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TRADING IN THE ZONE

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MASTER THE MARKET WITH CONFIDENCE, DISCIPLINE AND A WINNING ATTITUDE

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MARK DOUGLAS Foreword by Thorn Hartle

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NEW YORK INSTITUTE OF FINANCE wcw VHDV • Tnnnurn . cvnucv • Tnrvn • cinr.«pnpc Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Douglas, Mark (Mark J.) Trading in the zone : master the market with confidence, discipline, and a winning attitude / by Mark Douglas, p. cm. ISBN 0-7352-0144-7 (cloth) 1. Stocks. 2. Speculation. I. Title. HG6041 .D59 2001 332.64—dc21 00 045251 © 2000 by Prentice Hall All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means, without permission in writing from the publisher. Printed in the United States of America 10 9876 5 4321 This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or

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other professional service. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought. . . . From the Declaration of Principles jointly adopted by a Committee of the American Bar Association and a Committee of Publishers and Associations. ISBN D-73SE-DmM-7

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ATTENTION: CORPORATIONS AND SCHOOLS Prentice Hall books are available at quantity discounts with bulk purchase for educational, business, or sales promotional use. For information, please write to: Prentice Hall, Special Sales, 240 Frisch Court, Paramus, N] 07652. Please supply: title of book, ISBN, quantity, how the book will be used, date needed. NEW YORK INSTITUTE OF FINANCE An Imprint of Prentice Hall Press Paramus, NJ 07652 http://www.phdirect.com NYIF and NEW YORK INSTITUTE OF FINANCE are trademarks of Executive Tax Reports, Inc. used under license by Prentice Hall Direct, Inc.

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DEDICATION

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This book is dedicated to all of the traders I have had the pleasure of working with over the last 18 years as a trading coach. Each of you in your own unique way is a part of the insight and guidance this book will provide to those who choose to trade from a confident, disciplined, and consistent state of mind.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

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FOREWORD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xi PREFACE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xm ATTITUDE SURVEY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xvii

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_________________CHAPTER 1___________ THE ROAD TO SUCCESS: FUNDAMENTAL, TECHNICAL, OR MENTAL ANALYSIS?

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IN THE BEGINNING: FUNDAMENTAL ANALYSIS . . . . . . . . . . 1 THE SHIFT TO TECHNICAL ANALYSIS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 THE SHIFT TO MENTAL ANALYSIS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

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_____________________CHAPTER 2_______________ THE LURE (AND THE DANGERS) OF TRADING

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THE ATTRACTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 THE DANGERS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 THE SAFEGUARDS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Problem: The Unwillingness to Create Rules. . . . . . . 27

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Problem: Failure to Take Responsibility . . . . . . . . . . 28 Problem: Addiction to Random Rewards . . . . . . . . . 30 Problem: External versus Internal Control........ 31

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_______________CHAPTER 3______________ TAKING RESPONSIBILITY

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SHAPING YOUR MENTAL ENVIRONMENT. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 REACTING TO LOSS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 WINNERS, LOSERS, BOOMERS, AND BUSTERS . . . . . . . . . . 50

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___________CHAPTER 4_______________ CONSISTENCY: A STATE OF MIND

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THINKING ABOUT TRADING . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58 REALLY UNDERSTANDING RISK. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 ALIGNING YOUR MENTAL ENVIRONMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

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___________CHAPTER 5________________ THE DYNAMICS OF PERCEPTION

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DEBUGGING YOUR MENTAL SOFTWARE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 PERCEPTION AND LEARNING . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74 PERCEPTION AND RISK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 THE POWER OF ASSOCIATION. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

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___________CHAPTER 6_____________ THE MARKET'S PERSPECTIVE

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THE "UNCERTAINTY" PRINCIPLE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 THE MARKET'S MOST FUNDAMENTAL CHARACTERISTIC. .. 93

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_____________CHAPTER 7__________ THE TRADER'S EDGE: THINKING IN PROBABILITIES

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PROBABILITIES PARADOX: RANDOM OUTCOME, CONSISTENT RESULTS. . . . 102 TRADING IN THE MOMENT. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106 MANAGING EXPECTATIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113 ELIMINATING THE EMOTIONAL RISK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120

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DEFINING THE PROBLEM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125 DEFINING THE TERMS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128 HOW THE FUNDAMENTAL TRUTHS RELATE TO THE SKILLS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130 MOVING TOWARD "THE ZONE". . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135

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TRADING IN THE MOMENT 106 MANAGING EXPECTATIONS 113 ELIMINATING THE EMOTIONAL RISK 120

