A Stock Trading friend sent this to me. Substitute Trader/Trading with Counter/Counting.
Persistence In the Face of Uncertainty
By Michael A. Cavanaugh
Trading is a rough business for many reasons. First, success is not
assured. Second, even when one attains success, it may be fleeting. The
odds are against you as a trader, and only a select few can conquer
seemingly insurmountable obstacles to achieve lasting success. That's where
psychology can play an important role. The proper psychological attitude
can help you achieve and maintain success.
There are many occupations that are hard to do. Imagine working as the
president of a large corporation or a government official in hard economic
times. Imagine trying to sell insurance when few people have enough money
to buy it. Not anyone can succeed under such extreme pressure, but people
do. What you need to decide is whether you want to persist in the face of
uncertainty or shrink from the challenge. In terms of making a profit, the
hard part isn't trading profitably, but staying profitable. Trading can be
tedious. You have to make trade after trade. Even when market conditions
are in your favor, it can be tedious if you have to trade day after day,
year after year. Even the most resilient trader is prone to burn out.
It is easy to persist when you believe that your efforts will be rewarded.
That's how people do hard things, like get through college. They believe
the hard work will pay off and that long-term success will be assured.
Trading is different, however. There comes a point when you discover that
success is not assured. You find out that you can make huge profits one
year, and almost nothing the next. The future isn't certain, and that can
make even the most astute trader feel uneasy. A trader may be prone to
"learned helplessness." When you experience a setback that seems
insurmountable, you may start to believe that there is no way to get out of
it. If you tried extremely hard to stay profitable and can't do it, you may
start to think, "What is the point? Why should I continue with this, if I
can't remain profitable?" It is natural to want to seek out a new
profession, but don't despair.
Recovering from setbacks is vital for long-term success. Enduring trading
success isn't guaranteed, but few things in this world are a certainty.
When all seems hopeless, don't give up. Search for solutions, and take
specific action. Remind yourself that it's not the objective "hopeless"
situation that causes one to give up, but the interpretation of the
situation. How you explain the cause of the dire situation accounts for how
you cope with it. If you think, "I've always been inept and this is just
another instance of how ineffectual I've always been," you will tend to
view the situation as hopeless and want to just give up. But if you think,
"this is merely a temporary setback and I'll be able to get past it," you
will search for solutions to change matters and overcome the dire situation.
Trading is a tough business in which one must often persist in the face of
defeat. Your thinking style dictates your persistence level. It's
unproductive to think pessimistically, and believe that all is hopeless.
Instead, view seemingly hopeless failures as a temporary setback from which
you can easily recover if you keep at it. By looking for specific aspects
of your trading that you can actually change, and believing you can change
them, you will face setbacks with optimism rather than despair and
helplessness.
Persistence In the Face of Uncertainty
By Michael A. Cavanaugh
Trading is a rough business for many reasons. First, success is not
assured. Second, even when one attains success, it may be fleeting. The
odds are against you as a trader, and only a select few can conquer
seemingly insurmountable obstacles to achieve lasting success. That's where
psychology can play an important role. The proper psychological attitude
can help you achieve and maintain success.
There are many occupations that are hard to do. Imagine working as the
president of a large corporation or a government official in hard economic
times. Imagine trying to sell insurance when few people have enough money
to buy it. Not anyone can succeed under such extreme pressure, but people
do. What you need to decide is whether you want to persist in the face of
uncertainty or shrink from the challenge. In terms of making a profit, the
hard part isn't trading profitably, but staying profitable. Trading can be
tedious. You have to make trade after trade. Even when market conditions
are in your favor, it can be tedious if you have to trade day after day,
year after year. Even the most resilient trader is prone to burn out.
It is easy to persist when you believe that your efforts will be rewarded.
That's how people do hard things, like get through college. They believe
the hard work will pay off and that long-term success will be assured.
Trading is different, however. There comes a point when you discover that
success is not assured. You find out that you can make huge profits one
year, and almost nothing the next. The future isn't certain, and that can
make even the most astute trader feel uneasy. A trader may be prone to
"learned helplessness." When you experience a setback that seems
insurmountable, you may start to believe that there is no way to get out of
it. If you tried extremely hard to stay profitable and can't do it, you may
start to think, "What is the point? Why should I continue with this, if I
can't remain profitable?" It is natural to want to seek out a new
profession, but don't despair.
Recovering from setbacks is vital for long-term success. Enduring trading
success isn't guaranteed, but few things in this world are a certainty.
When all seems hopeless, don't give up. Search for solutions, and take
specific action. Remind yourself that it's not the objective "hopeless"
situation that causes one to give up, but the interpretation of the
situation. How you explain the cause of the dire situation accounts for how
you cope with it. If you think, "I've always been inept and this is just
another instance of how ineffectual I've always been," you will tend to
view the situation as hopeless and want to just give up. But if you think,
"this is merely a temporary setback and I'll be able to get past it," you
will search for solutions to change matters and overcome the dire situation.
Trading is a tough business in which one must often persist in the face of
defeat. Your thinking style dictates your persistence level. It's
unproductive to think pessimistically, and believe that all is hopeless.
Instead, view seemingly hopeless failures as a temporary setback from which
you can easily recover if you keep at it. By looking for specific aspects
of your trading that you can actually change, and believing you can change
them, you will face setbacks with optimism rather than despair and
helplessness.
