I AM LYING to myself.
The voice in my head was and is always lying to me for the last decades and I thought that's how I am.
Awareness is not a meditation app thing.
It is the moment you sit at the chart, feel the panic rise in your chest, and notice "oh that is just a feeling" instead of acting on it. The only reason you do stupid stuff is because you are reacting to a thought/emotion.
Most traders never get there. They feel something and they click. They feel something and they revenge trade. They feel something and they tell themselves a story about why the trade has to be taken right now, why you should add more size in the drawdown and any other stuff.
The feeling and the action are the same thing in your head.
I made a YouTube video about this because it is the one thing that actually changed my trading more than any setup, any strategy, any psychology book and all of that.
Here is what I had to learn the slow way.
The voice in your head is not the truth. It is just a voice.
When the market goes against you and your brain screams "GET OUT NOW BEFORE IT GETS WORSE" that is not your rational mind anymore.
That is your nervous system.
When the candle goes green and your brain says "ADD MORE THIS IS THE ONE" that is not skill. That is your gambling addiction looking for a hit.
These voices feel like you because they have been with you since you were a kid.
But they are not you. They are old programs running in the background aka your subconscious.
Most people spend their entire life believing every thought their brain produces. Especially when emotions are loud. Especially when money is on the line.
The first job is to notice. Not fix. Not stop. Notice. that's everything you need to do.
I sat through six months of losing trades where I did nothing different except one thing. I watched my body while the trade was running. Where am I clenching. What is my jaw doing. Why am I holding my breath when the candle is just sitting there at break even doing nothing.
I was not trying to be calm. I was trying to be aware.
The feelings did not go away. They still come up every session. The difference is now I see them as weather or clouds passing through.
You try to delete the emotions. That does not work. The emotions are not the problem. The problem is that you obey them without knowing they are talking. If you suppress them they will explode and go always against you.
Stop avoiding what you feel. Sit with the panic. Sit with pain. Sit with the boredom. Sit with the FOMO when you missed the move. Watch what your body does. Watch what story your brain aka your voice tells you about why you have to fix this feeling right now.
Spoiler. The story is always wrong.
The fix is never another trade. The fix is feeling the thing without acting on it for the first time in your life. You will recognize how challenging this is, and thats the reason why trading is hardcore.
This is also why most personal development books never stick. They tell you what to think instead of how to notice what you are already thinking.
Awareness is the only real edge that compounds. Setups stop working. Markets change. Strategies break. The ability to notice your own voice without believing it is the one skill that pays you back in every area of your life, not just the chart.
if you want more YouTube free stuff, show some engagement on YouTube and I might consider it :)
Trading is the hardest thing you’ll ever do for the first few years.
Until one day...
You make money from anywhere in the world.
Your family never has to worry again.
You’re free.
The first few years feel like the worst decision you ever made.
Stick around long enough and it becomes the best one.
Daily reminder:
DO NOT GIVE UP
Give this career your all & you will be rewarded.
Rewarded by your own actions & your own decisions.
You are closer than you think.
Bro to Bro, human to human, alpha to alpha: Stack your money and act broke for a year. Use the time to discover what your actual passion is. No bullshit. No chasing that LUST that rules your brain. Lock the fuck in. Today, right now.
Fall in love with your life again.
Wake up early.
Stretch.
Walk slowly.
Drink the coffee.
Wear the outfit that makes you feel like yourself.
Work on something that matters to you.
Move your body.
Eat your favorite food without guilt.
Read under a tree.
Speak kindly to yourself in the mirror.
Tell someone you love them.
Then thank God for the kind of day you used to pray for.
One concept that has helped me significantly on higher timeframe trades is using light, "pilot" positions.
A pilot position lets me get a feel for the rhythm of a market before committing size.
It gives me exposure, feedback, and emotional alignment without forcing full conviction too early.
I'm sure many traders wait for “confirmation” before entering, usually a reclaim, a breakdown, deviation, or some clean level-to-level trigger. I used to think the same way... But from experience the problem is that by the time confirmation is obvious, I'm giving up asymmetry...
For me, confirmation is not always the reason to start a position, more often, it is the reason to add.
The pilot is the probe.
Confirmation is my permission to size with dynamic risk.
WHEN SHOULD A TRADER QUIT?
The @Qullamaggie chapter of the upcoming Market Wizards book has been making the rounds. In it Kristjan discusses how he blew up multiple times. Many great traders have.
But that begs one of the most important question of all: when should a trader quit? When should one persevere?
Most traders fail, so how do you avoid sticking around forever if you don’t have what it takes?
Generational wealth is waiting for you in 2027, anon.
The foundations you put in place over the next 6 months will determine the next 20 years of your life.
Your real competition is not other people.
It is your ego.
Your excuses.
Your distractions.
Your bad habits.
Your lack of discipline.
Your self-doubt.
Your unhealthy choices.
The skills you keep avoiding.
Beat those, and you will outgrow most people without even trying.