# Caught an Old Friend Yesterday

I ran into an old friend yesterday and he said he'd finally figured something out.

I asked what he figured out. He said he used to stare at the charts every day from 8 AM to 3 AM, his eyes were nearly ruined, and his account was still losing money. Later he got into a relationship and didn't have time to watch the charts. He opened the app less than five times a month, and actually made money instead. $BTC

I laughed when I heard that. This sounds like a joke, but it's actually the truth.

Watching the charts is the easiest way to make mistakes. Every tick on the screen makes your heart skip. When it goes up, you want to chase. When it drops, you want to cut losses. When it's sideways, you want to lay in wait. Your perfectly good plan changes shape the more you stare at it. Those who chase highs and get trapped, those who try to buy the dip at the halfway point, those who sell right before it shoots up—nine times out of ten, these mistakes come from watching too much. $ETH

Someone asked what to do if you're not watching the charts.

Watch yourself.

When do you get itchy hands? When do you panic easily? When do you hit confirm on a trade you shouldn't have made? You can't spot these habits while watching charts all day. You only see them during reviews.

I have a habit of printing out my trading records every week and circling emotional trades with a red pen. After doing this enough times, you realize the losses have nothing to do with technical skills—it's entirely that you can't control yourself. Your eyes burn with envy when others make money, you panic when you lose money, you act impulsively when the market moves. $BNB

Later I came up with a solution: before placing a trade, stand up and walk in a circle first. If I still want to enter after the walk, then I do. That walk stops about half the trades I shouldn't make.

The market is always open, there are always opportunities to make money. But you only have one mind—lose it a few times and you're done.

People who watch charts don't make money. People who control themselves do.

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