I read today about Mikhail Botvinnik, the 5th world champion of chess, and one of the greatest players of all time (although not considered the greatest). This part of what I read struck me as very applicable to traders:
Botvinnik's consistency is something which all chessplayers desire, although not all chessplayers are as disciplined as Botvinnik in their search for this consistency. Most players' superstition, arguably, comes about due to the yearning for consistency: A player might happen to play a good game, after which he sticks to using the same pen until a painful loss occurs.
You can find the full text where I read the above by clicking here.
That is fantastic advice for traders. So many traders switch trading systems on a whim, or just because they experienced a recent loss (especially when they never tested their performance in the first place).
I'll have more to say about this later. We've just scratched the surface on the subject of routine.
