Have you ever felt the weight of the calendar pressing down on you, realizing that half the year has slipped by and your trading goals still seem out of reach?
It’s a familiar struggle for many traders, especially as the mid-year milestone approaches. But what causes this sense of urgency and frustration? How does the pressure to meet your goals impact your trading performance and mindset? In this episode, we’ll explore how to navigate these challenges to regain focus and confidence.
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About Agnieszka Wood
Founder and CEO of Ahead Coach, Trading Mindset Coach
Agnieszka Wood, is a passionate and accomplished day trader with over a decade of hands-on experience in the financial markets. Coming originally from Poland but having spent most of her life abroad, notably in the Netherlands and the United States, Agnieszka brings a diverse perspective to her work. Her journey is marked by conquering challenges, a deep passion for self-development, a commitment to unlocking her full potential, and a relentless pursuit of excellence.
Since 2019, Agnieszka has taken on the role of Founder and CEO of Ahead Coach, a coaching platform where she conducts her transformative work as a Trading Mindset Coach. Through Ahead Coach, she offers coaching programs for traders that draw on her extensive 20+ year background in Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP), life coaching and her own experience in trading. Her holistic approach is designed to empower individuals not only in their trading endeavors but also in all aspects of life.
Agnieszka's influence extends beyond her coaching practice. She is a respected speaker at various trading events, where she shares her insights and knowledge with fellow traders and enthusiasts. In the trading education industry, she is known for her expertise in mindset coaching, helping traders overcome psychological barriers and build consistency.
Passionate about guiding individuals towards tangible results, Agnieszka thrives on taking on new initiatives and projects that promote personal growth. Her multifaceted expertise, unwavering dedication, and holistic approach make her a trusted coach for those seeking transformation and success.
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✉ Contact me: launchyourlife@aheadcoach.com
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▶️ My website: https://www.aheadcoach.com/
▶️ Twitter: https://twitter.com/Ahead_Coach
▶️ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/agnieszkawoodpage/
Have you ever felt the weight of the calendar pressing down on you, realizing that half the year has slipped by and your trading goals still seem out of reach? It's a familiar struggle for many traders, especially as the mid-year milestone approaches. But what causes this sense of urgency and frustration? How does the pressure to meet your goals impact your trading performance and mindset? In this episode, we'll explore how to navigate these challenges to regain focus and confidence. You are listening to The Confidence in Trading Podcast. I am your host Agnesha Wood, a trading mindset coach and a season day trader with over a decade of experience. If you are new to my show, don't forget to subscribe so you can come back for the next episode. In this podcast, we explore the fascinating world of psychology and the human element of trading. We take a deep dive into different perspectives to inspire you and help you navigate the emotional ups and downs of trading with self-compassion and confidence. Whether you're just starting out or you're a seasoned pro, this podcast is your trusted companion, providing support on your trading journey. Get ready to boost your confidence and unlock the secrets to mastering your mindset for success. Welcome to episode #36. Avoid the mid-year trading trap. Today, we are diving into a topic that many of you are probably grappling with right now. Mid-year trading stats reviews. It's the time of the year when numbers are crunched and performance summaries are in and pressure and anxiety starts to creep off. So we are here to eliminate that pressure today and find out how to build motivation and not feel overwhelmed by not meeting goals in this mid-year time. So let's go into it and start by understanding why. Why do you feel the pressure and why is this pressure overwhelming and not motivating? Most of us said very ambitious, only performance-related goals at the beginning of the year. And when the mid-year reality hits us and our plans fall short, the fear of underperformance and guilt is simply immense. And to make it even worse, if this is not your first time doing so, you might eventually face burnout phase. This is what psychology calls self-imposed pressure. High achievers in particular, which many traders are, are prone to this stress due to strong motivation to excel and a relentless drive for success. So now you might already understand why I call mid-year review a trading trap. And if you don't want to fall into it and face burnout, let me introduce you to seven rules that will help you minimize the pressure. The rule number one, the pitfalls of short-term performance perspective. There to think long-term. First and foremost, you have to acknowledge and accept that trading is a marathon, not a sprint. And I know that a lot of you are very impatient, so you want to get there as soon as possible to this end-success place that you have been dreaming about for months, sometimes many, many years. But it's essential to focus on long-term results rather than getting caught up in mid-year performance metrics. So be honest now, did you ever make a rush decision because you are stressed about hitting a short-term goal? And if yes, then it probably didn't go as well as you have hoped, right? It's a very common situation in trading, during trading sessions, where the pressure to perform and deliver immediate results clouds judgment and drives you to take unnecessary risks and the constant pressure to meet your