It’s normal from time to time (often even) to get frustrated at the overwhelming task that lies ahead.
At these times, I find it incredibly helpful to pause and reflect on exactly where I’ve come from and how far I’ve progressed.
Yes… way back in the early days… I bought into Croesus Mining near a top and held it way below my stop loss… because I knew I was right!
I’ve certainly come a long way!
And like we all do, I served more than my fair share of time in the indicator and systems hell.
There are shelves full of folders documenting my progress.
Looking through these folders, I can clearly see just how far I’ve come.
I used to try to put together indicator based systems, without any appreciation or consideration as to what makes price move and why it should move at that time in that direction. Now every decision I make in the markets is taken with consideration of “other traders” and how their decisions and actions may influence orderflow.
I used to fear loss. Now I see it as a part of the business and work to manage and minimise it.
I used to be obsessed with finding the perfect way to trigger into a trade. I now recognise that there is no one perfect entry trigger and instead we should focus on ensuring we trade in the right area with respect to higher timeframe context and bias and then just enter as best we can within that area.
I used to wait for price confirmation through movement in my trade direction. Now I recognise confirmation as risk and aim to enter as close to the start of the move as possible, ensuring a much greater potential reward.
I used to be frustrated with suboptimal exits. I now recognise that such precision is impossible. I manage my exits as best I can given the information I have at the time and forgive myself any imperfection.
I have come so far!
All those roadblocks, which seemed at the time to mark the potential end of my journey, were in fact just temporary obstacles which forced me to become a better trader, improving in knowledge, skill and attitude.
And perhaps my current challenges are also temporary, prompting me to achieve new levels of understanding and to take the next steps along my path of trader evolution.
Perhaps in coming months I will look back at my current challenges, smile at my naivety and grow further in confidence when considering again just how far I have come.
I’ve come a long way. I look forward to seeing what comes next!
ACTION TASK:
- This weekend… schedule some time to pause… look back… and see how far YOU have come. You might just be amazed at how far it is.
Happy trading,
Lance Beggs