'I believe there are key times when knowledge of behaviour and its probable outcomes, outperforms all other predictors for financial markets...'

My career spans 20 years trading financial markets in London, Dubai and Tokyo on behalf of international banks, and for the past four years as an independent trader. Throughout my trading career, I have utilised psychology, behavioural finance and decision making to aide my own performance, and in the management of others. When I began to trade for myself, the change in environment and lack of support network that a large institution provides was a shock, and resulted in a downturn in performance. In my search for a solution, I again turned to behavioural finance theories and the work of some existing psychologists in this field However, their approach predominantly focused on the interpretation of sports psychology consisting of motivational techniques, concentration and being in 'the zone'. Although helpful, it did not explain, or indeed solve the challenges I was facing.