It’s exciting whenever you see stocks like the ticker symbol VFS go from $12 to $46 in just a few days…
It’s a constant reminder of how much opportunity there is in the market, even during the end of summer, which is typically viewed as a slow period.
However, getting caught up in all the hype is far too easy.
Before you know it, you’re jumping from one position to the next, chasing the elusive perfect trade.
Overtrading can be a vicious cycle… if you’re trapped in it… you know how it can drain your trading account quickly.
But if you want any chance at success in trading…you must overcome it.
Today I’m going to show you five steps on how I overcome overtrading and stay consistently profitable.
Table of Contents
Before We Get Started: Full Disclosure
I’m not one of those traders who naturally get up early in the morning, works out, eat, sleeps, and breathes trading.
I’m up late at night, often getting little to no sleep, traveling from one place to the next, balancing coaching, trading, and my charitable work.
Now, I’m not saying that to knock others who are 100% committed to trading…I’m just bringing it up so you know I’m not some super-disciplined guy.
I too, struggle with overtrading.
However, I have figured out a way to manage it and thrive.
And that’s what I’m going to share with you today.
Step One: Know Your Strengths
When you don’t know your best setups, you’re vulnerable to jumping from one trade to the next.
FOMO can beat you easily.
However, once you know what you’re good at and what makes you money, then it’s a lot easier to stay disciplined.
If you read this blog, then you know what my favorite setups are.
You won’t see me jumping into trading options one day or crypto the next.
I stay true to my strengths.
Lately, that’s been panic dip-buying heavily shorted stocks and multi-day runners.
If you know what makes you money, doesn’t looking for those opportunities exclusively make sense?
Of course, it does.
So, how do you do that?
You have to journal all your trades.
You then have to review your trades.
Find out where you are making and losing money.
Discover what setups are working in the current market and why.
If you are a complete newbie, Step 2 will apply more.
Look, I’ve been trading for 20+ years…
I still journal to this day. In fact, you can see all my trades right here.
Step Two: Study…Study…Study
If you’re a newbie just getting started, then it will take you some time to discover what your best setups are.
After all, you need to test out different strategies and setups.
One thing that can help you is by studying successful traders.
That’s one awesome thing my Trading Challenge students have an advantage with.
They learn from me and my other millionaire students like Mark Croock, Tim Lento, and Jack Kellogg.
Why is that so awesome?
Because you get exposure to so many winning strategies.
Jack Kellogg didn’t his first year didn’t make any money.
But he was encouraged because he saw others make money.
He felt that if he could tighten up a few aspects of his trading, he would earn soon enough.
When you don’t have much experience, learn from other profitable traders.
Step Three: Restrict Yourself To A Trading Limit
If you follow steps one and two, you should improve your trading discipline substantially.
However, if you still need help, you may consider putting a hard number on the trades you take each day.
For example, if you find yourself trading 5 symbols a day, and most of those trades suck…then limit yourself to 2 or 3 trades.
By setting a limit, you are focusing even more on taking quality setups.
I’m a big believer in less is more in trading.
Step Four: Schedule Breaks
If I’m in front of my computer all day, I’ll probably get sucked into overtrading.
I know this, and because of that, I will take breaks from the screen.
Once you discover your best setups, you’ll then also discover what your best times to trade are.
For most traders, that’s the first hour and the last hour of trading.
It’s okay to step away and do something else.
Trading isn’t a 9-to-5 job where you punch in and out.
If you make your money in the first 25 minutes of the day and you know you have a problem with overtrading…then what is the point of staying till the closing bell?
At the end of the day, we trade to make money.
If the opportunities aren’t there…then you step away from the screen.
Step Five: Set Trading Rules and Stick To Them
Overtrading comes from a lack of discipline– If you struggle with discipline after taking the first four steps, you should establish some trading rules.
For example, have your entry and exit points laid out before entering a trade.
You probably want to set risk management rules as well. How much capital are you willing to risk on a single trade?
All this does is force you to think and answer tough questions.
Why is that important?
Because overtrading is impulsive.
Being more strategic and intentional makes you less likely to make impulsive decisions.
Are You Ready To Level Up?
What if you could learn directly from me and my top students? Would you be up for it?
Every day my team and I put together training workshops aimed at helping people like you improve their trading.
All you have to do is sign up right here.
Just think, you could be just one click away from changing your story.
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