Posts Tagged ‘Trading Psychology’

Are You On Track With Your Trading So Far?

Saturday, February 11th, 2012

Are you doing all the right things and still not getting the results that you desire?

Have you wondered why you are off track?

It is not what you might think it is!

It’s simple yet most people tend to skip right over it thinking it does not apply to them.

What is it?

It is not what you do. It is how you do it.

Let me give you 3 examples:

  1. Focus

    You might have heard that it is important to keep your focus. Yet nobody really talks about what to keep your focus on.

    Have you paid attention to your thoughts during the day? For each thought:

    • Do you know what percentage of your time you are entertaining it?
    • Do you know if it is serving you?
    • If not, you can choose to transform it.
  1. Internal Signals

    You have heard that in trading, you need to leave your emotions at the door. This is the BIGGEST MYTH.

    It is essential for you to recognize your emotions or as I call them your Internal Signals, and understand what they are telling you. Once you understand your own internal patterns and automatic actions associated with them, then you can choose the actions that will support you and allow you to take profitable actions.

  1. Money

    Are you expecting to make money from your trading business?

    It might sound silly to say that.

    In talking with lots of traders I have seen that they want to make money and yet they have heard that they should not focus on the money. Hence the dilemma.

    The truth is that it is important to have the intention of making money from your trading business. The key is not to be attached to one particular trade for your profits.

These things seem simple, yet if you don’t pay attention to them, you are basically sabotaging your trading business and yourself.

To Boosting Your Profits NOW…and in the Future!

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Mental Edge | No Comments »

Is This Impacting Your Profits In The Market?

Wednesday, November 16th, 2011

I was watching an experiment and it made me think about how we behave in the markets and what kind of profits we generate. Stay with me and see if you can relate.

There were a group of volunteers that were watching an actor. The actor was presented with a first picture and he stayed calm. When they presented him with a picture of rose, he pretended that he was being shocked and he was in pain even though no pain was inflected on him. This process was repeated several times.

I must add that the volunteers did not know that he was an actor. They just knew that they were going to be subjected to the same process.

Do you know what the interesting result was?

Because of what the volunteers saw, they were anticipating pain and all of them reacted as though they were being shocked and in pain when they were presented with the picture of the rose. The truth was that they were not subjected to any pain or shock.

This is what is called observation learning. Therefore, reactions are learned behavior.

What does that have to do with your trading and your profits?

Consider the following:

  • Who are your mentors?
  • Who do you listen to?
  • What are your sources of information?
  • Who do you surround yourself with?
  • How do they react to the current markets? What are their points of view?
  • How are you reacting to the current markets?

You might have heard that you are the average of the 5 people that you spend the most time with. Therefore, pay attention to who you surround yourself with and where you get your information.

Notice how that impacts your trading and your results!

Here is to making trading success your habit™,

Nazy

P.S. Give me 30 minutes and I’ll show you the number one blind spot that stops you from having the trading business and lifestyle that you desire.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Mental Edge | 7 Comments »

5 Landmines Exposed by Volatility & How to Prevent Them to Make More Profits & Have More Freedom

Tuesday, October 4th, 2011

Hello,

I know that we have started the 4th quarter and there is a lot of volatility in the markets. I wanted to talk to you about “5 Landmines Exposed by Volatility & How to Prevent Them to Make More Profits & Have More Freedom.”

I understand it’s short notice, but I hope you can still take advantage of it.

I’m hosting a webinar on the subject, on Thursday at 5pm Eastern (that’s 4pm Central, 2pm Pacific).

To register, please go to: http://www.instantpresenter.com/PIID=E959DA80864C

I trust you can join me because you’ll discover answers to very important questions:

  • What are 5 landmines that are exposed by volatility?
  • What are the symptoms?
  • Why the ways you have tried to prevent them in the past might have not worked.
  • How to deal with these landmines so you actually can have more profits and more freedom!

These are some of the questions I’ll answer on Thursday.

The webinar is my gift to you.

* * * * * * * *           Here Are the Details           * * * * * * * * *

Date: Thursday, October 6, 2011

Time: 5pm Eastern (that’s 4pm Central, 2pm Pacific)

URL: Will be provided upon registration

NOTE: We always begin promptly according to
http://www.time.gov, so mark your calendar
and be sure to sign in a few minutes early so
you’re not pre-empted by other participants.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

To register, please go to: http://www.instantpresenter.com/PIID=E959DA80864C

I look forward to “seeing” you on Thursday…

Here is to making trading success your habit™…

Cheers!

