Traders Mastermind

You’ve seen the guy on the golf course, new top-spec clubs, fully kitted out, gets on the first tee… shanks it! Trading is similar. But in trading, the ‘gear’ is knowledge. Too many traders know much about the markets but fail to apply it… Overcomplicating, overthinking and trying to outsmart the market each day. Trading is not the arena to be smart. Simple, consistent execution is the key. In thi...

We’ve all been there, your equity curve looks amazing, you feel pretty pleased with yourself, trading has been going well. But all of a sudden things take a turn for the worse. You start to drawdown heavily and you wonder what happened. You’d give anything to get yourself back to equity highs. To get that feel good factor back. But watch out for the trap! That’s the fork in the road that catches m...

Stress is good. Yep I said it, a certain level of stress is good, it keeps you alert and moving forward. It stops you being complacent. But too much can affect trading performance, badly. And no one wants that! In this episode I explore what you can do to manage stress as a trader to keep you performing at your best all year round.

Let’s face it, we’ve all had those moments where we’ve wanted to throw in the towel and start over. And that’s okay! In this episode, I’ll show you how to wipe the slate clean and start fresh - without having to burn down your trading station... I’ll discuss practical strategies for starting over, such as reevaluating your goals, creating a new plan, and letting go of past failures. We will also e...

Traders love technical analysis, but as soon as you start talking about macro themes everyone switches off! But, big money moves markets and big money loves macro… So it makes sense to have a basic understanding of how and why these bigger players are making decisions to trade. Right?! In this episode I ask macro expert Michael Brown, ex FX Dealer and now market analyst at TraderX to explain the f...

The episode explores how understanding the concept of the Stockdale Paradox, named after James Stockdale, a US Navy pilot who was held as a prisoner of war in North Vietnam, can help traders achieve success. The Stockdale Paradox is a combination of two attributes. An honest assessment of the current reality An unwavering belief in ultimate success. This seemingly contradictory attitude can help y...

In this episode I’m diving into some of the most common cognitive biases that can affect traders: loss aversion, confirmation bias, and familiarity bias. First, let’s discuss confirmation bias, the tendency to seek out information that confirms our existing beliefs. This can lead to a lack of objectivity and an inability to consider alternative viewpoints. I’ll discuss ways to mitigate confirmatio...

I’m a big fan of focusing on one thing at a time. Trade setup, a specific market, a strategy. The laser focus helps you achieve what you want quicker, allowing you to move on to other important things. I even talked about this from a health perspective in episode 41 when I didn’t really have a clear goal in the gym. But when I decided to focus on losing body fat first and then gaining muscle I got...

Goal setting, plans, ideas, to-dos. The end of December can become cluttered with good intentions and a big vision. But what happens when you take things away that aren’t serving you? When you clear out the clutter and make the tough decision to only focus on the things that matter? Just like in trading when you peel back the chart to pure price, things become more clear. You open up mental bandwi...

Have you ever read a non-trading related book and thought? “That has so many parallels with trading, I’m so glad I read that” Yep, me too. Often when we read something unrelated to trading, it changes the way we view ourselves and the market for the better. In this episode, I share a handful of non-trading-related books that I’ve really enjoyed and that have had a positive impact on my trading. Ma...

What are the biggest separators between winning and losing traders? In this episode I discuss what I believe are the 3 most important traits of winning traders and how to cultivate them in your own trading. Have you signed up for Trading Plan Pro yet?

Michael Katz is the CEO of online stock trading prop firm Trade The Pool. In this episode we discuss: Michael’s 15-year personal trading journey  The psychology of trading company money vs your own Discovering new edge through journalling The biggest mistakes that he sees traders make Attributes of hyper-successful traders & much more If you are looking to explore the online prop world and get...

Bridging the gap between your trading knowledge and results is often the missing piece of the puzzle. You have all the technical ability and a deep understanding of the markets but transferring that to a workable and effective strategy can be tough. In this episode, I discuss a multi-step process for discovering a trading strategy that suits your trading style and personality. A structured method...

