The Three Skills of Top Trading: Behavioral Systems Building, Pattern Recognition, and Mental State Management
Trading in today's markets can be a difficult endeavor. But with the right approach, you can achieve success. Nobody knows this better than author Hank Pruden, a top technical analyst and well-known educator in the field of finance. Having actively traded his own account for more than twenty years, Pruden has placed real equity at risk based upon the theories he teaches. And during this time, he's carefully followed a framework that has proven itself both profitable and reliable in real-world trading situations.Now, in The Three Skills of Top Trading, Pruden looks to share his experience and insights with you. Written in a straightforward and accessible style, this comprehensive guide brings together the three skills of top trading—behavioral models for systems building, pattern recognition, and mental state discipline—and examines how you can develop this "triple threat" skill set to sustain or gain a true competitive edge in today's challenging markets.Divided into three well-rounded parts, this book integrates elements of trading that are often treated separately—creating a mutually reinforcing analytical package that makes intuitive sense. Throughout these pages, you'll be introduced to:A behavioral finance framework for systems building that provides the structure for integrating and interpreting indicators organized along the key dimensions of price, time, volume, and sentimentA pattern recognition plan for trading—the Wyckoff Method of chart reading and technical analysis—that contains a set of laws and principles, which can be used to interpret chart patterns and take actionA model of trader psychology that is essential to the management of your mental state—the Ten Tasks of Top Trading—as well as various methods that will allow you to effectively maintain or modify this stateEngaging and informative, The Three Skills of Top Trading outlines a balanced set of skills that will allow you to capture some of the most profitable trading opportunities possible. It will also help you sidestep timing pitfalls stemming from superficial data analysis and erroneous interpretations of market indicators. With this book as your guide, you'll quickly develop a better understanding of the elements of systems building, pattern recognition, and mental state discipline and learn what it takes to become a complete trader.