Nazy Massoud

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Mental Edge | 4 Comments »

5 Keys to Deal with Trading Fear

Thursday, August 4th, 2011

How comfortable are you dealing with uncertainty?

As volatility and uncertainty increases, so does fear. When our emotions run high, then our decision making process suffers.

It seems like the harder we try, the worse things get.

We start reacting to things instead of being proactive. Then we feel overwhelmed.

Does this sound familiar?

One of the hardest things to deal with is uncertainly.

We have strategies for managing our risk in most aspects of our trading. However, we seldom talk about or have strategies for the most crucial element, our Personal Risk.

Have you noticed the panic that is going on in the markets? Do you know people who have been a contributor to it? Do you know them intimately?

How do you manage your Personal Risk?

  1. Trade With a Clear Mind

    Do not make emotional decisions. Realize that emotions are emotions. What differentiates the successful traders from others is how we recalibrate our reactions to our emotions.

    I was watching an interview with a surfer. The interviewer asked him what he does when a big surf comes and he goes underwater. The surfer said it was simple. “If I panic, I only have 3-5 seconds of air to breathe. If I stay calm, I have 45-60 seconds of air.”

    What does surfing have to do with trading? If you panic and operate from a place of fear, you could lose all of your capital. However, if you take a moment and think about your strategies, you can have much better results.

  1. Look at Your Portfolio Objectively

    Think about your portfolio as if you are looking at the portfolio of your best friend. How would you advise him/her?

  1. Limit Your Input

    There are a lot of conflicting points of view. If we want to listen to all of them, it becomes very confusing, and the confused mind does not make a decision.

    Instead of listening to everybody, pick the top 3 people that you respect and listen to them. This way, you can remain focused and have much better trading results.

  1. Be In Tune With the Markets

    Trade the markets as they are and not as you want them to be.

    If we are not in tune with the markets and don’t listen to them, we are going to be in a losing game.

    After all, hope is a lousy hedge.

  1. Be In a Supportive Environment

    It is important to listen to the people that we respect and are successful.

    There are traders whose spouse and/or friends have little or no risk tolerance. As a result, these traders allow the fear of their spouse and/or friends to become the boundaries of their success.

    Who are you choosing to surround yourself with?

Remember, not the most talented or skilled person wins the game. The game is won by the ones who can manage their Personal Risk and have a Mental Edge.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Mental Edge | No Comments »

Are You Using These Circuit Breakers In Your Business?

Friday, May 27th, 2011

One of the things I often hear is that when traders get bored, they overtrade.

Another scenario is that when a trade goes against them, they take it personally and want to make all of it up on the next trade.

I also know traders who have positive P&L for the first few trades and then they give all or most of their profits up on the next trade.

Does any of the above sound familiar?

If so, you are not alone.

These behaviors lead to confusion and make you wonder what went wrong. Then it creates a lot of self-doubt and uncertainty about being in the trading business.

The truth is that we are all creatures of habit. If we pay attention, we notice our own internal signals/patterns and what they tell us. By paying attention to these signals, we can put in place the circuit breakers that will stop us from acting out and sabotaging ourselves.

Aristotle has a saying: “We are what we repeatedly do. Therefore, excellence is not an act, but a habit.”

The circuit breakers you put in place enable you to have the kind of business and lifestyle that you desire.

By putting in place and following these circuit breakers, you are being responsive and thus giving yourself a competitive edge!

When you are reactive, usually you are not getting the best results. When you are responsive, you have an edge and a higher probability of getting the results that you desire…

What are some of these circuit breakers?

  1. Take regular breaks
  1. Stop trading when you notice you don’t have an edge
  1. Don’t think of your gains as house money and gamble with it
  1. Exit the trade when you notice you are hoping, wishing, or praying
  1. Have an accountability partner

By creating circuit breakers, you are enabling yourself to get back in your zone and keep your momentum going.

Remember the story of the turtle and the rabbit. The turtle always wins. Why? Because the turtle keeps his/her momentum and keeps on going. Also, remember the power of compounding.

By putting the right circuit breakers in place, you will have the mindset necessary to create the edge needed to expedite your growth.

Josh Billings says, “It’s not what we don’t know that prevents us from succeeding, it’s what we know that just ain’t so that is our greatest obstacle.”

Here is to making trading success your habit™,

P.S. Tuesday, May 31th is your last chance to enjoy the $100 savings for our popular webinar series, the Consistently Boost Your Profits , starting on June 6th.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Mental Edge | No Comments »

Is This Your Deepest Fear?

