The daily life of a trader is rather fluid. It isnt a picture perfect world where the trader logs onto his or her computer, trades a specific number of trades in a set time frame, and then logs off at the end of the day knowing that profits are on their way. Rather, trading might mean executing and it might mean strategizing. It might mean having a wicked day of positive trades and ending on a positive note or it might mean sitting around lifting dumbbells until the conditions for trading change enough to start hoping for profit again. Sometimes it means leaping in and getting busy and other times it means slacking off to get the picture right.



Because the daily life of the trader is so fluid, certain expectations must be relaxed in order to thrive in the industry. Expectations such as working a set number of scheduled hours every day or meeting a trade quota arent always realistic. While you want to put your time to good use when trading isnt momentarily feasible, you dont need to sit there watching the clock feeling as though you are wasting your work hours.

Because of the amount of flexibility a traders day experiences, some traders who are new to the game and those who are coming out of a seriously difficult trading slump experience some cold feet. Jumping in isnt as easy when there is so much at stake and all the decisions, including how much or even whether you decide to work that day, is all uncomfortably resting on your shoulders. It really doesnt have to be all that uncomfortable.

Most often a trader either without a lot of experience or a trader who has recently experienced a loss significant enough to shake up their confidence level feels uncomfortable because their success or lack thereof becomes a reflection on them. A win is not a testament to your intelligence, and a loss is not a testament to a lack of intelligence. Losing money is a basic expectation and therefore can not be avoided. The threat of losing money makes some new investors uncomfortable, but what makes them more uncomfortable is how they perceive a loss to themselves and imagine how it might look in the eyes of their peers.

Learning to interpret your wins and losses as information to help you grow as an investor is part of learning how to be a professional day trader. There is no room for an ego in the trading world, and your ego is going to have to learn to sit back and allow your brain to interpret your feedback in the form of wins and losses.

Obviously, if you are pulling in a string of profits, your trading strategies and your interpretation of market conditions are accurate. If you experience a sudden drop in profits and start losing money, then you are either using the inappropriate trading strategy for market conditions or you arent interpreting the market conditions accurately. The feedback means a simple change, one that will help bring you back around to pulling a profit.

One of the most frustrating parts of being a part of the human condition is the battle we often must have with our own minds. When we believe we are unworthy, we act accordingly. When we believe that there is the potential for things to go against our wishes, we also tend to believe that there is potential for total disaster and personal annihilation. This is not the case. You might lose some money. You might make some money. If you are careful about managing your money and only place smaller amounts on any given trade, the potential we build up in our minds just isnt part of the picture.

Trading is not for the weak hearted. While anyone can learn how to trade effectively and profitably, not everyone can make the appropriate distinction between how you perform as a trader and what kind of person you really are. You do not become unworthy because you lost money. You do not become heroic because you earned money. You are a trader, an interpreter of numbers, facts, and probabilities during your trading day. You are whomever you are during your off hours. Once you can master that distinction you wont be so tempted to stay out of the pool. Instead, you might dip in a toe, or slowly submerge, or perhaps even just jump right in and get wet.