Guilt Is Worse Than Jail
"The greatest portion of peace of mind is doing nothing wrong. Those who lack self-control live disoriented and disturbed lives."
— Seneca, Moral Letters
Today's meditation is really tough to try and compare to trading, but it certainly got me thinking!
The only comparison to trading could be the fact that as traders we also want peace of mind that comes with "doing right."
One of the worst things that can happen to you as a trader, is making a mistake or breaking your rules and getting away with it! Why? You may ask; because if you get away with breaking your rules, you will do it again and maybe take even more risk than the last time that you got away with it! Eventually of course you will be hit with a big red and do some serious damage to your bank!
If we stick to the rules/criteria for our strategies, we are "doing right" and we will become more consistent. Also we are developing patience and discipline, which gives us that peace of mind that comes with "doing right."
If we can avoid breaking our rules, we are also avoiding the guilt that will attach itself, when this happens.
Therefore, if we stick 100% to what works every time that we trade, with patience and discipline, we will be profitable long term; as long as we can we fully manage every trade to completion.