THE GREAT LACKING

Some of the most passionate traders I have worked with came from very difficult circumstances. They were raised in great poverty or they escaped war-torn countries or they were forced, for whatever reasons, to do without the things that those around them had, thereby making them feel powerless, vulnerable, and angry at the injustice of their poverty. All of this great lacking creates in some children the insatiable need to achieve so that they will never again feel the pain of not having what they need. This great ambition to achieve is what drove men like Andrew Carnegie to build financial empires and to never be satisfied with what they had. There is a great passion in this unconscious need to overcome these early feelings of helplessness, want, and vulnerability by creating enormous wealth. The resulting drive for success is so unstoppable that the elements of a balanced and happy personal life are often ignored or rejected, especially if they are seen to interfere with the end goal of success.

Fred was one of these traders. He was so passionate about his trading that he worked 15 hours a day, six and seven days a week at his trading. Fred was undeterred by losses, market reversals, and system problems. He was eager to learn everything he could about trading and was even willing to work on his trading psychology as long as it was finely honed in on his trading. Although Fred’s family was not poor, his father had come through the Great Depression of the 1930s ...

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