What Military Rangers can Teach us about being a Successful Forex Trader

Whenever I hear the word “Ranger”, I remember a group of elite fighters, a well-trained military men designed to be deployed for a seemingly impossible missions. These men are not just ordinary soldiers, they were trained to survive in the jungle with no food rations, to fight within enemy’s territory, infiltrate without easily being detected that is why they have been tagged as “Black Panthers”; and lastly, the best snipers are among the scout rangers. Snipers are the most disciplined, patient and determined unit in the military so to speak. When I was in the military, we were given a chance to train with the rangers; and indeed, they have extraordinary military skills, discipline, patience and most of all survival perseverance. They take the risk because they know their edge, their skills back up their confidence to win the war. ​ Why Trade the Rangers Way?

One quote that I cannot forget when I was in the military is that: “The more you sweat in the training, the less you will bleed in the battle”. I would like to emphasize here that those elite men did not became that kind of soldiers overnight. They suffered in the training process, and they were tested to endure and act under pressure and in physical strength. These soldiers developed in them a “character”, "attitude" and "mindset" that made them survive in the training and become ready for the real fight. Forex Trading is not far from this set-up. Many people think that success in the markets comes overnight – I will break that mentality! So here are the characters that a Forex Trader needs to develop in relation to being a ranger:

• Risk-taker – Once a trader engages in the market, risk is present. Forex Trading is a business, not an employment. You can lose money in the markets, just like in a business, you can lose and you can win. Rangers know the risk they take before-hand, in fact in the training itself, they can lose their life. To those who are aspiring traders, this time I will really tell you, if you are afraid to lose money in the markets, this is not for you. Successful people, especially in the business world are risk takers; well they are masters of risk.

• Trainable/Coachable – In the military, there is a rule that says: “Obey first before you complain, or never complain at all”. Rangers devote their time in the training! They wake up 3:00 am to start their day, they increase their stamina, study the wars in history to learn from it, study successful generals and how they won the wars, and apply it in a war-game zone. In Forex Trading, an aspiring trader must never think that he or she will be a consistent profitable trader without undergoing a tough training first. Traders must study the fundamentals in the markets, study and admire great successful traders, know the in’s and out’s and must be have inculcated that to their subconscious mind. A trader must have a "good-learning attitude" and must have a regular routine of learning. Rangers are trained with repetitions, as repetitions are the best way to make a winning habit.

• Discipline – Once a ranger is in the war-zone or in an enemy’s territory, they have zero tolerance for making a single mistake. They apply superior discipline not to engage if it is not necessary so as not to compromise the mission. They send some troops for a “reconnaissance”, which means, studying the terrain first and knowing when an when not to engage. They stick to their tactical plan because they believe that following the plan is a matter of life and death. This is the core-value a trader must possess. It is very critical that a trader must not only make a trading plan but stick to it. Nobody can be responsible in your business but you. Just like a sniper, you don't have to pull the trigger unless the enemy stepped into your "killing-zone", as a sniper has a "one-shot-one-kill" rule. It takes a superb discipline and patience to be a successful sniper; so true as well for Forex traders. I will be writing a precise article of how snipers directly relate to Forex success and what specific instances that we need to apply snipers mindset in trading the markets.

• Expert Survivalist/ Resilient - A Ranger can survive in difficult terrains, or situations. That relates to minimalism, they can survive with just few very important tools like a knife. They do not carry a lot of things as it will hamper their mobility. Rangers are minimalists. Rangers never worry because they are confident in their skills of survival. They do not quit easily and trained to be resilient. In the markets, survival is very important and the skill we need to develop to stay in the market is "money-management" skill. Later on I will be discussing all about money-management in my next articles, all are simplified. Lots of traders do not survive and will quit later on because of poor money-management that leads them to over-trading and trading with big position sizes which is too much risky especially if it is done based on greed and not based on your pre-defined trading plan.

• Planner - Rangers never attack without a tactical plan. That is why this soldiers are trained in a very regimented way to stick to schedule and plans because it is a matter of life and death to them. Before they engage in war they already know where and when to pull-out, what time they should jump-off, and how long will the operation will take. Time is life for them. The reason why Forex fits for me because I was in almost the same training being a graduate of a military school. Having a plan in our trades will help us be more accountable and responsible in all actions we do. As a saying goes: "If you fail to plan, then you are planning to fail".

Conclusion

My aim as a trader is not only to succeed in trading but also to help others succeed. This blog uses the title "The Market Ranger" not only to enforce myself but also other traders, that they need to possess characteristics and core-values of military rangers in order to track a clear path to success. It does not matter what is our background, we all have the capacity to succeed in the markets by first conquering ourselves. As Rene Descartes said,"If you want to conquer the world, you must first conquer yourself". Let us all be market conquerors, if that will be the only way to gain time and financial freedom, then it is worth the risk to take than working for others and grinding in a 8-5 job routine. We can clearly conclude that success starts from growing ourselves first, our character and mindsets before results will appear. We should not focus on the results but on the process, because at the end of the day, our better us or better version of ourselves is the end-result of this life journey. Have an awesome trading journey!