The Importance of Goal Setting in Trading

All of us strive to learn as much as we can about the various technical tools that will help us improve our FOREX trading techniques, as well as our profitability.  But you also must remember that in order to be an effective trader, you must be in the proper frame of mind and possess a constructive set of written goals. Without goals, you have no obvious direction.  

Look at it this way, if you were going to drive cross-country, you would need a map to know how to get to your final destination.  That’s what goals do for you; they will offer you a way of determining the best methods of reaching your ultimate objective; without a set of goals…you’re lost.  That’s why it’s important to write your goals down.  Just like the map, when you write your goals down you can refer back to them often and make sure your subconscious absorbs them frequently.  Writing them down gives them power.  If you do this, you’ll increase the probability of successfully completing your personal goals and reaching your ultimate end result. 

So, let’s get started.  Before you begin, you must establish a desired “destination;” a specific purpose for developing your personal set of goals.  For example, if you are expecting to increase the number of pips you “gather” on a daily basis, then you might have to develop a new trading strategy that will successfully get you there.  As a result, you may decide you need to sign up for advanced training to get the education you need to boost your trading skills, thus increasing your pip count.  See what I mean?  

If you want to attain something different then you’ll have to do something entirely different to get there.  It’s like I always say, ‘If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always gotten.’  It’s so true.  If you think you’ll attain something new by doing the same old thing over and over again – you’re just kidding yourself.  Your goals are the tools that will get you there. 

During the process, you’ll need to take some time, now and then, to check your progress and determine whether or not you’ll need to make adjustments along the way.  How often you do this will, of course, depend on your personal deadlines and the complexity of the final objective.  If you’re dealing with short-term goals, you may need to check daily.  Longer term objectives may need weekly or monthly examinations. 

Make sure you constantly keep your goals and objectives in the forefront of your mind.  Never allow them to fade from your “mind’s eye” because if you stop concentrating on them they will grow weaker thus making achievement a more difficult proposition.  Successful completion is your ultimate objective; give yourself the best chance of doing so.  Initially, make sure you create a set of desired objectives that are extremely specific.  Confirm that you have a clear vision of what you are trying to attain.  Let’s go back to that cross-country trip.  If you don’t know where the end of your journey is actually located, you’ll never be able to successfully navigate to the final destination.  It’s the same way with goals, if you don’t specifically know what you are working for; you’ll never reach the successful completion of your project.  

Goals are all about vision.  If you visualize what you want or need to achieve, how you plan to get there, and clearly see the finish line – your goals will become solidly established in your mind.  Once that happens, the magic occurs.  Things start to powerfully come together and pretty soon what was just a vague idea becomes a solid reality.