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TRADING PSYCHOLOGY COACH HOME | CAUSES OF TRADER FAILURE | RISK PROFILE | COACHING PROGRAM
| TOTAL BRAIN CONDITIONING |
First and foremost, however, you have to avoid the "Turtle Trap." THE TURTLE STORY THE TRADING ENVIRONMENT After two weeks of training, the Turtles, many of whom had never traded before, were given large accounts and they were under intense pressure to perform or be cut from the team. Some traders feel performance pressure even in SIM. When stress overloads the nervous system and we have money at risk, deep-seated 'security issues' arise. We are overtaken by an incoherent state of mind that degrades our decision making process. We are then much more likely to fall back on primitive midbrain-based solutions (fight, flee or freeze) in response to the challenge we face.
Richard Dennis was a great trader, but he had a very naive view of the importance of trading psychology. He was 100% focused on Method and 0% focused on Mindset. He never helped his baby Turtles deal with the stress and other psychological challenges of trading. So, despite the brilliant mentoring, most Turtles failed. TRADING IN THE ZONE 1. MANAGE STRESS In this stressed-out state of mind, you will become re-active rather than pro-active. Your prefrontal brain function will be degraded so your ability to follow your trading plan will be impaired. You will miss the obvious and lose impulse control. Ironically, your fear of losing or missing out will actually work against you and cause losses. This leads to a downward performance spiral into trading hell. You will seek revenge for losses or run for cover. Moreover, professional traders take advantage of the emotional vulnerability of the average trader. Read more about toxic stress here and here and how you can avoid it here.
2. MAINTAIN A CONFIDENT MINDSET Even successful traders, however, are at risk of psychological wounding from a string of losses or a single large loss. In this state, a trader will become risk averse and trade-not-to-lose. That is a recipe for breakeven trading, or worse. (Listen to a free 1 Minute Tip on rebuilding confidence.) The good news is that there is a technology that can help clear thenegative emotional residue from past losses for just $99. Click here to find out more. 3. MASTER YOUR TRADING 'EDGE' Professional traders exploit the obvious momentum and pattern signals that get amateurs convinced that they know what will happen next. Once amateurs commit, the market suddenly reverses. If you do not carefully design and master your trading edge, your trading account will serve as a source of funds for professionals. As an active trader myself, I know what is needed to maintain an advantage in our sophisticated, fast-moving markets and I specialize in helping traders sharpen their technical edge.
Art is a former executive at a well-known software company. He is smart, creative, confident, strong-willed, ambitious and very dedicated. Nevertheless, despite his CEO-like personality, Art took his trading account from $1 million down to $100k in the year before he called me. How did this happen? Clinical studies have proven the common notion that men in general have difficulty asking for directions. Art was like that. As his strategies and tactics failed to achieve the desired results, Art never sought help. He remained focused on the market, not on himself or his system. To recoup losses, he traded more frequently and averaged down on losing positions. His wife was worried about his trading, but Art always felt he was on the verge of greatness, even as his equity curve continued to plunge. His self-confidence (masking his huge need to be right) actually worked against him. I could not help Art. Not every trader can avoid the problematic consequences of High Risk trading, namely the Risk of Ruin. RISK OF RUIN
These behaviors are warning sign that you are vulnerable. You can find out more by taking my Free Risk Profile here. The Risk Profile will help you determine whether you have some of the psychological risk factors that can lead down this path. It is free of charge.
TO MASTER THE MARKET, MASTER YOURSELF I'm a competitive tennis player. In his autobiography, Andre Agassi wrote, "For me, tennis is a vehicle to discover myself and push myself." For many traders, trading serves the same purpose. It did for me. You may be driven to master trading because it holds the secret not only to your financial future, but to your own self-mastery. Many of my clients report that as their trading improves, the quality of their life improves along with it. If you are this type of aspiring trader, passionate about succeeding, I believe I can help you achieve your goals. You can read testimonials here. Click here to be notified of my next FREE Webinar.
Email me to schedule a FREE 15-Min. CONSULTATION. Email: doc2@daytrading-doc.com My customized 6-week program costs just $1499. Click here to sign up now.
Dr. Reid's Winning Trader's Mindset MP3
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| Copyright 2012 Kenneth Reid. All Rights Reserved. |
Moderate levels of stress provide the adrenaline, the thrill that makes trading less of a job and more of an adventure. If you exceed your stress threshold, however, you will get into an overload state that triggers primal emotions and defensive/aggressive behaviors. 
Aspiring traders pay far too much attention to what just happened in the market (the recency bias) and not enough attention to their own mental state. Successful traders actively manage their mental attitude in order to maintain confidence in the face of uncertainty; discipline in the midst of randomness. Maintaining a confident mental attitude is a skill that can be learned.
Top athletes practice it. Top traders practice it. You can, too. 
