As you think about new years resolutions (NYR) and trading, you will benefit from thinking about what I refer to as the inner market.

 

It’s time to accept the idea that you are in fact trading an inner market just as much, if not more so, than the market you see on your screen.

 

The dynamics within your inner market are behind the hesitation, the impulse trades, the doubling down on losers, the early exits to grab a small profit, and so on.

 

If you agree that the inner market is a big influence on your P&L, then it is logical to say that the inner market is worthy of analysis. In other words, self-improvement for a trader often begins with self-reflection. (The caveat here is that you also have an edge in your trading method).

 

For example, one of my coaching clients, I’ll call him Jason, recently had a major breakthrough in his trading. The breakthrough came after a key insight about his own inner market.

 

Early in the coaching, Jason learned how his need for perfectionism is behind his trading problems, and as is often the case, the problems continued anyways. Diagnosing the problem was not enough.

 

The big breakthrough for Jason occurred when he was able to analyze the context of his anxiety, frustration, and fear in real-time as it was happening. When Jason was able to understand the context of his feelings, he recognized that the trade he was facing was simply a trigger of something deeper, his own inner market.

 

In Jason’s inner market, anything less than perfect was tantamount to complete failure.

 

For Jason, understanding that the roots of his perfectionism, and the anxiety that accompanies it may be triggered by the trade but actually goes well beyond the trade, allowed him to reach a new level of self-awareness and self-management that was previously elusive.

 

The result is that Jason is not only able to recognize and understand his emotions and subconscious motivations driving his need for perfection, the strategy of self-analysis that he learned in the coaching has allowed him to see that when he experiences intense anxiety or fear, he has options.

 

Jason’s big breakthrough is that he realizes that even in the heat of the moment he has a choice. He could fall back to his default pattern of behavior, or he could try something different. And for Jason, being aware of the real drivers behind his need for perfection is giving him the psychological space or breathing room to pause and consider what’s really in his best interest as a trader.

 

If you are thinking about making a NYR, consider resolving to understand your own inner market.

 

My self-paced Advanced Course gives you key concepts and a plethora of techniques and exercises that will expand self-awareness and improve self-management. One-on-one coaching is available for traders who are very serious about improving and desire guidance in this process; contact Andrew to discuss if coaching is right for you.