TAKE A STAND

Stand up for what you believe in, says Louise Bedford.

FIGURE 1: WEEKLY CHART W TAKE ASTAND

e’re already one quarter of the way through 2012. What have you stood for and against so far this year? Have you decided what you’ll tolerate and what you’ll fight against? Because if you do not stand for something, you’ll never be an achiever. Here is what I believe.

Most people think they’re busy, but they’re not This is the age of overload. We end up overwhelmed, hooked up intravenously to emails, mobile phones and Facebook, pressing send/ receive like some demented rat awaiting a pellet, convinced that our lives will dissolve if we step away from our desks. If you really analyse how you spend your time, you might be surprised at how little ‘peak productivity’ you achieve throughout your day. Unplug. Get some time to yourself. Solitude without interruptions is precious.

Everyone needs some down time I’m a big believer in positive thinking, but I understand that people can’t be up all the time. Believing you can is plain self-delusion. We all have days when we shelter under the doona and wait for the storm to pass. Give yourself permission to recover when life throws something unpleasant at you. However, if you’re still under your doona after a few weeks, you’ve got a problem. If you need professional help, seek it.

You can be a trader It’s clear that I believe in some members of our Mentor Program more than they believe in themselves. I can see the seeds of greatness that are shiningly apparent. If you don’t believe in yourself, run on my belief

My best ideas come to me on a Tuesday morning, when I sit basking in buttery dappled light in my serviced office (where I escape from my kids and husband for one day a week). As the dawn breaks, my ideas flow. Find yourself a quiet place – your feelings of being overwhelmed will melt away.

People need to pay their own way and take responsibility Welfare is for the aged and for mentally or physically disabled folks. It might also be a short-term fix for other people, but if they rely on welfare for the medium or long term, they need to wake them. Welfare is not for ablebodied, able-minded people who are held back only by their own level of incompetence, laziness or lack of inspiration.

One of my acquaintances from school still lives with her parents for Pete’s sake! What is that all about? She still doesn’t even have her driver’s licence – so her 72-year-old Mum dutifully picks her up after late-night parties! I’m not sure who the biggest imbecile is – her, or her parents for tolerating this situation. The jury’s out.

Anybody who has a poor work ethic should be ashamed of themselves. Working to earn your keep and being independent is the only honourable way to live. If you choose to make your life all about artistic pursuits, having 15 children, or living off the land, that’s fine, as long as you can afford to do that without sticking your hand into my pocket to fund your habit. If you pay your own way, you get to do as you please. If I have to pay your way, you do as I please. He or she who owns the gold makes the rules.

Don’t blame those around you for your situation. You are in life exactly where you decided to be. Don’t like it? Change it.

that everyone can be a trader. There are people making money in the markets right now who are dumber, less good looking, and with fewer brain cells than you. If you could see the future that I can envisage for you, you’d do everything you could, right now, to make it a reality.

You have control over your future. Reach out and grab it Here’s a little trick I learned from a top bloke called John Carlton. Write yourself a letter, dated one year from now. Write out all the goals that you met in 2012. This is called ‘future pacing’. Zig Ziglar fans call it ‘the truth in advance’. Make your goals mega-ambitious. Big is good.

In years gone by, I‘d repeatedly kick myself for not reaching a goal. Now, I write down massive goals and I don’t expect to reach even half of them. I‘m happy with that. Because my goals make me look like Wonder Woman, or one of those sexy characters who have it all in a Sidney Sheldon novel, I know that if I achieve even half of what I write down, I‘ll be doing well. Reality can come later. Begin by letting your passions

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bubble to the surface. Stop squashing your dreams. Let your heart and your imagination have their way. Doing this forces you to look into the future. Terrifying, yes – but also liberating. It puts you in touch with what you really value and who you are. It provides you with a graphic display of what you stand for. Do it right now.

Put the letter to yourself in your undies drawer and set a Google calendar alert to remind you to read it this time next year. You’ll be surprised how much you can achieve when you take the time to write down what really makes you sizzle with excitement.

masses who are not achieving trading greatness.

Very few members of my Trading Game Mentor Program are currently trading medium-term equities because their systems are telling them that, at present, conditions are not in favour of the trader. When conditions are in favour of the trader i.e. the market is trending and has low to normal volatility, they will trade medium-term equities again. There is no shame in this. It’s the mark of a professional to know when to engage, and when to have a break.

Although these traders are not trading equities, that does not mean

The best traders are brave, but they know that trading a volatile, choppy market is like a knife fight in a phone booth. Heavy casualties are to be expected. The year 2012 is already shaping up to be interesting for investors and traders.

The markets will tell you everything you need to know about everything When you look at a chart, you see the prevailing psychology in the market. You don’t need to watch the news, read the newspaper, or consult your stars. The chart will tell you everything you need to know. This is your short cut. Look at the following chart (figure 1). I’ve purposely deleted the name of the chart so you won’t feel any bias.

See anything of interest? Is it tradeable according to your trading plan? If it isn’t currently tradeable, what would it take for you to jump into a position? If you’ve been following the Australian All-Ords, you will have recognised its tell-tale churning pattern in figure 1. I’m a trend trader, and I prefer a medium-term view –this type of market certainly tries one’s patience. I get crabby, I get impatient and I battle with discipline. However, I stick to my trading plan.

During the month, I was attacked in an email after I’d written on my forum that my main medium-term trading system hasn’t traded for 39 weeks. I was accused of not being a real trader because most of my money is in cash. Hmmm…

Part of being a successful trader is knowing when to trade and when not to trade. The aim is to trade only when conditions are completely conducive to trading a given system. I make no apology for that. I will stand up for that belief and fight for it. We have to stand up for our beliefs because it’s only through them that we set ourselves apart from the they are not trading at all. Many have moved into FX (the largest market in the world) and commodities (the most diverse market in the world). It is sensible to pick and choose your trading scenarios. The best traders are brave, but they know that trading a volatile, choppy market is like a knife fight in a phone booth. Heavy casualties are to be expected.

The year 2012 is already shaping up to be interesting for investors and traders. With the ups and some downs in the markets, some traders are currently as happy as fat rats in a cheese factory. Others have already stumbled, head butted a wall and given up. In my first three years of trading, while I was trying to crack the code, I never realised how I would be succeeding in just a few more years down the track. I shudder to think where I would be if I had given up this exciting trading game.

If you’re still waiting for the profits to come pouring in, they might be closer than you think. Devote yourself to your education, read each issue of YTE, and be determined to make your mark in the trading world. Remember the importance of persistence. Refuse to give up, smash your rear-view mirrors and forgive yourself for your past mistakes.

Louise Bedford (www.tradinggame.com.au) is the author of four best-selling sharemarket books – ‘Trading Secrets’, ‘Charting Secrets’, ‘The Secret of Candlestick Charting’ and ‘The Secret of Writing Options’. Register now on her website to receive her free fivepart e-course.

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