Stupid Stupid Stupid!!!!!

Since you have decided to make this your confessional (you must be catholic), I feel free to offer an opinion.

First, I will bet that you have problems controlling your emotions, particularly when you get filled (just intuition, I could be wrong).

I will guess that you also have problems waiting for a good signal to trade (again, I could be wrong, but that is what I read "between the lines").

Finally, it seems that you "froze" and let your trade run even though you had a rule limiting your maximum risk to 2 points. That indicates simple lack of discipline.

You have some issues.

My suggestion is to acknowledge that, and move on from here.

It may help you to write a new trading plan that takes these weaknesses into account. I am guessing (again) that you may not have a trading plan. If not, now would be the time to write it all down.

Good luck with that.
Steve
 
Quote from steve46:

Since you have decided to make this your confessional (you must be catholic), I feel free to offer an opinion.

First, I will bet that you have problems controlling your emotions, particularly when you get filled (just intuition, I could be wrong).

I will guess that you also have problems waiting for a good signal to trade (again, I could be wrong, but that is what I read "between the lines").

Finally, it seems that you "froze" and let your trade run even though you had a rule limiting your maximum risk to 2 points. That indicates simple lack of discipline.

You have some issues.

My suggestion is to acknowledge that, and move on from here.

It may help you to write a new trading plan that takes these weaknesses into account. I am guessing (again) that you may not have a trading plan. If not, now would be the time to write it all down.

Good luck with that.
Steve
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There is no correlation between emotional control and being a good or even great trader. IMO, emotion and passion go hand in hand. I don't think anyone can become great at anything without being passionate.

I agree with your assessment that he needs to work on his discipline.

My guess, is that he had a bad day, and part of getting over it is to talk about it(a form of therapy), acknowledge his mistake, and create a strategy for avoiding that mistake again in the future.

We've all been there before, and I bet we'll be in a similar situation some time in the future. I believe that these challenges ultimately make us better traders.

Mike
 
Sorry Mike:

When you make a blanket statement like "There is no correlation.... one gets the feeling that you have done a thorough study using a statistically significant sample size.

I am guessing that you haven't done that, as you are a trader not a psychologist. Also I know of no such study, and I make it my business to keep abreast of that kind of information.

So....Where do you get your facts? No correllation? Since when?

I think one has only to look inside to find the answer. There may be no correlation for YOU, but I am guessing that for the rest of us, there is a strong correlation. Speaking for myself, I found that once I was able to control my emotional response to the market ticking against me, I was able to leave a position on long enough to make a profit.

While I appreciate your opinion, I am also interested in hearing a comment from the person who originated the thread. I'd like to know if his experience is similar or divergent from my own.

Best Regards,
Steve
 
I make it a point not to listen to the news until I’m finished trading for the day. I only monitor when the economic reports are scheduled to be release. This helps me to focus on price and not what I think should happen.
 
I am no expert trader but, have been studying and continue to study this day and if you only do one thing----have a "trading journal".
Even Toni Turner in the Las Vegas Expo last Dec. 12-17, 2005 said that if you have a trading journal----your losing trades will not be a total loss because you learned something from them!!! Personally, I have not been aware of committing the same mistakes until, I made myself a trading journal. It may be painful to look at the huge bone head mistakes. The good thing about it is you see a pattern of those mistakes. My last two bone head mistakes cost me $900.00 and $800.00 trading options. Will I pay more attention? You betcha.
Also, if you are just able to minimize your losses without doing anything else----your bottom line will improve!!!
 
And there you have it!

As long as you learn from these mistakes.

Well, i hope you are a much better trader for that bit of advice?
 
Therudeboy,

If you are a trader, you cannot be bull headed and arrogant. Once, you are wrong----you have to get out or reverse your position!!! If you let your ego rule you----you are toast!!!
I would rather make money and accept my losses (small ones are the best). For 2005,
I had 24 options trades, 14 winners, 10 losers and win/loss ratio of 1.51. Despite, all the the mistakes----I still ended in the black, $5000.00. A pittance I know but, two large mistakes cost me another $1700.00 in profits. Still learning, but, working doubly hard to correct those mistakes.
 
Quote from steve46:

Sorry Mike:
Speaking for myself, I found that once I was able to control my emotional response to the market ticking against me, I was able to leave a position on long enough to make a profit.

