Napoleon said he always wanted to have lucky generals, and if traders could have luck on their side, that would be helpful more seriously in the absence of an abundance of good fortune, the best traders I have worked with had a combination of the following skills.
They remain objective, disciplined, and calm in a crisis.
This enables them to take advantage of stressed market conditions.
When bid offer spreads, widen and liquidity diminishes.
In this environment, the best traders can make a lot of money.
They have the ability to make money in all market conditions.
Most traders can make money in bull markets that are trending upwards in a fairly predictable manner.
What distinguishes a really good trader is whether he or she can make money in choppy or bear markets and be disciplined with their risk management.
A successful trader needs to be intellectually supple and have clarity of risk assessment.
As John Maynard Cain said, when the facts change, I change my view.
The best traders have a knack of reading a market.
Can you spot whether a market is overbought or oversold before anyone else? Did the price reaction to the latest economic data release make sense? Finally, the best traders know when it is not a good time to take too much risk and are prepared to sit on the sidelines.
Are you being paid enough to take the risk? Is the famous dictum of Warren Buffett relevant? Be greedy when others are fearful and fearful when others are greedy.
