Listening in....

Excerpts from Dr. Tharp's Discussion Forum.


Meditation
Author: Gsurowiec Date: 12-05-02 15:07

Hi Van, I listened to and read about you and other people in your org talk about meditating. Where does one start to learn how to do this? I just read the article from Marjory and when I tried meditating on my own this is exactly what happens to me. My mind runs 100 miles an hour about everything and nothing. Do you have any tapes that teach this?
Thanks,
----
Author: Van Tharp Date: 12-07-02 18:20

The easiest meditation is to watch your breath. That's all you do and you commit to doing it for 20 minutes.

Three things can happen. First, you get distracted. That's okay, but when you notice it go back to watching your breath. When this happens you have a lot of chatter and you need to let it go.

Second, you might fall asleep. Good you were tired and needed the nap.

Third, you might get to the space between your thought. This is a wonderful place where you might get all sorts of insights (or they might come later).

Those are the only three things that can happen and all of them are useful.

Enjoy, Van
----
Author: DJR Date: 12-08-02 18:38

Just a hint that I picked up from a book "7 ways to calm" or something like that.

Anyway, in the book she says see your "thoughts", the chatter, similar to emails arriving in your inbox. whenever you get an email/thought, you have choices.

1.Hit the delete button because its junk email - "thank you for arriving, now please leave"

2.File it because it needs to be dealt with but not now, "later" - "thank you for the reminder, I'm focusing now and will get back to that later"

3.Deal with it immediately if the matter is an emergency - "Thanks - I'll deal with that immediately"

I have found this very effective. it's amazing how you can stay focused and, remember, your effectiveness improves with practice.

Good luck

Read the full, unedited thread by clicking here

Trading Tips:

Peak Performance Trading Tips from Dr. Van K. Tharp.

This section features Peak Performance Trading Tips. These won't be tips on some hot new investment. Instead, they'll be tips on how you get yourself in the best possible condition mentally to perform at a peak level. You may have heard some of them in one form or another before, but you can never apply them enough. As a result, these tips should become second nature to you.

Tip# 44
Steps To Knowing Yourself

Part One

Knowing oneself is a very soul-searching and life-long mission. However, along the way it is an important element in so many of life's endeavors... particularly in trading and wealth building. In this tip I will list the questions that you need to ask yourself and spend some time answering. These are listed in no particular order. Since my peak performance course is so geared toward this process you'll notice many references to it.

1) Who am I at this point in time?

This is almost a summary statement based upon your response to all of the other questions.

2) What are my strengths and what kind of trading is right for me given those strengths? What fits me?

If you ask people around you for a list of your strengths, you should get a pretty good idea what they are. They are the tasks they allow you to perform well when you undertake any sort of project.

3) What are my values? What's important to me?

The answer to this question comes from the Value Elicitation exercise in Volume Three of the home study course. This is the exercise that probably takes you several days to do (if you do it right). And it is also the exercise that most people want to skip.

4) What are my weaknesses and issues? How can I design my trading in such a way so that it minimizes those weaknesses and issues?

Once you've completed the entire home study course, you should ask yourself "what are my weaknesses." "What are the common patterns that rule my life and seem to hold me back." If you've done the entire course and really thought about yourself, you should begin to understand some of these issues and patterns.

I also recommend that you do an emotional diary in several places in the course. When you have about three months of such a diary, in which you've made a note of all of your emotional responses and the conditions in which they occur, review this diary and you'll have a good idea about your issues and weaknesses.

I also strongly recommend the book, Marriage of Spirit, by Leslie Temple-Thurston, for clearing work. In this book you are asked to do regular journaling-say two pages per day. You'll also be doing exercises with polarities, triangles, and squares. If you continue this process for at least six months, you'll have some excellent insight into your issues and you may even solve a number of them.

5) What are my hot buttons? What might happen in the market that might cause me to become emotional?

This question is similar to number four and requires the same steps that I recommend for item four.

Ultimately I recommend you attend the Peak Performance Trading Course. In that course, we'll do everything possible to help you become more aware of your hot buttons and issues.

Spend this next week answering the above questions. Take some time on it. Even those of you who don't have the peak performance materials should attempt answering these questions. Next week I will give you points 6-11 to work with.

Tip# 45
Steps To Knowing Yourself

Part Two

In Part One of this tip last week, we started the process of getting to know yourself. To recap, knowing oneself is a very soul-searching and life-long mission. However, along the way it is an important element in so many of life's endeavors...particularly in trading and wealth building. In this tip I will continue to list the questions that you need to ask yourself and spend some time answering. Did you answer the 5 questions from last week? What came up for you?

These are listed in no particular order. For those who don't have my peak performance course I recommend that you still work on these questions to the best of your ability. We will continue here with points 6-11. If you missed last week's email, click here to read part one.

6) What are my goals? What do I want to accomplish personally and how does this fit into trading?

Goals are discussed in some detail in almost every volume of the Peak Performance Course for Traders and Investors. Do all of the goal related exercises and when you are finished, you should have no problems addressing this issue.

7) Where am I now? What do I want? What are the environmental constraints that could affect my trading and how I trade?

You need to make a detailed list of all of the equipment you'll need and conditions under which you desire to trade. When you have this list, notice how your issues and hot buttons might be related to each item you bring up. This will at least give you a preliminary start toward answering this question.

8) Who are my parts and what parts most affect me when I invest or trade?

Parts are covered in Volume Three of the Home Study Course. Study that volume thoroughly and do all of the exercises related to parts. Have a "parts party" and notice all of the issues that seem to rip you into pieces or parts. Also notice the issues in your journal in which you seem quite divided. Those could easily represent your parts.

We also help you extensively with parts in the Peak Performance Trading Course. Come to that and thoroughly participate in the parts exercise.

9) How do I think? What modalities do I primarily use? What sub-modalities are critical for making decisions? How do I make decisions and is this strategy appropriate for me as a trader?

Your critical modalities and sub-modalities are covered extensively in Volume Five of the home study course. Learn this material. Especially work on the exercises related to decision making.

In addition, when you do the exercises in Volume Four, notice the sub-modalities involved in the discipline strategies that work best for you. What does that tell you about yourself?

10) How good am I with personal discipline? What strategies for changing my state work best for me? Am I willing to practice them?

For this question, you should study Volume Two of the course in detail. How are you with respect to stress and stress protection? If the scores suggest that you need work, then put a program into play that will make a difference for you.

If you have trouble following such a program, then determine why. What part of you gets in the way or what emotional state prevents you from doing well?

Next do the discipline exercises in Volume Four of the Peak Performance Home Study Course. Determine which exercises for changing your mental state work well for you and use those methods. In addition, we also cover this material in the Peak Performance Workshop. Again, notice which methods work best for you. Use the methods that work well regularly. In addition, learn to become proficient at those methods that initially do not work well. Learn to apply those methods.

11) What might stop me from following the ten tasks of trading on a regular basis? Am I organized enough to do so immediately?

The ten tasks of trading are the essence of my model for excellence, so study them well (i.e., Volume One). Once you know that material, set up a daily schedule to follow the ten tasks. When you have problems, determine why.

If addition, go through all of the material that you have studied so far in your self-awareness work. Think about how each issue might cause you not to follow the ten tasks of trading.