Guys this really is what its all about. A great read. Replace
the sniper for a tiger in waiting if you wish! Message is the same
and its the essence of profitable trading. One for your daily or
weekly "to-read" list...........
I outlined how a trader's very achievement motivation can
lead to "pressing": trying so hard to make trades happen
that trading plans and rules are abandoned. This often happens when
traders become frustrated with losses or slow markets and try to
make up for the lack of results by sizing positions too
aggressively or by taking too many positions. Traders press when
they feel pressure, whether for profits, for action, or to achieve
competitive advantage over other traders.
The result is a loss of self-control, as aggressiveness takes
over and judgment takes a back seat. Successful trading may be
discretionary or system-based, but it should always be
rule-governed: controlled by basic considerations of risk
management and opportunity. Indeed, this might be an apt definition
of poor trading: when the need to trade overwhelms the need to
preserve and add to capital.
One of my favorite posters in my office is of a military
sniper in the field, peering out from ground cover. The caption
beneath the picture reads, "The sniper's greatest weapon is a
sharply honed intellect. He combines a mastery of stealth,
situational awareness, ballistics and precision shooting skills
into one of the most lethal weapon systems to ever strike fear into
the enemy."
If the sniper became too aggressive and excessively bored
with sitting in the field waiting for the right shot, he might leap
from his cover and begin spraying the enemy with fire. Most of the
shots would probably go wild, and the out-of-control sniper would
quickly be located and mowed down.
No, the sniper waits for the ideal shot: "stealth" and
"situational awareness" are essential tools of the trade. Being a
sniper means combining aggression with exquisite self-control and
judgment. It is controlled aggression.
Over the years, I've learned to
trade like a sniper by not placing one trade after another in rapid
succession. When a trade is concluded, I go flat and wait
for a fresh setup. During the waiting time, I refresh my
"situational awareness" (assessment of market conditions, my own
condition), and return to my basic trading rules.
The idea is to trade only when I have an unobstructed view of
the target. Everything else is waiting and preparing, staying low
in a defensive posture. It's the time between those shots at the
target that provide the self-control. It is difficult to press if
you take the time to reassess, reload, and return to cover after an
errant shot. With repetition, that reassessment and reloading
become automatic: your default mode becomes one of self-control.
Plan. Trade. Reassess plan. Trade:
It's a rhythm that combines the best of achievement motivation and
aggression with the best of judgment and forethought. It's a
beautiful feeling to plan one good trade, execute it to perfection,
and then sit back and wait for the next opportunity. Any
performance skill, honed and executed with precision, is a kind of
work of art. I think the best snipers understand that.
This is the other side of the coin from successful Forex trader
Jeff wilde
The Unconscious Drive to
Fail
Ask traders about their reasons for trading, and most will tell
you, "I want to make huge profits." Although most traders get
into
the business to make a significant return on their money, the
vast
majority blow out their accounts.
Why do so many traders fail? The obvious reason for many is that
they just don't know how to trade. They don't use proper risk
controls. They don't have enough financial resources. They
don't
have proper instruction or an efficient trading platform.
They
don't have solid, reliable trading strategies. And for many,
they
don't have good reference points; they don't have a clear
understanding of how the markets work.
Any or all of these factors can spell disaster for the novice
trader. One doesn't need to explore the depths of one's
psyche to
find other reasons for failure. That said, there's an
interest
among many would-be traders as to the extent unconscious
processes
thwart their trading efforts. Perhaps, unconsciously, there
is a
hidden motive for self-sabotage. Seasoned traders are
especially
interested in this topic.
Many prominent, highly successful traders end up losing most of
their capital in the end, and many never come back. Some have
speculated that a hidden motive for self-sabotage is the
reason for
such failures. It's worth considering in a little detail,
either
just for fun or as a serious line of inquiry, depending on
your
preferences and worldview.
Years ago, Freud wrote about people who fail after achieving great
success in "Those Wrecked by Success." According to Freud,
some
people feel guilty and physically ill upon attaining a
lifelong
dream. Upon experiencing success, they aren't comfortable
with it,
and unconsciously take steps to punish themselves for being
successful.
