Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Simple and Consistent

I was reading and clearing my mailbox while waiting for my turn to submit a registration form.
The Registration office is packed with Chinese, Malay and Indians... this multi-racial country is a beautiful place, everyone of the nation will know 2 languages, minimum.

I come across Dr. Van Tharp's newsletter, and this topic is : Simplicity and Consistency as an Individual Trader, by R.J. Hixson.

quote the final line of this article:
Moving Forward with These Themes in Mind
So simplicity and consistency are the themes for me this year. As I rewrote my trading plan, my individual trader identity helped me keep simplicity and consistency front of mind as I changed my combination of trading systems, wrote rules on when to start and when to stop trading systems, fleshed out my position sizing strategies and set my annual goals. If my plans are simple and my execution is consistent, I believe I will see better results this coming year.
Not surprisingly, my goals this year are very simple and require consistency. They are simple in that each of them is done on a daily basis and none of them need much time, strategizing, or complex planning. They require consistency in that I do them every day. The approach reminded of my son’s karate kata.

Kata is a choreographed series of moves that martial arts students practice and perfect. They are not necessarily complex movements (although the complexity or length increases by level) and the focus is on perfect execution. I never gave kata much credit until I saw my son’s sensei perform one. He is an advanced degree black belt and never before had I seen a human move so fast or with such precision. I watched with amazement, and a bit of fear, as I gained a newfound respect for my son’s sensei that day. I also learned to appreciate the impressive results that can come from practicing a humble kata.

This year for my annual goals, I’ll be practicing a set of katas of sorts every day with a focus on simplicity and consistency.
Take care and trade well.

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