At SMB we think carefully and obsessively about our core competencies. It all starts with providing an excellent trading education, an educational foundation for our intraday traders. Steve and I can really get into it about what is most important to be taught to our desk. Hey we have been friends since we were six. An outsider might find some of these exchanges humorous as we ride a packed subway home (what the heck are those guys arguing about?). Guys on our desk certainly would (some more than others). But what does that mean, an intraday education foundation? What is our role? And what does the market demand from our traders.

A solid intraday educational foundation is obtained by the intraday trader who sustains the energy to complete these daily acts:

1) Diligent morning preparation

2) Keeping a detailed trading journal

3) Visualization exercises

4) Video review of market patterns

5) Learning from other traders on your desk

6) Tweaking your playbook

7) Maintaining a positive outlook

If the intraday trader can sustain the energy to engage in these learning activities daily then they will ascertain how good of a trader they can become. Sustaining this energy has nothing to do with intellect, where you grew up, or who you know.  Sustaining this energy has everything to do with your trading P&L. Those who cannot sustain this energy daily should not expect the market to reward their work.

There is no magic pill or secret sauce to our game. Becoming consistently profitable requires good tackling and blocking daily. It requires work that no one sees you doing. Ripping through charts sometimes when you would rather watch Bravo. Going for a run after a long day so you can sustain your energy for the next day as you work to become an elite performer. There are no short cuts. There are no guarantees. There is just opportunity. Opportunity to make this job anything you are willing to make of it.

Great athletes are solid fundamentally. Yes, Michael Jordan could jump out of the gym, but he was also well schooled by the legendary Dean Smith at UNC such that he was a superstar of fundamentals. Yes, Tiger can hit a golf ball farther than most on Tour, but his putting mechanics are as pure as Vermont Maple Syrup. Yes, Mariano Rivera throws a cutter so nasty that one of my Sox fans confirms he is some sort of witch, but he lands in the same spot and keeps his left shoulder in on every pitch.

So in that vain a solid educational foundation that teaches trading fundamentals and demands they are followed is your first key to success. I know that last line left out a number with seven figures. I know that last line did not offer a particular trading set up. But as you create goals for the next trading year the market will judge you on your fundamentals. So we might as well make sure you learn them.   And it is in your self-interest to make sure your day is packed mastering them.

Best of luck with your trading!