One of the great myths today is that very successful traders somehow have never made or don't make mistakes, or that they win because they have enormous amounts of luck. Sound familiar? The fact is, everybody makes mistakes, and some of the super achievers and market wizards at points in their lives seemed to make it a "past-time." No matter what heights great achievers rise to, they all have made many, and sometimes devastating mistakes along the way.

Mohammad Ali, possibly the greatest boxer of all time, made a number of tactical errors in some of his fights and lost as a result. Michael Jordan has missed countless free throws, many easy shots, and other mistakes while arguably becoming one of the greatest basketball players in history. And if these guys have a rocky time of it, just think of the obstacles normal people like you and I have to contend with.

One of the reasons we make mistakes, is that we are easily distracted by emotions. Like phantom hands, emotions grab our throats, and before we know what's happening, we choke. How many times have you been in a trade and your rule might state, "I do not chase trades!" But, as you look at that Maribuzo or blast-off, long, green candle, suddenly you are struck by the notion, "Man, I have to jump on this trade. It has money written all over it!" And then, unfortunately, you buy the high of the day at a strong resistance level and watch it plummet, taking with it any optimism for profit on that trade. Afterwards, you say to yourself, "What was I thinking? Now, I've lost again. I did exactly what I said I would not do." How does it make you feel knowing that your loss was not due to being wrong but to an emotional meltdown?

What is it that helps the wizards maintain focus at these critical times? It is an unmitigated commitment to focus on their rules. These rules, along with other critical cogs in their trading machinery, are the religion of their business. They are passionate first about doing what it takes to be consistently successful; they abhor gambling in the markets and consider winning to be an equation that honors keeping commitments first. They define success in the markets as a function of percentages over an extended period of time, not by how much money is made in the short term. They develop and nurture a powerful desire to follow the successful protocol for getting the results that they want. When you want something with an intense desire, the true nature of your potential is realized through the fire in your passion. Conventional wisdom states that if you really want to do something with enough zeal, you'll do it, right? It is just a matter of finding and living the passion.

Another myth is one associated with self-discipline. To most people, self-discipline has to do with will power while saying, "I'm gonna make myself do it," or biting the bullet. Does this sound familiar? Well, the problem lies in the fact that these notions about self-discipline tax the system enormously and often lead to stress, burnout, or psychosomatic illness. With psychosomatic illness, the ailment is real - ulcers, severe headaches, backaches, depression or major fatigue - but the cause can't be found. Obviously, this type of self-discipline is on par with the successful operation that kills the patient - the cure is worse than the ailment.

Identifying and accessing passion releases a chain reaction, a magnificent obsession that rages deep inside. This is the self-discipline of being internally driven and attracting into your life that which makes your heart sing. And when you find joy in what you do, you are going 'to play' instead of 'to work'. This kind of desire overwhelms fear, doubt, greed and worry in its flames. There is little room or energy for disruptive emotions or for anything to stand between you and your desired results. You simply must have it. Also, with passion, your focus is honed to a razor sharpness as your attention to detail rises. You find yourself thinking about it all the time. Do you remember when you first fell in love? You thought about every detail, you didn't want to miss anything, and you thought about her or him all the time. This emotional fixation tunes the body, mind, and spirit to work in the same direction and on the same goal. It brings the intuition, creativity, and spontaneity of the subconscious mind to bear on the desired object. As the saying goes, you become "hungry." You "want it so bad you can taste it." You "can feel it in your bones" and "see" the outcome through a mental picture that keeps your drive alive.

There is a good reason why these sayings revolve around sensations. The mental image gives focus to the heartfelt dream by providing specifics, like sounds, sights, smells and tastes, making the whole brain come alive with desire. The subconscious is then working as hard for the goal as the conscious is. And it makes much of the accomplishment seem easy and effortless—it just seems to happen. In other words, passionate self-discipline sets a roadmap or blueprint in the subconscious to achieve the desire. The roadmap or blueprint to attracting what brings you inner joy involves and includes what is necessary to achieve it, and in the case of trading, rules and money management are woven into the fabric of consistent winning trades. And, we know that the brain is only as strong as its weakest 'think'! (Sorry, I couldn't help myself.) Going further, this kind of emotional passion or self-discipline is also purposeful and oriented to the objective. It has a feedback system so that, as reality changes, the goal is modified to fit. After each goal is achieved, a new course is set for achievement. The template changes as requirements change.

Actually, this concept of self-discipline is age-old. Our human system is a wondrous creation of which we are using only about 3%. In fact, Karl Pribram - thought by many to be the father of neuroscience - has supported Clement Stone's quote, "What the brain of man can conceive, his mind will achieve." Of Dr. Pribram's many contributions and thoughts, there are two that I particularly like:

1. The brain forms images and is governed by images of achievement, and the body cannot mobilize without them. Also, the development of an iron will is forged in the fire of emotion.

2. Neural blueprints are made by both physical and emotional images. This is also the basis for such books as "Think and Grow Rich" by Napoleon Hill, and "Psycho-Cybernetics" by Dr. Maxwell Maltz.

When we imagine, (either positively or negatively) our brain can't tell the difference, and through the release of neurotransmitters and hormones in the brain, we either feel good or bad with the vision or thought. This is a gross oversimplification, but I trust that you "get the picture." So, the more we want that new yacht or that second house on the ocean or that fully paid college tuition for all of our children - and the more we can see, hear, touch, taste and smell it in our imagination - the more real the brain treats it. The more passion and emotion that is generated, especially when coupled with a specific vision, the closer we come to getting it. But, there is a catch: If I gave you the combination and contents of a safe containing $10 million, you'd feel pretty excited about the prospects of opening the safe, right? That is until you realized that the 10-digit number was not in sequence and you really didn't have the combination. Therefore, self-disciplined trading involves the correct sequence and combination of behaviors in order for the subconscious mind to work for you rather than against you. And you know how it can work against you. How many times have you slapped your forehead and thought, "What was I thinking when I entered that trade?" or "Why did I do that?" or, "Darn, I told myself that I was going to do it according to the plan that I set for myself, and I screwed it up again by not following through." The subconscious is powerful; it can make you sick, and it can heal you. What I want to do is show you how to harness that power, and that is what we do in Extended Learning Track (XLT) - Mastering the Mental Game program and Mastering the Mental Game, 2 day course. Ask your Educational Counselor about these life-changing courses.