Eyes Wide Shut

Why does it take so long for a trader to learn?

Like I've said before, I've seen as much so-called wisdom over the years that I've eventually learned to hold as inviolate truth, as that which should be thrown out with yesterday's garbage. Yet why does the eventual accumulation of pertinent knowledge translate so slowly into one's trading results? If we are capable of weeding out the good stuff from the bad, why doesn't the good stuff just take over and guide us directly towards success?

Aside from the fact that I might just be a dumbass, one thing I've figured out is that the distance between the brain and the finger might not be so close as you'd think -- if you're not careful. I know I'm not the only trader who has a tendency to repeat the usual mistakes, or variations of same, despite having berated myself 10 times in the previous week to make an effort not to do it again. My contention is that old habits die hard. Real hard. And only if you go out of your way to kill them outright.

Case in point: my stance towards major market moving news is that you have no reason to trade unless either a) you know what the report will be beforehand, and can accurately gauge the market reaction; or b) the risk/reward ratio is so skewed towards one direction that it's worth taking a chance. None of my setups are explicitly tailored for exploiting that generic spike in volatility. Yet why do I always find myself pumped up with adrenalin, finger on the trigger at 8:29 each and every first Friday morning of the month? Why am I always psyching myself up to do something -- anything -- just because I know there will a big move upcoming one way or another? I came to realize that this was a holdover from my stock trading days, when chasing volatility was the name of the game. But even as that game became extinct, I continued to instinctively adopt that "fight or flight" stance whenever potentially market moving events were impending, despite the fact that there was no justification for getting involved. By winding myself up into a mental and physical posture for spontaneous reaction in situations where nothing actually should be done, I was just begging to get myself into some sort of trouble. But until I took a step back (literally, way back) and saw how I was unconsciously placing myself in harms way for no good reason, that same bugaboo of "impulsive" trading just kept recurring with me none the wiser, nor richer.