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_______ CHAPTER 8__________ WORKING WITH YOUR BELIEFS

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___________CHAPTER 9_________________ THE NATURE OF BELIEFS

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THE ORIGINS OF A BELIEF. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139 BELIEFS AND THEIR IMPACT ON OUR LIVES . . . . . . . . . . . 142 BELIEFS vs. THE TRUTH. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147

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________CHAPTER 10__________ THE IMPACT OF BELIEFS ON TRADING

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THE PRIMARY CHARACTERISTICS OF A BELIEF . . . . . . . . . . 153 SELF-EVALUATION AND TRADING . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167

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__________CHAPTER 11___________ THINKING LIKE A TRADER

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THE MECHANICAL STAGE. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173 THE ROLE OF SELF-DISCIPLINE. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179 CREATING A BELIEF IN CONSISTENCY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184 EXERCISE: LEARNING TO TRADE AND EDGE LIKE A CASINO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189

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A FINAL NOTE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201 ATTITUDE SURVEY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203 INDEX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209

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FOREWORD

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The great bull market in stocks has led to an equally great bull market in the number of books published on the subject of how to make money trading the markets. Many ideas abound, some good, some not, some original, some just a repackaging of earlier works. Occasionally, though, a writer comes forward with something that really sets him or her apart from the pack, something special. One such writer is Mark Douglas. Mark Douglas, in Trading in the Zone, has written a book that is the accumulation of years of thought and research—the work of a lifetime—and for those of us who view trading as a profession, he has produced a gem. Trading in the Zone is an in-depth look at the challenges that we face when we take up the challenge of trading. To the novice, the only challenge appears to be to find a way to make money. Once the novice learns that tips, brokers' advice, and other ways to justify buying or selling do not work consistently, he discovers that he either needs to develop a reliable trading strategy or purchase one. After that, trading should be easy, right? All you have to do is follow the rules, and the money will fall into your lap. At this point, if not before, novices discover that trading can turn into one of the most frustrating experiences they will ever face. This experience leads to the oft-started statistic that 95 percent of futures traders lose all of their money within the first year of trading. Stock traders generally experience the same results, which is why pundits always point to the fact that most stock traders fail to outperform a simple buy and hold investment scenario. So, why do people, the majority of whom are extremely successful in other occupations, fail so miserably as traders? Are successful traders born and not made? Mark Douglas says no. What's necessary, he says, is that the individual acquire the trader's mindset. It sounds easy, but the fact is, this mindset is very foreign when compared with the way our life experiences teach us to think about the world. That 95-percent failure rate makes sense when you consider how most of us experience life, using skills learned as we grow. When it comes to trading, however, it turns out that the skills we learn to earn high marks in school, advance our careers, and create relationships with other people, the skills we are taught that should carry us through life, turn out to be inappropriate for trading. Traders, we find out, must learn to think in terms of probabilities and to surrender all of the skills we have acquired to achieve in virtually every other aspect of our lives. In Trading in the Zone, Mark Douglas teaches us how. He has put together a very valuable book. His sources are his own personal experiences as a trader, a traders coach in Chicago, author, and lecturer in his field of trading psychology. My recommendation? Enjoy Douglas's Trading in the Zone and, in doing so, develop a trader's mindset.

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PREFACE

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The goal of any trader is to turn profits on a regular basis, yet so few people ever really make consistent money as traders. What accounts for the small percentage of traders who are consistently successful? To me, the determining factor is psychological—the consistent winners think differently from everyone else.I started trading in 1978. At the time, I was managing a commercial casualty insurance agency in the suburbs of Detroit, Michigan. I had a very successful career and thought I could easily transfer that success into trading. Unfortunately, I found that was not the case. By 1981, I was thoroughly disgusted with my inability to trade effectively while holding another job, so I moved to Chicago and got a job as a broker with Merrill Lynch at the Chicago Board of Trade. How did I do? Well, within nine months of moving to Chicago, I had lost nearly everything I owned. My losses were the result of both my trading activities and my exorbitant life style, which demanded that I make a lot of money as a trader. From these early experiences as a trader, I learned an enormous amount about myself, and about the role of psychology in trading. As a result, in 1982, I started working on my first book, The Disciplined Trader: Developing Winning Attitudes. When I began this project I had no concept of how difficult it was to write a book or explain something that I understood for myself in a manner and form that would be useful to other people. I thought it was going to take me between six and nine months to get the job done. It took seven and a half years and was finally published by Prentice Hall in 1990. In 1983, I left Merrill Lynch to start a consulting firm, Trading Behavior Dynamics, where I presently develop and conduct seminars on trading psychology and act in the capacity of what is commonly referred to as a trading coach. I've done countless presentations for trading companies, clearing firms, brokerage houses, banks, and investment conferences all over the world. I've worked at a personal level, one on one, with virtually every type of trader in the business, including some of the biggest floor traders, hedgers, option specialists, and CTAs, as well as neophytes As of this writing, I have spent the last seventeen years dissecting the psychological dynamics behind trading so that I could develop effective methods for teaching the proper principles of success. What I've discovered is that, at the most fundamental level, there is a problem with the way we think. There is something inherent in the way our minds work that doesn't fit very well with the characteristics shown by the markets. Those traders who have confidence in their own trades, who trust themselves to do what needs to be done without hesitation, are the ones who become successful. They no longer fear the erratic behavior of the market. They learn to focus on the information that helps them

