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What motivates you? Is it pain or pleasure? Most people would answer “Pleasure.” Experience shows otherwise. Think of two scenarios for a moment: 1) you make 10,000 in the market 2) you lose 10,000 in the market. If the numbers are not big enough for you, add one or two more zeroes. Which one of these would stir you up more? Which one of these would get you to look at improving yourself?

As I am writing this article, Dow Jones Industrial Index made a 777-point down move, the most ever for a single day, far surpassing the 684-point drop on the first trading day after the 11 September 2001 terror attacks. Do you remember the biggest “up move” in the Dow between 2003 and 2007? No? My guess is almost all of us will remember the 777-point down move for a very long time. Credit goes to our editor Tom Scollon, who mentioned 24 hours ago (in the SharesBulletin Weekly newsletter) that he would not be surprised to wake up one day to see the market fall 1000 points!

I am not here to talk about doom and gloom. But I am here to talk about how you can use the current economic situation to your advantage. Now is the time for you to say: what do I need to do, to be, to learn, to study, to improve, to adapt, to adjust so I am better at my trading? Now is the time when you have more motivation than you probably will ever experience to get your act together. Now is the time to sharpen your skills even more.

It is scientifically proven by those who study the brain that we ponder, consider and think about negative things in our lives nine times longer than we do for positive things. One way to do that is getting lost in: “I could have” “I would have” “If only I” type statements. That would be a waste of time as you can not change the past, no matter how hard you try. On the other hand, every one of us can change their future if we ask the right questions of ourselves. What are those right questions? “How can I improve myself?” How can I benefit from what is happening?” “How can I benefit more?” “How can I get better?” “What education, studies, tools do I need?”

A question on everyone’s lips will be: “How much more can the market fall? Is this the bottom?” Independent of the answer, independent of the prediction or the forecast, you need to consider all the alternatives. A trader I was talking to on the weekend said that the US bailout package would go through 100%. I said what if it didn’t, playing the devil’s advocate. He said that it could not happen. There was one and only one outcome, it would go through. I didn’t know the outcome 100% and neither did he. The point is we are in the same situation right now, more pain and the question remains: will it go any further? Inability to accept the possibility of further falls is a good indication of one’s level of pain.

Use this pain to your advantage. As the saying goes: “When the going gets tough, the tough get going.” This is the time to make use of your pain. This is the time to bring together your mental and emotional strengths and apply them.

Tomorrow’s super traders are being born right now.

Believe, achieve
Sinan Koray 

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