There are trader inspiring quotes going around encouraging or outright ordering traders to be disciplined and it seems like anything with that word in it gets liked a lot. It is as if discipline was an objective thing like the sun. Stay out of the sun. Put on sunscreen when playing in the sun. Look at that nice sunset...Yes, we all know what the sun is and how it looks like and how it feels on our skins and how it makes everything look like.
What is discipline exactly?
Discipline, no matter how you want to define it, is subjective. No two people are exactly the same or trade the same or see trading the same, so why discipline should be regarded as an analogous word that needs no personal definition?
I think discipline is just a cheap word that is thrown around to impress the reader. Whoever comes up with advice which is usually the same (Be disciplined in your trading or similar variations) makes themselves look like they have thorough knowledge of how it is to be disciplined and now that they have achieved that monumental place that only a disciplined trader can reach, they have earned the license to go tell everyone else to be like them...oh so disciplined they are...kudos you high place achievers. I wish I could have come up with that sentence of 'you must be disciplined'. Oh wait, I can come up with it any time and I will get a personal credit because I must be obviously already disciplined. Right?
Here is an scenario where being disciplined sucks. You have a trading system that works well and has for a long time. Why? Because you are disciplined and follow it like a freaking perfectionist. The market goes against you and you don't waver just like the many times that it has and you were disciplined. The market goes against you even more but you know to be disciplined and follow the rules of your perfect system. The market goes even more against you and like how you know, you hold on (Ok, don't confuse that with holding a losing trade forever. You are not just holding, you are trading with various trading steps you know to work). Then boom...the dreaded margin call comes and you were so disciplined...weren't you?
Now again, same scenario above. This time, you blink. You get scared and think things are different this time. Your system has been doing well all this time and now it is cracking under the weight of the force going against you. You remember the nice meme that said BE DISCIPLINED but you think nah...I got to do something here to save my account. You cut loose. 5 minutes later, everything comes back and you start kicking yourself that you weren't disciplined when you should have been. You stare at the meme and say god damn it, next time, I gotta be disciplined like this thing says.
Basically, this advice of being disciplined is for the birds. It is not defined, everyone has a different system and the market is just a lunatic wacko that doesn't care about your measures of discipline which is a vague and personal thing anyway. So, people, please be disciplined and don't post memes and advice about being disciplined cause it makes you look like a rookie wannabe hanging onto gibberish disguising itself as real advice.
What is discipline exactly?
Discipline, no matter how you want to define it, is subjective. No two people are exactly the same or trade the same or see trading the same, so why discipline should be regarded as an analogous word that needs no personal definition?
I think discipline is just a cheap word that is thrown around to impress the reader. Whoever comes up with advice which is usually the same (Be disciplined in your trading or similar variations) makes themselves look like they have thorough knowledge of how it is to be disciplined and now that they have achieved that monumental place that only a disciplined trader can reach, they have earned the license to go tell everyone else to be like them...oh so disciplined they are...kudos you high place achievers. I wish I could have come up with that sentence of 'you must be disciplined'. Oh wait, I can come up with it any time and I will get a personal credit because I must be obviously already disciplined. Right?
Here is an scenario where being disciplined sucks. You have a trading system that works well and has for a long time. Why? Because you are disciplined and follow it like a freaking perfectionist. The market goes against you and you don't waver just like the many times that it has and you were disciplined. The market goes against you even more but you know to be disciplined and follow the rules of your perfect system. The market goes even more against you and like how you know, you hold on (Ok, don't confuse that with holding a losing trade forever. You are not just holding, you are trading with various trading steps you know to work). Then boom...the dreaded margin call comes and you were so disciplined...weren't you?
Now again, same scenario above. This time, you blink. You get scared and think things are different this time. Your system has been doing well all this time and now it is cracking under the weight of the force going against you. You remember the nice meme that said BE DISCIPLINED but you think nah...I got to do something here to save my account. You cut loose. 5 minutes later, everything comes back and you start kicking yourself that you weren't disciplined when you should have been. You stare at the meme and say god damn it, next time, I gotta be disciplined like this thing says.
Basically, this advice of being disciplined is for the birds. It is not defined, everyone has a different system and the market is just a lunatic wacko that doesn't care about your measures of discipline which is a vague and personal thing anyway. So, people, please be disciplined and don't post memes and advice about being disciplined cause it makes you look like a rookie wannabe hanging onto gibberish disguising itself as real advice.