Too often we put ourselves in almost impossible market conditions and demand we perform. How many times have you reviewed a bad trading day only to think: “WTF was I thinking even trading that?!” You got sucked into chop, tried to force trades that weren’t there and paid the price… So often we think that more discipline is the key.  Whilst that’s true to some extent, many times we are demanding a...

In this episode of the developing trader series I talk to DAX Day Trader Henry about his two year trading journey so far. We discuss a variety of topics from tactical setups to mindset and trading psychology. Including: Why becoming (uncomfortably!) specialised helped him get traction How the VWAP has become a key part of his process Ways to stay focused as a full time screen trader Framing the da...

Overthinking kills good trades. You’re about to pull the trigger and your mind just races with reasons why this trade might or might not work. Worst case scenario you talk yourself out of a great trade. Only to get frustrated seeing it going your way. Best case scenario you reluctantly pull the trigger, but are so unsure about the trade you get spooked and close the position early. Ultimately over...

This is a follow-up interview with the options athlete from Episode 60 . In this episode, we discuss: The pros and cons of his big decision to shift market focus from stocks to the ES. Setting reasonable rules Breaking the day down into chunks Adding to trades Journaling best practices Getting an edge from statistics Creating a roadmap for the day Why he expects his biggest trades to come after 10...

Having three years or more of trading experience can be a tricky place to be. You can have all the screen time, experience and technical knowledge, but that’s not yet translating into the results you want. It can be very frustrating. You feel like you should be doing better. Especially considering all the setbacks, challenges, and market beat downs you’ve recovered from… This is another fork in th...

Robert has an impressive CV, over the years he has worked at many prestigious firms including: Fixed income exotics trader at a major investment bank Research manager at the Centre for Economic Policy Research Head of fundamental strategies and subsequently head of fixed income at one of the UK’s leading hedge funds. (Where he was responsible for strategies trading $5bn of client funds) He now man...

Louise is a trading psychology expert and multi-award-winning clinical hypnotherapist with deep knowledge and passion for health, well-being and nutrition. I know traders are looking for anything that might give them a slight edge or improve performance… So in this episode Louise and I talk through a typical day for a trader, looking at ways they can optimise for peak performance in the market. We...

As a default, humans are pretty bad traders! We are hard-wired to do everything wrong in the world of trading. Holding losers Cutting winners Emotional outbursts Impulsive trading Lack of patience The list goes on… It can take a while to unlearn everything that may have served us in the world outside of the trading arena but hinders our progress when dealing with fast-paced risk-based decisions (D...

In this episode, I talk to the Options Athlete. So-called because he grew a modest five-figure account into mid-size figures within a year trading weekly options on Tesla. But as the market regime changed he gave most of it back when aggressive momentum style trades simply weren’t working. Determined that wouldn’t be the end of the story this trader has worked diligently on his strategy and mindse...

Do cold showers equal better trading discipline? I believe so... Turning that temperature control over to full cold is the ultimate discomfort. That little voice inside you is trying to convince you NOT to get uncomfortable. That's precisely the same voice that convinces you to take that impulsive trade, snatch at profits and revenge trade... Running a cold shower protocol allows you to train your...

Tom Hougaard is best described as a high stakes day trader. He started work in the city of London before transitioning to independent trader running his own book in 2009. In this episode, Tom reveals the tactics and mindset he needed to cultivate the transition from struggling to highly profitable trader. He shares what it takes to really make it in this game… Tom and I discuss a wide range of top...

Have you ever taken a trade on impulse? Of course you have! You are human, that's the way we are wired... The good news is you can rewire your mind NOT to react to impulse. Too often we see a chart, make a judgement and before we know it dive into a trade that we didn't really want. In this episode I discuss ways to control your impulsive trading and have a laugh at some of my old trading journal...