As traders we often look at the relationship between the movement in one index versus another. We use divergences in expected relationships between the price in futures markets and the cash market prices or between volume and price spikes. We do this in order to gain insight into what the changing relationship may be portending for the movement of the price in the next minute, hour or day. We all understand that it is the nature of the reciprocal action that tells us something about the probability of what happens next - the piece of info we need to take money from the price movement.

Did you ever stop to think that there is another even more important relationship than index to index or stock to index or price to volume? If so, what could it be?

The single most important relationship in trading is the oscillation between a trader's psyche and the price movement. This relationship is for all practical psychological purposes the same as a challenging relationship with a spouse or parent.

Prices represent a person whose opinion matters to you - even if that person only tends to irritate you or in some other way, induce you to feel "bad."

If you really want to get beyond the urge to impulse trade, then delve into figuring out whose voice the prices have adapted. Figure out who you are unconsciously arguing with when you fight a trend and who you are unknowingly actually shouting out when you find yourself in a mind-boggling mess of out-of-control trading.

Traders always ask themselves, "what was I thinking?" You weren't. You were feeling - feeling as if the prices are the same old dead-lock with your spouse, brother, father, mother.... you just didn't know that was what was going on.

There is no other endeavor on the planet that has the ability to tap into these parts of our psyche like the tick-by-tick assault on our egos that price action can be.

Research has shown that those who understand what a feeling really is are much less controlled by it. In order to do that, anthropomorphize the markets - that means think of that price as a person and think what you want to say to that person.... that will begin to illuminate a path wherein you can figure out WHO you are really reacting to when one impulse trade turns into ten.

Then ask yourself, "what if I could stop myself after the first impulse trade?" What would my account look like if the first didn't turn into the second, third and fourth?

On the surface, it is the frustration or disappointment over the reality or the results of the first impulse trade that drive the second. The fuel for that fire, however, really lies in the transference of a relationship onto your interaction (relationship) with the price movement.