“It’s not ok to not be the best trader you can be.....it’s NOT OK” Mike Bellafiore
You have to be better than your best. You have to continually be getting better. There is no rest for traders. We have to be always improving. Trading is largely a zero sum game, you have to better than the others.
've often stated that any trader who thinks they have arrived as a trader will swiftly be shown the door by the market. It is a continual process of improvement and caution against believing our own hype.
So, what do you do in order to always be improving? The easy answer is a trading journal that you keep and a constant reviewing of your trades.
For me personally I have a journal and track my perfect trades. But as I also only trade for about 10-15 minutes after the 8.30am futures open, I'll often record my screen while trading and I review these videos.
The review is not only checking to see if my entries were good (exits are either at target or stop so automated and not important for this process). Did I get in timeously? Or late or early?
Am I missing information? I am watching the bids/offers and last trades, so not a lot of data. But I can miss data as I move between screens (trade, orders, chart, depth, etc.).What I find at time is that I take a long trade, for example. And it was right, but as I was entering the trade it switches to neutral or even short and I miss that change.
Close all the tabs/browsers and also get rid of all other data on my trade screen, except what I need - depth and last trades.
Point is alway be improving. Alway be checking in on yourself. Always be striving to be better every day.
My last point is to always remember that trading is like a high wire trapeze artists without a net or safety harness. We get no second chances. We can do 99 perfect trades and then 1 horrid trade gives it all back. As a trader we need to be 100% all the time. Not 100% in terms of profitable trades. 100% in terms of perfect execution every time. Because one slip and our money pile is back at the beginning, or as a trapeze artist, we a pile of broken bones on the floor.
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