A good trader should stay calm. Before you enter the market, you are prepared to lose. So if the outcome turns out to be bad, you have to accept. Yelling or screaming doesn't help the situation. It makes it worse. If you get spoilt or angry after a bad trade, you may become more emotional and make more impulse decisions, so you get more bad trades - vicious cycle! I just be more cautious when I face too many bad trades/losses in a row (that may mean this day is not for me), but I stay calm for most of the time. If I find out I tend to make impulse decisions or get emotionally affected, I will stop trading. Relax and take rest. Trade back if my mind returns to normal. PS: I know some traders will shut at the screen, saying something like "get the fxxking price up!" (hand moving up and up again). Hey, Mr market will not hear what you say, no matter how loud you say.
A good trader will stay calm? Sounds like new age BS to me. The are great traders on both side of the spectrum. Some are calm. Others curse, yell and scream. The only emotional state that has a real impact on trading is a state that invokes confidence and power in an individual. It's when you lose that, that you are doomed. Scared money can't trade!
It's interesting to hear someone even said "A good trader will stay calm?" with a question mark. Will you regard a trader who is not disciplined at all is good? Will you regard a trader, who have no plans in mind; only act on impulse, is good?
Because you hollar and scream at the computer, doesn't mean you lack discipline. It just means you react to pressure differently. Let's take two case examples here. The first is Marty Schwartz, from reading his book, you can tell that he is a high pressure, type A personality, who screams and swears when shit hits the fan. For him, it is a pressure breaker. It's what helps him clear his mind. The one state he is never lacking, is his power state. His confidence in his trading. On the other side, we have PTJ. A man who thinks that when a trade marks against you and takes a million dollars, you just smile and carry on like nothing happened. What do both have in common? Neither one of them loses their confidence, the most powerful of emotional states when it comes to trading. It's the one that allows them to trade their plan, to take action despite being down large. My point is yelling and screaming has nothing to do with it, successful trading is about CONFIDENCE, and the ability to take decisive action.
Oh I see! As to the case of Marty Schwartz, it seems he is still calm (in mind). It's just his action is emotional. The yelling and screaming helps him to keep his mind calm. Anyway, I feel we're talking about more or less the really same idea, with different wording.
I once saw a fellow trader physically attack box, he kicked it and slapped the monitors. He was acting pretty much like a real retard. He was kicked out of office later for use of "illegal substances" tho.
I see some trader keeps fxxking about the screen or price or advice (given by outside source) or brokers or everyone (except him) when it gets a bad day. I just make one and live with it.
I disagree, If one can not control their emotions, then their emotions will control them and this will lead to failure in trading.
I have a few strong points, upon which I built my trading career. Believe it or not, <b>discipline</b> is <b>not</b> one of them.
When you get stopped out TO THE TICK over and over again. You realize: A) You're at the wrong location with a lot of other joe blows OR B) your stops are too narrow. So you widen your stop. When you get stopped out TO THE TICK over and over again. You realize: A) You're at wrong the wrong location with a lot of other joe blows. So you adjust the location. When you get stopped out TO THE TICK over and over again. You realize: WTF is going on?! So you go with plan C) No stops... You get killed. You bring stops back with a filter. D) Stops w/filter... say above/below x amount of volume before execution. Works better. But still subjective on day type. E) Back to entry location. They weren't very good to begin with were they?. F) Improve market perception to-- G) Improve entries to-- H) Improve stop location I) Realize trading ia an art. The art of reading and a systematic elimination of broken concepts and pain. J) Start fresh again K) Realize all this means crap without sound position management * All this is geared to people to have to use stops to preserve capital. This may not apply to RM and such simply because of the sheer staying power they can have in a position.