Have you ever acted too quickly? Like you wanted to grab money out of the market? That's not patience…and it won't get you far, isn't it?

How To Cultivate Patience as a Trader?

This is a problem I faced, and interestingly, a lot of traders are facing it every single day. “Why would I wait until I get the right setup? I have something I could trade in front of me”, you say. Yes, perhaps but this is not part of your strategy.

The more I talk with traders over podcasts interviews and on the DesireToTRADE Facebook group, the more I realize that high-achieving traders do not trade. Instead, they execute their trading strategy. That statement sound weird, I know, but it is true.

Now, back on the topic of patience…

As an ambitious Forex trader, you'll have to wait for your setup to appear. By that I mean the setup you've defined in your trading plan.

Below are a few ways to get better with patience and/or reducing impatience. You can apply only one of them to see a difference in the way you trade.

1. Understand the trading process

It might be tricky but has anyone ever told you that waiting is a step in Forex or any type of trading?

This is the way I see things:

Get to the computer, wait, then trade. It's simply how it works.

Every time you wait for a good reason (not because of fear or anything), you're making money. Think about all the bad/losing setups that would have made you lose money.

Then, once a trade is entered, wait more until you get your money back for all that waiting time.

It's just how trading is and we can argue a 9-5 job would be worst :).

2. Meditate

I can't count how many times meditation has been mentioned on the blog. Before I go on, let me tell you that I am not an expert in meditation. However, I tried it and saw the results (sort of).

Meditation isn't something for which you can quantify the results with precision. You can, at some occasions, feel the results of meditating but that's it. Meditation helps in letting go of impatience, or the feeling of not being able to wait. Calmness comes in and you are able to tolerate situations in which you were at first impatient.

You don't believe me? Sit down in a quiet place, close your eyes, and focus on your breathing for 10 minutes. Then, come back here and let me know how you feel.

3. Destroying the setup

A way I've used to wait for the right setups was getting into the habit of “destroying” my potential setups. Instead of accumulating reasons why the setup in front of me is good, I try to find reasons why the setup could be weaker.

Don't get me wrong here. I still consider my setup criteria. However, right after, I look for counter-indications.

Be careful to not destroy all your setup! The reasons you find against taking a setup must be part of your trading plan. You can't use an indicator you don't usually use and try to show your setup is wrong.

So now what?

It's clear to me that patience is tough to cultivate. It'll take some practice both in demo and on the live market with real money. Don't beat yourself up for not being patient. It is something traders acquire over time. Try any of the strategies above and let me know how it went.

Did this help you? Any advice you're planning to implement? I'd appreciate if you can share that article to people who might need it!