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Entering the zone in sport refers to entering a state of altered consciousness and is often achieved by athletes when they are performing at there peak and the super traders are able to to this – this altered state is known as being in the zone so lets take a look at it in more detail.

Once many years ago I was working in a Forex brokerage and there was one trader, who simply made more money than anyone. He had an aura about him and saw him do one trade which was after an important news event. He went into total focus, looking at his screen and then, just bought huge amounts of Swiss Francs (a huge order) after it was done he calmly went out to lunch came back and banked, just under million dollars from the trade in a couple of hours.

The position was huge, the loss if it didn't go right was over a million but the guy was totally confident in his ability, did it under pressure remained calm and then made his reward. He had entered the zone which is a a level of performance which most people simply cannot get to – so what is the zone and how can

Definition of the Zone

The zone means you move into a different state of consciousness. When you are in the zone, your normal way of experiencing an event is completely altered. Many studies have been done in terms of sport about how a professional sportsman feels when he is in the zone and here are some common feelings:

What its Like to Enter the Zone

The person feels in complete control in terms of the situation they are in and have, complete confidence in their ability to achieve what they need to do. Furthermore, the person actually knows in their own mind what is going to happen, before it actually does. Time seems to pass more slowly and vision becomes sharper so concentration on the task is increased to total focus.

The task at hand, becomes automatic, effortless and there is no conscious effort, in the result being achieved - it just seems to happen. The performance achieved is better than the person feels and this builds confidence, that the person has even greater potential to achieve more. The zone is obviously a great place to be! It's an area of the mind and body being one and completing a task with no effort or thought needed.

You will see many sportsmen who achieve this level of focus and concentration. Such athletes as - Bjorn Borg in tennis, Sugar Ray Leonard in boxing, David Beckham in Football, and many others who are able to focus their concentration on the task they have to complete. They have mind and body in synch and perform under pressure.

Doing tasks when there is no pressure is a lot easier than doing them under pressure. We In practice an athlete might be able to score 5 out 5 penalty kicks at goal and score all of them – there is no pressure but when, there are 3 minutes to go in the Super Bowl and the kicker steps up to take the penalty, its a completely different feeling. He has the ability to kick the goal but can he control the way he is feeing and blank out the pressure from the crowd? The kicker will need to make mind and body one and enter the zone.

There has been a huge amount of research on the zone and its a fact that to perform at their highest external negative thought and conflicting messages received need to be ignored to help an athlete keep complete concentration. Thoughts associated with worry and anxiety, have a direct effect on heart rate, muscle tension, and respiration rate and these changes can effect the performance of the athlete. There is a lot of training done in sport on psychology of keeping the mind focused so the athlete can perform to the highest level with confidence, with no external distractions.

So what has all this got to do with Forex trading?

It's not a sport but the same principles that apply to performing at the peak in sport also, apply to trading currencies. You have to act in pressure situations and have confidence in what your doing and also focus without distractions on your trading plan to win.

Entering the Zone in Forex Trading

When you enter the zone trading should be effortless and should just flow – you don't need to think, your training tells you what to do and you just do it. There are no second thoughts, no hesitation in pulling the trigger on a trading signal, it just happens. The athlete who can take a penalty kick, in front of a 100,000 bay fans on how to do it is not listening to them. He is confident in what he is going to do and all outside influences are blocked out.

The great traders can do this and you will never find them, seeking advice on a trade or talking about it with others – they just do it, based upon their learning, view of the set up and only their opinion matters. They can look at the big picture, see the trade and execute it with no effort, no stress or doubts. Most Forex traders simply never get to this level and when there in the trade they are still nervous about it – put their stop back or cut their profits to early.

Trading is about you and no one else and this is what most traders fail to understand. They look for secrets, short cuts, continually seek help from others and doubt their ability. Its not trading itself which is difficult for them – its getting the right mindset. Consider the kicker of a penalty in football, the task is simple – kick it between the posts. It has to be done to win and no one can help the kicker do it but himself and it really is the same in Forex trading. Once you enter the zone you are on your own and while trading is easy, few can win at it due to the doubts in their mind.

Take the Simple Route

To enter the zone requires taking a simple route which is using a simple strategy you fully understand and have confidence in and then, you block out every other input which can distract you. If you do this, you will find trading becomes effortless and you trade with better focus and complete confidence which over the longer term you are going to win.

It might sound to simple but its not. If you try it, you will never consult anyone again in terms of your strategy, never look for short cuts or secrets and trade with less stress and less effort. In conclusion, you can cope with the zone when trading currencies and achieve long term Forex trading success. 

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