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Thanks again. After reading all the responses, I decided to put yesterday behind me and stick to the plan. I took a 2 cent loser and a 4 cent winner . . . so back on the horse I guess.
No... do not have an "oops, I'm a dumb ass" line in your plan. Talking to ourselves in this way feeds your unconcious for more self-sabotage acts in future!.
I subscribe to the self-sabotage ideas. I think you simply need to accept responsibility. Trading is about being efficient, minimizing errors, being consistent, and following rules (risk parameters, etc).
The issue most traders have is simply they are unwilling to take responsibility.
They'll blame their computer, platform, wife for calling, kids for interrupting, news report for volatility, or whatever else. You name it, they'll blame it.
The fact is - you placed the trade. You are responsible for it, no matter what. No matter if your broker steals your money, your computer crashes, your power goes out, your platform freezes, it doesn't matter. You made all those choices, and ultimately you made the decision to place the trade.
So I think what Richard is saying is simply to accept responsibility and not to leave room for a get out of free jail card. What you want to do is openly admit your mistakes, not hide them away. You need to evaluate yourself and your performance honestly, so you can come up with a definitive list of your strengths AND your weaknesses, and then work around (both) of them to your advantage.
One last thing, forget about the "shoulda, woulda, coulda" trades. It doesn't help. Trade the plan. If the plan doesn't include those trades and you want it to, then modify the plan -- after doing all of the necessary research, backtesting, forward testing, and etc demonstrating it is actually a good idea. Usually, it isn't.
I have a question I ask traders that come to me for help. How they answer the question determines if I will help or not. I call it The 110% Question.
It goes like this:
Are you willing to accept responsibility 110% of the time for all things trading related? I then follow it up with this; "tell me in your own mind, what has been the primary driver behind your lack of success?"
The 110% is there because there is only 100% potential and yet the trader MUST be willing to accept ALL responsibility, even if its really not their fault. Even to accepting even more than 100%...thats what's required.
The answers to these two questions tell me if the trader is ready to succeed or not.
A few weeks ago a trader sought me out, asked me (I think) for help. I asked him the second question and the response was "HFT are screwing it up for everyone." I knew immediately he wasn't ready and I told him so. He admitted I had a point and went on blaming something else.
So yes, sometimes things happen.....but in the end, we are 110% responsible....shifting blame to anything besides our own decisions and actions prolongs the pain.
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication, Leonardo da Vinci
Most people chose unhappiness over uncertainty, Tim Ferris
Hi everyone, so glad to have found this forum. This is the first thread I've read, and I was asking myself a similar question yesterday. I only began day trading again on 8/29 and managed and caught a couple 200%-300% movers my first week. So I'm happy overall, I will post the story of how my Degrade system froze during my first 2 trading days once for almost 3 hours after buying 40 contracts! Cost me a couple of K conservatively, anyway I'll save that story for another day. Anyway week still turned out great even with all the frustration and loses due to Degrade!
Yesterday I was thinking of setting predetermined in the money sell orders, so that I wouldn't have to monitor my positions so closely, which would allow me to look for other opportunities, and not get greedy waiting for another nickel to close a position. Then having to babysit those positions for the rest of the day, kicking myself in the butt for getting greedy, and not selling at the opening pop! Also spoiled my plans for the rest of the day forgot to buy my FIVE calls, or pick up some TSLA puts like last week or take a look at SHLD which ran like crazy or FIO..........
Well like i said I'm glad I found this forum, hope to make some friends learn and have fun here. So How about everybody go out and get a big one today.......or enough to keep you happy.
Thanks for the replies guys (and gals). I absolutely accept the fact that it was my fault. I did however get upset about it. I guess that means I am halfway there. I can accept responsibility, but need to work on letting it go.
I fat-fingered today! Tried to get right back in but wasn't filled. I get one to two good discretionary trades a day, so I might get one more.
It's like you're lying in the brush silently waiting for the prey to finally put its lips to the watering hole, and as you pounce you notice your shoelaces are tied.