I believe that every skill and profession can be learned by anyone. Nonetheless, some people are more prone to do certain jobs than others. In this post I would like to discuss seven signs that your personality might have that fit good for a trading career.
1. You Love The Financial Markets
This is probably the most important factor when it comes to trading. If you have a passion for the financial markets and macro economics, and love learning more about the different correlations; why they exist, why they break down, etc., then trading is a great place to start your career.
2. You Can Handle And Don't Run Away From Risk
As a trader you need to manage risk and generate profit. However, you have to do this in a very uncertain environment. Hence, being able to deal with uncertainty is an important attribute of a trader. If you are going to spend the whole weekend worrying about how the market is going open on Monday morning because you have a large position on, then you will not want to do this job for a long time. It's natural that you think about your positions and your actions as a trader but if you can’t deal with uncertainty well you won’t like the job.
3. You Have Character
As a trader you have to deal with brokers shouting prices and information through your voice box, sales people shouting client orders at you or asking for prices, senior traders giving you advice that you don’t agree with or risk management calling you asking why you have this or that risk on your book. You constantly have to deal with social pressure so if you are the kind of person who deals well with that, you can thrive as a trader.
4. You Can Multitask
There is a lot of research out there that suggests that multitasking is a very inefficient way of getting work done. However, unfortunately, if you are working as a trader you ARE constantly be multitasking. That is just the nature of the job. If you are able to still work with focus, despite doing three things at the same time, then trading might be a good career choice.
5. You Are Disciplined
When trading you have to stick to the rules that you set up for yourself. You need to cut your losses when needed, and you need to take the profit when it's needed. You execute client orders where you can, but only if you can do so without losing money. If you are a generally disciplined person, you can be on the right track to a successful career in trading.
6. You Are Emotionally Intelligent
Generally speaking, the less emotional you are as a trader the better. If you easily get upset over things you can’t control or can’t deal well with people getting angry with you, trading is probably not for you.
7. You Are OK With Doing The Same Thing Over And Over Again
This is something that graduates or juniors often forget. The reality is that traders pretty much do the same thing every day, and there is not much variety in the job.
Yes, the market and global events change every day and new things happen every day that you need to react to you. But in terms of what you actually do day-to-day is pretty much the same. Personally, I found sales way more fun in that regard, after having done trading previously, as it was much more varied and nowhere as repetitive.
1. You Love The Financial Markets
This is probably the most important factor when it comes to trading. If you have a passion for the financial markets and macro economics, and love learning more about the different correlations; why they exist, why they break down, etc., then trading is a great place to start your career.
2. You Can Handle And Don't Run Away From Risk
As a trader you need to manage risk and generate profit. However, you have to do this in a very uncertain environment. Hence, being able to deal with uncertainty is an important attribute of a trader. If you are going to spend the whole weekend worrying about how the market is going open on Monday morning because you have a large position on, then you will not want to do this job for a long time. It's natural that you think about your positions and your actions as a trader but if you can’t deal with uncertainty well you won’t like the job.
3. You Have Character
As a trader you have to deal with brokers shouting prices and information through your voice box, sales people shouting client orders at you or asking for prices, senior traders giving you advice that you don’t agree with or risk management calling you asking why you have this or that risk on your book. You constantly have to deal with social pressure so if you are the kind of person who deals well with that, you can thrive as a trader.
4. You Can Multitask
There is a lot of research out there that suggests that multitasking is a very inefficient way of getting work done. However, unfortunately, if you are working as a trader you ARE constantly be multitasking. That is just the nature of the job. If you are able to still work with focus, despite doing three things at the same time, then trading might be a good career choice.
5. You Are Disciplined
When trading you have to stick to the rules that you set up for yourself. You need to cut your losses when needed, and you need to take the profit when it's needed. You execute client orders where you can, but only if you can do so without losing money. If you are a generally disciplined person, you can be on the right track to a successful career in trading.
6. You Are Emotionally Intelligent
Generally speaking, the less emotional you are as a trader the better. If you easily get upset over things you can’t control or can’t deal well with people getting angry with you, trading is probably not for you.
7. You Are OK With Doing The Same Thing Over And Over Again
This is something that graduates or juniors often forget. The reality is that traders pretty much do the same thing every day, and there is not much variety in the job.
Yes, the market and global events change every day and new things happen every day that you need to react to you. But in terms of what you actually do day-to-day is pretty much the same. Personally, I found sales way more fun in that regard, after having done trading previously, as it was much more varied and nowhere as repetitive.
Originally posted here: The personality you need for trading
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