Most seasoned traders agree that the secret of currency trading does not lie in a strategy, great technology, or inside information. Many new traders, however, believe that these three elements of trading are it. The mindset of most new and struggling traders is that if they can just find that perfect strategy, then all of their difficulties would forever vanish. Further, newer traders are often obsessed with new technology, thinking that if they buy a 6 screen trading terminal setup, then that will be the key to being able to analyze the market properly, and that will unlock an endless stream of profits. The reality is that seasoned, professional traders do not see the market this way.
The Mental Aspect of Trading
The key to successful trading is mental. Of course, strategy, technology, and information can be integral aspects of a trader’s approach to the market, but these are all secondary to the mental framework of a trader. Many new traders and many struggling traders are still in search of the Holy Grail trading system. Seasoned, professional traders know that the Holy Grail is themselves. You are the Holy Grail! A proper mental framework is 100% essential to trading success.
External vs. Internal
New traders tend to be motivated by external factors. They tend to want to be extremely successful traders and dream about living a lavish lifestyle of no job, luxury home, luxury car—they want are motivated external, material things. For the most part, seasoned traders are motivated by none of these things. Their motivation is not external, it is internal. This is a huge change of mindset that every trader needs to undergo at some point. So, what exactly does it mean to be internally motivated?
Internal Motivation is the Holy Grail
As stated, seasoned professionals are not necessarily motivated by external factors of “success.” Instead, they are motivated within. True success is not measured by money, but by their ability to accurately execute their trading strategy. This truth is incredibly powerful. When a new trader has a losing trade, a losing week, or even a losing streak, generally he gets upset and believes his trading is going really bad. Generally, when a new trader is struggling like this, he will be continually searching for a new strategy, or a new edge that will take him to the next level as a trader.
This is not how a seasoned professional sees trading, however. Losing trades and losing weeks simply do not matter. Of course, no one wants a losing trade, and no trader wants a losing week, but the reality is that a short-term loss of trading capital does not matter to a seasoned professional like it does to a new trader. A seasoned professional is primarily concerned with one truth—did he perfectly execute his strategy?
If a trader perfectly executed his trading strategy and still had a losing trade, then the trader should not be upset. In fact, he should be pleased. Proper and consistent execution of a trading strategy is arguably the most important element of trading success. The reality is that very few traders can do this. As a new trader or struggling trader, if you shift your perception from being motivated by making money and having winning trades to flawlessly executing your strategy, you will notice a difference in your trading. Losing trades do not sting as much. The real sting is when emotional trading decisions are made and the strategy is not properly executed.
This shift in thinking is essential when trading the forex market at an online forex broker, or any financial market. Wins and losses are random events that will appear as a result of the probability of your trading system. The key to trading with a professional mindset is to be completely engrossed in properly executing your trading strategy. All people are created different, so trading might not be for you. As trading is risky business, also take your time, research and learn about the industry and talk to professionals for advice.
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