I have recently been reading about visualization and staying positive. I know that may seem a little crazy to some of you but let me tell you how it has helped my trading. I have been thinking about what my perfect trade looks like. In the chat room this is a common topic that comes up. There are a couple of different things that I look for such as the slope of the MACD and the Bollinger Bands leading the markets, but that's not all! You have heard us say in the chat room that the perfect trade is one that follows your plan. While this is very true there is still a little more…

Here is a story that some of you may relate to. I recently went golfing with my dad and I can tell you that it wasn’t my best day out on the good ol’ links. I only hit 3 fairways out of the 18 holes while driving from the tee box. Well if you want to count a fairway bunker then it would be 4. I still ended the day with a score of 92, so not too bad. HA HA Back to my point of the story. After starting the day off rough I went back to basics. I was once told that before you get up to take your shot stand behind the ball and visualize your shot. Take a couple of practice swings as you were actually hitting that shot and see the ball flying to where you saw it in your mind. My next tee shot I did just that. That was one of the 3 shots in the fairway. I got comfortable since I was now back on my game…so I thought. The next tee shot was one of the worse shots of the day.

After leaving naturally I thought about trading. I know…I need to seek help from a professional! I looked back at my game and how that relates with my trading. Even though over all I didn’t do too bad I thought about how this game would help my trading. When I went back to basics and visualized what I knew and what the perfect shot would look like I was more inclined to do so. Then I got comfortable thinking that my game was back on track and that I didn’t need to do that again.

How many times as traders have we gotten into simulated trading and upon doing well, jump right into live trading and the next thing you know you’ve taken a couple of bad trades? I know I have done this before and that is why it is essential to get back to basics. You have all the tools you need. You know your plan and what you should do. You also know what a good set up looks like. So why then, do we stop doing the things that we know work? It’s all about getting back to basics and visualizing your perfect trade. So how do I know it's my perfect trade?

Every day before I start my trading I take 10 to 15 minutes visualizing my trading day. I picture past, profitable trades and think up new, winning trades. I let the emotions and excitement of winning trades take over. I focus on my plan and run my rules through my mind and find that perfect trade. I soak up every positive feeling that reminds me of the reasons I love to trade. Do my trades always work out the way I visualized it 15 minutes before, not always. But when the market sets up in just the right way I know that this is my perfect trade because I have been there on my simulated account and in my mind. The mind is a powerful tool that we can use to our advantage during the trading day.

When you feel like you are wasting your time simulating all your trades and how you WISH you would have just switched to your live account just that one time, let me tell you there is hope. Trading on your simulated account not only builds your confidence and boosts your skills as a trader but builds your bank of visual trades that you know are the perfect set up. Focus on the positive trades that you have taken and remember what that looked like, how did it feel, and what did you do right. I’m not saying, never focus on those trades that you took a loss on, but for this pre-trading visualization –focus on what you want to see happen.  

One last thought before I wrap it up. Markus has told me many times that there are two things that need to be ready for you to be a profitable day trader. One, the markets need to be ready. Two, YOU need to be ready. What a great way to start the day with positive reinforcements solidifying that you know you are a great trader! You have been there on your simulated account and you have been there in your mind. The trades will follow as you stick to your plan, build up your confidence, and visualize your perfect trade. Stay positive, put in the time to know your plan, and visualize your perfect trade and it will all come together.

My steps of visualization:

1)    Sit in a quiet place with no distractions.

2)    Close your eyes and clear your mind of all thoughts. (this may take a while at the beginning but it will become easier)

3)    Run through your rules and trading plan.

4)    Picture a trade or trades that were profitable.

5)    Let the feelings come to you and accept them.

6)    Focus on how you feel and what you will do today.

7)    Run through your rules and trading plan again.

8)    Clear your mind.

9)    Enjoy a new day of trading!

This may take up to 30 minutes the first couple times you run through this. In time you will get better at clearing your mind of all the self talk and visualizing trades.