Professional traders make most of their money over short periods during the year. Figure out how to get in tune with the markets, understand what you are looking for and be in a position to "press it" when your opportunities arise. The first job therefore is managing risk... having self-control until your sweet spot comes around.

To emphasize this uncommon truth, let us share an invaluable quote from Warren Buffet:

"I could improve your ultimate financial welfare by giving you a ticket with only 20 slots in it so that you had 20 punches representing all the investments that you got to make in a lifetime. And once you'd punched through the card, you couldn't make any more investments at all."

Take this counterculture advice and envision its application, not in stock picking for the long term, but day trading in the short-to-near-term. What if you could only make 10 trades a month? Would you make them count? Would you hold out for the best opportunities to load up on? Would you be more likely to display consistency and measurability while entering and exiting the market?

The fact of the matter is that, with this methodology, you’ll be more likely to have confidence, resolve and patience with yourself and the market, allowing you to recognize a real opportunity when you see one. In this world of limited choices and limited human intelligence, it is imperative to restrict your trading decisions, not to profitable trades, but the MOST profitable trades possible using the smallest number of transactions. This methodology is not only helpful, it is absolutely necessary as a tool used to figure out why you make the decisions that you do.

Always remember that you can’t be everywhere all the time. Not even Warren Buffet makes claims to perfection. He simply recognizes his inherent human weaknesses and works with them instead of against them. The key is to stay objective, liquid and skeptical “until your sweet spot comes around.”

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