August 4, 2023
You may have heard, I just moved! My husband and I relocated 10 minutes away here in Austin, TX to a beautiful home that we love and meets more of our needs and wants.
And moving, well, it’s no fun. You lose track of stuff no matter how well you plan, you get tired from all the activity, and you have to learn new systems of all kinds.
Some of you may have moved as much as we have – I've lived in EIGHT of the great states of the U.S. – while some of you may be like my mother who has lived in the same home for over 40 years.
Either way, as I review my move, I want to share how it directly relates to YOUR trading…
#1 Assess what you REALLY use
- In our move, I decided to thoughtfully review everything I own – like ever item of clothing, every office supply, all of it – and only make this move with the items that either provide me utility or that bring me joy, or both.
- In your trading, whether it's in your software or your trading plan, there's likely to be virtual cobwebs on trading setups, indicators, and more. Find a time this month to go through and determine what you actually use that is profitable to your trading by either generating winning trades or minimizing losing trades. Then make those tools/techniques/indicators front and center in your trading plan, and archive the rest to revisit later.
#2 Check in on the process daily
- In our move, my husband and I made a point to verbally check in regarding moving related plans and matters around 5 pm each day, when we were both done with work errands but before dinner. This helped to stay on top of move related emails, phone calls, paperwork, and more
- For your trading, I recommend finding a time of day that's fairly consistent to prep for the trading day ahead. For me, that's generally between 3pm central (aka 4pm ET market close) and 5pm central. Now and then something comes up and I have to adjust when I actually sit to do that review and prep, but for the most part I've protected that time of day. Yours can be early morning, late at night, whatever works for YOU.
#3 Give yourself grace
- During our move, we had car trouble that we had to address and quickly resolve. Some other matters came up (work, family) that took time and energy we didn't really have to spare, but we made room for it. And because moving is what it is, a few items got misplaced and misdirected, eventually located but frustrating to deal with while you're already adjusting to a bunch of new surroundings and systems.
- In your trading, you will come to the market with your trading plan, if you're got your ducks in a row. And some days, no matter how well prepared you are, something will be off, either internally and externally, and you'll likely have a bad day. Whether that's losing trades, or giving back gains, or churning generating commissions but no profits, it happens. And it's OK to get annoyed or frustrated or even angry. But it is VITAL that you process those emotions in a healthy fashion and move on. There are many mechanisms for this, and the simplest, fastest, and cheapest is breathing techniques. Check out my 60-second video How to Calm Your Trading Nerves in Seconds
In the end, all the struggles and work of the move were totally worth it, and my husband and I are in a spot that suits us MUCH better. I'm still settling in but will share it with you soon. For now, heed these 3 reminders for your trading, they can make a world of difference!
~ Hima
