Trading in the Zone, by Mark Douglas, explains how to “Master the Market with Confidence, Discipline and a Winning Attitude.”
Sounds pretty good, right? Well, lucky for you I just finished reading Trading in the Zone so the content is very fresh in my mind. And I’m ready to share what I learned in this book review so you can decide if Trading in the Zone is the right stock trading book for you.
And although I’ve read a ton of stock trading and investment books, Trading in the Zone is very different from almost every single one of them.
So let’s cut to the chase, here is…
Why You Should Read Trading in the Zone:
Trading in the Zone was recommended by a commenter on another blog that I read, and since I was looking for a new book, I ordered it on Amazon immediately. And I didn’t know it then, but buying Trading in the Zone turned out to be one of the better decisions of all time. Here’s why I liked the book…
The first part of Trading in the Zone is all about the most common mistake that traders make. And you might not have guessed it, but all of these mistakes are internal. You make them in your head. It’s when you psych yourself out, or sell too early. Luckily it turns out we all have similar wiring. So the diagnosis seems to be pretty universal. But don’t just take my word for it.
In part two of Trading in the Zone, Douglas keeps moving forward in an easy to follow way. He provides a number of metaphors and analogies. Surprisingly, they turn the complex decision-making aspects of trading into easy to understand and simple to grasp concepts. I found this to be pretty instructive and helped me see my own trading in a better light. But Douglas doesn’t leave you hanging.
In the final part of Trading in the Zone, Douglas goes much deeper into his simple analogies and applies them directly to trading. He looks at a variety of different situations and bad mental habits, and how you can overcome them in your trading. And that leads me to the next thing I want to share with you…
The Best Part of Trading in the Zone:
Trading in the Zone was a great book throughout. While reading it, I took a lot of additional notes. I actually read it kind of slowly because there was so much great knowledge to absorb. But each sentence was just so profound. And that continued throughout the book until the very last chapter.
I think the best part of Trading in the Zone is the last chapter because it’s designed as a trading exercise that is 100% practical. I really didn’t expect this when I bought the book and I found it to be a pleasant surprise. While the theories discussed were interesting and robust on their own, the trading exercise at the end of the book is a really great prescription that anyone can use.
What Trading in the Zone Omits:
Trading in the Zone is a really great book. But there is one thing that Trading in the Zone leaves out. And I want to let you know, because buying a book for the wrong reasons is always a let down. So what does Trading in the Zone gloss over?
Basically, since the focus of Trading in the Zone is all about your internal trading decisions, you won’t find that it has any in-depth mention of specific stock trading techniques. The book is entirely focused on your own decision making and assumes that you have a simple stock trading plan that you use to get your trading edge.
Near the end of the book Douglas briefly glosses over a sample trading plan for illustrative purposes, but there is no degree of detail to it. Luckily, I already have a stock picking system so this wasn’t a big drawback for me. So let’s wrap this up, shall we?
Trading in the Zone – The Final Word
Trading in the Zone is a really interesting book, and in all of my investment readings, I’ve never found another book like it. It’s the only trading book focused solely on your internal mental state and really helped round out my knowledge of trading methodology.
So if you’re looking for a new book, I really recommend you buy Trading in the Zone on Amazon It’s pretty short and very easy to understand. Why not check it out?
Trading in the Zone Details and Video Book Review:
Author: Mark Douglas
Publisher: New York Institute of Finance
Pages: 216