As a trader, I can go on vacations at any time. And how it looks in practice? There are always better and worse moments in trading during the year. From experience I already know, which periods are usually more suitable for holidays, because on the market then stagnation prevails. Wherever is it always? Unfortunately, but you may skip it 🙂 I assume that holiday is a time to cutoff and relax. However, sometime it happens to connect holidays with trading, particularly if the trip is a bit longer. Stock market holidays – when to take a break from trading :))
Stock market holidays
At the beginning I want to point out that the trader isn’t an extraordinary person. The same as the employee in factory, chef, seller, employee at the bank or… (place your profession here) –needs a rest, holidays; a time for recovery, calm time or just contrary – to experience new extreme emotions. However, not every profession enables to go on vacations for a time which you want and in a moment freely chosen by you. These are certainly pros of being a trader.
What’s interesting… I know many traders, who go on vacations very rarely. What does it mean? Once in a few years. Why? It’s because….
Something will get away on the market
Often traders have a problem of this type: I will go on holidays and something will just arise on the market – i.e. greater changeability, larger volume. And it may just miss me. OK, it may happen, so what? Holidays are needed. A rest is needed, particularly if we deal with a larger dose of stress. In trading we have a lot of stress.
Distance yourself to the market, to what happened in recent time
Irrespective of whether I go on holidays in a hot period (I mean the level of profits that precedes the day of departure) or times of drought in the stock exchange – I don’t regret. I know that trip always has a positive effect on me. I gain distance towards the market. I rest from it mentally. Going to foreign countries, particularly into areas where there is less civilization, also our perception of happiness changes and inborn feeling to punch forward.
Unfortunately, Poles are a nation that likes to complain. Foreign trips blurs this image, because in that period of holidays you can meet far more smiling faces of other people, than for months on Polish cities streets. I’m not talking here about smiling faces of other persons with which you go on holidays. I’m talking here about ordinary people who you get to know on the spot. People, who have their problems, maybe don’t talk about them openly, but we can see truly a lot of warmth and joy from them.
After my return I try as long as possible to keep in mind their image in order not to let my mentality of the Pole too quickly return, which more complains than enjoys from what has:)
And maybe to combine vacations with trading
It is definitely a good solution. Although, not for everyone. Personally, I prefer holidays when I can cutoff in 100% from the market. I spend this time with my wife and friends. It results above all from the fact that I usually go for a period of 1-3 weeks. It is for me too period of time to relax and at the same time to trade.
Differently is in case of going on vacations for a minimum of one or several months. In such a time, the situation looks completely different. Particularly, if the time zone enables to connect your trading with rest (i.e. it is fine when these hours are in early morning or late afternoon – in case of American stock exchanges).
In the morning trading, after trading touring, rest or party; or maybe in the morning touring, beach, relaxation, sports – and afternoon trading.
Such a combination of vacations with trading is good for persons whose second-half don’t have obligations on the spot, and aren’t limited in time for such a departure.
When I go on holidays?
I try to go on holidays when I feel tired of the market or when trading doesn’t bring me this joy as usual. Believe me, not always the joy = profits. Sometimes, even when you gain profits, you feel that you need a rest, because you feel tired of the material out.
However, I look at the entire year periodically, which statistically is for me more and less profitable. And in such periods I try to organize a little bit longer trips. If you are a reader of my site for a long time, most probably you noticed that less active periods for me are holidays, the holiday seasons and ends of quarters.
There are exceptions 😉
In August 2011, it may seem that I chose a good time – end of the second quarter, fewer companies that publish financial results. There shouldn’t happen too much. And yet – a very great changeability appeared in the market. Traders, with who I cooperate, fortunately follow the principle that when I’m on holidays they don’t send me messages or call to say what is just happening on the market. What happened, I saw after my return. Fortunately – because most probably I would try to organize the equipment and to use quite great chances, which appeared on the market. But I would rest? I don’t think so – and in the end in life it’s not always just about profits and money.
Below I present what happened then in August:
Do I connect holidays with trading?
As for now it happened only once. It was a period when I still worked in the trading office and we left along from a few traders and their families for a few months to Middle America. We connected there trading with touring and rest (touring often was very tiring ;)).
Considering that during this trip 1/3 was spent on the trip, and the rest on trading – it was properly spread over time. In spite of trading, I came back satisfied and relaxed. The advantage of connecting trip with trading is that such a departure usually for experienced trader is free, because he gains profits that exceed the overall costs associated with the departure. Of course, it’s a little bit generalized – because it may be a worse period or technical problems may appear on the spot.
Soon I’m planning to repeat such a trip – we will take our families, positions – and we will connect holidays with what we like to do 🙂
Sometimes I can hear such a question – „since you are trader, you have steadily and good results – wouldn’t you prefer to live somewhere else in the warm country?” Of course, we often discuss with friends about that. Temptation is huge… However, I’m not going to leave Poland permanently. I’m very close with my family and friends. However, some of my friends, who have different approach in these issues, live in such holiday havens – from there they trade, and pleasures which I have once in a while, they have on a daily basis. The most important thing is that each of us is happy 🙂
Happy holidays
I wish you all happy holidays! Whether you will spend them abroad, in far countries, or in Poland or in your surroundings, I hope that you will have a lot of joy, fun and you will spend a nice time!
Holidays are also a good period for reflections. Maybe for you it will be a time, in which you will decide to begin your adventure on the American share markets! 🙂
You are a trader? Or maybe you have such a profession that you can work from any place in the world? How do you spend your holidays? 🙂
