Your Trader Personality Type

One's Trader Type is a set of character traits that do not change much over time. Like DNA, character traits influence how we live.... and how we trade. Your Trader Type is also associated with a specific set of strengths and weaknesses. You may already be aware of these positive and negative factors in your trading, but you may not have realized that they correspond to a type.

In other words, there are thousands of traders out there with the same or similar profile, facing the same issues that you are. Additionally, your trading buddies and mentors are likely to be of a different type. What works for them is probably not going to work for you. Once you realize this, you can approach your own development as a trader with more clarity and focus.

Type 3: THE ARTIST

Based on your answers to the Trader Personality Type questions, your Trader Type is 'The Artist.' This type has the following strengths and weaknesses, summarized here and then discussed below.

STRENGTHS

Highly creative and intuitive
Ability to adapt to changing conditions
Synthetic thinkers
Forward-looking
Excellent at pattern recognition
Market psychologists

WEAKNESSES

Difficulty planning and following rules
Overly engaged with the market
Too emotional
Low tolerance for stress and losses
Poor sense of timing
Fear of missing out
Over-reliance on mind-reading (missing the obvious)

DISCUSSION

Artist Traders are fascinated by the market because the complex, ever-changing panoply stimulates them, both intellectually and emotionally. Artist Traders are excellent students of the market and work hard to understand the intricacies of its behavior and motivation. They are particularly skilled at identifying patterns. They are also highly intuitive individuals, who often seem to be able to sense what is going to happen next.

In contrast to the pragmatists, Artists are possibility people, which means they are never satisfied. They constantly explore (and collect) new trading ideas, systems, methods and/or indicators. Often, an Artist Trader will have a goal to create a hybrid system
consisting of elements gleaned from their explorations and experiments... a grand synthesis. Indeed, in their unending quest for knowledge and mastery, Artists often feel like they are "on the verge of greatness."

For Artists, however, trading rules are always provisional. It is less important for them to follow their rules than to achieve a sense of attunement with the market in the here and now. The market is always changing and Artist Traders want to go with the flow.

PSYCHOLOGICAL CHALLENGES

Artist Traders often know where the market is headed, it can be difficult for them to actually capitalize on their foresight. Artist Traders have a tendency to mind-read the market rather than trade what they see. This can result in missing the obvious.

When they take action, it can be early or late because their thinking process is largely non linear. As a result, Artist Traders tend to be driven by the fear of missing out.

Artist Traders over-rely on creativity, which can lead them to constantly change their trading system. Consequently, they will often find themselves using a system they have not yet mastered. Opportunities, therefore, will slip through their fingers.

In an effort to understand the market better, Artist Traders tend to get over-involved with the micro-movements and nuances of price action. This can tire them out and stress them out. Unfortunately, their stress tolerance is usually low and their emotionality is high. That can be a dangerous combination.

Next Steps