Why You Don't Need To Be A Rocket Scientist To Trade
Updated: Oct 31
You don't need a degree or high-level education to become a trader. In fact, I believe this can in fact be a burden to some. The reason being is they expect to come into trading with the same success they had outside of it.
They arrive with the pre-belief that all they have to do is work hard, study the markets and they will succeed. But that could not be further from the truth. Why? Because if trading was just about technical then there would be a lot more traders working from their laptops.
''Discipline beats intelligence.''
Successful Forex traders understand that trading is a game of self-mastery, discipline, patience, confidence, and consistency and that these qualities are more vital than anything.
They also know that their trading success is measured over a large sample size of trades, not just a few as that is completely random.
This is not a difficult concept to understand; you don’t need a genius IQ or a degree in finance to understand this. the reason being highly intelligent has no real advantage over anyone else at becoming a professional forex trader depends mostly on your ability to execute…not to comprehend.
For example, ex-military personal would have a much higher chance in the markets; because they understand why discipline is so important.
They are taught to make their beds as soon as they wake up in the morning. This small habit, builds a little confidence. This confidence is then used to perform a slightly more difficult task, which in turn builds up more confidence and this continues all throughout the day as they begin to see how small habits can lead to greater results and greater confidence.
By performing even the smallest tasks with precision, every day (such as shining their shoes,) soldiers develop the discipline needed to perform under pressure.
''Discipline is about showing up. Success will show up in its own time.''
This is not to say that every successful and intelligent people in other fields cannot be a successful trader, I am just exaggerating the fact that intelligence and previous accomplishments do not really matter at all when it comes to trading well.
What matters the most is your ability to stay disciplined, focused, and patient to really master your trading strategy, your ability to stay disciplined.
''If the 'why' is strong enough then discipline will become a by-product.''
How to create discipline??
To create discipline you need a strong 'emotional' driver for the reasons to be disciplined for example, 'Why are you doing it?
What is your 'why' for trading?
It has to be bigger than the monetary goals...
- Is it for freedom? - Your family? - To help others?
You need a strong 'why' because this is what will keep you going forward when the inevitable tough days come along. This is what will make you get up in the morning and get the work done.
When you have a clear reason for doing what you are trying to succeed at. If the 'why' is strong enough then discipline will become a by-product. I go much deeper into this in my book 'The Blueprint To Trading Psychology.' if you would like to check it out.
This brings me to the point that to create discipline you need a strong ''emotional drive'' because if you have a strong enough emotional reason you can create a positive disciplined drive to succeed.
So you actually need emotions to succeed which can be a surprising revelation. As most think emotions in trading are taboo and that we must be emotionless robots!
But we are human and need emotions to drive us. And paradoxically with the right emotional drive, we can then learn to control our emotions during the hard times like in trading when feeling fear, or greed. We can revert back to 'why' and let that drive us to patience, discipline, and consistency.
Conclusion
So don't think you need to be a rocket scientist to win this game.
Trading is an EQ, not an IQ game.
Quick answers
Do you need to be smart to be a good trader?
No. You don't need a degree or a high IQ. Trading well depends mostly on your ability to execute, not to comprehend, so discipline beats intelligence.
Why do intelligent people sometimes struggle with trading?
They often come in expecting the same success they had elsewhere, thinking hard work and studying the markets is enough. But trading is a game of self-mastery, discipline, patience and consistency, not just technicals.
How do I build discipline in trading?
Find a strong emotional reason for trading, your why, that's bigger than the money. It might be freedom, your family or helping others. If the why is strong enough, discipline becomes a by-product.
Should traders try to be emotionless?
No. We're human and we need emotions to drive us. With the right emotional drive, you can go back to your why when fear or greed shows up and let it pull you back to patience and discipline.
Happy Trading!
Alan Edward aka The Divergent Trader
Want more like this?
I send one short email a week on the mental side of trading and keeping it simple. No hype and no signals. Join the free newsletter here.
Two more ways I can help, whenever you're ready:
Watch the free video on how I trade in about 10 minutes a day with simple, rule-based swing trades on the daily chart.
Read The Blueprint To Trading Psychology, my short book on why you break your own rules and how to stop.
About Alan
Alan Edward (The Divergent Trader) is a full-time trader. It took him about five years to get consistent, and he now teaches a simple, low-screen-time way to trade, plus the mental side that goes with it.
Trading carries a high level of risk and you can lose money. This post is for education only and is not financial advice.
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