Very nice. Best wishes to you on your journey. When you start to get nervous or second guessing in a trade, ask yourself "why am I nervous?" get to the bottom of it. You have to test your method to the point where you know it works over a series of many trades and has a positive expectancy. That in itself is hard, then when you get to that point you need to follow the tested method with discipline, which is hard as well for most. Tie all loose ends up in your method, have a plan for pretty much any scenario. What is your max DD in a day, week, month, year? A nuke just went off in New York. What's your plan? Power just went out at home? What's your plan? Tie all lose ends and the uncertainty starts to go away. Don't get me wrong, there will still be times when you may get worked up emotionally. Being able to recognize it is a large part of fixing it. Start with recognizing it. Eliminate your second guessing while in a trade by devising a thoroughly tested plan and stick to it. "The battle is won or lost before it is ever fought."
thats funny, because i know a lot of them, and most failed to make the transition to the screen and spend their days drinking at ceres, tutos, or some other local place where miserable people hang out. the few chicago pit traders who i do know, that made it, kept their money and lives intact, wouldnt laught at this discussion
Ahhh....you start off by saying you knew " a lot of them" to "the few Chicago pit traders that I do know"...
A pit trader was interviewed in one of this series of documentary, but I don't recall now which one. http://documentary-movie.com/the-wall-street-code/ http://documentary-movie.com/quants-the-alchemists-of-wall-street/ He set up his own non-trading business well before closing down the pit.
%% Many mature, many older trader would laugh @ idea of an empty mind. Sure anyone could get some help from meditataion on Proverbs or a chart- but that is not an empty mind. Chicago can be right on some times.