A lot of people think of the glitz and glamour that comes with trading.

-Working from home

-Making your own schedule

I could go on but you get the gist.

But what separates a casual trader from a full-time trader?

After decades of combined experience, here are some of the rare habits I see the most successful traders implementing that most casual traders don’t.

Track your discipline

This will keep you accountable.

The only way to level up your performance is to become entirely focused on discipline.

Meaning, if you’re using a system, abide by all parameters and don’t take any boredom trades.

Or, if you have position sizing issues, focus on becoming disciplined in sizing.

Learning to become disciplined in all aspects of life will make this transition to trading easier.

Whether that’s being disciplined in eating healthy, exercising, or making time with your family, learn to become disciplined in all facets of your life and trading will follow.

Be Specific With Your Setup

Trading a system, focus on only one to two systems.

If your system has frequent enough signals, one to two systems will be more than plenty of trades to increase your bottom line.

Don’t take trades on a whim and don’t change systems if you’re system has been historically profitable.

You should have confidence in your system, even through the drawdowns.

Don’t let the new shiny strategy deter you from hitting your goals.

Don’t check the market every second

Let’s make sure we understand that the market is not our casino.

There shouldn’t be a desire to check the market every second looking for constant action.

Learn to take time away to stay refreshed.

Avoid overtrading by setting alerts on your platform.

Meditation

Some of the best traders I’ve come across practice daily meditation.

Meditation has many benefits but limiting stress and anxiety are some of the key takeaways that can be used directly in trading.

Meditation is used in a lot of prop trading firms where their bottom line is how they’re paid.

If the best are doing it, it’s worth giving it a shot.

Exercising

The type of exercise isn’t important here.

Exercising alone can build confidence in yourself and can spill over into your trading confidence.

Let’s face it, we sit too much in the world today…

Take care of your body.

Journaling

Journaling has been the most impactful to me in my trading endeavors and I can’t recommend it enough.

If you don’t want to write, then video diaries are a great alternative.

Every night, I screen-record my charts and dive into what I did well, where I struggled, and give myself a grade at the end of the day.

This will help you find repeated bad habits and force yourself to recognize and acknowledge your own faults.

At the same time, journaling can reinforce good behaviors in the market.