One of my friends who lives in Delhi, works in his family's printing business.
Started trading in 2022. Lost ₹5 lakhs in the first year.
His girlfriend (now wife) noticed something weird:
Every time he made money trading, he'd be in a great mood. Take her out for dinner. Buy stuff online. Generally happy.
Every time he lost money, he'd be irritable. Short-tempered. Distant.
She told him: "Your mood shouldn't depend on whether some stock went up or down."
He got defensive: "You don't understand. It's my money."
She said: "Exactly. It's YOUR money. The stock doesn't care about you. Why do you care so much about it?"
That hit him hard.
He realized: He was treating every trade like a personal validation.
Win = I'm smart
Loss = I'm stupid
No wonder his emotions were all over the place.
He made a change: Started tracking trades in a journal, but focusing only on: "Did I follow my rules?"
Trade won but he broke rules? He marked it RED in his journal.
Trade lost but he followed rules perfectly? He marked it GREEN.
Took about 3 months for this to rewire his brain.
Now when a trade loses, he checks his journal. If he followed rules, he's fine. No mood swing.
When a trade wins, same thing. Did he follow rules? Good. Move on.
His wife says he's "way more normal now."
Account is at ₹7 lakh (started fresh with ₹5 lakh after the loss).
But more importantly: He doesn't snap at her when a trade goes bad.
Trading became process, not emotion.
Marriage improved. Trading improved.
All because she asked a simple question: "Why does a stock control your mood?"
#Trading