Mike Bellafiore has said many times before that the most important aspect of success in trading is a growth mindset.

We see traders struggle to find consistent results because they are looking for just one or two strategies that they can implement to be successful. 

The trouble with this is that one or two things may work in a certain market environment — then stop working for a period of time — or forever.

 In the 1980s, making the spread was an edge that worked. That edge is largely gone.

 In the late 1990s, buying everything that was closing near its high worked. That rarely works anymore.

 In early 2015, premium decay showered market neutral traders with easy profits. But simple trades (e.g. Iron Condors) that work “most” of the time aren’t free lunch. 

 I recently spent 3 days on the desk at SMB in New York. It always amazes me how the mindset of professional traders differs from individual retail traders. 

These professional traders already have dozens of edges that work for them. But they know the life-cycle of their edge will someday come to an end. It could be next month, it could be in 20 years.

The solution is to adopt the mindset of relentless, never-ending improvement. 

Here’s your challenge.

1. If you don’t have a proven market edge, then do whatever it takes to learn one right away. Without a defined edge, you are just speculating and doomed to be a trading statistic. 

2. Commit to learning trading edges that specifically do better when your first edge is struggling. Example: if you are a market neutral trader, then learn how profit from a fast moving market. 

 -Andrew Falde