Do You Actually Enjoy Trading?

Tokenz said:
I don't enjoy it when I'm losing
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Losing is never enjoyable.

Going further in the hole (losses from your starting capital) is the most painful.
Losing and giving back previous banked profits is not nearly as painful as losses from starting capital.

A winning trade is the most fun, but shouldn't really be, as you can easily lose that winner back on the next few trades.

The ideal is to have so much in the way of profits already banked, such that winning or losing on the current trade doesn't effect your emotions much at all.
 
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proftradingjourney said:
Do you enjoy trading or are you mostly in it for the money (be it a side income or full-time)?

What's the motivation behind your trading? Do you love the concepts and the process associated with it?

I ask because while I often think to myself that I like the process, and enjoy learning, I just don't know if that's really case, because the end goal is to make consistent money from it. It's almost as if the end goal supersedes any enjoyment from the journey of learning and development. Makes me think no matter how boring a concept is, "just suck it up and push, so you can get to x destination ($$$)."

I've been questioning myself lately if whether or not trading is congruent with my inner callings, and I just don't know. Maybe things are early, but I just don't know if I have that passion for trading like others do. Work and experience are required to become great at anything, but it shouldn't have to be a pain just to get some money at the end of the day. There's got to be some enjoyment out of it.

On a more specific level, technical analysis excites me more than the fundamentals, which are a boring, slog tbh. Earnings, sales, financial statements, it kind of just puts me to sleep, there's no pull there for me.

Can any of you relate to what I'm saying here?
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There are few things in life I enjoy more. Like any other intense performance activity it's important to have some kind of structure in place to keep stress down, avoid burnout and manage volatility (of capital and especially emotions).

Quite frankly if you don't enjoy trading, then quit without hesitation and find something else to do. There are lots of other ways to make a living. Life isn't a contest in racking up the biggest investment portfolio, and it's too short to waste on an inherently stressful, risky activity you dislike.
 
Market Wizards quote from Bill Eckhardt.

If trading is so emotionally unsatisfying, is the only rationale for doing it financial?
I can't imagine why anyone would do it if it weren't financially positive.. If you're playing for the emotional satisfaction, you're bound to lose, because what feels good is often the wrong thing to do.. Whether you measure it in money or in some other way, to win at trading you have to be playing for the success.
 
Interesting..When you
say volatility,i am assuming you are referring to market movement and not trading vol..Are you fully automated and not staring at the screen all day??

d08 said:
I enjoy the software engineering part of it but I don't enjoy trading. Volatility wears you down.
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We should be happy with what we are doing. Trading is more challenging than many other jobs.
Trading is just another job. As with any job, we need the habit and mindset to be successful. If have watched the Winning Methods of the Market Wizards by Jack Schwagger, there is no one method in order to be successful.

1. Having the right habit and execute your plan
The Power of Habit: Charles Duhigg at TEDxTeachersCollege
See... stop focusing on the marshmallow. In trading, stop focusing on the profit and focus on the process. :D

2. Having right mindset and learn from mistake
Mindset Book Summary & Review (Carol Dweck) - ANIMATED
It took Einstein about 10 years to formulate the Theory of General Relativity.
 
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I enjoy trading as well! I enjoy analyzing charts and seeing patterns form out.
But I do it for may 3-4 hrs a day - if I would be glued to the screen for 14 hours I would not enjoy it anymore I believe.

And yeah - losing a trade still irritates me sometimes, even if I tell myself I did everything as per plan.
 
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