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spot opportunities to make a profit, rather than focusing on the information that reinforces their fears. While this may sound complicated, it all boils down to learning to believe that: (1) you don't need to know what's going to happen next to make money; (2) anything can happen; and (3) every moment is unique, meaning every edge and outcome is truly a unique experience. The trade either works or it doesn't. In any case, you wait for the next edge to appear and go through the process again and again. With this approach you will learn in a methodical, non-random fashion what works and what doesn't. And, just as important, you will build a sense of self-trust so that you won't damage yourself in an environment that has the unlimited qualities the markets have. Most traders don't believe that their trading problems are the result of the way they think about trading or, more specifically, how they are thinking while they are trading. In my first book, The Disciplined Trader, I identified the problems confronting the trader from a mental perspective and then built a philosophical framework for understanding the nature of these problems and why they exist. I had five major objectives in mind in writing Trading in the Zone:

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To prove to the trader that more or better market analysis is not the solution to his trading difficulties or lack of consistent results.

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To provide the trader with the specific beliefs and attitudes that are necessary to build a winner's mindset, which means learning how to think in probabilities.

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To address the many conflicts, contradictions, and paradoxes in thinking that cause the typical trader to assume that he already does think in probabilities, when he really doesn't.

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To take the trader through a process that integrates this thinking strategy into his mental system at a functional level.

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(Note: Until recently, most traders were men, but I recognize that more and more women are joining the ranks. In an effort to avoid confusion and awkward phrasing, I have consistently used the pronoun "he" throughout this book in describing traders. This certainly does not reflect any bias on my part.)

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Trading in the Zone presents a serious psychological approach to becoming a consistent winner in your trading. I do not offer a trading system; I am more interested in showing you how to think in the way necessary to become a profitable trader. I assume that you already have your own system, your own edge. You must learn to trust your edge. The edge means there is a higher probability of one outcome than another. The greater your confidence, the easier it will be to execute your trades. This book is

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To convince the trader that it's his attitude and "state of mind" that determine his results.

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designed to give you the insight and understanding you need about yourself and the nature of trading, so that actually doing it becomes as easy, simple, and stressfree as when you're just watching the market and thinking about doing it. In order to determine how well you "think like a trader," take the following Attitude Survey. There are no right or wrong answers. Your answers are an indication of how consistent your current mental framework is with the way you need to think in order to get the most out of your trading.

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ATTITUDE SURVEY

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1. To make money as a trader you have to know what the market is going to do next. Agree Disagree

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2. Sometimes I find myself thinking that there must be a way to trade without having to take a loss. Agree Disagree

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4. Losses are an unavoidable component of trading. Agree Disagree

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5. My risk is always defined before I enter a trade. Agree Disagree

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6. In my mind there is always a cost associated with finding out what the market may do next. Agree Disagree

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7. I wouldn't even bother putting on the next trade if I wasn't sure that it was going to be a winner. Agree Disagree

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8. The more a trader learns about the markets and how they behave, the easier it will be for him to execute his trades. Agree Disagree

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3. Making money as a trader is primarily a function of analysis. Agree Disagree

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9. My methodology tells me exactly under what market conditions to either enter or exit a trade. Agree Disagree

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10. Even when I have a clear signal to reverse my position, I find it extremely difficult to do. Agree Disagree

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11. I have sustained periods of consistent success usually followed by some fairly drastic draw-downs in my equity. Agree Disagree

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12. When I first started trading I would describe my trading methodology as haphazard, meaning some success in between a lot of pain. Agree Disagree

