Some of you might have heard of a great motivational speaker, a teacher, and a mentor, the late Mr. Zig Ziglar. I have heard about him before. I have read some of his popular motivational quotes but I never read his books….until now.
Born to Win is one of his many books. I believed these is his last book that he written with a co author son Tom Ziglar. What had interest me buying these book is the thought off or what I have been asking myself for years… for everything I do, the time that I spending on into learning something new, a career, or like trading… is it really worth it to devote all these energy and time doing it? I know I am not the only one who go through these thought process from time to time because we are only human. I am sure that everyone knows that if you put enough effort, hard work, the desire, and hope to win something that you want, you will get there. I also do believed that you can have it ALL however there will be times in our life time that you can have it all but not all at once…
I would like to share with you what this book is about and I will let you decide if you agree with it and hope that it will inspired and give you enough courage to keep moving forward like what I have been doing for myself and most importantly, having a simple way even though it is not as easy as it may seems to be on how to win it… Enjoy
[I]“You were born to win, but to be to the winner you were born to be, you have to plan to win and prepare to win. Then and only then you can expect to win.”[/I]
1.) Planning to Win
Planning has to be based on getting a clear [B]vision[/B] of what you want, because without a vision you don’t know which goals to set. Without [B]goals[/B] you have no targets, and without targets you have nothing to measure how you’re doing. Getting a clear vision for your future is also important because it plays a huge role in the creation of desire!
Desire is the “want to” and the motor that fuels and powers sustained success. Desire is the mother of motivation because that is where your motivation is born. Properly planning and preparing heightens your expectations, which fuels your desire and drives you to become even more motivated.
2.) Preparing to Win
Preparation is a matter of equipping yourself to win with the right tools, knowledge, and support it will take to turn your dreams into plans that will make your vision into reality.
Equipping and preparing yourself to win requires five things:
a.) You need the right knowledge to win.
b.) You must continually raise your personal performance bar.
c.) You must acquire tools that help you work better and faster.
d.) You have to practice your skills.
e.) You have to surround yourself with positive influences and people.
In summary, you have to train yourself to become a twenty-four-hour champion. Winning involves planning and preparing. Both are a constant improvement, never-ending process. When you stop planning and preparing… you stop winning. Twenty-four-hour champions continually equip themselves to win!
3.) Expecting to Win
The ultimate fruit of positive expectation is hope, and it is hope that pulls you forward in all you attempt to do. I’m always hopeful and I never worry. I can say that because I expect the best possible result in all that I do. I expect the best because I planned my success, prepared myself to execute my plans, and earned the right to expect the best.
~ Zig Ziglar
Now asked yourself these question, are you were Born to Win?
Introduction
Would you like to become a trader? At YourTradingCoach | Because You’d Rather Be Trading For A Living!, we don’t believe this is possible through just purchasing an ebook or completing a weekend seminar. The road to trading success is a long, hard, winding road, with many potholes, false turns and dead-ends. Sorry, but that’s a fact. There is no Holy-Grail trading solution.
Just as peak performance in sport requires years of exposure to the sport, trading success comes from years of exposure to the markets, allowing constant improvement in the trader’s ability to read changes in market sentiment and to react without fear.
Disciplined application of the following steps will get you off to a great start to becoming a trader. Please print it out and get started from step one immediately. And as you travel along this long journey to profitability, don’t forget to enjoy the process and marvel at the complexity of the challenge and the personal psychological insights that you WILL make along the way.
Cheers,
Checklist
No
Step
Tick when completed
1
Understand why you want to trade.

What do you want out of life?
How does trading fit into this life plan?
What are your beliefs about the markets?
What are your beliefs about your ability to trade the
markets?
2
Are you up to the task of becoming a trader?
What personal strengths will you bring to your trading?
What personal weaknesses will impact your efforts?
What is your attitude to risk?
How motivated are you to achieve success?
What are the consequences of failure, and are you
prepared to face this possibility?

3
Do you wish to trade part-time or full-time? Why?
If full-time, how do you plan to make the transition from working for a living to trading for a living?
When will you quit work?
Will you phase it out?
How will you support yourself or your family during
this period?
What is your fallback plan?

4
What timeframe do you wish to trade?
How much time do you have to devote to trading?
Would you prefer daytrading, swing trading or position
trading?

5
What are your goals from trading?
What return on investment are you seeking?
Daily, weekly, monthly or annual?
Why?
Consider whether that return is realistic?
Are you trading for cashflow or capital growth?
How long are you expecting it to take for you to learn to
trade and achieve this result?