IMO Steve46 you are 1000% right!!.....It's about control and discipline no matter how ill advised one's system might seem to others....But this for me is "just a bad day".......I had a friend who used to trade as well. And all he would do is look at the IBD chart follow the stochastics line and without placing a stop, he would get in at the open and get out at the close....I couldn't believe it!....In six months he made 110K.....and his systems only cost $1.25 at the newsstand....LOL

He was able to detach himself from the trade completely. He never tried to "figure it out"......doesn't mean he didn't shit is pants when SP would close 20pts against him. But, he'd comeback the next day and do the same thing and by the end of the week. He would get it all of it back and a small profit!...After awhile the swings started to get to him, and once his account grew. He became afraid to lose...He'd always say.."I can't blow this money".... He has never been able since then to rekindle that kind of success he had early on.....His emotions played a major part in his success and failure...(I know I watched him everyday..lol)

But for the record... I think one must have great passion for the "Game".....Many of Great performers are obsessed with their craft....I know if I didn't have this passion and emotion I would have quit a long time ago because there'd be no point in trying to learn something I don't care about......It's the Gift and the Curse...Sometimes one's Greatest Strength is also his Greatest weakness.........You must have a deliberate and detailed decision making process in order to succeed and free yourself of stupid impulsive decisions based on a "feel"......With the right approach I can see what "I'm feeling" and the market will tell me if I'm right.

Although, I'm not big on Black Box mechanical systems because I've seen many lose their shirts trading those too.....I do understand the logic behind its use......But, even the most mechanical traders have emotional strengths and weakness and often are discretionary as well.....IMO it's about Money, Mind and emotional management......But hey, it's Saturday and yesterday's gone Monday is a new day and a new trade!.....I've forgiven myself but, I won't forget... I'll just move on..
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Quote from TheDr.:
That's how I feel today.....I got caught trying to go short @ the open and the obvious happened...I feel like an ass!!...I guess that stupid GDP report suckered me in even though that kind of stuff is BS to me I bought into it :mad: ..Then on top of that, I presumptuously felt that the 10am New Home Sales could drop us lower even though the high was not "officially in"(and I f'n knew that) Damnit!!......totally don't know why or what the HELL I was thinking.... impatient, undisciplined, and careless. Plus I get stopped out for 3pts a full point over my risk!!!:mad: :mad: :mad:.....I clearly was not prepared mentally...The sad thing is; I've been long all week. But, I guess to use a basketball analogy; I was getting too fancy with the ball and "Got Ripped"....lol ...I know in theory I could have "got back in"...But, in my few years of experience( 5 years)..I learned never try to catch a moving train once it leaves the station...Anyway I Blame No one for my Stupidity and the only reason why i'm mentioning it here is because I just feel like venting so don't mind me....LOL.....

Do you ever get to the point when you know what to do and you do it..Without out thinking yourself?.....

I have these spells where I get so Damn cocky and complacent.... I start catching the exact H/L and then I want conduct personal seminars...lol.....I admire guys like Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, Lance Armstrong, or a Bill Belichick. Those kind of guys ALWAYS maintain that mental Edge...They never get too cocky or dance in the end zone...There very serious, disciplined guys...amateurs make wild predictions that are irrelevant to the moment in time....

There's no need for emotion when you know!!....Because intuition can be articulated and cultivated into a very tangible element in trading IMO.....Like I said I m just venting and I'll get over it but, I' just wish I could stop doing Stupid S*#t!!....But yeah whatever, I'll just go on another winning streak and then forget about it until of course I do something else stupid....LOL...I laugh but it's not funny.
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Even with a detailed trading model, I still plan thoroughly for each day.

This was a 'sell' available to you in the first half hour (YM), admittedly fairly shallow, worth 20 odd points. This is time basing. You would have had to consider your position at 20 points below the Open but if not then clear it latest as a 'wash'. My template for this set of market parameters has early rockets in it. Next for shorting the retracement which was ahead: this produced 60 points off the top starting at 12.20. The last turning point is 12.38 on my template so its an easily recognized peak and spike top. Here you have your retracement. My template said 58 on the 'down' but if you calculated 40 or so off the top and if you still had you early short you would take your stoploss.

The thing is if you do not know your market very very thoroughly and if as well you have not planned all your anticipated moves, then once you were staying with your stranded position your brain is flashing up on your mindscreen 'no signals being received'; go into panic mode and flee. As you are in sedentary pose this translates into catatonic panic.

So its back to a simple favorite of mine: you didn't plan to fail; you just failed to plan.
:)
 
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