"Keep Your Head Down and Lay-off the High Heat!"
FOMO, or the fear of missing out, is an emotion I have come up against quite a bit in trading. The knee-jerk reaction to chase a trade that has already broken out is like swinging at a pitch way out of the strike zone. As a kid I had a hard time laying-off fast-balls up around my eyes. So it's no wonder as an adult I have to fight the urge to chase trades.
Regardless of the activity, FOMO and any other emotional biases can cripple the decision making process. Professionals understand this and repeatedly take action rooted in self-awareness. A great example is in a tweet from Sean McLaughlin, on election night.
Sean's spot-on tweet was exactly what I needed to see. It brought a smile to my face, and reminded me not to turn on my quote board on election night. Sean is a wealth of knowledge and experience, and a solid follow on twitter, @chicagosean or check him out here.
My approach is to stay ahead of my emotions when making decisions. Here are three actions I take to distance myself from the markets and potential FOMO:
Only enter trades that are predetermined while markets are closed.
Do not enter market orders. If I forget to place an order, tough!
Turn off the quote board. Only check the markets at predetermined times throughout the day (this one is difficult).
It can be hard to follow through. However, there is solace in accepting that a lot of opportunities will be missed, and that the markets will provide many more in the future.
I know if I keep my head down, my eye on the ball and do the necessary work, then the desired results will follow.
What strategies or techniques do you use to overcome FOMO? Let me know!
Thanks for reading!
Please feel free to contact me at ianculley@culleycharts.com
DISCLAIMER: All information and opinions expressed by Culley Charts are strictly that, and should not be construed as investment advice. Market participation comes with inherent risk, and the responsibility of managing this risk lies solely with each individual investor.
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