6
Review your financial situation.
What initial capital will you have available to commence
your trading?
How much can you afford to spend on trading education?
How much are you willing to lose during the ‘learning’
period?

7
Review your current time schedule.
How much time can you commit to learning to trade? Produce a weekly planner to ensure that time is always
available.

8
Seek advice from a licensed financial adviser.
Discuss your desire to trade, and how it can best be safely
incorporated into your wider portfolio and wealth management strategy.

9
It’s time for a reality check.
Accept that approximately 95% of traders fail in their
ability to consistently profit from the markets.
Research the cause of trader failure.
Why do you believe that you can be a part of the 5%
consistently profitable traders?
Accept that trading success will most likely take longer
than you anticipate, and cost more than you expect. How
will that impact your plans?
Do you have realistic expectations with respect to the time
and effort required to learn to trade, and the returns that are possible from trading?

10
Confirm you have the full support of your family.
Discuss any concerns you may have, and your plans to
minimize any negative impact.
Discuss any concerns they may have about the impact on
relationships, or your financial future.

11
Trading Psychology.
Understand that you need to take personal responsibility
for your trading decisions, and ultimately for your trading
success or failure.
Understand that the nature of the markets is uncertainty.
Understand the probabilistic nature of the trading.


What market do you wish to trade?
Stocks, options, forex, futures, CFDs?
Research the above choices and choose the market that
you feel most comfortable with.
Understand why you want to trade this market.

13
Study your chosen market.
Understand the fundamental drivers of that market.
Is there sufficient liquidity in the market to allow ease of
entry and exit? If not, consider selecting another market.
Is there sufficient volatility in the market in order to
achieve your profit objectives within your chosen trading timeframe? If not, consider selecting another market or timeframe.
Define a broad strategic concept that could be applied to this market to produce profits, such as:
Capturing trends.
Capturing momentum swings.
Support or resistance.
Reversal from extremes.
Gap plays.
Volatility or time decay option strategies.
What capital is required for trading your chosen market & timeframe?
What margin do you require?
What is the minimum position size?
If you cannot afford this market, then either
Continue studying while saving more capital, or
Consider finding another more suitable market or timeframe that suits your available capital.
Understand the benefits and dangers of the leverage available in this market.

14
Study price movement.
Understand the movement of price from the perspective of
supply and demand imbalances.

15
What is your preferred analysis style?

Technical Analysis?
Fundamental Analysis?
Statistical Analysis?
A combination of the above methods?
Research all of the above methods and find the style that
you most relate to.
Study your chosen analysis style.
Become familiar with all analysis tools and choose those
that you most relate to.
For example, with technical analysis:
Do you prefer bar, candlestick or point & figure charts?
Will you use tools such as Level II, market profile or time of sales?
Do you prefer price action analysis or indicator based analysis?

17
Consider the need for personal coaching or mentoring.

Do you prefer live trading rooms?
Do you prefer after-market coaching?
Do you prefer one-on-one coaching?
Do you prefer a group or seminar setting? Do you prefer self-coaching?
18
Risk Management.
What is the maximum risk that you will allow per trade? What is the maximum portfolio heat that you will allow?

19
Money Management.
How will you determine position sizing?
When will you increase or decrease position size? What are your plans for profit reinvestment?
What are your plans for drawing capital?

20
Rewards Program.
All work and no play isn’t fun, so please implement a
rewards program.
How and when will you reward yourself for progress
towards becoming a trader?
How and when will you reward yourself for profitability?


21
Trading Psychology.

Understand the qualities of a successful trader.
Determine strategies to maximize these qualities within
yourself.
Understand the qualities of a losing trader
Determine strategies to limit the impact of these qualities
within yourself.
22
Study basic business skills, such as: Time Management.
Goal Setting.
Record Keeping.
Bookkeeping.

23
Business Management - Business Setup and Planning: Seek advice regarding appropriate strategies for:
Business structure.
Asset protection.
Tax minimization.

24
Business Management – Process:
Documented trading plan – use this checklist as a guide for
documenting your trading plan.
Documented procedural steps to ensure consistent
application of your trading plan.
Documented routine:
Pre-market routine.
During trading.
Post-market routine.
Documented record keeping and performance tracking process:
Trading Journals, equity curves and Profit & Loss statements.
Recording of personal trading performance and psychology.
Will you use a spreadsheet, paper, or portfolio management software?
Documented review process:
Daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, or annual
reviews.
Performance based review upon exceeding daily,
weekly or monthly drawdown.

