The Eureka Moments – 6 Steps to Successful Trading

You have reached the half-way stage: the Eureka Moment.

For me, it was a long journey. I didn’t spend too much time at Level 1 (Unconscious Incompetence). My upbringing and training prompted me to move on to Level 2 fairly quickly. But, I did spend an inordinate amount of time at Conscious Incompetence.

I walked both routes of Level 2. I started by looking for the Holy Grail. And, it was not until I encountered Pete Steidlmayer that got on the right track. My mindset turned from seeking to control the outcome of a trade to a probability mindset. I came to understand the importance of risk management and compounding.

What about you? Are you still at Level 2, flitting from freebie to freebie, willing to lose but unwilling to invest in your success? Or are you investing tons but investing in the ‘get-rich-quick’ products? Neither approach will bring you to Eureka.

The good news is there is light at the end of the tunnel. If you can get to the Eureka Moment, you’re on your way to success. The bad news is Level 3 has proven to be, in my experience, the largest stumbling block for many traders.

Time and again I have seen the situation where for a time they put it all together: they have Method, Money, Mind. Then the market throws them a curve. They experience either Ebb or Flow. The effect is the same – they revert to Level 2.

Until Brene Brown, I was never able to figure out why so many failed to recover from the setback. Now I understand what happens: their story for failure reasserts itself. It’s like the person that perpetually goes on a diet, loses weight, and then put it all back on and more.

Level 3 merely means that you know what to do. You now have to take your knowledge and apply it consistently.

That work takes you to Level 4, Conscious Competence.

• You have reached this level because your Method has a positive expectancy.
• You have reached this level because you have consistently kept your Psych and Equity Journals.
• You have also consistently used your journals to improve your trading.
• You have recovered from your Ebb stages, and you have kept your head during the Flow phases.
• Your end-of-year results show a positive return attained through knowledge and skill and a little luck. You have learned to be aware of the impact caused by skill and that resulting from good fortune.
• You have reached this level because you have learned to bounce back from setback.

With practice and improvement, you have made it to Level 5, Unconcious Competence!

Much of what you do now is unconscious – habits and routines form the bulk of your trading actions. You know when you need to apply analysis, you know when you need to stop trading and when you need to press your advantage. Consistent profitability still takes work, but that work takes less of a conscious effort.

So what is Level 6?

It’s a level of Conscious Unconscious Competence. It’s the level where you can explain to others (and to yourself) the unconscious habits and routines, the behaviours and mental models that form the basis for your success. It’s the level that many, for example, Ray Dalio, Pete Steidlmayer, look to share their knowledge.

These are the six steps to becoming a successful trader. Where are you on the ladder?

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