Trading Psychology - Becoming A Better Trader
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I've had a quiet couple of days with trading, not liking the way I'm acting around the Euros, I can clearly see that they don't suit my trading style but I can't help but jump in so I've decided to take a step back for a couple of days.
I'm really getting my head into my business at the moment and need a clear mind to focus on the growth of this so I really don't need the unnecessary stress I'm putting on myself with trading the Euros, it has slipped me into trading in play again which really isn't my bag and takes up too much of my time and is highly emotional for me, so from now on it is back to set and forgets!
I have set up a new spreadsheet and trading diary and wanted to share a few things I have added which have helped me in the past and know work for me but for some reason I thought I was passed using them, I am not! and now they are here to stay.
At the top of my spreadsheet I list my 4 rules in CAPITAL letters, brightly coloured, it maybe a little extra but I also repeat these out loud before trading my daily selections.
- I WILL STAKE TO WIN ONE POINT ONLY
- AM I AS CONFIDENT AS I CAN BE IN THESE TRADES
- I WILL ONLY USE THIS ONE STRATEGY
- I WILL ONLY INCREASE STAKES ONCE THE BANK HAS DOUBLED
I have a column in my spreadsheet for the strategy used, I fill all of these in so that if I am tempted to trade a different strategy then I have to delete this before I can record it, this is just an additional filter, subconsciously nudging myself to say, should I really be doing this?
The additional columns are for RESULT, POINTS PROFIT, MONEY PROFIT, POINTS BANK & MONEY BANK, I highlight these green for win and red for loss (groundbreaking, I know...) I fill the entire columns in green so that they need to be changed to red, this is an extra little push that I find helps me to ensure I am fully confident in a trade before placing it as I really don't want to be turning green to red!
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@tom-david It’s hugely liberating!
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@Ryan thanks mate, I'm enjoying writing them, feels quite liberating to admit your faults and your wins, having a great month so hope that positivity is coming across on here, a few little hiccups with the euros but still building profit!
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I wouldn't say I have a strategy for the cricket as such, it's just a market which over reacts a lot, I basically just lay really short prices, for example Leicester v Yorkshire a couple of days back Yorkshire went right down to 1.01, just because Leicester had an early wicket, but still had 19 overs left, any situation like that is always going to give you either profit or very minimal loses, with such low liability you can increase your stake massively.
I actually traded out on that one at around 1.6 if I remember rightly, but it actually ended up being quite a tight match and I could have stayed in for much longer and got much more but I was happy with my lot.
Made a mistake yesterday though as I was having a pretty crappy day, I got in on Derby v Lancashire but ended up getting distracted and lost a point!
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@tom-david I have to say I am enjoying reading these, great to hear your thoughts and what you are doing etc...
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@tom-david said in Trading Psychology - Becoming A Better Trader:
T20 Blast been a blast again today, another 1.7 points added to the bank
Nice one! What is your strategy for the cricket?
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@tom-david well I’m glad I stayed out of the France Germany game, perfect example of accepting a good day as it is and not pushing for anymore
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T20 Blast been a blast again today, another 1.7 points added to the bank
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@eamonn-hogan I am mate, I’m having a brilliant time trading at the moment, feel really in control of what I’m doing at the moment and buzzing to see the bank balance increasing
Today’s been a tidy day again today, 5.5 points profit, I did have the France Germany game in my sights for later on this evening but decided to swerve it now and sit on my profits.
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@tom-david said in Trading Psychology - Becoming A Better Trader:
Just as a follow on from that I would say that the MOST important things for me have been
STICK TO A TRADING PLAN
Making a plan of what I am going to trade each day so that everything is fully researched and no off the cuff trades are placed
DOCUMENTING ALL TRADES
Keeping a spreadsheet of all trades including P/L and notes on why I entered the trade has allowed me to see what areas are working, helps me stay focussed on the long term, puts me off placing stupid trades as I will have to see them in black and white
FINDING MARKETS WHICH SUIT MY PERSONALITY
Some markets which move really quickly like horse racing just bring out my impulsive side and lead me into making bad decisions, I find that slower moving markets are better for me or even better set and forget, I enjoy the research side of things so fully researching a trade, placing it and coming back later to find it's won is my ideal.
STAKING APPROPRIATELY
So many times I have changed stakes to try to recoup loses and ended up losing big percentages of my betting bank.
It is probably only the last 60 days that I have consistently risked the same amount on each trade (2% of my betting bank) now I am able to see a steady growth in the account which will allow me to increase stakes at the end of this month
Good stuff Tom. Sounds like you are ima great place with your trading. -
Just as a follow on from that I would say that the MOST important things for me have been
STICK TO A TRADING PLAN
Making a plan of what I am going to trade each day so that everything is fully researched and no off the cuff trades are placed
DOCUMENTING ALL TRADES
Keeping a spreadsheet of all trades including P/L and notes on why I entered the trade has allowed me to see what areas are working, helps me stay focussed on the long term, puts me off placing stupid trades as I will have to see them in black and white
FINDING MARKETS WHICH SUIT MY PERSONALITY
Some markets which move really quickly like horse racing just bring out my impulsive side and lead me into making bad decisions, I find that slower moving markets are better for me or even better set and forget, I enjoy the research side of things so fully researching a trade, placing it and coming back later to find it's won is my ideal.
STAKING APPROPRIATELY
So many times I have changed stakes to try to recoup loses and ended up losing big percentages of my betting bank.
It is probably only the last 60 days that I have consistently risked the same amount on each trade (2% of my betting bank) now I am able to see a steady growth in the account which will allow me to increase stakes at the end of this month
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Just dropping in to update on the last few days trading
I've had a pretty good few days, of course the Euros have started so there are lots of unknowns with this tournament, this can sometimes be a stage where trades turn into bets and bias rears it's head.
