Accepting Feedback and Criticism
New traders are notorious for needing to be right. This natural, human tendency is so powerful that novice traders engage in unproductive trading behaviors to avoid admitting that they are wrong. They might hold on to a losing trade, to keep losses on paper. They may procrastinate or put off making a trade in an effort to avoid facing the consequences of a bad trading idea. In many ways, your need to be right can be stifling. A trader who consciously or unconsciously needs to be right may hold back at critical moments. If you are inhibited and afraid, you avoid making trades. Accepting feedback and criticism is fundamental for trading success.
Why is it so hard to accept criticism, whether it is from another person or the markets? One of the main reasons is that we associate criticism with inadequacy. We tend to place great psychological significance on a critical comment or negative feedback of any kind. It’s as if parents are criticizing you for doing something wrong. This is a false assumption. There is no need for criticism to have any emotional meaning. Take criticism and feedback in stride. It isn’t personal; it’s just feedback. If you can learn to downplay its emotional significance and view it as cold, hard data, you’ll be able to use this information to improve your trading.
Another reason it’s hard to accept criticism, you my have an irrational need to be perfect. We often assume that unless we are always right, we will not be successful. We learn this assumption from school. In school, we were usually allowed only one chance to turn in a term paper or take a test. In most school settings, you can’t retake a test or rewrite a term paper. Many people carry over this mindset into trading. In trading this doesn’t need to apply. If you make small practice trades, for example, you can make a trade, learn from your mistakes, and make a new trade. Over time, you’ll hone your skills. Since risk is managed, you can make mistakes and learn from them. There’s nothing to fear.
There’s no reason to avoid accepting criticism. Indeed, if you want to be successful at trading, or anything for that matter, you should seek it out, either by making trades and seeing what happens or consulting a trading coach. The more information you get about yourself, the more likely you’ll be able to hone your skills. So seek out criticism. Don’t be afraid to accept your limitations. If you can stand there and take all the criticism you can find, you’ll hone your skills to the point that you will trade the markets skillfully and profitably.
