I Refuse to Participate

Why Your Media Consumption Matters in Trading

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A Positive Outlook

This takes us slightly off-piste, but I only write about things I think will help your trading. This will help your trading.

“Your input determines your outlook. Your outlook determines your output, and your output determines your future.” – Zig Ziglar

I’m curious, let’s see what the average person’s input looks like…

The BBC is a popular website in the UK, some stats I pulled.

Over 500m page visits per month.
Ranks as the 4th most visited website in the UK (after Google, YouTube and Facebook)
Weekly, via its world service it reaches 365 million people around the world

Staggering reach!

Now let’s take a look at the BBC news headlines today:

My 2 year old daughter given traumatic diagnosis
Rugby brain injury
Paltrow heard “Blood-curdling scream”
“We’re failing our children”
Germany sends tanks to Ukraine

All awful. No wonder 17% of the UK adult population is on antidepressants! Most people are waking up on autopilot and consuming content designed to make them feel sad, disgusted, and angry.

As peak performers in the markets, we must refuse to participate in this game.

We need every ounce of motivation, confidence, and positive energy we can muster. We cannot let that precious resource be drained by news events outside of our control. As Zig Ziglar says we need to take control of our input, which determines our output and ultimately our future.

Today, think about what content you are consuming.

Is it serving you?

Is it going to help nurture that confidence you need in the heat of the trading day when you are making quick risk-based decisions?

Try picking out the channels, podcasts, and websites that make you feel good and give you a positive vibe. Consider going on a news fast, but if you must participate, think about when you consume it and for how long. Be intentional, watch out for the habits. This may seem like nothing to do with trading, but it’s all linked.

Confidence and a positive outlook mean you are more likely to stick to your plan, hold your trades, and believe that things will turn out as you expect.

Trading is a tough game, why not give yourself every possible chance of success?

Impact of Negative News

Check out what the scientists have to say about the psychological impact of reading too much negative news.

“When you consume too much negative news with activities such as doomscrolling, your sympathetic nervous system causes your body to release stress hormones, including cortisol and adrenaline. This is your body’s natural response to a crisis.”