25
Business Management – Personnel:

Consider the need for the following support personnel:
Broker.
Adviser.
Coach / Mentor.
Trading Partner.
Accountability Partner.
Accountant / Bookkeeper.
Will they be employed or outsourced?

26
Business Management – Resources:
Ensure appropriate office space for trading
Home office or dedicated trading office?
Desk.
Comfortable chair.
Suitable lighting.
Minimal distractions.
Ensure appropriate hardware for implementation of your
trading plan:
Computer system.
Internet Service Provider.
Telephone system.
Ensure appropriate software for implementation of your trading plan:
Charting application.
Data provider.
Scanning software.
Research tools.
Testing software.
Trading journals (may be soft copy or hard copy).
Portfolio Management.
Record Keeping / Bookkeeping.

27
Business Management - Contingency Planning:
Develop contingency plans for hardware failure.
Develop contingency plans for software failure:
Of particular importance is your ability to contact your broker and exit all positions if you lose access to your charting and order entry applications.
Develop contingency plans for additional income streams, if required.
Halt trading criteria:
During a trading session.
Drawdown limits – daily, weekly or total.

28
Personal Management:
What is your plan to ensure maintenance or improvement
of health? Establish plans for:
Physical health.
Fatigue management.
Time away from the markets.
What is your plan to ensure a healthy mindset? Establish plans for:
Relaxation
Visualization / Affirmations.


29
Learn how to use all your trading hardware and software

resources.
In particular, be familiar with all order types available.
Understand the advantages and disadvantages of each, and when to use each type of entry or exit order.
30
Do you prefer systems that are: Discretionary?
Rule based?
Why?

31
Define your trading strategy.
Will you develop your own, or purchase a system?
Understand why the chosen strategy works.
Does this strategy fit your beliefs for how and why the
market moves?
Does this strategy suit any time constraints you may have?
Asset allocation – what percentage of your total capital will
be applied to this strategy and/or market?
Can this strategy provide the rewards you are seeking?
Does this strategy provide a maximum drawdown that is
within your financial and psychological limits?
Document clear rules for:
Position sizing.
Risk control.
Trade setup.
Trade entry.
Trade management.
Trade exit.

32
Ensure your strategy has a proven edge.
Conduct back testing to ensure profitability, either by hand
if your system is discretionary based, or with appropriate
testing software if you system is rule based.
Conduct forward testing to ensure profitability, using a demo or simulation platform if available, otherwise via
paper-trading.
Ensure any testing was conducted exactly in accordance
with your trading plan, and over sufficient sample size to ensure valid results.


33
Are you ready for live trading?
Review the above steps and confirm all actions have been
carried out.
Is your trading plan documented?
Is your trading routine and process documented?
Why do you believe you are ready?
What is your edge in the market?

34
Commence trading with the smallest possible position size.
Your goal is to consistently execute quality trades in
accordance with your plan, not to make money.
Remember, success comes from the disciplined and
consistent application of a positive expectance trading strategy, with proper application of risk management, money management, business management, personal development and trading psychology.
Success comes from continued exposure to the markets and developing an intuitive feel for market sentiment.
Success comes from unlearning the fear based decision making processes that were developed through your pre- trading life. As you continue to act in accordance with your trading plan, and eventually realize that the market cannot hurt you, your confidence will naturally build. You will learn to react to your system instinctively, without fear.

35
Ensure ongoing performance tracking and review.
Document all trades in your trading journal.
Document your personal performance in your trading
journal.
Conduct regular reviews of your strategy and yourself, to
identify areas of strength and weakness.

36
Achieve consistency in implementing your trading plan
Ensuring you NEVER allow your risk to exceed pre-planned
limits.

37
Achieve breakeven consistency.
Reward yourself – breakeven is an excellent result.

38
Increase position size gradually.

Prove consistent success at each level, in application of the trading plan and profitability, before any further increase in position size.
Gradually increase up to the maximum risk allowable for your capital base.

39
Continue trading:
Your goal continues to be executing quality trades in
accordance with your plan, not to make money. Do this
and the money will follow.
Continue with your ongoing performance tracking and
review process. Never stop learning.
Commit to ongoing education and constant improvement.