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13. I often find myself feeling that the markets are against me personally. Agree Disagree

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14. As much as I might try to "let go," I find it very difficult to put past emotional wounds behind me. Agree Disagree

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15. I have a money management philosophy that is founded in the principle of always taking some money out of the market when the market makes it available. Agree Disagree

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16. A trader's job is to identify patterns in the markets' behavior that represent an opportunity and then to determine the risk of finding out if these patterns will play themselves out as they have in the past. Agree Disagree

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17. Sometimes I just can't help feeling that I am a victim of the market. Agree Disagree

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18. When I trade I usually try to stay focused in one time frame. Agree Disagree

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19. Trading successfully requires a degree of mental flexibility far beyond the scope of most people.

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Agree Disagree

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20. There are times when I can definitely feel the flow of the market; however, I often have difficulty acting on these feelings. Agree Disagree

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21. There are many times when I am in a profitable trade and I know the move is basically over, but I still won't take my profits. Agree Disagree

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22. No matter how much money I make in a trade, I am rarely ever satisfied and feel that I could have made more. Agree Disagree

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23. When I put on a trade, I feel I have a positive attitude. I anticipate all of the money I could make from the trade in a positive way. Agree Disagree

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24. The most important component in a trader's ability to accumulate money over time is having a belief in his own consistency. Agree Disagree

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25. If you were granted a wish to be able to instantaneously acquire one trading skill, what skill would you choose?

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26. I often spend sleepless nights worrying about the market. Agree Disagree

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27. Do you ever feel compelled to make a trade because you are afraid that you might miss out? Yes No

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28. Although it doesn't happen veiy often, I really like my trades to be perfect. When I make a perfect call it feels so good that it makes up for all of the times that I don't. Agree Disagree

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29. Do you ever find yourself planning trades you never execute, and executing trades you never

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planned? Yes No

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30. In a few sentences explain why most traders either don't make money or aren't able to keep what they make.

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Set aside your answers as you read through this book. After you've finished the last chapter ("Thinking Like a Trader"), take the Attitude Survey again—it s reprinted at the back of the book. You may be surprised to see how much your answers differ from the first time.

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

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I would especially like to thank all of the traders who bought the signed limited edition manuscript of the first seven chapters of this book. Your feedback gave me the inspiration to add the additional four chapters. Next, I would like to thank fellow traders Robert St. John, Greg Bieber, Larry Pesavento, and Ted Hearne for their friendship and the special ways in which each of them contributed to the development of this book. I would also like to acknowledge my friend, Eileen Bruno, for editing the original manuscript; and, at Prentice Hall, Ellen Schneid Coleman, Associate Publisher, for her professionalism and help in smoothing the path to publication, and Barry Richardson, Development Editor, for his help in shaping the introduction. His time and talent are greatly appreciated. CHAPTER 1

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CHAPTER 1

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THE ROAD TO SUCCESS: FUNDAMENTAL, TECHNICAL, OR MENTAL ANALYSIS?

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IN THE BEGINNING: FUNDAMENTAL ANALYSIS

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Who remembers when fundamental analysis was considered the only real or proper way to make trading decisions? When I started trading in 1978, technical analysis was used by only a handful of traders, who were considered by the rest of the market community to be, at the very least, crazy. As difficult as it is to believe now, it wasn't very long ago when Wall Street and most of the major funds and financial institutions thought that technical analysis was some form of mystical hocus-pocus. Now, of course, just the opposite is true. Almost all experienced traders use some form of technical analysis to help them formulate their trading strategies. Except for some small, isolated pockets in the academic community, the "purely" fundamental analyst is virtually extinct. What caused this dramatic shift in perspective? I'm sure it's no surprise to anyone that the answer to this question is very simple: Money! The problem with making trading decisions from a strictly fundamental perspective is the inherent difficulty of making money consistently using this approach. For those of you who may not be familiar with fundamental analysis, let me explain. Fundamental analysis attempts to take into consideration all the variables that could affect the relative balance or imbalance between the supply of and the possible demand for any particular stock, commodity, or financial instrument. Using primarily mathematical models that weigh the significance of a variety of factors (interest rates, balance sheets, weather patterns, and numerous others), the analyst projects what the price should be at some point in the future. The problem with these models is that they rarely, if ever, factor in other traders as variables. People, expressing their beliefs and expectations about the future, make prices move—not models. The fact that a model makes a logical and reasonable projection based on all the relevant variables is not of much value if the traders who are responsible for most of the trading volume are not aware of the model or don't believe in it. As a matter of fact, many traders, especially those on the floors of the futures exchanges who have the ability to move prices very dramatically in one direction or the other, usually don't have the slightest concept of the fundamental supply and demand factors that are supposed to affect prices. Furthermore, at any given moment, much of their trading activity is prompted by a response to emotional factors that are completely outside the parameters of the fundamental model. In other words, the people who trade (and consequently move prices) don't always act in a rational manner.

