Does anyone have any words of wisdom on how to stay in line with my rules no matter what? or is that the million dollar question?
I am not sure if that question is answerable in a manner that can be fully appreciated by someone who is only trading 8 months.
I will give my 2 drachmas worth however!
"your rules" is the first conundrum. From your initial post I understand that these rules are not your rules but rules imposed upon you by someone else. In essence you are asking yourself to blindly follow a path laid by someone else to trader nirvana. Your faith in someone else path can never be whole. This is a psychological impossibility.
The rules are those laid down by someone else. If it worked they would not be selling it. I would not sell my main systems for all there is. Systems derived by yourselves become an extension of yourself. Someone else's system is an extension of themselves and you are transferring your faith in them onto your expectations.
Your expectations after 8 months may be some of the following:
expect to make money, to get what I deserve, to get paid for my effort, to get paid for my education, to prove to my mum, wife, girl, boy, son, daughter, dad, workmates that my life is valid and I can succeed, to get back at the same for doubting you, annoying you, hurting you, disbelieving you, laughing at you on that one occasion in the pub when you were 17. The list goes on......To provide a better life for your children, to....
Get rid of every expectation you have ever had, expectations are external in that they revolve around the lives of others. I do not mean that you need to be selfish, just removed from expectation.
I am not sure if you are trading one market or more. I trade across the board, softs, hards, metals, futures, stocks, futures. To me diversification was a turning point.
I have a system in YM futures. It goes like this: It is mine, I developed it. The rules are mine. Because they are mine I follow them. I believe in the system as I have developed it. I believe in myself. The rule are static yet I have 17 versions of the same system that have different rules yet show tradeable results. Only the drawdown differs slightly. I have backtested 12 years. If I break the rules of one system those incorrect entries transfer onto the next system and so on. The rules cannot be broken as they are fluid.
I have no expectations. I am not angry with my parents, my childhood. I have nothing to prove. I require no revenge.
I took years to get to this stage.
Someone mentioned EFT. This is good. Trading in the zone is excellent.
I spent 4 years losing money. All the while I said to myself that this was my "course fee" for becoming a profitable trader. Rubbish! stop this. My fee ran for at least 18 months more than they should. I conned myself out of money. Expect to pay a "course fee" expect to become an expert. Certificates are not available. Save your money- spend time on yourself, your expectations, your own system (or backtest someone elses - to death)
If I lie in a field on a rainy night I expect to get wet. Does that matter? only if I think I will look stupid, or others are whispering in the background, or or my girl will be angry, people will question my sanity, I will get flu and miss work for a few days, my nice shirt will be stained, I might be robbed.....etc. Get a life!
If you enjoy the rain on your face and the smell of grass around you and the sounds of the night just sleep in the field.
What others say is consensus,the rain is the market, the ground is your capital (as are your clothes), the sounds of the night your trade signals but the feeling inside will be the trader.
I am sorry if this seems esoteric but tonight I can describe it no better.
