PERSONALITY TYPES
Personality Types
How can knowledge of personality types help with your trading?
The sad reality, and depending on which source you use, is that 70 to 90% of traders lose money.
A lot of new traders rush in blind. They don’t do their homework. They don’t spend the time learning the skills that are required to play the trading game.
It’s you against the machine or you against the hedge fund, or you against the professional. It’s a blood sport, and it’s also a zero-sum game. So, for every winner, there’s a loser.
All the evidence indicates that you can’t just walk out of college or your day job and start day trading. You might get lucky once or twice, but the law of averages will catch up with you.
The average life span of some traders is less than 90 days in the market. That’s how long it takes for them to lose their money. It can be a ticking time bomb.
The critical learning for new traders is to be patient and demo trade. Learn and get a feel for the market and get a feel for the stocks and currencies. Study hard, take your time and preserve your cash. There’s no rush.
It’s also important to know who you are and learn what your skills are.
As a trader, you are an entrepreneur. You are a business owner. An attractive part of that status is that you can have financial independence; you can achieve financial freedom and time freedom. There’s no ceiling stopping you.
You have control over your life. That’s a big thing. It’s why a lot of entrepreneurs get into what they do. They don’t like being controlled.
On the downside, however, you are the boss. That means that there is no supervisor. There is no one looking over you. No-one evaluating you. You are in charge of yourself, and you are in control of your process.
Learn More About Your Personality Type
A key part of progressing in life and developing as a person is understanding yourself. Understanding your strengths. Understanding what you struggle with—taking that knowledge and creating a plan to put you on the best path to success.
No two traders are alike. A recent survey analysed 1500 traders and their trades. When they looked at everything that people did over an extended period, the conclusion was that nobody was the same. Everybody traded different stocks or currencies. They traded at other times, traded at different prices, and the profits or losses were different. Nobody was the same.
So what makes you different? A million different things, but it’s probably driven by your personality.
There are a few distinct personality types that lend themselves to trading. However, there are also some that struggle.
By understanding your personality type, you start to begin to see your strengths and weaknesses. You can begin planning the development of your trading and your business around that. To do things that are more in line with what your strengths are. Avoid things that expose your weakness, or at least put yourself in a position to be aware of those weaknesses. That way, you can pay more attention to them and ensure that they’re not a drag on your progression.
Two tests might help with that journey. The first is the DISC Personality Test, and the second is the Myers-Briggs (MBTI) 16 personalities Type Indicator.
The tests can be accessed via the following links:
They’re both great tests. They are both completely different.
We have also outlined, below, our thoughts on the tests from a trading perspective. Click on the Click Here button to be taken to the page.
DISC Personality Test
On completing the DISC personality test, you will understand better what your dominant and secondary personality type is. Click on the DISC Personality button below to access the page.
Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) is a tool designed to identify and provide insight into individual personality type. Click on the Myers-Briggs button below to access the page.