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The Key to Trading HappinessBy Jeff ClarkTuesday, September 2, 2008 Greed will make you miserable.
As a young trader, I was miserable all of the time. I was miserable when I lost money, miserable if I missed out on a trade, and miserable when I sold at a profit while the trade kept moving higher.
And it was making my young bride miserable, too. So one evening, she called me on it. Here's what I told her...
"I'm frustrated... I held this position for three weeks. It finally started moving today and I sold it for a double. But if I had just held on for another hour, it would have been a triple."
She gave me that look that every married man has seen at least a few times after he's said something stupid. "You mean you're mad because you made 100%?"
"Yes, I'm mad," I replied. "It could have been 200%."
She reminded me how mad I was a few days earlier when I took a loss on a trade. "Today you're angry because you only made 100%," she said. "It seems to me you're going to be upset a lot in this line of work."
She was right. It would have felt better if she just hit me on the head with a rolling pin.
I was going for perfection. I wanted to buy at the absolute lowest price and sell at the absolute highest price.
No one does that. And if you get upset when a trade falls after you get in, or jumps after you get out, then you're going to be upset a lot. In fact, you're likely to get an ulcer, lose all your hair, become an alcoholic, ruin your relationships, and fall into Dante's ninth level of hell.
Where's the fun in that?
So after our conversation, I set my targets and traded accordingly. I took profits consistently and never looked back. Once I was out of a trade, it was over.
And I've been a happier man ever since.
I'm sharing this story because I recently received an e-mail from a Short Report subscriber. We're having a great year, so it didn't surprise me when she wrote, "I'm up 23% since joining your service at the end of May."
Now 23% in three months is an exceptional return. But this subscriber was upset. By her calculations, if she had purchased every recommendation at the low and sold every recommendation at the high, she would be up 400%.
Nobody does that.
If you're seeing solid returns like my Short Report subscriber, you're on the right track. You shouldn't be miserable.
If you are, then maybe you need a smack with the rolling pin.
Best regards and good trading,
Jeff Clark
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