Steven Goldstein

@AlphaMind101
·
11 Jan
They are thus less likely to be owned by the market and the situations, they find themselves in, and are
more likely to be owning their own journey. That provides a powerful edge which means they can pull
the plug quicker on ideas that aren’t working, and can commit to 16/32
Steven Goldstein
@AlphaMind101
·
11 Jan
increasing their commitments to things that are working. These people aren’t perfect, far from it. They
don’t know any more than anyone else, or have superior news, information, or insight. They get all the
same data as everyone else. But they do not feel they have to 17/32
Steven Goldstein
@AlphaMind101
·
11 Jan
take a trade because someone else is taking it, or that they need to adjust their position because
someone else has an opposing view. They are comfortable in their process, and above all comfortable
in their own skin. If they are wrong, are quite happy to own that. 18/32
Steven Goldstein
@AlphaMind101
·
11 Jan
And when things go wrong, they do not engage in beating themselves up (if they occasionally do, they
let go, and forgive themselves quickly). They accept responsibility when it is their error because they
can live with themselves, they can accept that sometimes they let 19/32
Steven Goldstein
@AlphaMind101
·
11 Jan
themselves down. And though these moments may be painful, they do not sweep them under the carpet,
they reflect on them, learn from them, and rebound quickly. They are masters of one of the great ‘soft
powers’ self-compassion (they know no one else will do it for them) 20/32
Steven Goldstein
@AlphaMind101
·
11 Jan
These people develop this relationship with themselves because it is the only option. If you are going to
win in this difficult job, you need to be your own best ally, not your own worst enemy.
They literally have their own backs. They respect themselves and value 21/32
Steven Goldstein
@AlphaMind101
·
11 Jan
themselves, not so highly that are arrogant. And they though they practice humility, they do not do it so
much that they do not know their own self-worth. They do have egos, after all, they like coming out on
top. But they work with their ego to drive them on, and they try 22/32
Steven Goldstein
@AlphaMind101
·
11 Jan
(with emphasis on try) to not to let it corrupt their process. On all these points, these traders are not
perfect, far from it, just much better than most others.
Their strong relationships with themselves did not happen by accident. It was a deliberate effort 23/32
Steven Goldstein
@AlphaMind101
·
11 Jan
by them. And they sometimes falter, helped by the market, but when they do, they act quickly to re-
connect with themselves. This development of a strong self-relationship sounds easy in principle, but
its far harder in practice. 24/32
Steven Goldstein
@AlphaMind101
·
11 Jan
Of course, a trader still needs a viable method and process (outer game), no amount of high-quality
self-relationship (inner game) will overcome a flawed outer game. But once they found that, they then
worked to develop themselves at the inner game level. 25/32
Steven Goldstein
@AlphaMind101
·
11 Jan
The development of a strong inner game is far harder than the development of the outer game. You’re
fighting a lifetime of behaviours, tendencies and coping mechanisms, that you’ve evolved, which may
have been suitable to get you were you are, but which may 26/32
Steven Goldstein
@AlphaMind101
·
11 Jan
not be right for the extreme conditions and radical uncertainty of financial markets. It requires deep and
hard transformational work, sacrifice, and being willing to be vulnerable, sometimes going against the
grain to develop a new relationship. That is the challenge. 27/32
Steven Goldstein
@AlphaMind101
·
11 Jan
Every single one of those traders chose to work with a coach. That is an example of making themself
vulnerable and going against the grain. They were willing to ask for help, to expose themselves to
scrutiny and to look in the mirror and heed what came back. 28/32
Steven Goldstein
@AlphaMind101
·
11 Jan
It wasn’t the coaching that made them great; they were already on that path. But the coaching helped
them along the way, provided support, reassurance, smoothed out the rough edges, helped them
overcome speed-bumps, challenged them, and helped propel them further, faster. 29/32
Steven Goldstein
@AlphaMind101
·
11 Jan
You won’t read anywhere on how ‘Developing your relationship with yourself’ is what it takes to
succeed in trading, and yet this is where the game is ultimately won. The battle is a mental battle,
within you, not out there, that makes it possible to win out there. 30/32