goals leads to stress, sleepless nights, anxiety, and feeling of being constantly on edge. And over time, this accumulates, and this is where many traders are just getting burned out. And even after so many years of hard work, start to think about quitting. It's happening because burnout, and that's not only in trading, affects trading performance, but can also spill over into other areas of your life, your relationships, families, health, mental motivation. I've been there myself and trust me, it's not a fun place to be. What may surprise you is that only a small percentage of day traders are actually profitable. Fixating on short-term goals and daily fluctuations of the market makes traders often miss the real move and they can get badly hurt by thousands of paper cuts. Just think about it. Most traders, when they get into trading, they start day trading. But if you would compare it to, let's say, driving a car, day trading is like going on the racetrack, right from the start. So imagine you just pass your exam and you have your driver's license in your hand and the first thing you do, you go and start driving Formula One car. Many traders think that swing trading is not as sexy as day trading, but it is a little slower. It gives you a little bit more opportunity to actually get your bearings and to start getting yourself more established as a trader, getting more confidence in your strategy. You just have a little bit more time and you don't have to react as fast and that, of course, has impact on your results. But when you're day trading, you are constantly exposed to all the triggers and when you're new, a lot of those triggers just comment you out of nowhere and take you by surprise. So it just caused you to trade emotionally. And I'm sure many of you already know what I mean exactly. Decisions are simply driven by fear or greed rather than rational analysis. And it's very logical when you're sitting there and you're being triggered by everything that's happening on your screen. And on top of all that, it's not so easy then to learn from your past mistakes because you're simply focused on your immediate performance. And because it goes really fast, you have no time or inclination to analyze what went wrong and why. So you are simply unable to improve. And this lack of reflection and proper perspective means that you will most likely keep repeating your mistakes and perpetuate the cycle of poor decision-making and the vicious cycle of losing. The rule number two, consistency and persistence payoff. What I understood over the years of trading is that the consistency is a very broad term. To put it simply, it's about showing up every day, consistently sticking to plan, learning from your experiences and steadily improving. Now one becomes a champion overnight in any profession. If you want to get better, you just have to train regularly. Build your new skills continuously and learn from each of your performances. Trading is not any different. I would even say that in trading, consistency should be actually the first thing you learn when you want to start trading. It might surprise you, but consistency in fact is a skill that you have to learn. Even though most traders think it will just come automatically at some point of their journey if they only trade long enough. It's just going to happen to them. But in order to show consistent behavior in trading or otherwise, you need to develop consistency in your mind. You have to be able to consistently say no to emotional triggers and yes to your rules. Say no to the thoughts which are causing you to feel fearful or greedy and lead you to self-subotaging behavior and continuously say yes to act in your best interest. Just think about how many times have you talked yourself into entering a trade when it was too late. And if you are doing this over and over again, you are in fact consistent, just not with the right behaviors. Persistence on the other hand is about maintaining your effort in the face of challenges and setbacks. And what many people forget is that every trader successful or not faces losses and setbacks. What sets the first group apart is their ability to learn from their mistakes, their willingness to adapt and moving forward without dragging the emotional load from the past mistakes with them. Losses are simply part of trading and the way you perceive them is your personal choice. You can be very persistent, dwelling on your losses forever and keep yourself stuck in the same place or you can learn from them, let it go and persist to move forward. Rule number three, focus on the process, not the result. Many traders hear the advice to focus on the process rather than the results over and over again. But feel truly understand what it means or how to implement it. It's a concept that's often mentioned but rarely practiced effectively. By shifting your attention from the outcome to the steps you take, you can significantly improve your trading performance. Just to give you an example of focusing on the process and not the result, just think about it like this. Imagine you are building a custom car and you have to choose all the parts like every little bolt and every color and the material, but if you focus solely on how it looks at the end, you might miss out on crucial steps in the build. But if you follow the build plan meticulously, the car will turn out great and you might be able to actually drive it. So what does your build plan look like in trading? The rule number four, always take into consideration the overall progress you've made. It's essential to take a step back from time to time and reflect on your overall progress. Not just look at the mid-year performance and beat yourself up that you are not yet at the end target. Try to think about it in a way as if you would be updating your spouse or maybe a close friend that is supporting you in your trading. Just imagine you talk to them and you tell them about your overall progress. Reflecting on your trading that way will help you