You know how they say that the only thing that stays the same in life, and even in the financial markets, is change? As it happens, I’m now adjusting to some significant (but very positive) changes in my personal life, and if anything, that’s taught me this:

I despise change. I actually hate it, and, at least in my personal life away from the financial markets, I find it surprisingly difficult to deal with.

It’s typically a different experience while trading the markets, which is fortunate for me, it seems, because trading necessitates suppressing and even openly disobeying some basic human inclinations, such as the ability to deal with change.

It may go without saying that I’ve recently been very captivated by this, therefore it only makes sense that I would want to share it with you all today. So let’s look at how each of us typically responds to change in the real world and see if it has any impact, positive or negative, on our efforts in the financial markets.

How Some People, Deal with Change in Real Life

Financial Markets Are Changing

Traders come in many shapes and sizes, of course, but venture to say that most of them have an analytical bent and enjoy routine and structure since those things encourage rigorous adherence to the strategy at hand and discipline.

In real life, I most definitely fit that description, which might make it more difficult to adjust to any changes or circumstances that are outside of one’s typical “comfort zone.” With it, I’m not one to venture out to new restaurants, I wouldn’t want to live somewhere other than my “hometown,” and I only feel most at ease trading in my home office. And those are just a handful of my “quirks”!

It’s ironic in a way because the same traits that frequently support successful trading—things like conservatism, cautious risk aversion, and an unyielding dedication to repetition—often result in undesirable outcomes anytime we encounter changes outside of the financial markets. These things consist of:

Do you Ever Fight Against or Try to Stop Change?

Fear & Emotional Reaction: When change is imminent, do you experience emotional outbursts or act differently than usual? (In actuality, I do.) And even if you do eventually give in to change, will you do it tentatively and lackadaisically until the novel practice becomes customary or is in some other way validated?

The worst of all, perhaps, is “analysis paralysis”—is change significant enough to put you on hold? Do you find it difficult to respond when confronted with what you consider to be a significant or huge change? Do you freeze up or become bogged down?

Why Does It Fail in the Financial Markets?

Financial Markets are Changing

Traders in the financial markets don’t react to change as quickly. In actuality, this is frequently the case, and the main way we get into difficulty is when we react hastily to a bad transaction or a few by switching markets or trading strategies. Every day, it seems, there is some hot new trade setup or asset that is the next “sure thing” in the news and financial media, and traders are all-too-quick to pour in while attempting to get ahead, even if it means breaching their principles for successful trading and entering.

Although I can’t stress this enough, it doesn’t mean indiscriminately hopping between markets and unproven tactics. Instead, it means that traders must change—or at least adapt—to some extent in order to keep up with the financial markets. Here are some of the most frequent modifications that affect those who trade on the financial markets:

New Technology

Just as we would when evaluating a novel investment or trade idea, traders are always free to assess the most recent broker platforms, analysis tools and indicators, and charting software and decide whether or not to employ them.

New Goods/Assets

Recently, we talked about how choosing what to trade is just as crucial as choosing how to trade. As a result, traders can always take into account new markets and currency pairs, but they should only do so if they stand to benefit them personally and if these alternative assets are compatible with the framework of their own, existing trading strategy.

Adapting Market Circumstances

 Only a few factors, such as news, volatility, volume, seasonality, and institutional interests, can affect how we trade on the global equity and currency markets. Some traders even have specific setups and/or trading methods for trending and range-bound conditions, and that—rather than a complete overhaul—may be perfectly fine for adjusting to fluctuations in the financial markets.

In conclusion, For traders, it is frequently simple to believe that “The grass is greener” somewhere else and that switching to a different market, approach, or product would fix any issues they currently believe to exist. That emotion is especially strong during periods of market decline or anytime innovative marketing strategies produce outstanding outcomes when tested over a long period of time. However, being dogmatic and resistant to change isn’t a good option, either. In reality, change isn’t always a trader’s buddy.

Recent changes in my life have put a great strain on me and forced me to think about change in a way I hadn’t previously. I came to the realization that while objectivity, discipline, and risk aversion are my strong suits rather than adaptation, I rely on those qualities to be successful in both the financial markets and in my life outside of them. I’d want to end by asking you to think about your own strengths and if you’re really utilizing them to their utmost in your trade.

visit us on: www.milliva.com