Trading in the Zone · Day Trading for Beginners

Trading in the Zone

I just ordered my copy and am interested to read this given that so many people seem to suggest it as a fundamental book for day traders.

I've heard various snippets of the book in different posts, including Tyler's episode 13.

The idea that there are particular traits (i.e., discipline, independence, agency in decision-making) that successful day traders tend to have certainly makes sense, as does the idea that operating from a place of fear or poorly-managed 'emotional' states would not be conducive to success. So, it also makes sense that working to attain and maintain an appropriate mindset (and some sort of emotional equilibrium) will be important to the long term viability of your career as a day trader as well as your profitability. However, as a psychiatrist (and someone who has spent nearly 30 years helping people better understand, manage and make optimal use of their emotions and also training physicians and other psychiatrists to do so), I know with certainty that most people cannot will themselves into or out of emotions simply because they know that a different state would be optimal for trading. I won't go on too long here having not read the book yet. But, I am looking forward to seeing what practical suggestions the author has for, say reducing 'fear,' and whether those seem achievable for the average person.

In my experience, most people do not know the difference between anxiety and adaptive/productive emotions (including fear, which is different from anxiety), nor are most very adept at recognizing or managing anxiety. (And this is more complicated to get into, but even those who are capable of recognizing and managing anxiety sufficiently such that it does not impact their capacity for rational thought, often do not fully appreciate what underlying emotions are driving the anxiety in the first place and, therefore, they remain subject to emotion-based decision making.)

Sorry, that was longer than I anticipated, but since psychology is such a big part of successful day trading, I'm eager to see what the leaders in the day trading field have to say about it.

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