We’ve all heard that trading is 20% technical and 80% psychological.
Want to know why?
It’s because our emotions short-circuit our logical brains.
This “emotional sabotage” is the main reason why most traders never make it.
… And it’s also why seasoned traders struggle to reach higher monetary gains.
There are a few emotions that can short-circuit our logical brain, such as:
But why does emotional sabotage happen in the first place?
Why do those emotions come up and overtake our rational brains?
Well, there are a few possible triggers for these emotions:
Those triggers can give rise to negative emotions that can lead to:
And all of these usually share one common result: losses.
Successful traders do things differently…
They:
So how do you increase your odds of being a successful trader?
You need to change some of your thought processes…
Having a minus day does not make you a bad trader
You cannot “will” the market to do what you want
You cannot “predict” where the market is going — because the market will go where it wants, when it wants, how it wants
Something else about being a successful trader that we’ve all learned the hard way is that we do not have to work 12 hours.
In other words: Trade smarter, not harder.
Finally, in case you are struggling with emotions and trading… I want to leave you with some important questions to ask yourself.
These will help you catch yourself when your emotions are interfering with your logical analysis of a trading scenario:
I suggest tracking these questions in a trading journal and trying to spot negative patterns that are harmful to your trading.
You just may uncover a lot of the bad habits and thought processes that are diluting your trading gains.
If you want more information like this, I personally do a weekly call with Hawkeye members where we review the markets and important lessons (like this one) to help you grow as a trader and make more money.