by : Terry Leslie

If you ask people why they go to work every day, most people will tell you that they need the money. So what happens when you find someone who goes to work and doesn't make any money? Do you feel that you could go to work without bringing home the proverbial bacon? Could you do it every day for a week? What about a month? While it is very rare that a trader, even a new trader, would go to work every day and make absolutely no money every day for a month, it has been known to happen from time to time. While we are all in this deal to make a profit and come home with a healthy or substantial paycheck, are you emotionally equipped to handle those periods where there just isn't any money flowing in your direction?

This is a serious consideration for some people, and really it should be seriously considered before deciding to go into trading. Adhering to self induced pressure of monetary performance isn't going to bring you any more money. In fact, adhering to such pressure is likely to cost you more money.

If you decide to get yourself worked up on a daily basis as you slowly watch your account balance dwindling, you aren't going to be making level headed, concisely thought out trades. You are going to end up using your emotionality to try to make something happen in the eleventh hour. When you end up without profit, or behind the eight ball, are you prepared to continue as though you have been drawing in huge profits? This can be a difficult place for many people, and learning how to handle periods of time without profit during the early years can be a great struggle.

The truth is, most traders who have done their homework, put in their learning time, and are emotionally ready to handle whatever comes their way make a profit most months. Sometimes these profits are enough to cover the months that there wasn't anything to bring home and sometimes not, but most months the profits come in. Where the mistakes are almost always made during the formative period is when those profits decide not ot show up for a week or two. Then what?

Trading from a fearful position that pushes you to make trades that aren't necessarily well thought out or are horribly risky isn't part of any sound trading plan. Any new trader has to be willing to take his or her financial lumps and bumps if they are going to keep rising to the top. If you allow the emotional stress of not feeling as though you are "earning" a living then the trading mistakes that will hurt you on a large scale are just around the corner.

Creative thinking, freedom of thought and experimentation, and faith in one's abilities to bring home what's necessary are all part of facing the trading world on days where the word profit seems like a joke. In order to maintain the mindset that will help propel you toward a better trading day you need to look at the big picture and move toward those goals and remember that daily goals might not always be reflected upon the day's close.

Ask yourself honestly if you are prepared to handle this before entering the room. Because if you aren't then you are heading toward a seriously uncomfortable time while you push yourself toward failure, and you won't last in the world of day trading. Of course, maybe this is the perfect time for you to dig deep, handle some of those fears, and push forth with amazing grace.