|  JUL 1993

Fear And Trading by Ruth Roosevelt

Fear And Trading by Ruth Roosevelt Fear limits your focus, and this is particularly true in trading. In this, her third article for Stocks & Commodities on trading psychology, Ruth Roosevelt, director of the Wall Street Hypnosis Center, explores fear in trading and how to overcome it. One of the great ironies of fear is that we tend to bring the very thing we fear upon ourselves. Thought can create reality; thought charged with an emotion such as fear can realize the dreaded possibility with an amazing speed and effectiveness. This is also true in the activity of trading. What happens if you fear loss when you're trading? That's right. You lose. One way to deal with fear when trading is to control your focus. Race car drivers know that you must look where you want to go, not where you are afraid you may go. If you're skidding toward a wall, you're more likely to hit it if you stare at it than if you look away. If you look toward where you want to go and turn your head in the direction of the track, you are more likely to be able to turn the car out of the skid.

by Ruth Barrons Roosevelt