and engage someone in a bowling game?
3.) Listen to funny commentaries about Bernanke and laugh out load?
In my case, I prefer a solitude walk, a quiet walk as I commune with my Maker. It soothes my stress, panic nerves and anxious Spirit, a quiet walk allows me to catch that breath I withheld during trading sessions because I was engrossed with chasing and dumping stocks as I ride out the market volatilities.
I thought of writing down insights and reflections every time I do my spiritual walk and share these with other traders to encourage them as well as to learn from them; hence, I designate a portion on my blog and labeled it as “Reflections” for this purpose.
Just recently I got exhausted with charting and this has to do with my portfolio performances. You see I am stuck with this magic number ‘30’ (I won’t tell you if its’ +/- 30) for the past weeks and I can’t seem to get over this number (it now serves as key resistance). Oh, I did passed above this number several times yet tumbled back to this number again.
As I reflected on this I bumped into several insights that I wanted to share with you on this particular ‘Reflections Article’:
1.) IT TAKES TIME
There are no shortcuts to maturity in trading. It takes years for us to grow to adulthood, and it takes a full season for fruit to mature and ripen. The same is true for our trading career, its’ development cannot be rushed.
When you try to ripen fruit quickly, it loses its flavor. In America, tomatoes are usually picked un-ripened so they won’t bruise during shipping to the stores. Then, before they are sold, these green tomatoes are sprayed with CO2 gas to turn them red instantly. Gassed tomatoes are edible, but they are no match to the flavor of a vine-ripened tomato that is allowed to mature slowly.
Everything on earth has its own time and its own season … it’s not about how fast you grow but how strong you grow as a trader, maturity in trading should never be in a hurry.
2.) ONE BIT OF TERRITORY AT A TIME
I read about the strategy the Allies used in World War II to liberate islands in the South Pacific. First they would “soften up” an island, weakening the resistance by shelling the enemy strongholds with bombs from offshore ships. Next, a small group of Marines would invade the island and establish a “beachhead” – a tiny fragment of the island that they could control. Once the beachhead was secured, they would begin the long process of liberating the rest of the island, one bit of territory at a time. Eventually the entire island would be brought under control, but not without some “costly battles”.
Patient is virtue, a kilometer road is constructed with one meter at a time and houses are built with laying one cornerstone at a time.
Where else can you find comfort after every struggle and frustrations in your trading career? Where do you find that inner strength and prepare yourself for future battles? Where else than from the One who wired you with these emotions, than from the One who promised to give you rest when you cast all your cares and burdens upon Him.
No comments:
Post a Comment