To all soccer fans, I am sure you have been watching Euro 2008 Championship. Which team is your favourite? How did your team performed so far? The team I support, England, failed to qualify for Euro 2008. Therefore, I was not excited to watch the live telecast, particularly when most of the matches kick off at 2:45am Singapore time.

In every competition, all teams are unofficially divided into two groups—i.e., the favourites and the underdogs. In 2004, Greece was the underdog in my view because, honestly, I did not believe that it could make to the final, and, better still, beat Portugal. It’s pretty amazing, isn’t it?

This year, I believe Turkey plays pretty well. As I type this article, the semi-final between Germany and Turkey was just over. Regrettably, the Turkish “fairy tale” was over when Germany beat Turkey by 3-2. Nevertheless, since its first game, I notice that there are a few things we can learn as a trader from Turkey. “Jack, are you crazy? Why has it got to do with Turkey?”  All right, let me explain:

During the first round, Turkey was not a favourite because Portugal and Czech Republic are much stronger teams. Therefore, one would expect that Portgual and Czech Republic should have no problem to proceed to the quarter-final. Indeed, I was not surprised when Turkey’s debut was a 0-2 loss against Portugal. It met my expectation. But then, Turkey did not give up the chance to make it to the quarter-final and here comes the magic. First, it beat Czech Republic by 3-2 and then beat Switzerland by 2-1.  So, Turkey managed to grab the second place of its group and made it to the quarter-final.

What can we learn from Turkey? It is simple: When there is a will, there is a way. I am sure you have heard of this classic proverb. Although no one believed that Turkey could proceed to the quarter final, it made it. As a trader, you may wonder how you can make money when there are so many experienced traders around you. In fact, you may think that it is natural to lose money because you cannot beat these traders. My advice to you is “No, you should not think this way." You must believe yourself that if you know the trading game well enough, you are entitled to a chance to succeed and trade profitably. Look at Turkey again. It beat Czech Republic, a stronger and more experienced team.

What is even more amazing is the quarter-final match between Turkey and Croatia. None of them was able to convert a goal during the regulation time. The match then went to extra-time. At the 119th minute, Croatia took a chance to convert a mistake made by a Turkish player into a goal. At that moment, there were just 60 more seconds to go and the Croatian believed that they would qualify for the semi-final and thus, they were celebrating. On the other side, the Turkish thought that it would be the end. But guess what? Turkey did not give up at all. During the last 60 seconds, and with the help of the Lady Luck, Turkey scored!  You could see the facial expression of the Croatian players and their coach. No one could believe this but yet it happened. With its perseverance and the “never-say-die” attitude, and even though there were 60 seconds to go, the Turkish players were committed to make the miracle happen. In the end, Turkey beat Croatia on penalty shoot-out and qualified for the semi-final.  

So, what can we learn from Turkey in Euro 2008 Championship? It lost to Portugal in the first game. The Turkish players did not see this as a failure at all. Instead, they regarded this as a valuable lesson and improved to win the second and third matches. In trading, a set back due to a losing trade should not be considered as failure. In fact, each losing trade has its own story from which we, as traders, can learn. Was the loss due to our mistake? Was it based on the system exit? So, you should take each losing trade as a feedback and understand how it helps you to improve in your next trade. If you give up simply because you have losing trades, perhaps you should never be a trader.

The ’60-second’ saga in the quarter-final between Turkey and Croatia is another valuable lesson too. Even if you feel that there is no chance to score a goal within 60 seconds, it does not mean that there is no chance at all. Again, I have seen many folks who believe that trading is hard, and that many traders lose money. If you believe so, then you will join these folks and lose money continuously. Trust yourself and believe that you can do it. Give yourself a chance to achieve your goal. Well, sometimes you do need the help of the Lady Luck but it is fine. If you give up instantaneously, you will waste the time and effort you have been spending on this business.

To access previous articles written by Jack Wong, please click here.

Jack Wong 
Staff Writer and Instructor
Optionetics.com ~ Your Options Education Site
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