Quote from Big Money:
Innovest,
We get posts like this all the time and I just donât get it. If you canât follow your rules, you canât be successful long term. As a professional trader, your JOB is to follow your rules, PERIOD. To do otherwise suggests that trading may not be for you. That is ok. It is not for everyone. It is about discipline and your psychology. Maybe you believe you donât feel you should be successful or donât feel like you deserve success and thus engage in self-destructive behaviors. Many people have psychological issues that limit or destroy success. Maybe you fall into that category.
Granted this is easier said than done but is very important to your success. Not following your rules is akin to a soldier going into battle and deciding using cover or having enough ammo is not important ALL the time. You may get away with it today and tomorrow, but sooner or later, they will probably carry you out. It is the same in trading.
Think about whether trading is the best use of your time. If you have doubts about whether this is for you, then it is not. You canât do this half way or those who are 100% committed will quickly take your money. It takes a mature person to realize this is not for them, move on and to find their passion in life. Donât wait until they âcarry you out.â
Following your rules is one of the easiest things in my book because your rules have your long-term success in mind. It is math and probability. Each individual trade should be looked at with indifference because the next 1000 trades and your account trend tell you what you need to know to modify your rules as needed. To ignore them just means that on some level you donât want to be trading or should not be trading.
Best of luck.
BM