Sometimes when we trade it seems that the whole world turned against us. And sometimes it seems that we are surrounded by the enemies. And the longer we trade, the more it can seem this way.
But in reality we do not have the world turned against us.
In reality, we only have several major factors which are for sure playing against us. And let me tell you, some of them are pretty easy to fight – all we need is to get a grip and turn out the power of will.
So, what are our biggest enemies?
1. Lack of knowledge.
2. Adrenaline.
3. Stubbornness.
4. Anger.
5. Thinking you can trade too big.
1. Lack of knowledge.
In the very beginning it may seem that trading is pretty easy. It doesn’t really require a lot of time and effort and all we need for success are trading signals and some time. But in reality it is pretty far away from the truth.
Those who have already studied or are only starting right now to study the theory of trading can easily say – trading is hard. And learning about it is nowhere near as easy.
In the very begging being assured that you do not need to study and the general lack of knowledge on the topic can really harm you and your trading and as a result your budget and your money. Of course losing is not a pretty and pleasant process and that is how you give up trading altogether.
Try and study and use your whole learning potential in order to feel sure in trading.
2. Adrenaline.
When you have gained enough knowledge it is possible that you are going to see some pretty good results and pretty fast too. You feel the rush of the win and you like it. You feel that warm feeling in your toes and fingers?
That is adrenaline coursing through your veins. That is the exact feeling that all of the people who do dangerous sports are hooked on. And CONGRATS! You are one of them now.
Getting hooked on that warm feeling is one of the worst things that can happen to a trader. Because seeking it will bring you more trouble and more reckless actions than you will ever need. Do not go along with adrenaline-fueled feeling and always think with a cold head.
3. Stubbornness.
As trade,rs we prefer to live according to our views and our personal thoughts. And we seldom take advice from people from the outside. And we also seldom change our opinion according to other people’s views. All of that added together can be very dangerous.
Yes, stubbornness is a real enemy of traders as community. We seldom change our trading strategy and our trading views especially if the information is not coming from ourselves but from the outside. In many cases losses could be escaped if we listened and analyzed and didn’t continue to go along our lines.
Being stubborn can pay off. Just not in trading.
4. Anger.
Losses can really lead us to anger. We want to win and not seeing it happen can really get on our nerves. Several months of unwanted losses can really bring one on a verge of a mental breakdown prompting more and more losses, as a result we get angry. And the angrier we get, the less we see.
Imagine that every time you get angry – a cloth is wrapped around your eyes. And the angrier we get, the firmer is the cloth. Of course with time we stop seeing at all which leads us to making more and more decisions that can be fatal for our trades and that can lead to more losses…
…which of course leads to even more anger. And in the end we have a never-ending circle of anger and losses.
If you get angry or prompt to it – better step aside and calm down before going in again.
5. Thinking you can trade too big.
Never put down a trade you can’t afford to lose. It is a golden rule of trading that you can NEVER EVER break. Thinking you can out down a big trade and survive a loss can be true only if you have a big enough budget for that. Otherwise, you are only going to risk with the possibility to wind up broke from losing one trade only.
This one of the most dangerous trading enemies that we have in the markets – your own arrogance and egoism. You need to admit that some trades are just too big for you to put down and lose. Of course there is always a chance that you are going to win, but there is also an equal chance that you are going to lose.
