Not everyone can be a successful trader

Not everyone can be a successful trader, one that makes a living by trading the markets. Based on research, Bill identified three factors that are key to trading success. Before I describe what they are, let’s take a quiz by answering yes or no to the following questions.

1. Do you worry a lot?
2. Do you remain calm and relaxed in tense situations?
3. Are you a trusting individual?
4. Do you drive at or below the speed limit most of the time?
5. Are you a perfectionist?
6. Do you work on a project from start to end before beginning another one?
7. Do you like to complete projects?
8. Did you score well on your SATs, that is, do you possess above average intelligence?
9. Do you like math or are a good problem solver?
10. When driving and the stop light turns green, do you accelerate faster than the car next to you?

Score one point for each "Yes" answer except on the first (#1) and last (#10) questions. Those should be "No." Add up your score. The higher the score the more likely it will be that you can become a successful trader.

The following describes the qualities that successful traders possess.

1. Emotional stability. You don’t have to be nuts to trade, but it helps! That is a joke, of course. Emotional stability is grace under pressure. A successful trader must be able to remain calm in difficult situations. Traders that rank very high on the emotional stability scale have very low anxiety levels, remain calm, relaxed, and have a low suspicion level. They tend to be trusting individuals and are not paranoid. You won’t hear them blame the market makers for forcing the stock to hit their stop and they take responsibility for their actions. Successful traders tend to be well grounded.


2. Discipline. Successful traders are ones that can follow the rules. They are the guys that drive the speed limit. They tend to be perfectionist and take pride in their work. They like to take a project from start to finish and get joy from completing it successfully. Pilots, trained to follow checklists, tend to make good traders. An impulse oriented individual will have difficulty achieving the discipline to become a successful trader.


3. Intelligence. Bill says that successful traders tend to be intelligent. They need not have the IQ of Einstein but they are above average in intelligence. They tend to be good problem solvers and good with numbers, such as statistics. They understand that trading is based on probability, that not every trade will work as planned.

Can you learn to become a successful trader? Yes. But sometimes if you don’t have what it takes, try another profession.

Trading Should Be Effortless

* Money comes in bunches.

That one says it all. You can’t force trades. You can’t simply work harder in order to be ‘in sync’. Sometimes you are, sometimes you are not. You simply have to accept that as being part of the trading business. What you can do, is to closely monitor if your performance is in sync with the market’s performance. If the markets make new highs and your overall portfolio is going down something is wrong. You need to address that issue. Fast. The best way is to step aside and drastically reduce exposure and risk. That’s what I did.

* Trading should be effortless.

A true piece of wisdom. In my experience when I trade well it is like shooting fish in a barrel. Almost everything works. I don’t need to be overly patient with positions. The money comes in very fast. That’s exactly how trading should be. The exact opposite was the case during the first 2 months of this year. So I did what I had to do. I recognized the situation for what it was and admitted my efforts were not leading my portfolio anywhere. It was like folding when you are dealt a bad hand in poker. So I folded. Now I am waiting for the next hand. If it is a bad one I fold again. If a series of trades start to really go my way I push it hard and increase exposure and trade aggressively.

* When in doubt stay out.

This one is key. That’s how I interpret the adage: It doesn’t mean you don’t trust your instincts or your methodology. As a trader you should adapt to new situations. You constantly analyze the markets and your performance. Then you adjust your trading. Then you compare your expectations with the actual outcome. Then you adjust your trading. Then you repeat the process. At times things simply do not work. That’s when doubt creeps in. You know something is not ‘feeling right’. Your job is to protect your capital. Your job is not ‘to be right’. Put another way: You should be able to exit or reduce exposure without the need for explanations. The markets usually give you those explanations at some later point in time.