There are adjustments in life we all must make and those adjustments may not be handled appropriately after the first time.

Marques Johnson —

There are adjustments in life we all must make and those adjustments may not be handled appropriately after the first time, but please believe that another situation that was identical to the first will arrive once again. The question then becomes, how do you react to it the second time and that will be a good indication if you’ve learned your lesson or not. Let me give you an example when it comes to weightlifting.

I was squatting heavy one morning and I was going for a 15 rep count which is not the norm for most individuals with heavy weight on their back. Once I approached the halfway mark during this set, doubt crept in my head as I was losing breath quickly, 15 reps was looking doubtful because it felt like 20 more to go, my form also began to crumble and I eventually failed at 11 reps.

Now even though I failed, I still had the confidence in me that I could still knock out the 15 reps, but how do I overcome the fatigue and at the same time keep posture in check performing the task and for those of you who are fitness junkies like myself understand that a lot needs to go right when you’re performing compound lifts.

What came out of it was that I needed to pace myself at a slower speed to keep my composure under control mentally and physically and which would also allow me to sustain my form at a longer duration. The following week 15 reps of 315lbs was accomplished and it felt great more so mentally than actually completing the set itself because squatting like that is highly difficult and the time I put into thinking how to overcome that obstacle knowing I was going to attempt it again.

In trading, the same thing will occur in your portfolio with a few positions of yours that are going in the opposite direction that you’d like for them not to go. When I started out as a trader selling .20 bull puts and naked puts, I thought I was in smooth sailing not even thinking about adjustments that would be necessary after I placed the trade. So when things went against me I had lost more money than I should have or it was too late to make any of the right hedging techniques because by then the stock turned back in the opposite direction losing money on the hedge on top of the original position leaving me with a double whammy!

There’s not one trader this hasn’t happened to, but it’s almost good that this happens so we understand once that situation appears again, how are you going to respond?

Every week there’s always one position or two that I have to make adjustments on and a lot of it comes down to timing and knowing the proper technique to use in each situation and I only understand that now because of experience and reaching out for guidance when in doubt.

Tackle Trading has produced a lot of content over the years and especially in recent months on how to handle positions that go against us and it would be wise to go through their vault of videos that have not only helped me but for any of you out there who feel lost and need fine tuning when these situations occur and they happen all the time!

‘Till next time,

Marques Johnson. Full-time Trader.

I’m from Virginia and I grew up in a military home where I was raised by two parents who provided me the best of both worlds from how to be a good person and how to be self-sufficient in life. I’ve been trading for three years now and each year there’s always something significant I learn because the markets are changing all the time. I particularly focus on trading stock and futures options but trading isn’t the only thing I’m passionate about. Fitness is a significant aspect of my life and personal training is what I do throughout the day, so the balance of trading and fitness is a great mix for me mentally and physically which keeps me motivated every day.

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