Trading the financial markets as a retail trader isn’t what most people think it is, IF finding a profitable trading strategy is your goal.
The vast majority of traders—97%—are like players in a game where they don’t understand the rules, nor do they have the right tools to win. They draw lines on charts, thinking they’ve captured the market’s moves, but all they’re doing is playing with shadows. Real trading isn’t about finding "perfect" support or resistance levels; it’s about understanding the forces that move those levels: supply, demand, and liquidity.
If you're here to learn something beyond the superficial, to understand what makes the 3% of consistently profitable traders different, then read on. I’m not going to talk about cute trading ideas or isolated indicators. I’m here to show you how trading is about understanding the dynamics that drive markets—and how you can learn to think, analyze, and respond like a professional.
The Real Market: Beyond Lines and Patterns
Most traders focus on noise. They think a line of support or resistance on their chart is what defines the market, but they’re missing the point. Support only exists because of demand; resistance only exists because of supply. When that balance shifts, those lines mean nothing. This is why resistance is irrelevant in a bull market and support is irrelevant in a bear market. Market prices move because of an imbalance between supply and demand, not because of lines drawn on a chart.
This brings us to the core elements of the market that truly matter: liquidity, volatility, momentum, volume, trend, and consolidation. Each of these tells a story, reflecting the deeper forces at play. But to see the story, you need to look beyond the surface, beyond simple setups and lines, and start interpreting the real language of the market—what I call markinese.
The Foundation of Our System: OSPIC
My approach to trading is called OSPIC: Observation, Simplicity, Patience, in Context. It’s designed to strip away distractions and zero in on what matters in the market. Here’s what each part means:
Observation: Observation is about seeing reality—not what you hope to see or what someone else told you to see. Observation requires discipline; it means learning to read supply, demand, and liquidity without projecting your own biases.
Simplicity: Trading is complex enough without adding unnecessary layers. Simplicity means reducing the noise to focus on core factors that impact price action, like volume, liquidity, and momentum. Simplicity cuts through distractions and gives clarity.
Patience: Most traders don’t understand the power of patience. They think they need to be in every move, every swing. But the truth is, the market is a constant flow of opportunity. Only those who can wait for the right setup—the setup that aligns with their criteria—can achieve consistent success.
In Context: Context isn’t just the broader market trend—it’s everything. It’s your trading plan, your emotional biases, your EQ (emotional intelligence), and how they all connect in every decision you make. Context allows you to respond rather than react to the market, keeping you steady when others are panicked.
OSPIC isn’t just a trading strategy; it’s a mindset that governs every part of the trading process, from opening a chart to managing trades and risk. It means approaching the market with the control and calm of a professional, never reacting impulsively, but always responding thoughtfully.
Learning to Speak "Markinese"
If you don’t speak the language of the markets, you’re going to misinterpret what you see.
Think of it like learning a new language: without fluency, all you’re seeing is noise. But once you learn to speak what we call "markinese", the language of the markets, everything starts to make sense.
Speaking "markinese" means understanding that every move in the market is part of a bigger picture. It’s recognizing when a price move is driven by real demand or just noise, knowing the difference between a genuine trend and a momentary reaction. When you can do this, you stop reacting emotionally to price action and start responding logically, with full context.
Why Most Traders Get Lost in Complexity
Most traders overcomplicate things. They layer on indicator after indicator, thinking more complexity will give them an edge, but it just adds confusion. They’re focused on superficial lines and isolated patterns, which don’t hold up in the real world.
The problem is, most of what’s taught in trading is noise—social media channels filled with lines and patterns, people redrawing support and resistance every time they’re wrong. Trading isn’t about redrawing lines; it’s about understanding the forces that make those lines relevant or irrelevant.
The 3% who succeed are those who’ve simplified the complexity, focusing on what truly matters. They’ve removed the distractions and honed in on the essentials: supply, demand, volume, and liquidity. When you understand these fundamentals, you can strip away the noise and focus on the real market.
The Power of OSPIC in Action
Imagine you’re analysing a chart. A novice might be overwhelmed, drawing lines, adding indicators, and looking for "the perfect setup."
But with OSPIC, you approach it differently.
1. Observation: You notice that volume is high and demand is strong, even though the price is in a consolidation phase.
2. Simplicity: Instead of cluttering the chart, you focus on the core elements that are driving this behavior—supply, demand, and momentum.
3. Patience: You wait. You know that only when supply breaks or demand strengthens further will the price move in a direction worth trading.
4. In Context: You don’t just look at this moment in isolation. You consider it within the broader trend, your emotional state, your risk management strategy, and your trading plan. You respond based on a full understanding, not a knee-jerk reaction.
This is the difference between trading like the 3% and trading like the 97%. The 3% see the market’s movements in their full context, while the 97% only see isolated actions. This is why the majority of traders are always reacting to price movement, while professionals are calmly responding, based on context and understanding.
Conclusion: Mastering the Art and Science of Trading
Trading mastery isn’t about finding the perfect indicator or guessing the market’s next move. It’s about developing a system and mindset that can adapt to the market’s endless complexities without getting lost in them. True trading is about simplicity, observation, patience, and context—OSPIC.
By understanding what drives the market and removing unnecessary noise, you gain clarity.
You gain control over your actions, your mindset, your strategy, your risk, and your trading plan.
You stop reacting and start responding. You stop "playing" the market and start understanding it.
The truth is, if you don’t speak what we call "markinese", you’re not really trading—you’re just participating in a game you don’t understand.
But if you take the time to learn this language, to simplify, to observe, to be patient, and to put everything in context, you can step away from the 97% who fail and into the 3% who truly succeed.
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