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Ultimately, the fundamental analyst could find that a prediction about where prices should be at some point in the future is correct. But in the meantime, price movement could be so volatile that it would be very difficult, if not impossible, to stay in a trade in order to realize the objective.

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THE SHIFT TO TECHNICAL ANALYSIS

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Technical analysis has been around for as long as there have been organized markets in the form of exchanges. But the trading community didn't accept technical analysis as a viable tool for making money until the late 1970s or early 1980s. Here's what the technical analyst knew that it took the mainstream market community generations to catch on to. A finite number of traders participate in the markets on any given day, week, or month. Many of these traders do the same lands of things over and over in their attempt to make money. In other words, individuals develop behavior patterns, and a group of individuals, interacting with one another on a consistent basis, form collective behavior patterns. These behavior patterns are observable and quantifiable, and they repeat themselves with statistical reliability. Technical analysis is a method that organizes this collective behavior into identifiable patterns that can give a clear indication of when there is a greater probability of one thing happening over another. In a sense, technical analysis allows you to get into the mind of the market to anticipate what's likely to happen next, based on the kind of patterns the market generated at some previous moment. As a method for projecting future price movement, technical analysis has turned out to be far superior to a purely fundamental approach. It keeps the trader focused on what the market is doing now in relation to what it has done in the past, instead of focusing on what the market should be doing based solely on what is logical and reasonable as determined by a mathematical model. On the other hand, fundamental analysis creates what I call a "reality gap" between "what should be" and "what is." The reality gap makes it extremely difficult to make anything but very long-term predictions that can be difficult to exploit, even if they are correct. In contrast, technical analysis not only closes this reality gap, but also makes available to the trader a virtually unlimited number of possibilities to take advantage of. The technical approach opens up many more possibilities because it identifies how the same repeatable behavior patterns occur in every time frame—moment-tomoment, daily, weekly, yearly, and every time span in between. In other words, technical analysis turns the market into an endless stream of opportunities to enrich oneself.

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THE SHIFT TO MENTAL ANALYSIS

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If technical analysis works so well, why would more and more of the trading community shift their focus from technical analysis of the market to mental analysis of themselves, meaning their own individual trading psychology? To answer this question, you probably don't have to do anything more

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than ask yourself why you bought this book. The most likely reason is that you're dissatisfied with the difference between what you perceive as the unlimited potential to make money and what you end up with on the bottom line. That's the problem with technical analysis, if you want to call it a problem. Once you learn to identify patterns and read the market, you find there are limitless opportunities to make money. But, as I'm sure you already know, there can also be a huge gap between what you understand about the markets, and your ability to transform that knowledge into consistent profits or a steadily rising equity curve. Think about the number of times you've looked at a price chart and said to yourself, "Hmmm, it looks like the market is going up (or down, as the case may be)," and what you thought was going to happen actually happened. But you did nothing except watch the market move while you anguished over all the money you could have made. There's a big difference between predicting that something will happen in the market (and thinking about all the money you could have made) and the reality of actually getting into and out of trades. I call this difference, and others like it, a "psychological gap" that can make trading one of the most difficult endeavors you could choose to undertake and certainly one of the most mysterious to master. The big question is: Can trading be mastered? Is it possible to experience trading with the same ease and simplicity implied when you are only watching the market and thinking about success, as opposed to actually having to put on and take off trades? Not only is the answer an unequivocal "yes," but that's also exactly what this book is designed to give you—the insight and understanding you need about yourself and about the nature of trading. So the result is that actually doing it becomes as easy, simple, and stress-free as when you are just watching the market and thinking about doing it. This may seem like a tall order, and to some of you it may even seem impossible. But it's not. There are people who have mastered the art of trading, who have closed the gap between the possibilities available and their bottom-line performance. But as you might expect, these winners are relatively few in number compared with the number of traders who experience varying degrees of frustration, all the way to extreme exasperation, wondering why they can't create the consistent success they so desperately desire. In fact, the differences between these two groups of traders (the consistent winners and everyone else) are analogous to the differences between the Earth and the moon. The Earth and moon are both celestial bodies that exist in the same solar system, so they do have something in common. But they are as different in nature and characteristics as night and day. By the same token, anyone who puts on a trade can claim to be a trader, but when you compare the characteristics of the handful of consistent winners with the characteristics of most other traders, you'll find they're also as different as night and day. If going to the moon represents consistent success as a trader, we can say that getting to the moon is possible. The journey is extremely difficult and only a handful of people have made it. From our perspective here on Earth, the moon is usually visible every night and it seems so close that we could

