40 steps in the Traders Journey

40  steps in the trader’s journey from new trader to rich trader:

1. We accumulate information. We learn by buying books, asking questions,  going to seminars and researching what really works in trading.
2. We begin to trade with our new-found knowledge.
3. We make profits only to give it back very quickly, realizing that we may need more knowledge or information.
4. We accumulate more information.
5. We switch the stocks we are currently following and trading.
6. We go back into the market and trade with our better system; this time it will work.
7. We lose even more money and begin to lose of confidence that we can be traders. The reality of losing money sets in.
8. We start to listen to other traders and what works for them.
9. We go back into the market and continue to lose more money.
10. We completely switch our style and method.
11. We search for more information.
12. We go back into the market and start to see a little progress.
13. We get over-confident in a single trade, and take on a big position thinking it is a sure thing.
14. We start to understand that trading successfully is going to take more time and more knowledge than we ever anticipated. Most people give up at this point.
    
15. We get serious and start concentrating on learning a real methodology.
16. We trade our methodology with some success, but realize that something is missing.
17. We begin to understand the need for having rules to apply our methodology.
18. We take a sabbatical from trading to develop and research our trading rules.
19. We start trading again with our rules, and although we find some success, we still hesitate when we execute.
20. We add, subtract, and modify rules to become more proficient in our trading.
21. We feel we are close to crossing the threshold of successful trading.
22. We start to take responsibility for our trading results, as we understand that our success is in us, not the methodology.
23. We continue to trade and become more proficient with our methodology and our rules.
24. As we trade, we have a tendency to violate our rules and our results are still erratic.
25. We know we are close.
26. We go back and research our rules.
27. We build the confidence in our rules, and go back into the market to trade.
28. Our trading results are getting better, but we are still hesitating in executing our rules.
29. We now see the importance of following our rules as we see the results when we don’t do so.
30. We begin to see that our lack of success is within us, and we begin to work on knowing ourselves better.
31. We continue to trade, and the market teaches us more and more about ourselves.
32. We master our methodology and our trading rules.
33. We begin to consistently make money.
34. We get a little over-confident and the market humbles us.
35. We continue to learn from our mistakes.
36. We learn smaller positions and dial down our emotions so we can trade smaller and be more disciplined.
37. We learn that risk management is one of the biggest keys to winning as a trader.
38. We stop thinking and allow our rules to trade for us, and our trading account continues to grow as we increase our position size as our account grows.
39. We are making more money than we ever dreamed possible.
40. We go on with our lives and accomplish many of the goals we had always dreamed of.

This article is based on this Original source.