Eye of the Bird.

Guru Dronacharya decided to test his students in their skill of archery. He hung a wooden bird from the branch of a tree and then summoned his students. He asked the first one to aim for the bird’s eye but not shoot just yet. He then asked the student what the student could see. The student replied that he could see the garden, the tree, flowers, etc. Drona asked him to step aside and not shoot. He repeated the same process with a few other students. When it was Arjuna’s turn, Arjuna told his Guru that the only thing he could see was the bird’s eye. This satisfied the Guru and he allowed Arjuna to shoot the bird. The lesson here is the power of focus.

Well, dear trader: what do you see? Do you have one pattern to trade with? If you are comfortable with indicators, then perhaps you use the MACD to determine entry signals. Sometimes the MACD will give you big gains, sometimes it just misses a move. Sometimes, there are losses which you control with your risk management methods. All in all, the system works.

During trading hours, do you keep your eye ONLY on the method that you use? The answer should be: Yes. The need for focus will also free you from the disappointment of not catching every twist and turn in the market. Nobody is expected to do this. But, deep inside we blame ourselves if we miss this or that move. When you understand that your task is to follow the discipline of your trading method, you will remain focussed on what the method gives you.

Just to take the analogy forward, it is possible that Arjuna could have located another target, even more difficult to shoot. He could have surprised Drona by taking out the more difficult target to prove his skills. But, he did not do so. because his task was to execute his responsibilities within the dscipline set by his Guru.

So also, it is possible that your method will miss out on many market moves. So what? The moves that you get will be rewarding enough to give you your best trading experience. So, remain focused.