see the bigger picture and actually recognize your own growth over time. Your trading career is a journey with various checkpoints. While reaching a checkpoint is important, the ultimate goal is to keep going forward. There is no finish line, even though it seems like there is one like this ultimate goal is success. Truly that is in the end point. Trading success is actually a never-ending process. Every day is a success because every day you make the right decisions, every day you protect your capital and you can come back the next day to trade, you've had a successful day. And I'm not saying money isn't a goal, but money should never be the reason for your efforts. Money will come as a result of your efforts. Rule number five, every step forward is progress. Even if you feel like you're moving at a snail space, you are still moving forward. What's the rush? Why are you in such a hurry? If there is anything that puts pressure on you to reach your goal faster in trading, you have to realize that putting the pressure on yourself is actually slowing you down. So look at the conditions that you have created for yourself and what is putting you under the pressure and makes you trying to rush because you might be able to make some adjustments to your process, to the conditions around your trading to actually support you better and take some of the pressure away. And don't forget to celebrate small victories, whether it's a successful trade or each lesson learned from a loss or each improvement in your strategy because all of that contribute to your overall growth. And acknowledging the effort that you have invested will help you reinforce your positive behaviors and also remain highly motivated. So consider creating a list of your achievements, no matter how small they may seem to you. And do not focus solely on performance-oriented goals, things like keeping a healthy routine, maintaining discipline in challenging market conditions, or even taking a break from trading when you feel you might not be able to make sound decisions. All of that is real mental hard work that you are doing to move forward and be closer to achieving your dream. Remember that the biggest part of the work isn't the doing, it's the mental type of work. So even though it might feel like you are doing nothing, you are actually doing a lot. Sometimes that mental work costs more effort than doing something physical in your garden or washing a car or renovating your kitchen. That list of achievements can boost your confidence and remind you of your trading capabilities, it's priceless. The rule number six, your goals should guide you, not bind you. I am a very ambitious person myself, so I totally understand the urge to have ambitious targets. But the target shouldn't become a source of stress, because the stress, if not managed property, can lead you to poor trading results and health problems. And you cannot perform well if you have health problems, and both life and the market are unpredictable. So to thrive as a trader, you must be flexible enough to quickly adjust to new circumstances. When you are all stressed, you lose that agility. So remember, if you missed your goal, if you are not yet there where you want it to be, this is not the end of the world. Just adjust, re-strategize, and keep moving forward. Your goals should provide you a sense of direction. And if you remain adaptable and open to change, you will get to them quicker than you think. Just imagine you are on a road trip with a destination in mind. And while the destination provides you direction, you may need to take a detour, make some adjustments, and maybe even deal with some unexpected challenges along the way. Could be a weather or traffic jam, and you might have to even stop for a few days in the middle of the trip. Things happen, and you don't have control over everything. So relax a bit, and let this pressure go. Let your goals guide you, but not bind you. Changing perspective makes all the difference here. So I invite you to take a moment now and try to think about what steps you can take today to focus more on your long-term goals. Is it maybe refining a strategy? Maybe it's taking a break to clear your mind. Whatever it is, prioritize it. You will benefit from it. And today I want to leave you with some questions to ponder, because changing the perspective makes all the difference here. Trust me. So take a moment now and try to think about how can you shift your focus from short-term results to long-term growth? What can you improve in your trading process to ensure better long-term outcomes? And how could you celebrate your small wins along the way? Reflect on these questions and let them guide you till the end of your review. And if you find yourself stuck and not really making any progress, you are stuck in the tunnel vision thinking I don't even see those opportunities. I have even traveled to answer those questions. I invite you to visit my website at coach.com and sign up for free trading mindset tips. This is an email series that will guide you through the steps that I took to get myself out of being stuck and break the failing cycle. And there are already hundreds of traders using those steps and they are improving the results daily. So don't wait. Go to my website ahead coach.com or click on the link in the description. That's all for today's episode. Remember to keep your eyes on the long-term price and don't fall into the trap. You've got this. Thank you so much for listening to The Confidence in Trading Podcast. If you are enjoying my show, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts and tell me what you like about it. Thanks to you, more traders will be able to find me and together we will make a bigger impact. So thank you for your support. And if you are new to my show, don't forget to subscribe so you can come back for the next episode and make sure to check out some of the foodiest shows too. Thank you again for tuning in. This is Agnyska Wood from my head coach. Bye for now.
