Saturday Aug 30 2008
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Undoubtedly, you’re already a highly successful person. But if you also wanted to be a hot-shot trader, it would help to be in possession of four particular, and often overlooked, qualities, says the Traderfeed blog.

To succeed as a trader - whether at a property firm, hedge fund or investment bank, Traderfeed says you need to possess:

1. The Constant Desire to Improve - “[successful traders are] continually searching for new opportunities and strategies; they value continuing education, keeping up to date with what’s happening in their areas; they track their performance and, individually as well as a group, are setting very specific goals for improvement”
2. The Ability to Press Your Advantage - “really good traders are aggressive…They remind me of boxers who, seeing opponents hurt, will go for the kill. The less successful traders seem to lack that killer instinct.”
3. Emotional Resilience - ” Resilience means that the excellent traders trade well out of a hole.”
4. Creativity - “We normally think of creativity as a trait that belongs to artists, but it also is quite noticeable among traders who have been successful over many years. They find edges in the most unlikely places.”

Over at Information Arbitrage, Roger Ehrenberg, the former head of Deutsche Bank’s fund of hedge funds business, lists his top ten tips for investment success. Alphaville’s favourite: be passionate about your work, and have fun.