Linda Raschke: Pre-Market Routines

Linda Raschke shares her trading routines.

The importance of doing the homework the night before:

"First of all I always try to have my homework done the night before(...) and then of course first thing I'll do when I get up is usually check the markets just to see where they're trading so I can get a baseline reading (...)"

Most trading opportunities are in the morning:

"The opportunity comes in the morning sessions and you know I usually start at 6 a.m. CT so at 7 a.m. CT there is a big pickup in activity in the market so if I'm watching it a little bit beforehand it helps get a feel (...)"

The importance of avoiding or minimizing distractions:

"Trading is a performance oriented discipline so the more you can eliminate distractions and get yourself into a ritual or groove right away I think you're better able to concentrate and that's really the key is being able to concentrate right off the bat."

The little details that matter:

"For me, it's always important that I eat a big breakfast. I always have a giant bowl of oatmeal or a couple eggs and you know that really only takes 5 minutes but you got to feel the body and got to feel the brain. That's so important! People sit there and think they're going to make it on a bagel or something... It just doesn't work that way so it's really important to have some good nutrition." 

The importance of trading from a quiet, calm space:

"Try and have a space where you're not going to be distracted or kids knocking on the door, phone's ringing or that type of stuff." 

Steenbarger: 3 Common Trading Problems

Dr. Brett Steenbarger identifies three important common trading problems:

(1) performance anxiety
(2) impulsivity: impulsivity occurs when we act before we think
(3) failure to adapt to changing market conditions

Video duration: 9 minutes

Record date: July, 2009

You can find Dr. Steenbarger's books on Amazon.com:

Trading Psychology 2.0: From Best Practices to Best Processes (2015)
The Daily Trading Coach: 101 Lessons for Becoming Your Own Trading Psychologist (2009) 
The Psychology of Trading: Tools and Techniques for Minding the Markets (2002) 

John F. Carter: 5 Favorite Option Trades

Bio: John F. Carter is the founder and the CEO of Simpler Trading and the author of the best-selling book Mastering The Trade.

Video duration: 48 minutes

Record date: October, 2018

Summary:

John F. Carter describes his 5 favorite basic strategies:

1. Directional swings lasting a few weeks
2. Directional swings lasting a few days
3. Directional day trades lasting a few hours
4. Selling credit spreads on weekly options
5. Implied volatility crush on bad news

John's book is available on Amazon:

Mastering the Trade, Third Edition: Proven Techniques for Profiting from Intraday and Swing Trading Setups 3rd Edition

Jack Schwager: Polar Extreme Approaches To Trading

Video Duration: 6 minutes

Record date: May, 2015

Video Highlights: 

On one hand you have Jim Rogers who's the world's biggest cynic about technical trading. He's very long-term, fundamental ideas and done successfully all his life. His comment about technical analysis is, "I never met a rich technician unless you count the ones that sell their services". That's a summary of his opinion about technical analysis and he's been extremely successful. 

But you got people like Marty Schwartz who started out as a stocks trader and told me he lost money every year trading about fundamentals and then found technical analysis and got wealthy as a technician. 

So you can take people who have not only different approaches but have approaches that are polar extremes and consider each other's approaches complete nonsense and yet they're both extremely successful.

Here are some of Schwager's books available for sale on Amazon: 

Market Wizards, Updated: Interviews with Top Traders (2012) 
The New Market Wizards: Conversations with America's Top Traders (1994)
A Complete Guide to the Futures Market: Technical Analysis, Trading Systems, Fundamental Analysis, Options, Spreads, and Trading Principles (2017)

Van Tharp: Position Sizing Strategies

Dr. Van Tharp on the importance of position sizing:

"It's a little-known topic but it's probably aside from your own psychology the most important topic you could ever learn. How much? Position Sizing strategies tell you how much you should have on throughout the course of a trade and what people don't realize that it's through position sizing, not your system but through position sizing that you meet your (trading) objectives."

Mark Minervini: I'm a Big Reader

I came from a modest beginning to say the least so I had to read a lot of books and get a lot of books and tapes early on in the day to get me motivated and to learn how to get a successful mindset.

So, I have I often point out that I have all my books behind me in my office. Over a thousand books on motivation, success and finance and so I'm a big reader. I wanted also in my book to be able to motivate people because if you're not motivated, you don't believe you can do something.