Now that there has been time for people to respond to the poll.. i think maybe we should start with the topic that most people struggle with.. Discipline..
Before we start throwing out ideas.. i want to restate the basic rules for self-talk..
1.)-Be Specific.. rather than say "I control my losses.." we should say "When a stock hits my predetermined stop price, i exit the trade immediately. Stopping out is not losing money, its protecting my account. Once i place my stop, I never move it." etc..
2.)-Be Positive.. dont program your mind to think negatively.. phrases like "Even though im not that bright i always try really hard" will do more damage than good.. think positively, "I am a knowledgeable and skilled trader.. I am constantly learning and my skills improve every day.. I always give full attention and effort to every trade.."
3.)-Use present tense.. if you want to become disciplined dont say "I will be disciplined".. use "I am disciplined" instead..
4.)-Make it easy to use.. if it isnt easy to use, we probably wont use it =)
5.)-Make it inspiring.. our self-talk should motivate us to be the absolute best.. nothing less..
now.. what i am hoping is that we can all pitch in some ideas for each topic and then we can each borrow from the ideas presented to create self-talk that we feel comfortable with.. some people may prefer a direct approach, others a more "spiritual" approach.. my preference is probably somewhere in between.. in my first post i used an example of very direct self-talk.. here is an example of the more spiritual approach.. this is taken from Og Mandino's book "The greatest Salesman in The World"..
I will greet this day with love in my heart.
For this is the greatest secret of success in all ventures. Muscle can split a shield and even destroy life but only the unseen power of love can open the hearts of men and until I master this art I will remain no more than a peddler in the market place. I will make love my greatest weapon and none on whom I call can defend against its force.
My reasoning they may counter; my speech they may distrust; my apparel they may disapprove; my face they may reject and even my bargains may cause them suspicion; yet my love will melt all hearts liken to the sun whose rays soften the coldest clay.
I will greet this day with love in my heart.
And how will I do this? Henceforth will I look on all things with love and I will be born again. I will love the sun for it warms my bones; yet I will love the rain for it cleanses my spirit. I will love the light for it shows me the way; yet I will love the darkness for it shows me the stars. I will welcome happiness for it enlarges my heart; yet I will endure sadness for it opens my soul. I will acknowledge rewards for they are my due; yet I will welcome obstacles for they are my challenge...
...I will greet this day with love in my heart.
Henceforth will I love all mankind. From this moment all hate is let from my veins for I have not time to hate, only time to love. From this moment I take the first step required to become a man among men. With love I will increase my sales a hundred fold and become a great salesman. If I have no other qualities I can succeed with love alone. Without it I will fail though I possess all the knowledge and skills of the world.
you get the idea.. anyway.. lets start with Discipline.. i think we should specifically exclude the other areas that are identified in the poll but overlap into this area.. otherwise this one will either become too general or will resemble War and Peace in length by the time its done.. some of the things we might want to include would be:
-Following our trading plan and rules.. (go ahead and use your own)
-Staying organized with paperwork, statements etc..
-Keeping Journal up to date for those that have one..
-Continuing Education process.. reading books etc..
-Maintaining proper schedule..
-Physical discipline.. proper exercise, etc..
-Making proper use of self-talk at predetermined intervals =)
-Procrastination
etc etc etc..
i am working on mine and will post it when i finish..
-qwik