I don't agree just repeat of New Age theology. Very convenient indeed: truth can be anything since it comes from your own process hahaha ! Marvelous you can invent anything to justify any bad attitude since it is truth automatically. This Icke is also from New Age thinking why don't you believe his "truth" then huh ? http://www.davidicke.com If I had to believe all New Age theorists like Wealsh, Icke and others I wouldn't have to search for truths then.
amg, Thanks for starting this thread. Do you meditate? If so, can you describe the process you go through? Was there a noticeable change in your trading performance when you started mediating?
I am not sure what the difference (if any) is between meditation, and self hypnosis. But I went to a psychologist that used hypnosis to help people stop smoking. Very different from the kind of hypnosis you see in stage acts. No quacking like a duck, or post hypnotic suggestion. That stuff I know nothing about. It seems to be real, but has nothing to do with the state I am talking about. Anyway, she taught me self hypnosis. Nothing more than going into a state of semi-sleep. We all experience it every night....it is called the "alpha state". It's where you are briefly between the time you are awake, and the time you are asleep. The beauty of this is anyone can learn to achieve the "alpha state" in a very short time from someone else. I mean maybe it takes 10 or 15 minutes to understand what to do. Then it takes a few times practicing to get it down. Once you get the hang of it, you can stay in the "alpha state" as long as you want pretty much, although I think after 20 minutes or so you would probably fall asleep completely. So as far as TM....I don't know. I have a feeling it's the same thing with a spiritual twist......certainly not essential to "relax your brain". I have found that self hypnosis relieves stress greatly. You can do it almost anywhere at any time. I used to do it on the chair lift when skiing. 10 minutes of this is as refreshing as 2 hours sleep. Without the grogginess of waking up from a full sleep. I occasionally do it during the trading day during the lunchtime doldrums...and of course when I have no positions open. Don't know if it helps my trading, but it sure as hell relaxes me. I know there are tapes you can buy to learn to do it. But going to a licensed therapist is worth the money. It's a one time visit, and you can learn to do something for yourself that will stay with you your whole life. All for less than the cost of one losing trade... Peace, RS
If you "use" meditation to achieve goals... you have totally missed. This is an interesting discourse on meditation, there are many powerful meditations described... http://home.att.net/~meditation/MeditationHandbook.html Peace and good trading... -- Z
amg, Thanks for starting one of the few intelligent threads on this board, Interesting discussion. I have meditated for the past 10 years and can attest to the therapeutic value of meditation in trading. It offers reduction in stress and clarity during the trading day. However Meditation, Hypnosis etc pales in comparison to Ed Seykota's trading tribe process. Unless the blocks are cleared its very difficult to make substantial amount of money in trading, by substantial I mean $10 million + during a lifetime.
Apart from boomer rites of spiritual passage in 60s/70s (what a haze!), I have regularly (albeit not consistently, lol) meditated since 1991, before I took up trading as a livelihood in 1998. The basic method I use is 3-fold: "anapanna", focus on the breath; "vipassana", focus on sensation; and "metta", compassion. I simply sit comfortably for 40m to 60m daily, twice when possible, and carry that breath/sensation/body awareness around with me through my day. I don't claim perfection, not at all, but I am persistent. As to change in performance, I would say that meditation, or more properly, the insights it lead me to about living (through the guidance of someone to whom I am forever grateful), did change how I worked and live. It also played a role in my leaving a 25 year career almost 8 years ago to pursue independence. Not that I'm "there". It's a process that doesn't end and the chapter is never finished. Of late I've made a commitment to be more consistent in my practice as my experience has shown that only through persistence and consistency does awareness and insight ripple throughout all I do, which of course, includes my work in trading. Trading is ripe for practice as each trade is an opportunity for emotions/thoughts/sensations to creep in, watch them ebb and flow, and be aware that they have absolutely nothing to do with the present! That alone can change your trading. If you read Mark Douglas' book, his primary tenet is that you must approach the market with the idea that anything can happen, and that your techniques serve to give you a probabilistic edge. All else is clutter. Meditation practice is just that-- practice at seeing clutter and letting it pass on. Agree. Meditation is a pivot point for learning to recognize wisdom and acheiving the confidence to live actively in whatever is present, which while trading, means "using" it to trade, or while eating, "using" it to eat, etc. I am interested in this trading tribe process, which I've recently noticed mentioned here at ET. However, I don't believe one need preclude the other and if anything, might complement. As an aside, vipassana is a method that through conscientious use specifically clears blocks. It may interest you. ChaosNSX - a wonderful melding of insights. Making any method practice-able, practical, is vital. A method needs to transcend being purely mental or mechanical. While there are as many ways to experience reality as there are humans, just as there are as many trading methods out there as ther are traders (probably more!), one's direct experience is what transforms. Sometimes there are more than two sides: Positive thinking, Negative thinking, and Reality thinking, which doesn't view things as good or bad, simply as-is... but then acts to work to improve the situation. Sounds like serendipity! Last comment: I am not a teacher, evangelist, or adept. Nor do I represent any one's interest other than my own. In working to improve my own practice (trading or meditation) writing helps to clarify my thoughts, but sharing it with others amplifies the goodwill all around. Ana Maria
I read in some experiment doctor weight the body before & after, the body is a tad lighter without the 'other' body. Just in case you want to know