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When you are new to the stock market, you probably heard many times about the terms BULL and BEAR but what does these two really mean? Bear market is marked by investors being conservative and pessimistic resulting in a declining market or the mass selling of stock while a bull market is merely the opposite of that where investors are being aggressive and positive with stock prices rising as a result of this optimism. But I’m not here to talk about these two as you can already search it online and get thousands of results immediately. I’m here to talk about the “underdog” of the Philippine Stock Market Exchange Index (PSEi) and in this article, we present an animal that’s making rumblings in the PSEi ever since.

The stock market in the Philippines is something that I can compare to a certain animal with an edge. Imagine a hardy, diurnal, and resilient animal. Does it sound like a feisty and hostile animal? Maybe. But I’m not talking about a bull or a bear.

What I’m talking about here is the water buffalo or more locally known as the Carabao.

Now, I’m sure you might be wondering why I compared the stock market with something like that – much more to a local farming animal.

I did so because I have discovered the Carabao pattern, of course.

The holy grail that every tsupitero is looking for.

The pattern is everywhere. Load up your InvestaChart now and see!

All you need to do is to find and draw up its feet for support, body for the pattern formation, and horns for the entry and confirmation. You can see it intraday or in any timeframe you use. Afterwards, just wait for your trading account to grow fat like Jabba the Hutt in Star Wars.

Nah. Just kidding. There’s no sureball pattern here.

Seriously speaking, I compared this edge with the Carabao because of fundamentals. The intangible drive it has in pushing forward. Although I am a stock trader, I still look at the fundamentals as a critical factor that drives the stock both upwards and downwards. The fundamental analysis provides a well-rounded view of the stock market and as a trader, we should also utilize this to maximize our profit possibility. Fundamentals are necessary to understand because this is how we determine the value of an asset so that traders can take a much longer-term view of the market and they can compare it to the current market price to assess whether the stock is over or under-valued.

By doing your own honest due diligence, you know that the PSEi will deliver in the future. Much like the Carabao. Although you won’t expect the crops (your positions) that a Carabao helps plant today be ready for harvest (bagger paper gains) tomorrow, thanks to the fundamentals (hardiness, resilience, and strong muscles) that it boasts so you would know that it will eventually reward you in the future.

The beauty of the internet and technology is that it opened up a lot of access to aspiring traders in terms of knowledge sharing participation that we didn’t have in the past. At the same time, it introduced a tremendous variable in the stock market and many newbies are struggling with information overload where they can find many ways to trade profitably. Different trading styles and strategies can be accessed everywhere and it can only take you so far in your trading journey.

There are so many things to choose from – broker platforms, trading styles, set-ups, trend following, range following, breakouts, bottom picking, momentum indicators, trend indicators, volume profiles, and many others.

To assess one’s level of understanding of being drowned in information that might hit the mental and emotional saturation point of an individual, we need to ask: do any of these statements reflect where you are right now with your desire to be a successful trader?

• I don’t know where to start.
• I am so overwhelmed from all of the information available.
• I’m not sure what kind of trading strategy I’d like to follow.
• My perfectionism hits hard on me.
• The fear of failure is stopping me from moving forward.

If any of the above is applicable to you, then don’t panic.

It’s quite normal for starters and these kinds of thoughts don’t ever go away.

It’s PART of the trader’s journey.

As you make progress toward becoming a successful trader, you must learn how to be able to cut through with the noise, control your thoughts and HACK your thinking about the market to make them work for you–not against you.

Here’s a simple hack for all of you: DON’T LEARN EVERYTHING ASAP.

Just try to learn what you need to learn at this very moment.

It could help you to make the wisest possible workaround of your time and energy, narrow your search focus, and makes you understand how, where or who to get help from.

When overwhelming content comes your way, always ask yourself before you dive in, “Is this something that’s useful for me right now?”
If yes, then, by all means, learn it will all your heart.

If not, save it for later. You can always come when it is the right time.

