Mastering mental programs to enhance your trading performance

Enforcing positive behavioral patterns

I want to cover a couple of processes used in Neuro Linguistic programming. The processes are Deletion and Generalization. From my experience in coaching the Traders I have found that people use these 2 patterns constantly. This effects their trading results.

Behavioral change work is based on how we communicate with ourselves and others. As an external event happens, we make an Internal Representation (I/R) of that event. That I/R combines with our physiology and creates a state. When we say ‘state’ we are referring to the emotional state of the individual. If you consider that life is simply a variety of states which we feel, then the value of understanding these components becomes more apparent.  The state that we are in is a combination of internal pictures, sounds, feelings and self-talk therefore any state we are in is the result of these components. The external event comes in through our sensory input channels as below:

Visual – the things we see in our mind or in reality

Auditory – sounds or words we hear. We hear them either externally or in our own minds

Kinesthetic – any emotions or sensations including touch and texture

Olfactory – smells

Gustatory – tastes

As the external event comes through these channels it is filtered and we then process the information for that event. We delete, distort and generalise what comes in. This also explains why the same event produces different response from two different people.

Deletion

There are thousands of events happening all around us at any time. Deletion occurs when we selectively pay attention to certain aspects of our experience and not others. We then overlook or omit others. Without deletion, we would be faced with too much information to handle with our conscious mind. This is a protection mechanism built in us because if we didn’t delete and remember and focus on everything simultaneously (mostly impossible) people could go mad!

Question to ask yourself: 

1. What do I pay close attention to when placing a trade?
2. What do I delete when reviewing my results?

Generalisation

When we draw conclusions based on a few experiences, this is generalisation. At its best, generalization is one of the ways that we learn. If you consider that learning is simply the action of associating something you don’t know to something you know, then by generalising some of the unique experiences we’ve had, it gives us a greater propensity to learn. It is also a form of creating alternatives. So, the question is, when two people have the same stimulus, why don’t they have the same response? The answer is, because we delete, distort, and generalize the information from the outside. We delete, distort and generalize the information that comes in from our senses based on one of five filters. The filters are, Meta Programs, belief systems,

values, decisions, and memories. I will cover some of these in my later articles.

Question to ask yourself?

1. How does Generalizations help me in learning new trading systems?
2. How does generalization (ie generalizing my beliefs) stop me from progressing in my profits?
3. What beliefs I still hold that are general? (write out whatever comes to your mind immediately. Write it quickly so the conscious process doesn’t hinder progress. Access unconscious patterns)
4. Do these general beliefs serve me now?

The best discovery one makes in self-realization is that change is not just natural it is essential for progress. Therefore the best strategy is to self-direct the change, be your own master by mastering mental programs and learn how your brain works specifically so it serves you obediently daily! 🙂

Please send me any questions on saira@learntotrade.com.au

To your prosperity
Saira