Brad wrote me today and said:
The other piece to it is that you tend to emphasize that you should wait for the better trades instead of over-trading. That's directly applicable to poker because if you're trying to have a $500+ day you need to play more marginal hands (suited hands trying to build and win a big pot with a flush, etc). If you're just going for $200 you just wait for the premium ones, get in, win a $100 pot instead of a $400 one, etc.
What Brad is saying is that when he reduced his expectations for what he had to win in poker, he actually played better. When he realized that he could wait for the best hands and play those ones intelligently, that he did better (bluffing not covered here). I love the analogy. It's true that as a trader you can gain a lot of ground right now by doing some of the following:
1. Reduce your expectation for what you have to make on every trade;
2. Reduce your expectation for how many trades you need to take every day/week;
3. Concentrate your efforts on waiting for the best trades, and avoid the second-rate tempting ones;
4. Risk less per trade and survive longer.
Thanks to Brad for allowing me to share this with everyone.