Most contemporary research psychologists, in contrast, do not think
people seek out failure, consciously or unconsciously. People
experience failure because they cannot master difficult
situations.
In other words, traders don't repeatedly fail because they
have an
unconscious wish to spoil their efforts, but trading is just
plain
hard. Traders repeatedly fail because they don't have proper
financial resources, solid trading strategies, or the proper
mindset.
Psychoanalyst Roy Shafer argues, however, that some people view
"success" as a type of failure, and in a twisted way, they
avoid
"success" because unconsciously they view it as a failure.
For
example, in one case study, a young man avoided success
because he
was afraid of doing better in life than his father, who was a
failed all through his life. Veteran traders have made
similar
observations.
Some novice traders don't trade merely to make profits. They have a
hidden agenda. They want to show their family and friends
that they
could be a success. The problem with finding oneself in this
circumstance is that while one may consciously strive for
success,
one has been given a powerful psychological message that he
or she
cannot succeed, and is not worthy of success.
Unconsciously, it's hard (but not impossible) to prove these
significant others wrong. Whether good or bad, what your
friends
and family think of you is important. They define who you
are, and
unconsciously, you may not want to prove them wrong. It's
best not
to let such psychological issues impact your trading,
however.
Always trade for yourself. Trade because you want to, not
because
you are out to prove anything to yourself or someone else.
Doing so
raises the stakes so high that you'll put a lot of pressure
on
yourself to succeed, and that usually leads to failure.
As we've often said in this column, unconscious processes may not
play a role for everyone who pursues trading. It's an issue
for
some people, however. If you think your reasons for trading
may
reflect a need to satisfy past unconscious conflicts, it's
wise to
work through some of these issues with a trading coach or
other
professional. Don't let unconscious motives get the better of
you.
Identify them, work through them, and trade freely,
effortlessly,
and profitably.
Until next week, peace and prosperity,
Jeff
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Title: summary Guys this really is
Emotion
Posted by vimal on 24th of Aug 2010 at 11:54 am
Guys this really is what its all about. A great read. Replace the sniper for a tiger in waiting if you wish! Message is the same and its the essence of profitable trading. One for your daily or weekly "to-read" list...........
I outlined how a trader's very achievement motivation can lead to "pressing": trying so hard to make trades happen that trading plans and rules are abandoned. This often happens when traders become frustrated with losses or slow markets and try to make up for the lack of results by sizing positions too aggressively or by taking too many positions. Traders press when they feel pressure, whether for profits, for action, or to achieve competitive advantage over other traders.
The result is a loss of self-control, as aggressiveness takes over and judgment takes a back seat. Successful trading may be discretionary or system-based, but it should always be rule-governed: controlled by basic considerations of risk management and opportunity. Indeed, this might be an apt definition of poor trading: when the need to trade overwhelms the need to preserve and add to capital.
One of my favorite posters in my office is of a military sniper in the field, peering out from ground cover. The caption beneath the picture reads, "The sniper's greatest weapon is a sharply honed intellect. He combines a mastery of stealth, situational awareness, ballistics and precision shooting skills into one of the most lethal weapon systems to ever strike fear into the enemy."
If the sniper became too aggressive and excessively bored with sitting in the field waiting for the right shot, he might leap from his cover and begin spraying the enemy with fire. Most of the shots would probably go wild, and the out-of-control sniper would quickly be located and mowed down.
No, the sniper waits for the ideal shot: "stealth" and "situational awareness" are essential tools of the trade. Being a sniper means combining aggression with exquisite self-control and judgment. It is controlled aggression.
Over the years, I've learned to trade like a sniper by not placing one trade after another in rapid succession. When a trade is concluded, I go flat and wait for a fresh setup. During the waiting time, I refresh my "situational awareness" (assessment of market conditions, my own condition), and return to my basic trading rules.
