The Hidden Reason You’re Losing Motivation to Trade

I’m sure you’re familiar with this famous saying:

“Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.”

But the truth is, even your dream job will involve things you don’t enjoy.

I love trading. But just like anything else, there are parts I find tedious and boring. Some days, I can tackle those tasks without any issues; other days, I have to force myself.

For many traders, there comes a point when they just can’t find the motivation to do the parts that feel like work anymore. Eventually, this leads them to become inconsistent, and they struggle to find the drive to get back on track. They often wonder what’s changed.

Over the years, I’ve helped many traders with this exact issue. There’s a clear reason it happens, and the solution is simpler than you might think.

I discussed this with a Duomo Member in one of our one-to-one drop-in sessions. You can ​watch the conversation here​.

What Motivates You?

Motivation falls into two main categories: extrinsic and intrinsic.

For traders, extrinsic motivation might be financial rewards or social status.

Intrinsic motivation, on the other hand, comes from a passion for the markets, enjoying the challenge, or intellectual curiosity.

Imagine in your brain there’s a box labelled “Trading”. Within it, you have a scale with intrinsic at one end and extrinsic at the other.

The reading on the scale isn’t fixed. Over time it might shift more from one side to the other.

When you first start trading, your motivation might lean toward the extrinsic side, seeing it as a way to make money.

But as you learn, enjoy the progress, and get curious about the markets, the scale might shift more toward intrinsic motivation.

Most Trading Work is a Means to an End

Think about all the activities we do as traders. How much of it directly makes you money? How much of it do you actually enjoy?

Take tasks like data collection and admin work, for example. They’re important for improving performance, but not inherently rewarding. If there wasn't an end purpose, you likely wouldn’t choose to spend time on them.

This applies to many areas of trading; they’re simply a means to an end.

When something is a means to an end, we don’t mind doing it if there’s a clear pay-off. But what happens when the pay-off isn’t there?

Many traders eventually reach a point where they feel they should be making money. They’ve put in the work and now need the financial reward. Money becomes the main focus, and their motivation scale shifts fully to the extrinsic side. They start to forget what they initially loved about trading and fixate solely on profits.

But what if they still aren’t making money?

Suddenly, all those means-to-an-end tasks feel pointless, and the motivation to practise, journal, and analyse performance data begins to disappear. The things that would lead to improvements get neglected, causing a negative spiral.

Rediscover Your Intrinsic Motivation

The solution is to re-engage with your intrinsic motivation. Focus on the aspects of trading that energise you and provide a sense of fulfilment.

As I discussed in the ​video​, one trader shared that his satisfaction came from finding precise entries that play out perfectly. It makes him feel like he has a rare and valuable skill. But he wasn’t fully appreciating those moments because he was too focused on getting funded.

The solution was to create a ritual around those moments, giving them the significance they deserve and taking time to feel the satisfaction from them. By framing his trading work as a way to experience those rewarding moments, he found a pay-off even when there wasn’t immediate financial gain.

Ironically, focusing on these moments and the work required to create them is exactly what will eventually lead to financial success.

So here are some questions to ask yourself:

1. What does your motivation scale look like right now?
2. What do you love about trading, aside from the financial gain?
3. When was the last time you appreciated those things?
4. What’s been stopping you from appreciating those things?
5. What rituals could help you put more emphasis on those moments?