Today we frequently hear stories about traders blowing out their entire accounts or about people who started with 100k only to have it near 20k within a very short period. Time and time again, when I talk to people about trading or my career, I often hear phrases like “It’s way too risky for me..” or “the market is scary right now, how’s it treating you?” Usually my response to that is “It’s not how the market is treating me, it’s how I’m treating the market.”

What most people and most traders have not realized is the importance of having a plan for trading. Having a plan means a lot of things. In fact, the people who are successful at other careers generally all started with a plan. Trading is like a business and it must be treated that way. When a person is seeking a loan for a business or seeking for help in starting a business, most of the time you’ll hear the opposite party say “Ok, let’s see your business plan” or “what do you have planned?” People want to know where you are headed. The same thing goes in trading. Why would you want to risk your hard earned money in the markets without knowing what could or couldn’t happen? The markets don’t care about you or your feelings. It will gladly take your money in the blink of an eye, so it is extremely important that you have a plan of action.

» Read more: The Worst Mistake Made by Traders