Know Your Method
For nearly a year and a half, I’ve been blessed to be a dad. It’s been an awesome experience, and I have really learned a lot (though I still have a long way to go).
During the same time, I’ve been able to observe my wife in her role as a mother, and it’s really amazing how quickly a mother knows what their child needs! I had heard of a mother’s intuition, but witnessing it first hand really puts it into perspective.
I think mothers start out with an innate ability, a talent, to determine their child’s needs. And yet there are still the elements of practice and experience which enhance the natural talent that was there to begin with. It takes work, but the combination of talent and effort produces quite a skill.
Similarities Abound
Trading isn’t any different in that regard.
As traders, each of us start out with some kind of talent. It may be that we take quickly to reading the tape and gauging momentum, or it might be that we realize very quickly just where the boundaries of our comfort zones are when it comes to risk tolerance. Whatever it happens to be, generally it isn’t long before we start to build a method around our needs.
And what’s so nice about trading is that’s entirely possible in the market – since there are so many ways to seek out profits. We truly can custom-build a method which is fully-suited to us.
Once we get to that point, and if we want to trade responsibly, then one of our biggest obligations is to understand our method backwards and forwards. We don’t have to know everything about the market or be able to predict what’s going to happen next. Anyone who tells you otherwise just hasn’t traded much. All we need to do is keep our eye on the ball and continue to monitor and adjust the way we’re trading in order to achieve better results.
Worthwhile Effort
Just like a mother’s watchful eye on her child, our ongoing effort to remain aware of everything that’s taking place can lead to a great understanding of our method. As a result, we quickly learn when to adjust and how to go about modifying our approach whenever necessary.
What would it mean to you if you understood your method well enough that you could make small adjustments on the fly and right away improve your results? It would be huge, wouldn’t it?
As the newness of the year begins to fade and early resolutions fall by the wayside, take a stand for your trading. Make a commitment – a goal – right now to become sharp enough that you pick up on subtle changes in the trading landscape which warrant your attention.
Learn to detect when the environment is not ideal for your trading, so that you will know when to adapt or back down. And then when you see opportunities to do so, make those small adjustments so that you can stay on top rather than falling behind.
Jeff White
President, The Stock Bandit, Inc.
Swing Trading & Day Trading Service
www.TheStockBandit.com
[tags]Stock Market, Day Trading, Stock Trading, Investing, Swing Trading[/tags]
