38 steps

[Bobh <bheisler@xxxxxxxxxx>]

I am sure that some on the List have already seen this, but I am also sure
that some will find it interesting.

38 steps to successful trading...

1. We accumulate information: buying books, going to seminars, researching,
etc
2. We begin to trade with our "new" knowledge.
3. We consistently "donate" and then realize that we may need more knowledge
or information.
4. We accumulate more information
5. We switch the commodities that we are following.
6. We go back into the market and trade with our "updated" knowledge.
7. We get "beat up" again and begin to lose some of our confidence.  Fear
starts setting in.
8. We start to listen to "outside news" and other traders.
9. We go back into the market and continue to donate.
10. We switch commodities again.
11. We search for more information.
12 We go back into the market and start to see a little progress.
13. We get "overconfident", and the market humbles us.
14. We start to understand that trading successfully is going to take more
time and more knowledge than we anticipated.
15. we get serious a 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, this time with rules, and find some success, but
overall we still hesitate when it comes time to execute.
20. We add, subtract, and modify our rules, as we see the need to be more
proficient with them.
21. We feel we are very close to crossing the threshold to successful
trading.
22. We start to take responsibility for our trading results, as we
understand that our success is in us, not in the methodology.
23. We continue to trade and become more proficient with our methodology and
our rules.
24. As we trade, we still have a tendency to violate our rules, and our
results are still erratic.
25. We know that we are close.
26. We go back and research our rules.
27. We build confidence in our rules and go back into the market and trade.
28. Our trading results are getting better, but we are still hesitating in
executing our rules.
29. We begin to see the importance of following our rules flawlessly, as we
see the results of our trades when we don't follow them.
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 trading rules.
33. We begin to consistently make money.
34. We get a little overconfident and the market humbles us
35. We continue to learn our lessons
36. We stop thinking and allow our rules to trade for us and our trading
account continues to grow as we increase our contract size.
37. We are making more money than we ever dreamed possible.
38. We go on with our lives and accomplish many of the goals we had always
dreamed of.