Most trader coaching is traditionally focused on teaching traders to trade better. The emphasis is on discipline, trade management and risk management. The more complex workings of the inner life are a side show and not the core of most coaching.
Any serious professional will tell you though that trading technique is not the key to lasting trading success.
Unlike an athlete who has to refine his own performance to optimum levels without having to adjust to constantly changing outside conditions a trader’s biggest challenge is to adjust to the ever changing conditions of the markets while also monitoring the permanent changes of their emotions.
Transition periods in the markets are the norm, particularly for short term traders. Yet retail traders fail to fully grasp this aspect of trading and think they can blindly follow a system and mechanically repeat the same action over and over.
If only…
Of course most traders cannot even train themselves to repeat the same basic actions over and over again, hence their equity curve resembles more a roller coaster than a smooth line, let alone recognize the different market climates early on.
Add to that the different moods and emotional triggers everyone is exposed to irrespective of whether they are a professional trader or a retail trader and we can see why traders struggle without proper couching.
When you develop as a person you develop as a trader
It really doesn’t come any simpler than that.
The inability of traders to retain steady equity curbs is the result of inadequate emotional training and a total lack of understanding of their deeper thought processes and mentality. The average person lives in the illusion of their misperceptions. I could also call it the illusion of their “identity”. Most concepts people have of themselves are wrong, because the ideas upon which these concepts are based are false.
In addition the overwhelming majority of people do not understand how universal laws work, which makes them focus on the wrong things. Consequently trading actions are built on illusionary sand castles.
Denial still runs rampant as people simply refuse to change the way they operate, so brainwashed have they become to believe in the giant illusion of life. They are like lambs led to trading slaughter without their conscious knowledge.
The traders I work with are professionals.
They have all traded for many years and they appreciate the immense value of coaching. Some of my clients have seen massive changes in market behaviour. They had to make the transition from floor trader to electronic trader.
Above all they realise that in order to be their best and grow into deeper levels of mastery they need to constantly work on themselves.
A client of my recently created this analogy:
“You put fuel into your car to drive it and take it to a good garage for maintenance. Coaching is just that”.
That’s it in a nutshell.
Retail traders focus on results instead of focusing on their inner performance.
They also think that reading a book or two on psychology is enough. This shallow outlook sets them up for failure sooner or later, because they are in denial of what it takes to be successful.
It is a fact of life that there are very few people who are willing to do what it takes to become true masters in their field. Hence mediocrity is the norm.
Mastery requires that you stretch yourself every day.
You must stretch your ability to be more, become more and understand more about your own internal processes and external processes that influence performance. It is a life style choice.
Sometimes I go very deep into the rabbit hole with my clients. It can get uncomfortable for a short while alas it always brings immense growth and ultimately produces increased inner calm and inner independence and expanded vision.
This is the only place from which you can become a consistently successful trader in an ever changing and vastly shifting world. Context is everything: Be that in trading or in life. The two go hand in glove.
You may want to ask yourself where you fit in: Are you playing at becoming a good trader like over 90 % of all market participants or are you interested in mastery of your life?
Are you interested in mastery of your life, CLICK HERE
