Zen and The Art of Trading
- Thread starter martys
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"POKER RULE#20: The true journey of mastery is in each moment... Writer George Leonard, in his book Mastery, refers to this as the "goalless journey." In other words: there is no finish line; the journey itself is the destination... According to Leonard, mastery lives within itself and the practice of itself - doing a thing for its own sake; not just reaching the goal, but each hour, each moment, every day is the goal."
Fulfill one's role as a trader each moment - a trader's actions should be in tune with the ever-changing market instead of one's own agenda. There is no need to call for perfection in the maneuvers as long as one never deviates from the focus in fulfilling that role. Winning streak can make a trader focus on the numbers rather than be in touch with his role. So is losing streak.
Fulfill one's role as a trader each moment - a trader's actions should be in tune with the ever-changing market instead of one's own agenda. There is no need to call for perfection in the maneuvers as long as one never deviates from the focus in fulfilling that role. Winning streak can make a trader focus on the numbers rather than be in touch with his role. So is losing streak.
PM sent...I have just run into this quote again. It is from Martin Schwartz's Pit Bull (at the conclusion of the chapter Pit Bull's Guide to Successful Trading):
"I've said it before, and I'm going to say it again, because it cannot be overemphasized; the most important change in my trading career occurred when I learned to DIVORCE MY EGO FROM THE TRADE. Trading is a psychological game. Most people think that they're playing against the market, but the market doesn't care. You're really playing against yourself. You have to stop trying to will things to happen in order to prove that you're right. Listen only to what the market is telling you now. Forget what you thought it was telling you five minutes ago. The sole objective of trading is not to prove you're right, but to hear the cash register ring."
"I've said it before, and I'm going to say it again, because it cannot be overemphasized; the most important change in my trading career occurred when I learned to DIVORCE MY EGO FROM THE TRADE. Trading is a psychological game. Most people think that they're playing against the market, but the market doesn't care. You're really playing against yourself. You have to stop trying to will things to happen in order to prove that you're right. Listen only to what the market is telling you now. Forget what you thought it was telling you five minutes ago. The sole objective of trading is not to prove you're right, but to hear the cash register ring."
"POKER RULE#21: See poker as a continuum that goes on forever... Forget any desire or eagerness to participate in the action... He chooses his best spots, wait until the odds are most in his favor, then takes hit-and-run chunks of money, after which he takes disciplined steps to withdraw once again and avoid losing it all back..."
Do what is right for the long run. Always have plan B because shit and the fan will meet just around the corner. Better yet stay away from the dark corner.
Do what is right for the long run. Always have plan B because shit and the fan will meet just around the corner. Better yet stay away from the dark corner.
One definitely must combine the skills and knowledge with the proper mindset and psychology. I was looking up Munehisa Homma the lengendary trader of Sakata, Japan in 1700's who started the theories of candlestick charting. Here is this guy who had a streak of 100 winning trades in trading rice futures. He could be just lucky.... The candlestick patterns and setups merely stacked probability in his favor but not commanded the kind of precision in his results. He was actually a multi-facet trader. Besides weather patterns and crowd psychology (charting), he also applied eastern philosophy and military strategies into his trading. Although I don't read Japanese, I am sure there is something lost in translations because the western authors want to be cultural sensitive to their readers and skipped a lot of Yin-Yang mumbo jumbo. He became the wealthiest of Japan, a philantropist and a Buddhist monk later in life.
"POKER RULE#24: Arrive with a system... It is not enough to rely on luck or hope to carry us past the weak parts of our game. These parts must be attended to. The system must be whole and complete... The weak parts must be corrected, or disaster will appear."
It is important for me to trade a few setups with proper filters to minimize their failure (no setup will work for all market conditions). The rest of the game is to recognize when not to trade.
It is important for me to trade a few setups with proper filters to minimize their failure (no setup will work for all market conditions). The rest of the game is to recognize when not to trade.
"POKER RULE#25: Operate out of wholeness. If you had to describe your toughest poker opponent, who would that person be? What qualities would he have?... Visualize this player. Then try to be this player. Work on making your game whole in this way, and as an opponent you will be difficult to lay a glove on."
Visualize the qualities you want to cultivate. Correct your mistakes in mental imagery. It is important to understand that not all losing trades are mistakes... Some of them are simply losing trades.
In Vajrayana Buddhism, practitioner visualizes the qualities of a Buddha within oneself and the world as enlightened visions. The visual imagery and symbolism take the yogi out of his box.
Visualize the qualities you want to cultivate. Correct your mistakes in mental imagery. It is important to understand that not all losing trades are mistakes... Some of them are simply losing trades.
In Vajrayana Buddhism, practitioner visualizes the qualities of a Buddha within oneself and the world as enlightened visions. The visual imagery and symbolism take the yogi out of his box.