Last Update: August 2021

I grew up in a small town and went to a small public school. Our school year was on a traditional schedule so the month of August was always back to school time for me. Two of my three kids are now in school so back to school preparation is very important in our house. We don’t do anything atypical of what most families have to do to prepare to send their kids back their school. We school shop for some new clothes hopefully that fit a little too big right now so my growing children can wear them all year). We buy supplies, meet their teachers, plan our vacations and family plans around the school schedule released and generally start to get excited about the entire process. One thing I’ve been doing with my 5-year-old who is starting kindergarten is riding our bike together to her school just to teach her the route (she’s in a new building this year) and to make sure she’s being safe while crossing the street and watching out for traffic.

School preparation is important. But to be able to learn, grow and develop a student has to actually show up and participate in school. I know I’ll make sure my daughters will do this because that’s my job as their dad is to hold them accountable, put them in a position to succeed and make sure they are learning.

As a mentor myself who teaches new traders how to build a trading business and trade options, stocks, forex and futures I’ve frequently seen this same process play out. New traders have lots of energy when they start. You see beginners watching videos, reading books, taking every class they can and trying to learn as much as they can right from the jump. Some taper off, others keep it consistent. But one of the keys to translating the excitement and energy of starting a new journey into actual success is to show up. Showing up is 90% of the battle.

In trading, showing up means that you have to trade. You can’t wait until you learn everything about the markets before you start trading. Part of your development will occur because you are practicing and applying what you are learning. Just like a new student going into 1st grade, 12th grade, starting a new continuing education course on poetry or taking a self-help class it is very important that you show up each day and participate in the course. In the stock market, the ‘course’ is the market itself. Do yourself a favor and make a trade each day. Should you risk live money while you’re new and learning? Probably not – I’d advise a beginner to paper trade until they can build a track record of success and develop their money management rules. But should you wait to start practicing until you feel comfortable with what you’re doing? Absolutely not. Embrace the discomfort, you’ll learn from it.

Market conditions don’t always scream to buy or sell.  Sometimes you have to balance your account, try new techniques, learn a new strategy or play the volatility.  If you don’t know how to do that yet, remember that we’re always students in the trading game and a new school year is about to start.  Jump in there and participate and show up.  You’ll learn faster, absorb more and reach your goals quicker if you do.

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