[TheNegotiator]

Okay, so you've done your research and you have your plan. You have rehearsed it over and over again maybe. But how much emphasis do you put on the moments before/during/after executing an order? How do you get a feel for the setup? Each and every trade is unique and so experience is vital to knowing the signs of whether a trade is going to work or not. As much as you plan your strategies and money management out, the really successful guys just tend to 'connect' more when they trade. I guess I would use the clichéd analogy we often like to use in trading of professional sports. Specifically, sports which have 'plays' or 'set pieces' or have batters or the like. I guess it would be good to use particularly a baseball analogy. The batter (or whatever you guys might like to call him!) steps up. I'd say virtually all MLB players know what it should be like to hit the ball sweetly and they train hard etc.. But what sets aside those who know what it should be like and what they should do, from those who are great at actually doing it consistently? A while ago there was this video on a guy named Evan Longoria I think. I don't have the link but google it and watch it. I think the key is that these guys like great traders, have done their research and preparation. But when they have the decision to make or a swing at the ball, they enter this kind of uber aware and focussed state. Nothing magical. Just really, really focussed. I know this won't apply to many traders because of how they trade. But discretionary traders should take note.

Do you enter a specific higher state when you enter a trade? How do you get a feel for the way the market is behaving when your setup occurs?

I don't know exactly what puts me in this focussed state leading up to and during a trade and for me it's something that I hope I am constantly evolving. But I know when the market is fulfilling various stages of my scenarios leading up to the part where I actually place a trade, I become more and more focussed. I will watch the TICK, the DX, T&S and the general speed and aggression and flow of the market. This helps me to decide whether to fold a hand which my research tells me is good.

What do you guys think?

[TheNegotiator]

I think this was the video:-

Mental Preparation in Baseball and Trading