The idea is to trade only when I have an unobstructed view of the target. Everything else is waiting and preparing, staying low in a defensive posture. It's the time between those shots at the target that provide the self-control. It is difficult to press if you take the time to reassess, reload, and return to cover after an errant shot. With repetition, that reassessment and reloading become automatic: your default mode becomes one of self-control.
Plan. Trade. Reassess plan. Trade: It's a rhythm that combines the best of achievement motivation and aggression with the best of judgment and forethought. It's a beautiful feeling to plan one good trade, execute it to perfection, and then sit back and wait for the next opportunity. Any performance skill, honed and executed with precision, is a kind of work of art. I think the best snipers understand that.
The Unconscious Drive to Fail
Posted by thermo on 24th of Aug 2010 at 12:29 pm
http://www.askjeffwilde.com/
This is the other side of the coin from successful Forex trader Jeff wilde
The Unconscious Drive to Fail
Ask traders about their reasons for trading, and most will tell
you, "I want to make huge profits." Although most traders get into
the business to make a significant return on their money, the vast
majority blow out their accounts.
Why do so many traders fail? The obvious reason for many is that
they just don't know how to trade. They don't use proper risk
controls. They don't have enough financial resources. They don't
have proper instruction or an efficient trading platform. They
don't have solid, reliable trading strategies. And for many, they
don't have good reference points; they don't have a clear
understanding of how the markets work.
Any or all of these factors can spell disaster for the novice
trader. One doesn't need to explore the depths of one's psyche to
find other reasons for failure. That said, there's an interest
among many would-be traders as to the extent unconscious processes
thwart their trading efforts. Perhaps, unconsciously, there is a
hidden motive for self-sabotage. Seasoned traders are especially
interested in this topic.
Many prominent, highly successful traders end up losing most of
their capital in the end, and many never come back. Some have
speculated that a hidden motive for self-sabotage is the reason for
such failures. It's worth considering in a little detail, either
just for fun or as a serious line of inquiry, depending on your
preferences and worldview.
Years ago, Freud wrote about people who fail after achieving great
success in "Those Wrecked by Success." According to Freud, some
people feel guilty and physically ill upon attaining a lifelong
dream. Upon experiencing success, they aren't comfortable with it,
and unconsciously take steps to punish themselves for being
successful.
Most contemporary research psychologists, in contrast, do not think
people seek out failure, consciously or unconsciously. People
experience failure because they cannot master difficult situations.
In other words, traders don't repeatedly fail because they have an
unconscious wish to spoil their efforts, but trading is just plain
hard. Traders repeatedly fail because they don't have proper
financial resources, solid trading strategies, or the proper
mindset.
Psychoanalyst Roy Shafer argues, however, that some people view
"success" as a type of failure, and in a twisted way, they avoid
"success" because unconsciously they view it as a failure. For
example, in one case study, a young man avoided success because he
was afraid of doing better in life than his father, who was a
failed all through his life. Veteran traders have made similar
observations.
Some novice traders don't trade merely to make profits. They have a
hidden agenda. They want to show their family and friends that they
could be a success. The problem with finding oneself in this
circumstance is that while one may consciously strive for success,
one has been given a powerful psychological message that he or she
cannot succeed, and is not worthy of success.
Unconsciously, it's hard (but not impossible) to prove these
significant others wrong. Whether good or bad, what your friends
and family think of you is important. They define who you are, and
unconsciously, you may not want to prove them wrong. It's best not
to let such psychological issues impact your trading, however.
Always trade for yourself. Trade because you want to, not because
you are out to prove anything to yourself or someone else. Doing so
raises the stakes so high that you'll put a lot of pressure on
yourself to succeed, and that usually leads to failure.
As we've often said in this column, unconscious processes may not
play a role for everyone who pursues trading. It's an issue for
some people, however. If you think your reasons for trading may
reflect a need to satisfy past unconscious conflicts, it's wise to
work through some of these issues with a trading coach or other
professional. Don't let unconscious motives get the better of you.
Identify them, work through them, and trade freely, effortlessly,
and profitably.
Until next week, peace and prosperity,
Jeff