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just reach out and touch it. Trading successfully feels the same way. On any given day, week, or month, the markets make available vast amounts of money to anyone who has the capacity to put on a trade. Since the markets are in constant motion, this money is also constantly flowing, which makes the possibilities for success greatly magnified and seemingly within your grasp. I use the word "seemingly" to make an important distinction between the two groups of traders. For those who have learned how to be consistent, or have broken through what I call the "threshold of consistency,"the money is not only within their grasp; they can virtually take it at will. I'm sure that some will find this statement shocking or difficult to believe, but it is true. There are some limitations, but for the most part, money flows into the accounts of these traders with such ease and effortlessness that it literally boggles most people's minds. However, for the traders who have not evolved into this select group, the word "seemingly" means exactly what it implies. It seems as if the consistency or ultimate success they desire is "at hand," or "within their grasp," just before it slips away or evaporates before their eyes, time and time again. The only thing about trading that is consistent with this group is emotional pain. Yes, they certainly have moments of elation, but it is not an exaggeration to say that most of the time they are in a state of fear, anger, frustration, anxiety, disappointment, betrayal, and regret. So what separates these two groups of traders? Is it intelligence? Are the consistent winners just plain smarter than everyone else? Do they work harder? Are they better analysts, or do they have access to better trading systems? Do they possess inherent personality characteristics that make it easier for them to deal with the intense pressures of trading? All of these possibilities sound quite plausible, except when you consider that most of the trading industry's failures are also some of society's brightest and most accomplished people. The largest group of consistent losers is composed primarily of doctors, lawyers, engineers, scientists, CEOs, wealthy retirees, and entrepreneurs. Furthermore, most of the industry's best market analysts are the worst traders imaginable. Intelligence and good market analysis can The Road to Success certainly contribute to success, but they are not the defining factors that separate the consistent winners from everyone else. Well, if it isn't intelligence or better analysis, then what could it be? Having worked with some of the best and some of the worst traders in the business, and having helped some of the worst become some of the best, I can state without a doubt that there are specific reasons why the best traders consistently out-perform everyone else. If I had to distill all of the reasons down to one, I would simply say that the best traders think differently from the rest. I know that doesn't sound very profound, but it does have profound implications if you consider what it means to think differently. To one degree or another, all of us think differently from everyone else. We may not always be mindful of this fact; it seems natural to assume that other people share our perceptions and interpretations of events. In fact, this assumption continues to seem valid until we find ourselves in a basic, fundamental

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disagreement with someone about something we both experienced. Other than our physical features, the way we think is what makes us unique, probably even more unique than our physical features do. Let's get back to traders. What is different about die way the best traders think as opposed to how those who are still struggling think? While the markets can be described as an arena of endless opportunities, they simultaneously confront the individual with some of the most sustained, adverse psychological conditions you can expose yourself to. At some point, everyone who trades learns something about the markets that will indicate when opportunities exist. But learning how to identify an opportunity to buy or sell does not mean that you have learned to think like a trader. The defining characteristic that separates the consistent winners from everyone else is this: The winners have attained a mind-set—aunique set of attitudes—that allows them to remain disciplined, focused, and, above all, confident in spite of the adverse conditions. As a result, they are no longer susceptible to the common fears and trading errors that plague everyone else. Everyone who trades ends up learning something about the markets; very few people who trade ever learn the attitudes that are absolutely essential to becoming a consistent winner. Just as people can learn to perfect the proper technique for swinging a golf club or tennis racket, their consistency, or lack of it, will without a doubt come from their attitude Traders who make it beyond "the threshold of consistency" usually experience a great deal of pain (both emotional and financial) before they acquire the land of attitude that allows them to function effectively in the market environment. The rare exceptions are usually those who were born into successful trading families or who started their trading careers under the guidance of someone who understood the true nature of trading, and, just as important, knew how to teach it. Why are emotional pain and financial disaster common among traders? The simple answer is that most of us weren't fortunate enough to start our trading careers with the proper guidance. However, the reasons go much deeper than this. I have spent the last seventeen years dissecting the psychological dynamics behind trading so that I could develop effective methods for teaching the principles of success. What I've discovered is that trading is chock full of paradoxes and contradictions in thinking that make it extremely difficult to learn how to be successful. In fact, if I had to choose one word that encapsulates the nature of trading, it would be "paradox." (According to the dictionary, a paradox is something that seems to have contradictory qualities or that is contrary to common belief or what generally makes sense to people.) Financial and emotional disaster are common among traders because many of the perspectives, attitudes, and principles that would otherwise make perfect sense and work quite well in our daily lives have the opposite effect in the trading environment. They just don't work. Not knowing this, most traders start their careers with a fundamental lack of understanding of what it means to be a trader, the skills that are involved, and the depth to which those skills need to be developed. Here is a prime example of what I am talking about: Trading is inherently risky. To my knowledge, no trade has a guaranteed outcome; therefore, the possibility of being wrong and losing money is always present. So when you put on a trade, can you consider yourself a risk-taker? Even though this may

