When new traders move into the arena of trading they face
several functional difficulties such as how do markets work, what are the
subtle difference between markets and most importantly how does one design and
implement a system that is some way logic and effective.
If someone manages to navigate this maze and become in some
way successful at this game then they face another issue, one of identity. In
the Western world our work defines us – the most common introductory question
one is asked is – what do you do? This question whilst seemingly innocuous is
actually very powerful within our society since it conveys what your background
is, your education, life experience, who you might associate with and often
where you might live. Even the way our names are arranged was originally a
reflection of our occupation.
Hereditary surnames where uncommon in the Western world
until around 13th or 14th century – they were called by names and they either
reflected where you were from or your occupation. This is an obvious means of
distinguishing between members of a growing population and these names are
still with us today. It takes very little imagination to understand the
etymology of names such as Mason, Smith or Baker.
It is not too much of a stretch to say that work defines us
and contributes immensely to our sense of self-worth. The devastating effects
on unemployment are testament to how much of purpose we derive from the notion
of work. Without a sense of work or collective striving – which is largely what
working in a group is we struggle with a lack of belonging. When you become a
trader this traditional sense of work is lost to you as is some part of your
old identity.
Traders therefore have to establish a new sense of
authenticity about themselves based around what they now do – not what they
used to do. This also has to somehow be communicated to others, although I have
often found this to be less successful than I would have hoped. Family members
will often simply not understand what you do or what you are hoping to do with
your life since our roles are very nontraditional.
Intimately linked to this notion of work as a mechanism of
generating a sense of self-worth is the allied idea of a work ethic. Various
religious traditions have the notion of a work ethic. You are rewarded for the
amount of effort you put into something, the notion being the harder you work
the more you earn. In trading this is not true, in fact there is a lot of
evidence to the contrary, the more you try and trade the less you often make.
It is quite possible as a trader to work at a constant level but to see you
payoff swing wildly throughout the year.
It is not uncommon to work at the same rate throughout the
year and to have made little or no money for 11 months and then make it all in
the last month of the year. This unfortunately is part of the game – if you
have a methodology that is statistically sound what you do in a simplistic
sense has little to do with what you earn. This is extremely difficult for
many, particularly those who are weeded to both a notion of a work ethic and a
regular pay cheque.
However, there is an upside in this. You can create whatever
role for yourself that you want but this is difficult since many derive their
sense of self from the reflection they see in others. If you can move beyond
this then you can define your life as being whatever you want it to be. And
like me when travelling internationally you can on immigration forms write your
occupation as Rodeo Clown and no one is any the wiser.
Author: Chris Tate
Article reproduced with kind permission of
Tradinggame.com.au
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