[B]40 Well done – you’re a trader![/B]


“You were born to win, but to be to the winner you were born to be, you have to plan to win and prepare to win. Then and only then you can expect to win.’’
[/B]
+1. I met him at an insurance meeting in the early 80’s and during the break I asked him to give me the first thought that popped in his mind when I asked tell me one thing to help me be successful. He said “Plan to win; Prepare to Win; Expect to win.” then he said "Son, people will either help you get closer to your goals, or further away from your goals: so plan, prepare and expect. I had most of his books and tapes,
@ Huck - Yes, definitely. You can apply that for anything not just in trading. Trading is just a fraction of what we do everyday and what challenges we’ve face in our daily life. Yes, I agree… it is time to win!
@ gp00053 - Wow, that’s awesome! I am glad you’ve got a chance to meet him. Good for you…
“Success and Happiness are not matters of chance but CHOICE. The foundation stones provide the basis for making the right choices.”
“You don’t have to be great to get started, but you do have to start to be great.” This means you have to BE before you can DO, and DO before you can HAVE…
“Winnings isn’t everything but wanting to win is.” The simple truth is that you have to want to do something badly enough before you have the slightest chance of doing it! If you don’t want it badly enough, I absolutely guarantee that you will not be willing to do the planning and preparing it takes to get it.
There are six characteristics that comprise the foundation stones of your life and your success. The [B]six[/B] characteristics are honesty, character, faith, integrity, love, and loyalty. All of these foundation stones are necessary to create a Wheel of Life that is balanced and will produce the kind of success…
“Watch your thoughts; they become words. Watch your words; they become actions. Watch your actions; they become habits. Watch your habits; they become character. Watch your character; for it become your destiny!”
" It is better to set goals and have direction than to not have goals and wander around in confusion."
“You have to have a plan, and you have to execute that plan consistently - even when you don’t feel like it. Vince Lombardi said that - winning is not a [B]sometime thing[/B]… its an [B]all the time thing[/B].”
…and this one is soooo true!! " Most people have mediocre expectations for themselves, and they come by it naturally. Their experience has conditioned them to believe mediocrity is about as good as it gets, so their expectations match their experience"…
“…our experience contributes to possibly limiting what we think we can do or are willing to do. The way to correct this thinking is to realize that the mistakes we made in our past are actually assets that we can use for our benefit today”
and
“If you believe as I do that you were born to win, you’re going to have to find your fears and start facing them. Face them over and over again until you have [B]nothing to fear but fear itself[/B]”
To those who have been procrastinating about setting their goals… read up! and maybe, just maybe and possibly will change your mind…
[B]Six Reasons to Set Goals[/B]
1.) Goals bring the future into the present, and the present is the only time we can take action.
Setting goals makes it possible to do something today to create the future you want.
2.) If you don’t plan your time, someone else will help you waste it.
3.) People get twice as much done on the day before they go on vacation, because they plan (set goals) and prioritize what they intend to do. Thought: if you lived every day like it was the day before vacation, how much would you be able to increase the productivity of your life?
4.) Goal setters make more money than people who don’t set goals. There was a study conducted by UCLA in 1992, on goal setting. The people with a balanced goals program earned an average of $7,411 per month. In 2011, those numbers showed earnings of $11,632.73 per month. To those individuals without a goals program earned an average of $3,397 per month, or $5,332.13 in 2011 dollars and cents. That’s over $6,000 more a month! Those with goals programs were also happier and healthier and got along better with folks at home.
5.) Goals keep you focused on the things that really matter and help you avoid wasting time on things that are unproductive. Focus helps you change from being a “wandering generality” to being a “meaningful specific.”
6.) Setting goals gives direction and purpose to all that you do. Goals are the links in the chain that [B]connect activity to accomplishment[/B].
Bored at the moment. Here I’ll share more phrases that I highlighted from the book…
“…I believe you have the potential to do and accomplish far more than you believe you are capable of doing and accomplishing! I believe that because history is filled with stories of men and women who have done just that. If you study the lives of great people, you usually discover they came from [B]average families, living average lives, doing very average things.[/B] Then, these people have some kind of experience or encounter a turning point that puts them in position to do more than they could even conceive. Or possibly they became [B]sick and tired of living the way they were living[/B] and finally said, “Enough is enough!” In every instance they responsed to the experience or opportunity and accepted the challenge to grow.”
One of the main reasons people fail to reach their full potential is because they are unwilling to risk anything. They are fearful of losing, failing, or getting hurt and just want to do the things they believe will keep them safe.
To discover your purpose and act on it, you will have to take risks. Taking a risk is not a problem- it is the tendency we may have to make bad choices. I am sure you have known many people who make the same bad choices over and over again. They almost seem to be in a never ending downward spiral of bad decision-making. As a result, their lives are a mess. When we make [B]poor choices[/B], our circumstances become worse, our choices become more limited. The way to correct this thinking is to realize that the mistakes we made in our past are actually assets that we can use for our benefit today. As our choices become more limited, the likelihood of making more bad choices is inevitable…
