A professor walked in on the last day of class before gradua...

A professor walked in on the last day of class before graduation to teach a final lesson. He asked, "How heavy is this glass of water I am holding?"  The class shouted out answers ranging from ounces to pounds. Then the professor said, "From my perspective it is all about how long I hold it.  Hold it for a few seconds, and it is easy, hold for an hour and it is quite heavy, hold it all day and my arm cramps and becomes paralyzed and I drop it."

Now he had the classes' attention.  The professor finished, "“Your worries, fears, and stressful thoughts are like this glass of water.  Think about them for a bit and nothing drastic happens.  Think about them a bit longer and you begin to feel noticeable pain.  Think about them all day long, and you will feel completely numb and paralyzed, incapable of doing anything else until you drop them.”

How often we trade and invest based on our emotions. We do it all the time though we are told again and again not to. It is so hard to separate emotion from trading, and yet, it will get the better of us more often than not.  We won't win 100% of the time in the market, but if we become paralyzed with fear and our failures, we have no chance at success.

Save emotion for your family, your friends and your favorite NFL team.  In the market, no one can be a master of their stocks if he or she is not a master of themselves.