Trading is not that important

BellaMike Bellafiore's (Bella's) Blogs6 Comments

I received this email from an old friend and SMB reader.  It puts every losing trade, underperforming month, and “bad day” in perspective.

Suddenly all my trading worries have vanished. It doesnt matter how much money I am up or down
or how I’m going to find my next One Good Trade.

Funny how having a doctor telling you that the lump on your knee is not just a cyst will make all your other
worries seem so insignificant. I wanted to write about how much I relate to the last 2 posts on your blog about part time trading and the other guy worrying about being down a few thousand the last couple years. BIG FU$$ING DEAL! I just found out I have a “Pleomorphic Sarcoma” on my right knee and I am going to (XXXXXX) on Wednesday morning. I only say it to make the point that trading is far from the most important thing in anyone’s life to worry about. Take a break, clear your head and just be thankful you are there and able to devote the time you have to pursuing your passion.

The doctor at (XXXXX) Cancer center says what I have is treatable and curable as far as he can tell now.
I had the chest Cat scan and my lungs are clear. I have a full leg MRI to go to on Tuesday. I meet with (SSS)
on Wednesday morning at 8:30 and have a PET Scan (Full Body) scheduled for Thursday at (XXXXX) on Thursday in order to detect if it may spread anywhere else.

I’m not sharing the story looking for sympathy or anything. This is what they mean when they tell you to
“Stop and Smell the Roses”….whatever you are dealing with in trading aint that bad. Now more than ever one of my other favorite financial bloggers, Todd Harrison, writes about all the time makes sense. See his last random thoughts here
Are we There Yet? Here too

This too shall pass…..

Our best wishes to our friend on a week of much better news!  Tomorrow will be better than today.

6 Comments on “Trading is not that important”

  1. Best of luck mate, remember some of your trading skills on emotional control, logical thinking and trusting your gut and combine that with the healing power of the body and you’ll be good. 

    This is coming from a fellow FT trader who got cancer at age 30 in 2007, two weeks from meeting the master if undiagnosed, now good as gold, trading better than ever and taking lessons from that period of my life each day.

    Good health and happy trading!

  3. It’s one of life’s mysteries that bad news has at times wakened me up to what it feels like to be fully alive. Things that had but a few moments earlier been deeply embedded nuisances, anxieties, hopes and fears fall away like leaves in an autumn wind. 

    Smell the roses, be part of the sights and sounds at dawn; Carpe Diem. I wish you and yours good luck working through this challenge.

  4. “Have you ever experienced a transformational moment–what psychologist Michael Rousell calls a spontaneous influence event?” -Matthew Syed

    Moments like this refine our character, and put things into a new, more meaningful, perspective. How insignificant our worries are when faced with a life changing moment! Coming from a father who has lost a daughter (my beautiful 2 yr old angel), it changes you. You either retreat into the bottle our pick yourself up, dust off, and appreciate every moment you get. What a gift we get to wake up to another day and, of all things, work at what we are most passionate about.

    “Blessed is he who has found his work; let him ask no other blessedness.” – Thomas Carlyle

    James 1:2 (my fav Bible verse) sums up how we should face our trials.

    Praying for your speedy recovery! Godspeed

  6. Thanks a lot  for all your support.  I appreciate all the comments.  Just so you all know, this is more my speed for dealing with tough issues:  http://youtu.be/WlBiLNN1NhQ
    and playing songs like this:  http://youtu.be/M-KcZokx-7I  Music soothes the soul.
    Keep trading and best of luck to everyone!  Go Get ’em!  

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