How to Clear Away Mental Garbage While Trading
Mental strength is not something you are born with. It’s something you build over time, as you face new challenges and learn from your mistakes. As every trader knows well, the market is a ruthless place where fear and greed take turns at being in control of your emotions. The mental stress that comes with trading can be so intense that it can feel like there is another person inside you arguing with and battling against yourself. New traders especially struggle with this because they are learning and growing as fast as their portfolio can bleed red. But the road to success never comes easy and requires a lot of effort on your end. Luckily, we live in an era where information is abundant and lessons shared online can save us from a lot of pain. So if you want to become a successful trader without breaking mentally along the way, here are some useful tips:
Stay Organized and Keep a Calendar
Keeping a calendar of your trading activities is a great way to gain control over your trading journey. You can start by marking down your trading dates, your daily trading hours, and the mistakes you made trading in the past. Charting everything can help you see your progress and mistakes better and put you on the path of minimizing them in the future. This is also useful for keeping you accountable for what you promise yourself. If you make a promise to yourself about trading, put it on the calendar. This will prevent you from letting the promise slip your mind. And if you make a mistake, make sure you write it down. This will help you avoid repeating the same mistakes again.
Take Breaks
When you are new to trading, it is easy to get caught up in the heat of the moment and feel like you have to be trading at all times. However, this can be detrimental to your success as a trader and your mental health. Take breaks in between your trading sessions and throughout your day. This is a great way to relieve stress and give your brain time to rest. Even if you only take 10 to 15-minute breaks in between your sessions, you can find that you are able to approach your next trading sessions with a fresh head and clearer mind.
Hold Yourself Accountable
One of the major mental struggles traders face is the tendency to be too hard on themselves. As we said in the previous point, it is important to hold yourself accountable for the mistakes you make in your trading journey. It is also important to hold yourself accountable for the promises you make to yourself when trading. If you make a promise to yourself about trading, make sure you keep it. This will help you to avoid feeling badly about yourself and keeps you on the path to success. If you make a mistake, make sure you acknowledge it and learn from it. This will prevent you from repeating the same mistake again and taking strides towards success.
Know Your Triggers and Set up Safeties
It is only natural to be upset when your trades don’t go as planned. But if you are trading with real money, these emotions can have devastating effects on your mental and financial health. You can try to avoid this by knowing what triggers your emotions while trading. This is especially important if you are trading with real money. You can do this by keeping a trading journal. This will help you figure out what triggers your emotions and what you can do to prevent them. You can also set up some safeties to try and protect your mental health while you are trading. For example, you can put a stop loss on your trades so that you are not stressing about losing money.
Don’t Be Afraid of Taking Losses
Some traders find themselves unwilling to take losses and instead, they keep their losing trades open until they are completely out of money. This is not a healthy way of trading and can lead to serious mental breakdowns. You should always be ready to take losses and be ready to take profits as well. This is the only way for you to be able to make consistent profits in the long run. You will never be able to trade successfully if you are afraid of taking losses. You will only be setting yourself up for failure. If you are not ready to take losses, then you are not ready to trade with real money. You need to take losses in order to learn from your mistakes and make progress as a trader. Taking losses is an essential part of trading. You always have to be prepared to take a loss and have the mentality that it is part of the journey. This way, you will not be so upset when you have to take a loss.
Conclusion
Mental strength is something that takes time to develop, but it's crucial for success as a trader. There are many ways to improve your mental strength, and you can start by keeping a journal, taking breaks, and holding yourself accountable. Also, know your triggers and set up safeties to avoid letting emotions get the best of you. In the long run, you will be glad you did. And if you are already trading, now is the best time to start strengthening your mental strength. The earlier you start, the better prepared you will be for the challenges that lie ahead. In order to succeed, you need to be ready to face all the challenges that come your way, both externally and internally.
Pst. thinking in terms of fantasy helps, that way you are out of the noise from the real world issue and focus on your own gameplan.
Stay Organized and Keep a Calendar
Keeping a calendar of your trading activities is a great way to gain control over your trading journey. You can start by marking down your trading dates, your daily trading hours, and the mistakes you made trading in the past. Charting everything can help you see your progress and mistakes better and put you on the path of minimizing them in the future. This is also useful for keeping you accountable for what you promise yourself. If you make a promise to yourself about trading, put it on the calendar. This will prevent you from letting the promise slip your mind. And if you make a mistake, make sure you write it down. This will help you avoid repeating the same mistakes again.
Take Breaks
When you are new to trading, it is easy to get caught up in the heat of the moment and feel like you have to be trading at all times. However, this can be detrimental to your success as a trader and your mental health. Take breaks in between your trading sessions and throughout your day. This is a great way to relieve stress and give your brain time to rest. Even if you only take 10 to 15-minute breaks in between your sessions, you can find that you are able to approach your next trading sessions with a fresh head and clearer mind.
Hold Yourself Accountable
One of the major mental struggles traders face is the tendency to be too hard on themselves. As we said in the previous point, it is important to hold yourself accountable for the mistakes you make in your trading journey. It is also important to hold yourself accountable for the promises you make to yourself when trading. If you make a promise to yourself about trading, make sure you keep it. This will help you to avoid feeling badly about yourself and keeps you on the path to success. If you make a mistake, make sure you acknowledge it and learn from it. This will prevent you from repeating the same mistake again and taking strides towards success.
Know Your Triggers and Set up Safeties
It is only natural to be upset when your trades don’t go as planned. But if you are trading with real money, these emotions can have devastating effects on your mental and financial health. You can try to avoid this by knowing what triggers your emotions while trading. This is especially important if you are trading with real money. You can do this by keeping a trading journal. This will help you figure out what triggers your emotions and what you can do to prevent them. You can also set up some safeties to try and protect your mental health while you are trading. For example, you can put a stop loss on your trades so that you are not stressing about losing money.
Don’t Be Afraid of Taking Losses
Some traders find themselves unwilling to take losses and instead, they keep their losing trades open until they are completely out of money. This is not a healthy way of trading and can lead to serious mental breakdowns. You should always be ready to take losses and be ready to take profits as well. This is the only way for you to be able to make consistent profits in the long run. You will never be able to trade successfully if you are afraid of taking losses. You will only be setting yourself up for failure. If you are not ready to take losses, then you are not ready to trade with real money. You need to take losses in order to learn from your mistakes and make progress as a trader. Taking losses is an essential part of trading. You always have to be prepared to take a loss and have the mentality that it is part of the journey. This way, you will not be so upset when you have to take a loss.
Conclusion
Mental strength is something that takes time to develop, but it's crucial for success as a trader. There are many ways to improve your mental strength, and you can start by keeping a journal, taking breaks, and holding yourself accountable. Also, know your triggers and set up safeties to avoid letting emotions get the best of you. In the long run, you will be glad you did. And if you are already trading, now is the best time to start strengthening your mental strength. The earlier you start, the better prepared you will be for the challenges that lie ahead. In order to succeed, you need to be ready to face all the challenges that come your way, both externally and internally.
Pst. thinking in terms of fantasy helps, that way you are out of the noise from the real world issue and focus on your own gameplan.
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Tip to high-volume traders: Be ruthless in trading, and humble in real life.