Before the Open I was pissed. \u00a0As a partner sometimes I miss the days when I could just roll into the office and trade. \u00a0I look forward to the day when the guys we teach are running the desk. \u00a0And I can just come in and trade. \u00a0And I hope I get to sit all the way in a back row, with the young guys making fun of me, perhaps calling me the old man, and watch them make chops everyday. \u00a0But we are not there yet.<\/p>\n
So today before the Open I had to make sure we were prepared for a video shoot, consider how to best respond to two sensitive emails, prepare for the Open, check what our new class was learning, answer my regular email, and finish a chapter for the trading book I am writing. \u00a0 And one of the emails from one of our traders set me off. He was taking a mental health day. If anyone needs a mental health day on the trading desk it’s Steve, me, or JToma. Not some twenty something, young, health, relatively new trader. \u00a0I just cannot stand that. \u00a0This was all too much. \u00a0And I sensed the anger boiling insider of me.<\/p>\n
Now if I had one of these things to handle I would not have gotten upset. \u00a0But I have learned when there is so much on my plate that an extra issue to handle can set me off. \u00a0I was aware of my mental state. \u00a0So I wrote down how I felt in my trading journal. \u00a0And then I started breathing. <\/p>\n
For ten minutes I concentrated on my breathe. \u00a0I changed my mental state from anger to calm. \u00a0Now my trading results were not great today. \u00a0In fact I underperformed based upon the trading opportunities presented. \u00a0But I do not judge my trading success based upon my P&L. \u00a0There are some things I am working on to improve as a trader. \u00a0And I worked on those issues. \u00a0I would give myself a B plus for this trading day because of my work improving my trading.<\/p>\n
I am particularly impressed with my ability to sense my anger before the Open and then change my mental state. Are you self aware of your emotions before, during, and after the trading day? \u00a0While today was a negative trading day, I took a step forward. \u00a0 Each trading day is an opportunity to get better. \u00a0And I did so today because I was self aware.<\/p>\n
Best of luck with your trading!\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"