“Essentialism is not about how to get more things done; it’s about how to get the right things done.” ~ Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown

Here’s another takeaway:

STEP BACK. Simplified.

A good time to do it? Friday nights or weekends. Why? To refresh your mind before the market restart again.

Get yourself into the rhythm where you need to be reminded of your starting standpoint, learn which one works for you, and keep it constant.

You may not know where to start right now, but the truth is, it’s an amazing advantage you have because you are actually already going to the right path by being here.

This is not an easy game.

It can be simple, but it’s never easy and it can be overwhelming most of the time, so always be patient with it.

Remember that TRADING is a window of opportunity and it is your choice if you want to be part of that open window. If it’s closed, back off. If it’s open, push it like you would during a trade or when you want to fight with a momentum.

Focus on one thing and you’ll be ahead of the curve in no time.

We all know that we have a cultural habit of measuring success in terms of status quo bias. Take the case of the well-known traders in the stock market industry now, sure, they make huge chunks of money most of the time but don’t forget the fact that they also lose over the course sometimes in a single day of trading, hoping that their gains will offset some of their losses over time. This is how they think. They are intentional and purposeful. As they have been in the industry for many years now, they have a clear direction where they would move in alignment accompanies with a vision.

But when you are a newbie or just an average trader and still has a long way to go, only to find that you only have a hammer in your toolbox, every problem looks like a nail. Can we nuance this situation a little better, or at least manage expectations to be a successful trader one day?

Of course we can.

And the best way to be successful – to be REALLY successful – is to PLAN for your success.

Here are five things to consider when setting and achieving goals that will significantly elevate your trading success as compared to the average ones:

1. Articulate WHY it is important and the reason why you’re doing it

Whatever aspect you do in trading, make sure that you define WHY you are setting that goal in the first place. Why is it important? What’s the reason behind it? For example: sure, gaining thousands or millions of pesos sounds great but make sure you define why you are setting that goal – perhaps because it is the love of being in a challenge or wanting to be better for yourself. Tap into your WHY, think about it a hundred times as this will certainly help you to improve your WHAT.

2. Building a routine of intentional living

They say success is never an accident. However, I do believe that it can be meticulously planned. No matter how you or I define every success, we will be vastly and be more likely to achieve it if we are intentional.

We must be open to this idea because the outcome of success is refined in the journey itself, this is why successful traders keep working on the things that they love to do no matter how it takes for them to reach it.

You see, behind every good trader is sleepless nights and morning grinds and routines to sharpen their skills and their value in the process of keeping at pace on what they love, where their passion lies, and what their purpose is.

There’s that hard work, perseverance, studying, dedication, sacrifice and most of all, the LOVE of what successful traders are doing to keep them alive. It’s all part of the game, and we should all consider these as part of our process to transcend to higher levels.

3. Sacrifice is the way to go

Most of us traders, consciously or unconsciously, at some point may realize that being a successful one requires us to say “no” to something. It is all about filtering out the non-essentials so that we have more time and energy to focus on learning to be a better trader and excel on what we are doing. But we have to remember that this is not going to be a one time deal. As you may have heard it a thousand times, success isn’t a destination you have to reach; it is a journey that you must travel. And, you will never get “there” because when you get “there” you realize there is another “there.” Acceptance of sacrifices goes along the way of being a successful trader.

4. Give up your toxic habits

Take a look in the mirror, not in the next seat.

If you are in the habit of comparing yourself to others, you will never be successful. This will likely turn you to be unproductive and be self-destructive. It increases depression and decreases your well-being. Remind yourself that other people’s victory can’t be compared to your own accomplishments. And when you look into that mirror, use that comparison with your old self as your motivation to improve what actually matters to strengthen a new you.

