The document discusses the critical role of external factors, such as financial pressure and relationship support, in trading success, emphasizing that even with good psychology, methodology, and risk management, external conflicts can hinder performance. It highlights how the pressure to earn money can lead to poor trading decisions and the importance of having a supportive partner to navigate the challenges of trading. Without this external support, traders may struggle to maintain a positive outlook and achieve their goals.

1. Externals Matter For Trading Success
http://www.netpicks.com/how-are-your-externals/

2. Psychology. Methodology. Risk
Management. You have no doubt
heard it said that these three variables
are key to your trading success. Take
one away, the whole thing falls apart
almost like the game Jenga.

3. The difference is it makes no difference
which one you remove...one can do you in.
There is another variable though that has
an impact that may be more intense than
the three above. Without having this
variable nailed down, even with the top
three in check, your career is in trouble.

4. External Conflicts. Those words speak to
things outside of ourselves…..things we
may have a hard time in controlling.
Financial Pressure.

5. This is one of the reasons many people
look to trading and oddly enough, this
same pressure is the one that causes
them to break their trading rules. The
desire to make money causes people
to be lured into bad trades, larger
position sizing, and even over trade so
as to not miss any opportunity.

6. They have more bills than cash at the
end of the month and since trading
"seems easy", they give it a shot. The
issue is if you are pressured to make
$X per month, can you imagine the
stress that can put you under?

7. You may have certain psychological
biases under control such as the "sunk
cost fallacy" but if you are trading
because you need to make a bill
payment, you are in trouble.

8. The other one that I like to look at
probably has more intensity than the
others and that is relationship issues.
When you start trading, it is a long
road you are beginning to travel.

9. Regardless of the latest marketing
hype, trading is not something you will
"get" in a week.
You certainly can understand your
trading method, the rules, and the
very important money management.

10. But being able to implement all of
those without hesitation is a totally
other matter

11. No matter what we attempt to do in
life, goals we set, nothing makes it
easier to handle than having the
support of your family. The down
times are real and it is amazing to have
that lighthouse in the storm to pick
you up and make you believe in
yourself.

12. Far too many people who have no
experience in what you are attempting
to do, will be the first to give their
opinions. Have you heard:

13. Trading is gambling.
Everyone loses at trading.
You have to be really smart to trade.

14. The hardest part of those words is
when spoken by someone close to
you. It's hard to remain positive when
all you hear is every reason why you
can't succeed.

15. Maybe it is human nature to speak the
negative but the best thing to do is
ignore the negative and go about your
training.

16. Every trader has losing sessions and
you will be no exception
(just keep them to a small percentage of your trading account).
Do not thing a string of losses means
that they were right!

17. At the end of the road, although there
is no end in trading unless you drain
your account, you will reach a certain
goal you set, or you won't. There is no
in-between. You will either be the
person that hears from your family
how you changed "our lives" or you
will hear "I told you so".

18. My nephew is a freelance programmer
on Elance. For the longest time, his
spouse (including her family) kept
telling him to go back to the
warehouse.

19. It was very difficult for him to remain
positive while those that should be
supportive, were anything but that.
Once he started making money, her
tone changed. Even better, when he
was offered a technician job at a good
rate of pay, she told him he will do
much better on the current path.

20. You do not want to head to your office for
your trading session with your partner
yapping in your ear to "get serious".
You want support.

21. Ever hear those that succeed at sports,
the arts or anything actually...always
thanking their partner?

22. You bet you do because the support of
those close to you is crucial to your
success. Without it, your journey will
be made more difficult in a career that
already is difficult to succeed at.

23. How to fix that? Nobody can really tell
you as every relationship dynamic is
different. I have no suggestions. If you
already have the support, great! If not,
you must find a way to get your
partner on your team.

24. Sometimes success is the only way to
get them on board but the flip side is,
without their support, trading success
may never materialize.