Janice Dorn, MD, PhD
Neuropsychological Trading Coach
Janice Dorn, M.D., Ph.D., has been a full-time futures trader since 1994. Doctor Janice holds an M.D. in psychiatry and is board-certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in general psychiatry and addiction psychiatry. She holds a Ph.D. in brain anatomy. A graduate of Coach University, she is a pioneer market psychiatrist and financial neurobehaviorist. Doctor Janice has written over 500 articles on the financial markets and coached over 600 traders worldwide. She is the Global Risk Strategist for Ingenieux Wealth Management Group, Sydney, Australia.
|
Our only security is our ability to change…John Lilly
After five years of writing weekly Trading Wisdoms for Trending123, I'm transitioning to a new opportunity. I'll get into the details a bit later, but first I wanted to share with you some valuable lessons that I have learned about life and trading. My hope is that they will inspire you to embrace change and carry you to higher levels of trading and personal excellence.
When I was a teenager, I faced the reality of change and impermanence. I learned a lot about struggle because I was born into poverty. I discovered that every day brought with it the possibility of hunger from not having food to eat or eviction from our tiny three room shack. Each day, however, also brought opportunity to find ways to change creatively–to use imagination and ingenuity to create a better reality.
My parents were seriously ill from the time I was born. I lost them both by the time I was 15.However, my parents, through years of struggling and suffering, had taught me well. I knew then that life was not about what happened to me. Life was what I chose to do with what happened to me. What I did with my life was my responsibility and there was no one else who could do it for me.
Everything that happens to us is a gift if we stay fully present with it–accept it, laugh or cry with it–and know that it's not permanent. Change is inevitable. We see it in our lives, our faces, our relationships, the seasons, fashion, weather, politics and in the markets. Without accepting that everything changes, we deprive ourselves of the magnificent opportunity to find serenity and composure. The more we struggle against change, the more rigid and inflexible we become.
This causes us to be stuck in the position of fighting against what is real in order to preserve the status quo. The great psychiatrist Carl Jung once said that human beings resist change because they see it as death. To embrace change is a threat because it requires that we overcome our ego's desire for control, and open ourselves to the infinite possibilities afforded by the natural and ever-changing cycles of life.
The ability to flow with change and to accept it as part of the growth of all living things is freeing because we no longer fight. We stop struggling and surrender with great lightness of being to the "real"–into what is happening at the very moment.
The financial markets have changed constantly since the day trading began. This is because growth and change cannot be stopped. Those traders that cultivate an open and receptive state will survive and prosper. To be unafraid of change leads to accepting that every day in the markets is different. Anything can and does happen. The best traders are ready for this. They are prepared to stop and reverse, they are quick to get out when things go against them, and they stay steady when things are working.
Change is the only constant in the markets because markets are composed of millions of people who are constantly making decisions from different points of view, and who are continually changing their minds. If everyone was doing the same thing, thinking the same thing, staying in the same place, there would be no movement in the markets. Without movement, there would be no opportunity. Change is powerful because it creates opportunities, every minute of every trading day. If we approach and accept that each moment in the markets is unique, we become intensely aware of impermanence and comfortable with uncertainty.
It is not necessary to have a catastrophic event, such as the death of a parent or a major wipe out in the markets, to decide that it's time to accept change. For most, the changes start small and grow into larger changes. Small changes afford us the opportunity to overcome old and self-defeating habits that sabotage trading excellence. I have often written about the virtues of getting rich slowly, taking baby steps, learning patience and forgiveness.
Life doesn't always grant the opportunity to anticipate or prepare for a big change, and we may find ourselves overwhelmed by what is in front of us. By choosing one thing to work on at a time, we focus our attention on something manageable, and eventually find that we have accomplished and exceeded our goals. Struggling against change is, in essence, a sign that we do not trust the wisdom of the universe and we don't believe we deserve a better future. Once we find the courage to change at a pace that is right for us, we transition in alignment with the rhythms of life, the markets and our authentic selves. Once we accept ourselves in the midst of whatever is happening, we give ourselves permission to move forward, to evolve daily into higher levels of trading competence and to face the future with the courage, humility and gratitude that are the hallmarks of successful traders and evolving human beings.
I was born in a shack, my parents died when I was a teenager and left me penniless. I was the first person in my family to graduate from high school. I embraced change and used it to make myself the person I am today. If I can do it, you can do it, too.
Be the change you want to see in world…Mahatma Gandhi
Today, I leave you with the words that I have left you every week for the past five years. This time, I am adding some special news!
Until next time,
Good Trading and Brain On!
I am privileged to have served you, I hope you have learned a lot from my writings, and I am blessed to tell you that the little girl who lost it all is now...
Janice Dorn, M.D., Ph.D.
www.thetradingdoctor.com
P.S. Now for the Special News!!
This is not the end of the Trading Wisdoms! They are moving to my website: www.thetradingdoctor.com. I write a monthly newsletter on the Psychiatry and Psychology of Trading, send out Market Updates and Alerts, do webinars and videos and offer coaching services. Because of my longstanding relationship with Trending123, I am offering to all members and anyone else who is receiving this Trading Wisdom, a special reduction of 50% off the price of a yearly subscription to all of the services that I offer. The regular yearly price is $239.99 a year, but it is yours for half that price: $119.99. To take advantage of this exclusive offer for all of you who have read my writings and written to me over the years, please go to www.thetradingdoctor.com. Click on Subscribe, and enter Coupon code: trending123. You will automatically receive your 50% discount and have access to all of my writings, reports, newsletters, updates and alerts. Please join me as we continue together on this fantastic journey to trading excellence. See you at www.thetradingdoctor.com!
|