“Comparison is the thief of joy.” — Theodore Roosevelt

5. Taking the Kaizen Way: the inchworm takes the prize

Did anyone hear about the Kaizen steps? Kaizen is designed in a potent way to effect change, where one can be great through small, steady steps. Being a trader is no easy – we don’t do giant leaps to the moon hoping that it will take us to significant gains and green portfolios overnight. Whether we are at the right or wrong moment in our lives, we can’t make that big steps ahead of us as this might lead to bigger falls and it causes the fear of falling. That fear that comes along the way activates the amygdala – a part of our brain that controls our fight-or-flight response – where it might start working against our will to avoid the fear. It’s about tiny steps, especially when we have a massive goal to achieve. Whatever it is that you want to accomplish, think of your success happening through “Inchworm, Kaizen Style.”

Live and be successful by design – be proactive in how you live your life.

Success is an internal goal, determined differently by every individual and it should be an outline of what you want your life to be, as a trader or as a person for you and your loved ones.

Define it and strive to create it.

Always have the attitude of finding the solution to improve yourself and make this year a success. ?

#DoYourBestAndBeatTheMarket

Let’s begin with the big picture.

In 2016, Catriona Gray joined the Miss World Beauty Pageant and placed as the Top 5 Finalist instead of winning the title. It didn’t stop her to continue her dream of bringing home the crown for the Philippines and in January 2018, she then again competed for Binibining Pilipinas and now holds the Miss Universe Philippines 2018 crown and everybody loves her.

The equalizer:
> Beauty Pageant = Stock Market
> Catriona Gray = YOU/Trader

Beauty Pageant and Stock Market are both never easy to begin with. As a trader and just like Gray, you have to be tenacious and resilient to be able to get what you want to achieve in life. It seems pretty cool to be a beauty queen or to make a fortune in the stock market, but it DOESN’T and that’s the kind of reality and perspective that everybody should take grasp and take caution.

YOU MAY BE A NEWBIE, A STRUGGLING TRADER OR A LONG TIME INVESTOR but know that not all your trades will win you and some of your trading journeys will be complicated.

There will be a time that negativity will disrupt you no matter what.

Trust me, it’s part of the process.

During Catriona’s pre-pageant Miss Universe preparations, she admitted that behind this victory was a never ending negativities surrounding her – there were many challenges, people who tried to put her down and moments of risk and doubts BUT it took her enough courage to believe in herself, hard work, trainings, sacrifices and the goal to keep going to pursue her ambition.

You see:
I don’t know the battles you’re facing now.
I don’t know how hard it is for you to stay committed.
I don’t know how much you’ve been suffering in silence.
I don’t know the struggles that broke you.
I don’t know the terrifying demons who wanted you to stop your passion.
I don’t know what you’re trying to escape from.
And I don’t know how you wake up each day thinking about how much you have lost in your last trade.

But, if you wanted to be the best fighter in your field no matter how hard it is, I do know this:

YOU WILL SURVIVE 101% OF THE THINGS THAT WILL TRY TO DESTROY YOU.

Gray won because of her belief, passion, and determination. It was her CHOICE to stay POSITIVE all the time.

In the stock market, anyone with a fight to push past the destruction will definitely surpass any chaos that comes along the way.

In addition:
You presented your best trader-self despite being internally destroyed.
You showed the willingness to start all over again to find the best system that works for you.
You traded every stock you chose independently and did not rely on FOMO, Facebook or GC analysis and stock recommendations by others but yourself.
Your decision on what type of markets you will trade in based on your interest, capital and risk management.
You owned up to your shortcomings and wrong stock picks and immediately cut loss to protect your capital.
You removed yourself from toxic circumstances online.
You’ve proven time and again that you were stronger, better trader, and more determined than you were yesterday.

There’s no amount of words that I could manifest to describe Gray on her being the woman of the year or in the planet, but I could tell you how to align yourself with the type of powerhouse person she is.

Attitude can make or break you.

So STEP UP into your ball-game and fire your mind into POSITIVITY. Be disciplined, be optimistic, stay humble and committed and be a totally beautiful creative student of the market all rolled into ONE.

Photo credit: Catriona Gray Google Images