How Productive Are You During The Trading Day?

It's been a good thing that I'm doing two webinars this week focusing on different aspects of best practices of the best traders I've known.  (Next webinar is at 4:30 PM EST tomorrow).  Reviewing the practices of successful traders helps me put into perspective what works in markets and what doesn't.  Time and time I've found that to be the case: in teaching others, we cement our own learning.

One best practice that came out in yesterday's session was the quality of time spent *not* trading, particularly when markets are open.  When I think about really good traders I've worked with, the great majority don't spend their entire trading days staring at screens.  Rather, they identify opportunity in advance, do their trading, and then move on to other productive activity, including researching new strategies and opportunities.  Like any good company, the best traders spend significant time on research and development and reviewing/improving their own performance.  That's what keeps them learning, growing, and adapting to changing markets.

It's sad to say, but many traders spend so much time trading that they never do the things needed to truly master their craft.  Peak performance requires time deliberately working on performance.  A useful exercise is to look at your research and development pipeline and see if you're really moving the ball forward in your growth as a trader.  If not, it might be useful to work on articulating your processes away from screens in as detailed a manner as you plan your trading time.

Further Reading:  How to Use Your Calendar to Become More Productive in All Activities
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