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sound like a trick question, it is not. The logical answer to the question is, unequivocally, yes. If I engage in an activity that is inherently risky, then I must be a risktaker. This is a perfectly reasonable assumption for any trader to make. In fact, not only do virtually all traders make this assumption, but most traders take pride in thinking of themselves as risk-takers. The problem is that this assumption couldn't be further from the truth. Of course, any trader is taking a risk when you put on a trade, but that doesn't mean that you are correspondingly accepting that risk. In other words, all trades are risky because the outcomes are probable—not guaranteed. But do most traders really believe they are taking a risk when they put on a trade? Have they really accepted that the trade has a non-guaranteed, probable outcome? Furthermore, have they fully accepted the possible consequences? The answer is, unequivocally, no! Most traders have absolutely no concept of what it means to be a risk-taker in the way a successful trader thinks about risk. The best traders not only take the risk, they have also learned to accept and embrace that risk. There is a huge psychological gap between assuming you are a risk-taker because you put on trades and fully accepting the risks inherent in each trade. When you fully accept the risks, it will have profound implications on your bottom-line performance. The best traders can put on a trade without the slightest bit of hesitation or conflict, and just as freely and without hesitation or conflict, admit it isn't working. They can get out of the trade—even with a loss—and doing so doesn't resonate the slightest bit of emotional discomfort. In other words, the risks inherent in trading do not cause the best traders to lose their discipline, focus, or sense of confidence. If you are unable to trade without the slightest bit of emotional discomfort (specifically, fear), then you have not learned how to accept the risks inherent in trading. This is a big problem, because to whatever degree you haven't accepted the risk, is the same degree to which you will avoid the risk. Trying to avoid something that is unavoidable will have disastrous effects on your ability to trade successfully. Learning to truly accept the risks in any endeavor can be difficult, but it is extremely difficult for traders, especially considering what's at stake. What are we generally most afraid of (besides dying or public speaking)? Certainly, losing money and being wrong both rank close to the top of the list. Admitting we are wrong and losing money to boot can be extremely painful, and certainly something to avoid. Yet as traders, we are confronted with these two possibilities virtually every moment we are in a trade. Now, you might be saying to yourself, "Apart from the fact that it hurts so much, it's natural to not want to be wrong and lose something; therefore, it's appropriate for me to do whatever I can to avoid it." I agree with you. But it is also this natural tendency that makes trading (which looks like it should be easy) extremely difficult. Trading presents us with a fundamental paradox: How do we remain disciplined, focused, and confident in the face of constant uncertainty? When you have learned how to "think" like a trader, that's exactly what you'll be able to do. Learning how to redefine your trading activities in a way that allows you to completely accept the risk is the key to thinking like a successful trader. Learning to accept the risk is a trading skill—the most important skill you can learn. Yet it's rare that developing traders focus

