When I first started trading back in 2014 I used to hate weekends and love Mondays. In that I found great sense of pride that unlike other people I liked Mondays instead of hating them.
Every time markets closed on Sunday I would constantly wish for weekends to pass asap and start trading the next week. It was needed for that period in time.
Fast forward 8 years later, and I actually learned to find a remarkable balance by enjoying the Friday evening with my family and friends, having a rather relaxing day on Saturday, and some needed off-market hours on Sunday.
Here are some tips on how to reframe that view to get better balance on life outside trading, and trading outside life. (Some of these may not be 100% applicable to you, but sharing experiences is always helpful to pick a thing or two for each other).
1. After end of trading session on Friday (whatever your hours are) close your computer and walk away no matter the current weekly or daily PnL. If in a trade - manage it by moving stops appropriately and let it go. Take the evening off to do what we like. Dinner out, watching movies, going to bed earlier, whatever floats your boat. The key here is to disconnect from the market completely. Let the mind come to the non-trading mode. When we are trading we are operating with uncertainty, disconnecting from the market thus by definition means disconnecting from uncertainty. Being out of uncertainty for a day or two creates a relaxed mind that will be ready to pounce in the coming weeks. It might be hard for people starting out, but the long-term benefits of actually unplugging on Friday evening is way underrated.
2. On Saturday, if possible and you have no other obligations, treat yourself an extra hour of sleep. Getting enough sleep is a risk-management strategy as lack of it creates a lopsided perception of risk in our minds. Thus, by definition, getting more sleep removes this lopsidedness. On weekdays it's not often possible to sleep in, so getting just an extra bit of rest of Saturdays gives little bit of edge for the next week. Rest of the day is obviously unique to everyone of us, but the key in my opinion here is to keep being unplugged from the market. Not checking how the weekly candle closed, or how Friday NY closed - it doesn't matter on Saturday. Markets are closed they are not going anywhere. By rushing in we create hesitancy, and by creating hesitancy we practice opposite of patience. Instead, by remaining unplugged we practice detachment, a much needed quality to trade effectively.
3. On Sundays take a few hours (or whatever time you need) to do all the trading related work: Journaling review, self-review, price action closes, prepare for the coming week by placing drawings and so forth. It's very relaxing to do charting and trading related work when markets are closed. There is no rush. It's poise and calm. Working once a week in that environment and actually preparing for Monday creates huge edge.
4. On Monday, and that is optional but I kinda like to do it sometimes, although at current time I am stretching myself by not doing that, but I will come back to doing that in 2-3 months, so, risk only half of what you usually risk. I like to call that a warm up day. After a period of more than 2 days of not being in the environment of uncertainty it's not necessary to just jump in with full risk. Starting Monday with only half risk helps us to ease in into the week. In case of profits - we still make them, in case of losses - they are limited, thus after some rest we reduce its effect on us and we ensure that after warmup we can be ready to strike on Tuesday.
5. Tuesday-Friday - proceed as normal, rinse and repeat. For me, Mondays are least profitable day anyway.
Hope this helps. Let me know if you have any questions, or share your routines and how you treat weekends?
On to the next one.
Lightwork_
Every time markets closed on Sunday I would constantly wish for weekends to pass asap and start trading the next week. It was needed for that period in time.
Fast forward 8 years later, and I actually learned to find a remarkable balance by enjoying the Friday evening with my family and friends, having a rather relaxing day on Saturday, and some needed off-market hours on Sunday.
Here are some tips on how to reframe that view to get better balance on life outside trading, and trading outside life. (Some of these may not be 100% applicable to you, but sharing experiences is always helpful to pick a thing or two for each other).
1. After end of trading session on Friday (whatever your hours are) close your computer and walk away no matter the current weekly or daily PnL. If in a trade - manage it by moving stops appropriately and let it go. Take the evening off to do what we like. Dinner out, watching movies, going to bed earlier, whatever floats your boat. The key here is to disconnect from the market completely. Let the mind come to the non-trading mode. When we are trading we are operating with uncertainty, disconnecting from the market thus by definition means disconnecting from uncertainty. Being out of uncertainty for a day or two creates a relaxed mind that will be ready to pounce in the coming weeks. It might be hard for people starting out, but the long-term benefits of actually unplugging on Friday evening is way underrated.
2. On Saturday, if possible and you have no other obligations, treat yourself an extra hour of sleep. Getting enough sleep is a risk-management strategy as lack of it creates a lopsided perception of risk in our minds. Thus, by definition, getting more sleep removes this lopsidedness. On weekdays it's not often possible to sleep in, so getting just an extra bit of rest of Saturdays gives little bit of edge for the next week. Rest of the day is obviously unique to everyone of us, but the key in my opinion here is to keep being unplugged from the market. Not checking how the weekly candle closed, or how Friday NY closed - it doesn't matter on Saturday. Markets are closed they are not going anywhere. By rushing in we create hesitancy, and by creating hesitancy we practice opposite of patience. Instead, by remaining unplugged we practice detachment, a much needed quality to trade effectively.
3. On Sundays take a few hours (or whatever time you need) to do all the trading related work: Journaling review, self-review, price action closes, prepare for the coming week by placing drawings and so forth. It's very relaxing to do charting and trading related work when markets are closed. There is no rush. It's poise and calm. Working once a week in that environment and actually preparing for Monday creates huge edge.
4. On Monday, and that is optional but I kinda like to do it sometimes, although at current time I am stretching myself by not doing that, but I will come back to doing that in 2-3 months, so, risk only half of what you usually risk. I like to call that a warm up day. After a period of more than 2 days of not being in the environment of uncertainty it's not necessary to just jump in with full risk. Starting Monday with only half risk helps us to ease in into the week. In case of profits - we still make them, in case of losses - they are limited, thus after some rest we reduce its effect on us and we ensure that after warmup we can be ready to strike on Tuesday.
5. Tuesday-Friday - proceed as normal, rinse and repeat. For me, Mondays are least profitable day anyway.
Hope this helps. Let me know if you have any questions, or share your routines and how you treat weekends?
On to the next one.
Lightwork_
Lightwork Trading