Well maybe that's overstating it a little, but it's certainly one of the most important.
It is?(drum roll please)? "the need to be right"!
Now that probably wasn't what you were expecting. You might have thought it was going to be something like not picking the trend or putting too much money on a single trade or one of a dozen other things.
But I can assure you, from bitter experience, that this one attitude causes more problems than most other things you might do as a trader. And it's worse for men! Something to do with ego or testosterone?
You see our whole society is based on the importance of being right. The need to be right.
Your parents rewarded you when you are right and told you off when you were "wrong". They probably still do this now that you are grown up!
From your earliest days at school you are taught that being right is the most important thing. Isn't that what tests teach you? And this is reinforced through the rest of your life. Your boss probably reminds you of this just about every day!
But some of the best things occur when we aren't right. Like the time you take a wrong turn. Either in your travels or in your life. And you end up at this amazing place or with this amazing person that you never would have, had you done the "right" thing.
Plus there's not a lot of point beating yourself up when you aren't "right". Because, as we all know, it's going to happen pretty regularly!
Coming from Australia, I don't know a lot about baseball. But I do understand that batters get paid a lot of money to miss hit the ball an awful lot! Think about that. Top baseballers step up to the plate every day knowing that they are more than likely not going to get it "right". Yet they are confident and successful because they know that over a season they are going to get it right often enough.
Don't Beat Yourself Up or the Market Will join In!
I went to a speed-reading course many years ago. I didn't learn how to read faster (!) but I did learn an attitude that has stuck with me ever since. It is ? "Focus. No attachment to the outcome."
This guy was telling us about how he taught elite sportsmen to achieve their best (hope he was better at that than teaching people how to read fast!). He explained that the trick was to get them to keep taking the shot (or making the jump or whatever) without getting upset with themselves if they got it wrong.
The key was for them to focus on what they had to do in that moment, not on the outcome.
Maybe I have lost you? But the point I'm trying to make is that you need to go into each of your trades with your focus - not on being right - but on following your trading system.
And then the key is to not beat yourself up if you "get it wrong". Because if you have followed your system and you know the system works over time, you have done the "right" thing.
Once you have confidence in your trading method your only focus is on following the signals.
"Focus. No attachment to the outcome."
By the way, try this approach in other areas of your life. It really works! My golf was much better once I stopped getting angry at myself for every lousy shot.
Deadly Attitude in the Market
In the stock market you can't afford to hold onto the need to be "right"!
When trading, you cannot be right 100% of the time. In fact, you can be right only 50% of the time and still make lots of money. But this means you have to be wrong an awful lot!
The market will do what the market will do - no matter what your opinion might be. If you are holding a stock and you expect it to go up in price but it starts to go down, what happens?
If you are like me, a little voice inside says something like "?but this wasn't meant to happen!?it can't do this to me!? I know I'm right ? it's just a temporary set back; it will come right, I'll just wait it out?
This "voice of reason" is your ego. You can't bear to be wrong, so you justify your decision to yourself. You must be right! You tell yourself that you know what's going to happen?the market's just confused?it's just got it wrong! (totally illogical reasoning ? the market can never be "wrong" - but it makes sense at the time!).
This deep-seated, primordial need that we have to be right can destroy you in the stock market. It will make you put too much money on one trade. And it will make you hold onto stocks that you should have sold days or even weeks ago.
It will mean you will miss opportunities you should have taken because your view was the opposite of what actually happens. And you can miss getting extra profits from a trade because you were convinced that "?it couldn't possibly go any higher?"
By being aware of this "need" you can overcome it ? over time! You need to get to the point where you "want what the market wants". Not what you want.
Just remember.
"Focus. No attachment to the outcome."
David Chandler
Ordinary People Making Extraordinary Profits!
For a free mini-course on stock and options trading click the following link:
http://www.stockmarketgenie.com
Or visit our blog at:
http://www.stockmarketgenie.com
The above comments are offered for educational purposes only. We are not providing you with financial advice. We are simply sharing with you what has and hasn't worked for us personally. If you wish to trade or invest in the stock market you should obtain advice from a registered licensed advisor.
one time home cleaning Highland Park ..As I said in Part I everyone in the insane... Read More
Are you paying any attention to your retirement savings? Do... Read More
There can't be many traders who haven't at least considered... Read More
Alfred Winslow Jones started hedge funds in 1949. He was... Read More
I go to the Money Show every year to visit... Read More
In one of my previous articles (Investing in the stock... Read More
Among the largest forces that affect stock prices are inflation,... Read More
Wall Street has been preaching for years and years to... Read More
Invest in the stock market for the RIGHT reason, using... Read More
During the day I watch CNBC-TV, the stock market channel.... Read More
Now where have I heard that before? I know. It... Read More
In a previously written article, we expanded the use of... Read More
It is wonderful to be alive in the information age.... Read More
With all the bad news that has been dumped upon... Read More
Cat or dog? Maybe Zebra. Shucks, I don't know, but... Read More
Every stock market investor faces one primal enemy. An enemy... Read More
Four blind men were asked to give a description of... Read More
This is an extract of an article which was first... Read More
Before we get into all the good news out there,... Read More
Hedge current portfolio positions and gain access to capital resources... Read More
Never lose money in the stock market again. Yeah, I... Read More
Every day I hear someone on CNBC proclaim that "this... Read More
Someday you may want to retire and continue to live... Read More
One of the most believed bits of conventional wisdom from... Read More
Ever jumped out of an airplane? It's OK if you... Read More
licensed cleaning services Park Ridge ..Are you one of those many people who dread reading... Read More
The Shadow knows. There used to be a radio program... Read More
Do you have a nest egg? You know, a place... Read More
Today we are inundated with tons of information about the... Read More
Duck! No I don't mean a quack, quack. I meant... Read More
The stock market has not been very kind to your... Read More
Have you ever thought of investing? Do you have a... Read More
Analyzing growth stocks is an important focus for any investor.... Read More
There is a current movie entitled "Eternal Sunshine of the... Read More
A 'stock option' is a contract between two parties giving... Read More
This is a rather simple strategy with which I am... Read More
Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch a... Read More
Peter is a professional trader, Paul is not. Peter has... Read More
This is the continuing story of our two imaginary traders,... Read More
What can I expect to make my first year of... Read More
If you don't know where you are going any road... Read More
Today's society gives special recognition to alcoholics, sexaholics, binge-aholics, shopaholics,... Read More
Every successful trader has a winning system. There are of... Read More
When is a dividend not a dividend?The latest thing "conservative"... Read More
Quick, look out the window. It's raining. No, the sun's... Read More
I feel that an investment strategy in the stock market... Read More
Never lose money in the stock market again. Yeah, I... Read More
Every day in any financial publication you will find the... Read More
When you invest in the stock market for ever-increasing cash... Read More
I am hearing predictions by brokers, financial planners, talk show... Read More
Stocks & Mutual Fund |