Live Group Coaching Session Summaries

In this session, Sean dives into the concept of state-dependent learning, using his personal experience to explain how behaviors, especially when linked to specific mental states, can influence performance in various areas of life, including trading. He reflects on his difficulties in writing during graduate school after quitting pot, which forced him to develop new ways of thinking and organizing. The takeaway for traders? If you’re not engaging in mental training while under pressure, like during actual trading, you’re likely missing out on crucial learning experiences.

In this session, Sean dives into overcompensation, explaining how traders and individuals use this strategy to avoid emotional pain and maintain control. He connects overcompensation to the fight-flight-freeze response, identifying how traders can move between overcompensating and avoidance when under stress. Overcompensation, often masked as perfectionism or obsessive control, creates a false sense of security but perpetuates emotional discomfort and trading failures.

In this Q&A session, Sean helps traders navigate challenges with risk limits and emotional decision-making. The session starts with a trader’s struggle to embrace risk limits — specifically, the urge to override those limits when approaching losses. Sean underscores the importance of recognizing these limits as safeguards rather than obstacles, a common issue many traders face, often leading to self-sabotage due to the allure of rescuing an account.

This session delves into the destructive nature of avoidance in trading and life, an often overlooked topic. Sean’s insights, drawn from his blog on performance killers, underscore the pervasive influence of avoidance. It’s not just about smoking or over-trading; even seemingly positive actions can be avoidance in disguise. In trading, avoidance can manifest in behaviors like adding to losing positions or moving stop-losses to avoid the discomfort of being wrong.

In this engaging and raw session, Sean and the SPP community dive into the complex topic of guilt, labeling it as a hidden saboteur of trading performance. Guilt is a sneaky, powerful force that can creep into traders’ minds without realizing it, affecting decision-making, self-confidence, and performance. What makes guilt particularly dangerous is its subtlety—it can disguise itself as other emotions like anger or stress, making it hard to identify. Sean shares a personal analogy comparing guilt to wearing colored contact lenses from birth—completely distorting your perception of reality without you even knowing.

This session is from 8/14/24 and was lost in the mix for a while. In this open Q&A session, Sean discusses an insightful conversation with an experienced trader about the psychological aspects of choosing the right instrument to trade. The trader had to balance personal circumstances like age, mental fatigue, and lifestyle with his trading choices. Sean emphasized that trading should not be dictated solely by external influences, such as what others are trading or what seems more volatile, but by understanding what truly fits one’s needs—both psychologically and financially

In this open Q&A session, the group delved into maintaining focus without becoming overly emotional about losses. Robert’s question sparked a critical discussion around the thin line between being too casual about losses and being too casual about trading. Sean noted that while it’s essential not to let losses weigh heavily, the idea of being casual about anything feels unprofessional for many traders. This tension between focus and letting go of losses can lead to frustration and avoidance behaviors.

Key Points: Shame often inhibits traders from taking helpful actions or acknowledging mistakes. The internalized cycle of shame can deepen tilt and impair decision-making. Over-identifying with trading results can lead to avoidance, procrastination, and emotional spirals. Summary: In session #46, Sean and the SPP community dove deep into the impact of shame on trading and decision-making. They explored how shame, a powerful and often underrecognized emotion, can significantly affect...

This session highlights the importance of traders staying true to their values while acknowledging the inevitability of mistakes. Sean emphasizes the power of honesty and transparency when evaluating one’s trading performance. Recognizing when we fail to live up to our values can foster growth by making us aware of guilt and shame’s positive roles in keeping us grounded.

The discussion moves toward the emotional intelligence gap in trading, where many aspire to “beat the algos” instead of trading in a way that suits their psychology. Sean stresses the importance of understanding personal limits and aligning trading decisions with an optimal state of mind. Traders must defuse thoughts like, “I have to be perfect” or “I need to catch every opportunity,” and focus on consistent systems that reflect their best interests.

In this session, Sean delves into the often-overlooked emotions of shame and guilt, showing how they permeate the trading mindset. It’s important to understand that many traders, if not all, may need to recognize the influence these emotions have. They frequently shape critical decisions—whether it’s cutting a winning trade too early out of fear or hesitating due to self-doubt. Sean explains that shame and guilt, far from being rare, are common, deeply ingrained emotions stemming from childhood schemas. These schemas—mental frameworks shaped by our upbringing—affect how we perceive ourselves, others, and our ability to succeed in the markets.