The Importance of Visualization

Its been a little while since I posted anything, but I saw a video the other day that I thought was relevant to all traders.  As a kid growing up in the 90's who was obsessed with hoops, I obviously loved Michael Jordan.  He's the best ever, hands down; no one will ever touch him.  I had one of his videos called Michael Jordan to the Max and I watched it weekly growing up.  I stumbled across it on Youtube the other day and watched it for the first time in a while.  

At one point in the movie, Michael talks about his ability to visualize situations and embrace being in "the moment".  It's simple human nature to become anxious when we are faced with unfamiliar or pressure situations.  Jordan became a master of visualizing different scenarios before they happened based on his past experiences, allowing him to constantly adjust to the flow of the game rather than force things to happen.  This ability, which took years for him to master, truly allowed him to become the best ever.

Visualization can and should be applied to your trading.  The markets do not care which way you want the price to move, and forcing things will only result in bad trades.  Trying to imagine the different things that may happen during any trade before hand will allow you to not be caught off guard when the unexpected happens.  It will also allow you to keep your emotions in check, which many traders have trouble doing.  Visualizing trades after they happen is also a great way to prepare yourself for trades you will make in the future. 

Of course, sometimes trades won't go your way no matter how hard you prepare (just like the seven seasons of defeat Jordan faced in the beginning of his career), but by mastering your emotions and being able to adjust when your in "the moment", you will be putting yourself in a position to be successful (like Jordan getting his six rings).  That's all I have for tonight, I should be trading some FX tomorrow morning; I'll be using the chat feature on collegetradingexchange.com if you want to share ideas.