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There is so much at stake in trading. It is not just the money that we are risking today; it is our self-concept that is on the line. To succeed at trading effects many things, not just our finances, but also our life style and our self esteem. When we take on the desire to be a successful trader we are taking on the whole concept of what it means to make our living in such a way. So it is natural that under the weight of such a challenge we will experience doubt and anxiety. We need to find a way of managing these feelings, which if left unchecked lead us to take the very actions that we are desperate to avoid. Focus the mind. The interesting question to ask is how do anxious/fearful emotional states manifest and maintain themselves? Imagine an anxiety-provoking situation and consider what you do to be anxious and to maintain your anxiety. If you can identify what you do to create any emotional state you create the possibility of being able to control your state. If on considering an anxiety provoking state, you notice that you create some vivid mental pictures that reinforce your fear, you can start to play with these images and alter them and change your state. The main two points to make about anxiety is that: It is fed by our internal dialogue and our mental imagery It requires all our attention: it is attention hungry. In other words anxiety is a mental activity, we have to work at it. In order to avoid being anxious we need to occupy our mind with something else; our conscious mind cannot do two things at once. The simple idea of counting sheep to help fall asleep is using this idea, giving the mind a simple activity to occupy itself and distract it from worrying thoughts about not being able to sleep. What can we occupy ourselves with when trading, something that will also support our trading objectives? Observing the market, we distract ourselves from our anxious thoughts by getting absorbed in observing the market. Next time 77 |
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