Thursday, April 28th, 2011

For years, I have been coaching a lot of people, and when I start asking them what their biggest fear is, they start talking about fear of failure and fear of rejection. But when I ask more questions, I notice something very surprising.

It probably will surprise you too.

What is this fear?

If you say fear of SUCCESS, you are right.

Let me explain.

When I ask people what are the consequences or costs of success, the first reaction is, what do you mean what is the cost? There is none. But when we dig a little bit deeper, the following responses usually come up:

  • More responsibilities
  • Have to be out there and can’t hide
  • Make bigger decisions
  • More conflicts, more stress, and not pleasant
  • Not enough time for family and friends
  • Longer working hours
  • Changing lifestyle, changing who you are
  • Unreasonable expectation from others
  • Not knowing whether people want to be with you for who you are or because of your success and money
  • Not being happy when you achieve success
  • Feeling you don’t deserve success
  • It’s morally wrong to have the kind of money and success that you desire

These are some of the reasons that you are not getting the results that you say you want. When there is incongruence between what you say you want and your state of mind, you start sabotaging yourself!

It is important to realize what is really holding you back and what your blind spots are. For you to succeed, you need to align your feelings/state of mind with your goals/desires…

Ask yourself:

  1. What does success mean to you?
  1. What happens if you don’t achieve success?
  1. What happens if you do achieve success?
  1. Who do you think you need to be in order to succeed?

There is a cost and a payoff for all of your behaviors! Unless you recognize them, you can’t do anything about them. What are yours?

A quote by Marianne Williamson says: “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us.”

To Uncover Your Blind Spots that block the True Profit Potential of Your Trading Business
Click Here. The next one starts on June 6th.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Mental Edge | 2 Comments »

Are You Missing These Important Data Points From Your Analysis?

Saturday, March 5th, 2011

You might have heard that between 90-95% of traders don’t succeed.

It is not because of their intelligence. The majority of people who get into this business are smart and you are one of them.

What separates the 5-10% of successful traders from others is that they know in order to succeed in their trading business, they have to have an inner and outer approach. They have learned to master their outer game as well as mastering their inner game.

The key question is how to master your inner game.

For years, you might’ve heard that the key to successful trading is to leave your emotions at the door.

You might’ve heard that you need to have ice in your veins.

Does any of this sound familiar?

I am here to tell you that this is a myth. Yes, you heard me correctly.

The most successful traders don’t ignore their feelings. They understand their emotions/ internal signals and have learned how to harness them so they can be profitable and have the lifestyle that they desire.

By learning how to manage your emotions/internal signals, you learn how to be present and stay in your trading zone. You learn how to develop your instincts.

There was a study done about the most successful CEOs. The key differentiator was that they had learned how to trust their instincts/gut feelings! You are all CEOs of your own trading business.

We are human beings and we are full of emotions. Our emotions/internal signals have a job to do and are full of information. It is not about ignoring them. It is about understanding them and learning how to manage them…

Think about this, when you get your data and your signals, you are not ignoring them. Are you? You look at the patterns and make your decisions accordingly. You dedicate a lot of time to studying your charts, your patterns and your signals. Yet you are ignoring the most important one of all, your internal signals and patterns.

Your emotions/internal signals are your most important data source. You need to understand:

  1. What are your emotions/internal signals telling you?
  1. Do they serve you?
  1. If not, reprogram your reaction to those internal signals.

Harnessing these powerful signals gives you the edge needed to succeed in these markets.

Here is to making trading success your habit™

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Mental Edge | 1 Comment »

Trading Business

Thursday, March 3rd, 2011

Last week I attended The Traders Expo. Also, I had the pleasure of presenting at Gail Mercer’s 3-day seminar. Her website is www.tradershelpdesk.com and she has a complimentary chat room that I recommend you to check it out.

It reminded me of how we look at trading. A lot of people forget that this is a business and needs to be treated accordingly. The majority expect to be as good as their mentors right away.

They are told that success can be achieved immediately. The truth is that you can learn the process immediately. But, like any other business, you need time and practice to develop the skills and the art that are required to be successful.

It is very important to manage your own expectations or you face disappointments.

When you are ready to take your trading business to the next level, you can check out my Consistently Boost Your Profits program. The next one starts on Mar 28th, 2011.

Here is to your trading success and profitability…

Nazy

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Mental Edge | 1 Comment »