* It is impossible to trade with focus and discipline if we are in states of high emotional arousal.
* It is impossible to trade with focus and discipline if we are in states of upset and distress.
* It is impossible to trade with focus and discipline if we are in states of high distraction.
* It is impossible to trade with focus and discipline if we are fatigued or burned out.
In every performance domain, developing performers have to focus on process and execution before they worry about winning or losing, doing well or poorly. The concert pianist has to be focused on the music, not the audience; the golfer has to be focused on the mechanics of the swing; the pitcher has to focus on the batter, not the scoreboard.
If we want to trade with discipline, we have to be fully focused on the present and doing the right things. A process mindset doesn't look backward at recent profits and losses; a process mindset doesn't look forward at desired wins or feared losses. A process mindset is here and now, with full focus. This is why meditation can be so helpful to traders.
Imagine being on a bomb squad, and you have to defuse a device that is set to go off in a matter of minutes. You would calm yourself; you would focus yourself; you would take the time to see where the wires lead and how the bomb is constructed; you would figure out which wires to disconnect when; and then you would slowly, carefully disconnect each connection. It's all a process. It's all rule-based, where the rules have become so rehearsed and practiced that they become second nature.
That is how to trade with discipline.
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