This month rocked me in so many ways. I had one of my worst drawdowns this year and spiraled into moments of heavy doubt. I let the voice that says “you are not good enough, you won’t sustain, you can’t do this for a living” control my mind.

That nagging voice is the worst, and I am here to tell you it is a liar. The same way we can choose to believe the negative, we can also choose to believe the positive. Believing in the negative supports shitty outcomes, and believing in the positive supports our desired outcomes. There is a popular text that has been turned into countless videos on social media that talks about choosing your hard.

Our minds are wired to protect, so our thoughts will naturally gravitate to survival. What I recognized is that the easier thing to do was to let my mind spiral and take actions out of survival. The hard part was the aftermath I had to deal with from allowing my mind and actions to go unchecked when I was in a vulnerable state. It’s just like giving in to cake and fried foods. It is much harder to make the initial choice to eat well especially when we’re hungry.

In the opposite way, the hard is to choose well from the beginning, or as soon as you recognize the negative is trying to take over. You don’t let yourself slip, or you correct yourself sooner (definitely hard), and from that you reap the rewards of trusting yourself more, peace, and inevitably: successful and sustainable profits.

This month, I started off with just a few trades that didn’t go well. And that in itself wasn’t a big deal, because sometimes trades just don’t work out. But to my detriment, I didn’t recognize the negative undercurrent building and the stories I started telling myself that kept me off track:

You will never make enough.

You won’t ever build true financial independence.

You can’t control your emotions.

People can’t really do this for a living.

You got lucky. 

You suck at this.

You don’t know what you are doing.

You need to learn another strategy. 

You need to add more indicators. 

You will knock yourself from the leaderboard and everyone will know you suck.

Wow. Would you ever say any of this to your kid or best friend?

We all started trading to change our situations. On a surface level we all just want/wanted to get rich, but deep down there are other things we are after like: validation, significance, being seen, or being loved.

We don’t get these things from building the biggest account, we get these things from healing ourselves and relinquishing the expectations of how things are supposed to go.

When we release ourselves from the need of a positive outcome (profits), we accept that anything is possible, and when we accept that anything is possible, that also means it is possible to trade in a sustainable, profitable way that can support yourself and your family. Accepting this removes the charge from those negative thoughts, and allows you to step into your power and shift your perspective like:

Yes, it is possible I may not make enough to live how I want to.
Yes it is possible I can make enough to live how I want to and beyond.

Yes, it is possible I may not have enough control of my emotions to do this well.
Yes, it’s possible I learn to control my emotions, and in fact, my emotions come from a sensitivity I possess that allows me to better read nuances in the market.

Yes, it is possible I will be judged for not holding a top spot in the competition this month.
Yes, it is possible people won’t think I suck and will continue to root for me, and maybe even appreciate seeing that success doesn’t happen in a straight line.

Yes, it is possible I don’t know what I’m doing.
Yes, it is possible I do know what I’m doing. I certainly know more than I did six months ago and am leaps and bounds further than I was when I started this journey.

The takeaways:

• The voice of doubt will always show up, but it’s not the truth. It feeds on fear and survival mode. The power comes in recognizing it and choosing not to agree with it.

• Choosing the positive is its own hard. It’s difficult to redirect your thoughts and catch yourself in the spiral, but doing so pays off in trust, peace, and sustainable results.

• Losing trades aren’t the problem, unchecked stories are. A drawdown doesn’t define you, but the stories you build around it can derail you if you don’t stop them early.

• Trading won’t heal what you haven’t addressed. Validation, trust, respect, or love won’t come from account size. They come from doing the deeper work on yourself.

• Releasing the need for outcomes creates freedom. When you accept that both success and failure are possible, you remove the charge from negative thoughts and open space for growth.

• Sensitivity can be an edge. The same emotions that make trading feel overwhelming can also help you see nuance and adapt in ways others may not.

• Progress is proof. One rough month doesn’t erase how far you’ve come. Growth in trading isn’t linear, but over time, the lessons and profits compound.

Every time you face your doubts head on and shift your perspective and thoughts sooner, you strengthen your foundation. Trading well is hard, but so is the outcome of letting your mind run unchecked.

Now onto our SPX analysis!

SPX Review and Outlook

EOW Stats
High: 6,508.23
Low: 6,429.21
Close: 6,460.25
Change: -6.67 (-.10%)

ATH: 6,508.23 (Aug 28)

SPX established a new all-time high this week, but closed the week flat compared to last week. I expanded the shaded box to highlight consolidation between 6,437–6,481, an area we first entered mid-August. Since then, price has dipped below it, pushed back inside, briefly broke above, and then retreated back into it (Friday). This zone has created a base for the past couple of weeks.

I drew a new uptrend line from the August 21 low through Friday’s low. Friday’s lower wick showed buyers stepping in, but for momentum to hold, buyers would need to keep pressing along that new uptrend.

If buyers don’t step in, a break of the 10 EMA (~6,451) would put the 20 EMA (~6,418) and the June–August uptrend line in focus as potential support. If those levels fail, the 50 SMA (~6,316) sits further below. That said, SPX often just dips under the 20 EMA before resuming higher, especially if it’s a pullback within trend rather than a broader correction.

It’s worth noting that both the August 1 and August 20 pullbacks were quickly bought up. For now, each pullback has continued to set higher lows and higher highs. Friday may turn out to be another higher low, but we’ll need to see how buyers react in the coming sessions.

Scenarios I’m Watching

• Continuation Along New Uptrend:
  Buyers step in and hold Friday’s low, riding momentum along the new uptrend line for a potential push through the consolidation zone and beyond the all-time high.

• Consolidation Base Holds:
  Price continues to chop between 6,437–6,481. This would extend the base and give room for another push higher later, or breakdown.

• EMA Retest:
  If 6,451 (10 EMA) breaks, the 20 EMA (~6,418) and June–August uptrend line come into play. A healthy pullback could stabilize here before moving higher.

• Deeper Pullback:
  A loss of the 20 EMA could open the door to the 50 SMA (~6,316). This would be a larger dip, but still keep us overall in an uptrend.

My sentiment remains bullish. Higher highs and higher lows are still in place, and each recent dip has been bought. Friday’s close may have been influenced by end-of-month flows, so the next sessions will tell us whether this was just a reset or the start of a larger pullback. For now, nothing on the chart looks alarming, and the broader structure still favors the bulls.

If you enjoyed this newsletter, or resonated with a past one, let me know. I read and respond to each email and invite you to connect with me. Have a great week ahead of you and be kind to each other, but most importantly, be kind to yourself!