Trading in financial markets entails using your money to invest in tradable securities, and as part of any usual market activity, prices go up and down, and so do your investments and emotions.

"Ability is what you're capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it." - Lou Holtz

The dynamic nature of the financial markets does not guarantee that all traders will come out victorious. The principles of demand and supply cause the markets to fluctuate, which results in some traders losing the value of their investments, while others win big. This can be demotivating sometimes, especially if you have a few losses in a row.

However, we have mentioned that the markets are dynamic, and a trader’s position in the market does not remain in the same place. Depending on the market cycle, a losing trading position can always hit an upwards trend and a winning one can turn into a loss.

Some traders enter the market at the wrong point of the cycle, lose some money, and as a result, lose the motivation to trade. When a trader deposits money into a brokerage account and tries to open a market position only to find that their market opening is declining or one of their open positions starts losing value, the urge to quit and give up on the whole idea might seem like a viable solution.

In addition to that, people get easily influenced by others, especially when they hear about making quick money and gaining huge amounts in a few days. They become motivated to start trading with high expectations, and once they are faced with the reality of financial trading, they get frustrated.

All these factors can play a part in people losing the motivation to trade.

Remember that successful traders do not try their luck only once. If you want to succeed in online trading, you need to overcome any demotivation in trading that you might face. The following tips will help you to stay focused and keep your motivation levels high:

Do not compare yourself to others

One of the most common mistakes new traders make is comparing themselves to others, especially trading gurus. It is totally fine to be inspired by pioneer Forex and trading leaders, however, the best practice is to hear their stories, learn from their mistakes, and avoid making the same mistakes.

In fact, it is great that you can hear the stories of others and set a plan in place to avoid falling into the same errors that they did, but even if you do this, it should not affect your motivation to trade. Remember, you have different circumstances and different trading conditions than theirs, meaning that your path will be different than theirs.

There is no rule of thumb when it comes to trading. Everyone succeeds in their own way and under different circumstances. 

Actually, when you compare yourself with others, you are not only demotivating yourself, but you are discrediting your own experience and achievements in trading. Think about it, you have made it to online trading, made mistakes, and perhaps even made some good decisions, but all of this was done by you, not by someone else. So take a step back, look at your own journey and then figure out a way to turn it into a success story that will make others jealous.

Motivation vs discipline

To keep yourself in a good trading spirit, you need to learn what motivation and discipline are in financial trading. It is also important to know the difference between them because this is a pitfall for many new traders.

Novice traders rely on motivation to trade, which is one of the reasons why many of them leave trading very soon after starting. Motivation is just a short-term thing that pushes you to start something. When reality does not match your expectations, you are more likely to get demotivated.

Therefore, you need to have a long-term commitment to trading in order to become successful. Use discipline rather than relying on motivation. Discipline is a dedication to a certain activity taking into consideration the changing nature of markets and securities. 

When you understand and accept that things will fluctuate up and down, but you decide to remain focused on trading anyways, then you are more likely to have long-term gains.

In addition to that, when you make mistakes and some of your market positions go wrong, discipline means that you are not going to get frustrated and quit, but rather, you continue trading consistently to become a successful trader.

Set reasonable goals

One of the main reasons people start and leave trading so frequently just after sitting is that they have some imaginary view of what trading really is. Many new traders are lured in by so-called influencers who spread false information about the nature of trading. These self-proclaimed gurus focus all their energy on promoting how much money you can make without ever showing the reality of how much time and effort it takes to become a successful trader.

New traders look up to these people, become motivated, and set high expectations from the get-go; expecting huge gains from the very first week, while in reality, it is not that easy.

Rather, traders need to set reasonable expectations for trading, taking things step by step and realizing that this is a skill that will take time and dedication to get better at. While it is good to try and keep yourself motivated with lofty goals and dreams of becoming a brilliant trader one day, your expectations, in the beginning, should be small and reasonable. 

It is very common to take 6-12 months until you become confident in trading and start seeing consistency in your trading gains. Only then, you may expect some stream of revenue depending on how much and where you are going to invest.

Focus on learning

When you make a mistake, quitting seems to be the only way out to save yourself and your money. However, if this was the way, there wouldn’t be any successful investors today.

Making mistakes is very common and actually, it is a very important part of your journey to success. Successful traders learn how to turn their mistakes into motivation for trading successfully.

After a failing market position, it is crucial to reflect on what happened, you need to analyze what decision you made and under what circumstances, in order to avoid falling into the same mistake the next time.

However, even after you learn from your mistakes, you might land another unsuccessful trading position. This should not discourage you, because this time it is another mistake under different conditions and using a different strategy, which is how we learn to spot the right opportunities in the market.

Successful traders who have the discipline for online trading learn from their mistakes, take a breath, then trade again according to the new market opportunities. 

Refrain from revenge trading, which is when you lose some money and then feel tempted to come back with another trade right away to compensate for your losses. Such decisions are driven by emotions, mostly anger since you have lost money. Avoid taking any trading decision that is not based on analysis and logic. You should not expect any returns from taking such decisions.

Take a break every now and then

Trading can get overwhelming at times. You are dealing with financial markets where millions of traders are participating, and trillions of dollars are poured into these markets all day long. Add to that the pressure of having to make timely decisions, analyze and learn how to invest your money the right way, and eventually all that might wear you out.

It is totally okay to take some rest, walk away from the trading screens for a week or more, rest and recharge. This way you keep your motivation high for trading and when you come back after your rest, you'll be ready to take the bull markets by the horns.

When you are taking a break, you are most likely reading some financial news since you developed this interest, you might have some plans drafted in your mind, and now you are excited to come back with a new trading approach. Often times our minds manage to fit some ideas together while relaxing, so don't be scared to take a break.

Celebrate victories

If your team at work reaches its goals and hit the targets it set out to accomplish, you are more likely to celebrate these achievements, so there is no reason for you not to celebrate your own achievements. Celebrate your victories and treat yourself with something that you like, this way you keep your motivation for online trading alive.

After a successful trading session, you can reward yourself by watching a movie, playing a video game, eating ice cream, or doing something that you like. This will keep you disciplined and excited about the next trading session. 

This way you are highlighting the good moments in trading, whether you gained a significant amount or not, these moments will stick more in your mind over time.

"Desire is the key to motivation, but it's determination and commitment to an unrelenting pursuit of your goal - a commitment to excellence - that will enable you to attain the success you seek." - Mario Andretti

• Successful traders understand the risks associated with trading, and they stick to their commitment, rather than quitting after the first loss
• Use discipline more than motivation to keep yourself committed. Don’t rely on motivation or inspiration alone. Rather make it a daily routine and stick to it
• It’s important to avoid comparing yourself with others. Keep yourself away from being influenced by anything that you hear. Remember that if it’s not based on logic and analysis it's not real
• Avoid emotional trading. Only take decisions that are logical and rational. Don’t make emotionally-driven decisions, such as revenge trading, which can only worsen your trading equity
• Don’t get overwhelmed by trading and everything associated with it. Treat yourself after a successful trade, and take a break whenever you need to