When you look for the best trading psychology books online, at the top of everyone's list is usually something like “Trading in the Zone” by Mark Douglas.
That's a fantastic book and it's at the top of my list too. However, there are a few books that have had a huge impact on me, that I haven't seen on any other list.
So in this post, I'll show you my picks for the 3 most underrated books and why I love them.
Trading, Sex and Dying
The title might seem a little strange, but it gives us a hint as to why this book is so valuable.
Juel Anderson was a professional poker player, phone dating operator and funeral home employee.
These experiences taught him a lot about human nature because these situations put people under extreme stress…and that's when their true nature comes out.
Anderson puts people into a few general personality types, based on his experiences. This understanding of human nature helped him as a lot as a pro poker player.
As traders however, we can use this information in a slightly different way. Instead of analyzing the people sitting across the table from us, we should analyze ourselves.
We can understand our own innate strengths and weaknesses, instead of trying to mold ourselves into a personality type that we thing we should be. Reading this book helped me understand that I didn't have to change. I simply had to understand myself better.
The original name of the book was “Poker, Sex and Dying.” But an options trader by the name of Dave Kaplan bought the rights to the book and changed the name.
Kaplan felt that understanding these personality types was key to helping traders become successful.
Spot on Dave.
Get more information about this book here.
When Supertraders Meet Kryptonite
This book isn't a psychology book per se, but it does give us fantastic insight into the psychology of resilience.
All of the traders in this book were at the top of their game, when they experienced a huge loss. The type of losses that these traders sustained are more money than most people will make in a lifetime.
However, they picked themselves up and got back in the game.
If you think that you've had a big loss, this book will help you put your losses into perspective. You'll also learn what these traders did to come back, which can give you tools that you can use when you've had a run of losses.
Many traders give up on trading too soon because of moderate to small losses. Increase your mental toughness by understanding what it takes to push past them.
Learn more about this book, as well as all of the books on my list here.
Trade with Passion and Purpose
The last book is in my top 3 books of best trading psychology books of all time. Yes, it's up there with “Trading in the Zone.”
This book is written by Mark Whistler, and is probably the most underrated trading psychology book of all time. The reason that I like it so much is because he talks about topics that other traders don't even touch.
For example, he talks about why traders should pay attention to intuition. Most trading psychology books tell you to ignore gut feeling, as well as any emotions, and try to view a trading scenario dispassionately.
There's certainly a lot of benefit to seeing a situation objectively and not trading emotionally.
But Whistler takes it to the next level and says that we should also factor in our intuition. He says that we should work on developing our intuition and understand the different levels of intuitive ability.
Other topics that he talks about are:
- Gratitude
- Emotional intelligence
- Understanding fear
- Medical stress
- Affirmation and visualization
- And more
Many of these topics are covered in other books, but Whistler presents them in a slightly different way.
He also interviews experts and people who have experience in these areas, which provides a well-rounded look at the topics he covers.
To find more hidden gems, check out this list of trading psychology books.
Final Thoughts on Trading Psychology Books
So those are my favorite underrated trading psychology books. I would highly recommend reading all of the popular psychology books that people recommend.
They're popular for a reason.
But when you're done, expand your horizons and look for other books that can take your mindset to the next level. If you search hard enough, you'll uncover gems, like the ones mentioned above.
See the complete list of my favorite trading psychology books here. You can also see the best trading books that I've read.
Happy exploring!