I have traded a few of the games so far, some I have used pre-match Lay U1.5 goals for but I am down 4.55 points using this so have decided that I am no longer going to use this strategy for these fixtures, having all the data on spreadsheets has allowed me to know where I am with these trades and make the decision not to trade them like this moving forward.
Instead I am going to jump onto the LCS, I've always liked doing this but find that the LU1.5 goals suits my lifestyle better as I can normally queue the trades and sometimes won't even look back until the next day but as I will be watching most of the games I will when I can feel the pressure building lay correct score, I like doing this as you can often get a good risk to reward ratio 60 minutes onwards, usually in these instances I will double up my stakes to the same liability that I would have on a prematch set and forget, usually between 4&5 so laying correct score at 2.5 I would aim to win 2 points.
Also enjoying the T20 this week and looking forward to a couple of matches tonight, I use my Betfair account to trade cricket markets as the liquidity is a lot higher than on betdaq which I primarily use for set and forget strategies.
Finally starting to feel like I am in control of my trading, I still make some errors and trade things I wish I hadn't but for the first time ever I would say that I am 100% aware of myself and my actions, so if something goes against me I am fully aware of why this has happened and I haven't over staked so it is no problem, I just suck it up and move onto the next.
As of today half way through the month and I am at 22 points profit, at the end of the month I should be in a position to increase my stakes, well on the way to having a decent betting bank and hoping to match my wages by the end of the year.
I know some might find it easier than others to get ahead in this game but I really hope anyone that gets into this and struggles in the beginning is able to stick it out and work on themselves as the rewards at the end of it are worth all the difficult times.
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@keith-anderson
sorry, perhaps I phrased this wrong, I don't keep this a secret, I just don't openly talk about it, close friends and family know but I keep day to day details to myself for a variety of reasons.
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@matt-wood said in Trading Psychology - Becoming A Better Trader:
@keith-anderson said in Trading Psychology - Becoming A Better Trader:
@martin said in Trading Psychology - Becoming A Better Trader:
@tom-david one word of warning, you may not want to keep this too much of a secret to your close family especially a partner if you have one. at the end of the day we are investing our money in valuable opportunities, it really is that simple and if you explain it well people start to get that it's not 'gambling' in the way everyone uses that word.
I echo what Martin has said. It was liberating telling my wife about trading. She is very accommodating and tries to schedule things around my trading plan / time, as best she can. It really helps when you have a partner on board
I can add my voice to this. Im am very lucky to have a supportive partner who helps me with spreadsheets and tries as best as possible to accommodate trading times. As @Keith-Anderson said, it really does help to have a supportive partner on board, if only to tell me off when I think I am failing
Also don't be too truthful, but throw them a quid at the end of the month!!
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@keith-anderson said in Trading Psychology - Becoming A Better Trader:
@martin said in Trading Psychology - Becoming A Better Trader:
@tom-david one word of warning, you may not want to keep this too much of a secret to your close family especially a partner if you have one. at the end of the day we are investing our money in valuable opportunities, it really is that simple and if you explain it well people start to get that it's not 'gambling' in the way everyone uses that word.
I echo what Martin has said. It was liberating telling my wife about trading. She is very accommodating and tries to schedule things around my trading plan / time, as best she can. It really helps when you have a partner on board
I can add my voice to this. Im am very lucky to have a supportive partner who helps me with spreadsheets and tries as best as possible to accommodate trading times. As @Keith-Anderson said, it really does help to have a supportive partner on board, if only to tell me off when I think I am failing
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@martin said in Trading Psychology - Becoming A Better Trader:
@tom-david one word of warning, you may not want to keep this too much of a secret to your close family especially a partner if you have one. at the end of the day we are investing our money in valuable opportunities, it really is that simple and if you explain it well people start to get that it's not 'gambling' in the way everyone uses that word.
I echo what Martin has said. It was liberating telling my wife about trading. She is very accommodating and tries to schedule things around my trading plan / time, as best she can. It really helps when you have a partner on board
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@tom-david one word of warning, you may not want to keep this too much of a secret to your close family especially a partner if you have one. at the end of the day we are investing our money in valuable opportunities, it really is that simple and if you explain it well people start to get that it's not 'gambling' in the way everyone uses that word.
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Been on the forum for nearly a month now so perfect time for a recap.
I joined this forum for one reason only and that was to be held accountable to myself by speaking publicly about my trades.
I don’t discuss this with any family or friends really as it is viewed quite negatively and as someone who is trying to build a business I prefer for it to be a private matter but the downfall of this is that when you lack self discipline it can be easy to lie to yourself and hide your faults and bad decisions.
Posting my thoughts and movements on here daily is slowly allowing me to become more disciplined and as a result see profit building up.
I realise that I probably am not taking this blog in the direction I wanted to as fast as I would have liked but the simple truth is I struggle for time, hopefully as things go on over the coming months I’ll be able to decide a bit more time to this and will start to share my trades openly. I’ve always found that finding selections is easy, some might not agree with this but finding a workable strategy or a solid trade is easy, it’s the discipline of sticking to just those trades, not getting greedy or carried away or trying to make up for a loss that’s difficult for me, thankfully associating myself with this forum and people who have overcome this or are in the process of overcoming it helps me to focus myself at a much faster rate than I ever could have hoped alone.
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Two early wickets and another 3.7 points profit today, could easily have stayed in this for a few more but can switch off from it now, nice little result.
20 points profit so far this month, buzzing.
