When I began my trading journey I remember feeling almost
overwhelmed by the sheer volumes of information widely available on the
internet but not being able to grasp where this information would prove to be
vital further on. All I was looking for
was some basic do’s and don’ts when trading, a basic set of rules or goals I
could work towards.
This week I stumbled
upon an article written by Brian Lund titled; The 10
Commandments of Trading. In his
article Brian shares some important aspects traders should keep in mind when
they start trading. Here’s Brian’s 10 Commandments:
- Know yourself
- Educate yourself
- Find a mentor
- Develop a methodology
- Use the right tools
- Turn off CNBC
- Remove your emotions
- Cut your losses
- Trade less make more
- Only trade liquidity
What sticks out in this list that is absent from so many?
They are basic principles which lay down the elementary foundation of a traders
future and it’s the same principles which guard the hierarchy of professional
traders. Simple to recite, simple to
remember.
There are a few aspects of the article I want to deal with
that made sense to me when I read through it, something that stuck out when
thinking about my first experiences as a trader.
How often do you hear emphasis being place on the
individuality of the trader? As
rewarding as trading can be we need to bear in mind that taking responsibility
for ourselves is critical in our growth as traders. In the list above the words
yourself and your ring the right tune. New traders often lack the confidence to
confide in themselves to be able to trade that’s why it’s important to take ownership
of your trading, it liberates your inner self and helps you find your path to
successful trading.
“Trade what you plan and plan what you trade” is one of the
many trading axiom’s most commonly heard but here’s the dilemma; how does a
trader plan for something his never participated in? It does created a sense of indefinite goals. That being said there should be one plan which
remains priority no matter the circumstance, Risk Management. Lund’s list
mentions cutting your losses and knowing how much you’re willing to lose but
does also state the need to develop a methodology.
What this suggests is that you should understand your risks
you are taking but in the same light accept that in the beginning your trading
process is going to be rudimentary. You have to accept that in order for you to
place the building blocks to your trading plan you have to be able to absorb
losses you incur over that period of construction. Ensuring your losses are kept to the minimum will
increase your chances of building a solid trading methodology.
Although Lund’s list
is concise it’s simplistic; something which helps to achieve certainty in the
goals we wish to reach. By organising
the stepping stones to our success we are able to focus on each aspect independently
but at the same time know that the combined effort of each yields an overall
goal we wish to achieve.
The primary goal we want to achieve with the 10 aspects is to expand on them further, allow ourselves to discover the trading process as a whole and be able to draw our own blueprint of how we see the market and its mechanisms. We are the architects of our own trading success, become creative with your mind but always remember the pillars of strength which make it robust and hold the structure in place for enduring times so that we may be resilient when most needed.
If you would like to contact me you can through my email at cadetrader@gmail.com or if you wish to
follow me on twitter and get the latest updates of news, interesting commentary
and general trends in the market, my twitter handle is @CadeTradeR if you
follow this link it’ll take you directly to my twitter timeline: https://twitter.com/CadeTradeR
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