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any attention or expend any effort to learn it. When you learn the trading skill of risk acceptance, the market will not be able to generate information that you define or interpret as painful. If the information the market generates doesn't have the potential to cause you emotional pain, there's nothing to avoid. It is just information, telling you what the possibilities are. This is called an objective perspective—one that is not skewed or distorted by what you are afraid is going to happen or not happen. I'm sure there isn't one trader reading this book who hasn't gotten into trades too soon—before the market has actually generated a signal, or too late—long after the market has generated a signal. What trader hasn't convinced himself not to take a loss and, as a result, had it turn into a bigger one; or got out of winning trades too soon; or found himself in winning trades but didn't take any profits at all, and then let the trades turn into losers; or moved stoplosses closer to his entry point, only to get stopped out and have the market go back in his direction? These are but a few of the many errors traders perpetuate upon themselves time and time again. These are not market-generated errors. That is, these errors do not come from the market. The market is neutral, in the sense that it moves and generates information about itself. Movement and information provide each of us with the opportunity to do something, but that's all! The markets don't have any power over the unique way in which each of us perceives and interprets this information, or control of the decisions and actions we take as a result. The errors I already mentioned and many more are strictly the result of what I call "faulty trading attitudes and perspectives." Faulty attitudes that foster fear instead of trust and confidence. I don't think I could put the difference between the consistent winners and everyone else more simply than this: The best traders aren't afraid. They aren't afraid because they have developed attitudes that give them the greatest degree of mental flexibility to flow in and out of trades based on what the market is telling them about the possibilities from its perspective. At the same time, the best traders have developed attitudes that prevent them from getting reckless. Everyone else is afraid, to some degree or another. When they're not afraid, they have the tendency to become reckless and to create the kind of experience for themselves that will cause them to be afraid from that point on. Ninety-five percent of the trading errors you are likely to make—causing the money to just evaporate before your eyes—will stem from your attitudes about being wrong, losing money, missing out, and leaving money on the table. What I call the four primary trading fears. Now, you may be saying to yourself, "I don't know about this: I've always thought traders should have a healthy fear of the markets." Again, this is a perfectly logical and reasonable assumption. But when it comes to trading, your fears will act against you in such a way that you will cause the very thing you are afraid of to actually happen. If you're afraid of being wrong, your fear will act upon your perception of market information in a way that will cause you to do something that ends up making you wrong. When you are fearful, no other possibilities exist. You can't perceive other possibilities or act on them properly, even if you did manage to perceive them, because fear is immobilizing. Physically, it causes us to freeze or run. Mentally, it causes us to narrow our focus of attention to the object of our fear. This

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means that thoughts about other possibilities, as well as other available information from the market, get blocked. You won't think about all the rational things you've learned about the market until you are no longer afraid and the event is over. Then you will think to yourself, "I knew that. Why didn't I think of it then?" or, "Why couldn't I act on it then?" It's extremely difficult to perceive that the source of these problems is our own inappropriate attitudes. That's what makes fear so insidious. Many of the thinking patterns that adversely affect our trading are a function of the natural ways in which we were brought up to think and see the world. These thinking patterns are so deeply ingrained that it rarely occurs to us that the source of our trading difficulties is internal, derived from our state of mind. Indeed, it seems much more natural to see the source of a problem as external, in the market, because it feels like the market is causing our pain, frustration, and dissatisfaction. Obviously these are abstract concepts and certainly not something most traders are going to concern themselves with. Yet understanding the relationship between beliefs, attitudes, and perception is as fundamental to trading as learning how to serve is to tennis, or as learning how to swing a club is to golf. Put another way, understanding and controlling your perception of market information is important only to the extent that you want to achieve consistent results. I say this because there is something else about trading that is as true as the statement I just made: You don't have to know anything about yourself or the markets to put on a winning trade, just as you don't have to know the proper way to swing a tennis racket or golf club in order to hit a good shot from time to time. The first time I played golf, I hit several good shots throughout the game even though I hadn't learned any particular technique; but my score was still over 120 for 18 holes. Obviously, to improve my overall score, I needed to learn technique. Of course, the same is true for trading. We need technique to achieve consistency. But what technique? This is truly one of the most perplexing aspects of learning how to trade effectively. If we aren't aware of, or don't understand, how our beliefs and attitudes affect our perception of market information, it will seem as if it is the market's behavior that is causing the lack of consistency. As a result, it would stand to reason that the best way to avoid losses and become consistent would be to learn more about the markets. This bit of logic is a trap that almost all traders fall into at some point, and it seems to make perfect sense. But this approach doesn't work. The market simply offers too many—often conflicting— variables to consider. Furthermore, there are no limits to the market's behavior. It can do anything at any moment. As a matter of fact, because every person who trades is a market variable, it can be said that any single trader can cause virtually anything to happen. This means that no matter how much you learn about the market's behavior, no matter how brilliant an analyst you become, you will never learn enough to anticipate every possible way that the market can make you wrong or cause you to lose money. So if you are afraid of being wrong or losing money, it means you will never learn enough to compensate for the negative effects these fears will have on your ability to be objective and your ability to act without hesitation. In other words, you won't be confident in the face of constant uncertainty. The