At some point, I stopped trading the market and started trading my ego.

I wouldn’t have said that out loud back then.

But looking back, it was obvious.

I wasn’t trading setups. I was trading to prove I was smart.

That I could bounce back.

That I was right and the market was wrong.

That I could silence the doubt in my own head, or someone else’s voice.

You can guess how that went.

Forced trades. Oversized positions. Revenge entries that made no sense.

All because I needed the win; not because the trade made sense.

When your identity gets tied to the outcome of one trade, you’re not a trader.

You’re just a gambler in denial.

This game doesn’t reward pride. It rewards process.

Now? I trade what’s there. Not what I wish was there.

I let the win or loss be what it is, data.

Not a statement about me.

The market doesn’t care what you’re trying to prove.

And the more you try to prove, the worse your decisions get.

So here’s a quiet reminder:

You don’t need to prove anything.

Just trade well.

— Gav, with coffee

Side note: If you’re working on detaching emotions from execution, check out my Back to Basics of Trading series — it’s built for that.