Quotes and Thought Patterns of Professional Traders

• Novice traders believe large positions = larger profits. A hard truth - trading undersized
positions produces greater profits over long pull
• When I put on a risk position I could care less what the market is, what the fundamentals
are (thought to be) or what the Twitter narrative is. The only thing that matters is the
chart set up.
• Trading a market with expanded volatility but reduced liquidity is a demonstration of
arrogant insanity.
• If you think you know what a given market is going to do, you are only fooling yourself.
• Keeping your pile of chips intact is the only thing that really matters at the end of the day.
• Money management is job #1 for a trader
• A trader is gambling when he/she has no ability to predetermine and contain risk.
• I cannot even count the number of aspiring traders who blew out their capital trying to get
pre-positioned for a move because they did not want to wait for the actual breakout.
• It is not uncommon for a trader to get so chopped up trying to preposition a trade before
a range area is resolved that he/she ends up missing the exact move he/she had wanted
to catch. Can you relate?
• Know that your ability (or inability) to remove yourself from emotional decisions will likely
make (or break) you.
• Consistent with my weekly routine I know the markets I am willing to trade this week,
under what exact conditions and how much I will risk in each.
• Excellent traders not only recognize their weaknesses and strengths but they are willing
to openly discuss these things among their peers
• Gamblers obsess with big potential upside windfall profits. Intelligent speculators obsess
with managing downside risk.
• I have no right to ever impose my opinions upon the markets.
• I am interested in precise chart construction with measured risk -- and could care less
about the market.
• Make a mistake, analyze the mistake, understand the mistake, then get over it and focus
on the next trade in the ongoing series of trades.
• I never regret taking profits at target prices
• Of all the destructive self-sabotaging human emotions, FOMO wipes out the most trading
accounts. If you cannot get FOMO bridled, then count your money as already lost.
• There is much more to life than market speculation. Faith, family, freedom, health,
kindness, integrity, honesty, principle, generosity.
• A trader must wait for a proper trade. Waiting can be challenging. Not having a position
IS a position.
• Without a recognizable chart pattern there is no way for me to justify a long position.
• A trader can have all the opinions he or she wants but what matters are the order that
are entered.
• I have no appreciation for poor execution and sloppy trading. In trading, exercise
diligence.
• Ultimately what your or I think about a market and its prospects means nothing. Markets
do what they do with us or without us. Also, think about this - if you are done buying you
become a bearish influence because you then become a seller
• Personally, I can emotionally let go of a missed trade quite quickly. A poorly executed
trade, however, stays with me longer.
• I go by the philosophy, When in doubt, stay out. Missing a trade might hurt my pride, but
it does not cost me any money.
• There is a temptation after a good run for traders to begin accepting lesser quality
trading signals -- in short, sloppy in their trading.
• Missing trades is a reality of the discretionary trader. Missing trades comes with the
territory.
• An opinion is not a position and a position is not an opinion.
• The fear of missing a move is NEVER a valid reason for carrying a trade.
• All a trader can expect is an edge. Edges are exploited over numerous trades.
• Exciting bull markets provide the thrills ... discipline and patience pay the bills. Trills are
not what I seek as a trader.
• Missing trades is commonplace. If this experience impacts your mental or emotional
ability to trade, then you should not be trading.
• Charts suggest "possibilities," not "probabilities" and certainly not "certainties"
• I do NOT believe that charts accurately predict the future. Charts are useful for:
• 1. Showing where prices have been
• 2. Indicating the path of least resistance
• 3. Alerting traders to asymmetrical reward-to-risk set ups
• Let the market inform one's opinion and avoid imposing one's opinion upon the market.
Being open minded is a "MUST" quality for a trader.
• A trader must always ask - If the trade ends up a loss, will I still be able to support the
reasons for the trade based on my trading plan?
• Novice traders (and experienced traders as well) need to move immediately on after the
reason for a trade is nullified.
• My experience is that excellent traders are extremely self aware. They are acutely aware
of their strengths and their weaknesses.
• If you are an aspiring trader you will need to learn how to lose before you can eventually
learn how to win.

Quotes and Thought Patterns of Professional Traders

This is certainly not a complete list, rather a starting point

to begin thoughtful analysis of your own trading thoughts.

Trade Well!