Are you one of those people that just can’t get up in the morning?
You’re constantly slapping that damn alarm clock, and it’s only when you know that if you don’t get up RIGHT NOW, you’re going to have to deal with the consequences of being late.
The thought of harsh words from your boss, and the loss of respect from your colleagues, is too painful compared to lying in a bed one moment more, so up you get.
Or perhaps you are one of those people that is rearing to go in the morning.
You go to bed fondly waiting for your friendly alarm clock to welcome you to the new day, and you bounce out of bed like a spring chicken, full of vigour and ready to make an impact.
If you are the first of these examples, you have an “away from” motivational framework. That is, you are primarily motivated by avoiding pain.
If you are the second of these examples, you have a “towards” motivational framework. That is, you are motivated by achieving goals.
You would think that the better traders are “towards motivated”, and you would be half right. It is a good trait to have a thirst for success. The more passionate you are, and the more goal orientated you are in any high performing field, the more likely you are to be successful.
But good traders also (or primarily) tend to be “away from” motivated. That is, they have a strong “away from” motivation for large losses. This makes them highly disposed to cutting their losses short, or using other risk management techniques to limit risk on a position – a very valuable skill in a trader.
Think about it.
If you are solely motivated by potential for profits, and have no aversion to risk, you are not going to be prudent when the market does not do when you think it should. Instead, you are going to take on more and more risk in going for your objective, which results in an eventual capital blowout.
So which are you? “Away from”, “towards” or a little bit of both?
About the Author
Sam Eder is a currency trader and author of the Definitive Guide to Developing a Winning Forex Trading System and the Advanced Forex Course for Smart Traders. He is a part owner of Forex Signal Provider fxrenew.com (You can get a free trial). If you like Sam’s writing you can subscribe to his newsletter for free.
The post Good Trading Requires “Away From” and “Towards” Motivation appeared first on www.forextell.com.