Trading with a Sense of Humor
By Ken Long
I had an opportunity this week to sit around a table with General Dave Petraeus, US Army, for 2 hours and listen to his discussion of his assignment to take over the command of the MultiNational Force-Iraq. He arrives there early next week, for what is arguably one of the more difficult challenges facing any human on the planet lately. I’ve had the opportunity to work on his project to re-write the Army’s doctrine on Counter Insurgency, a newly published field manual which will guide his efforts over the next 18 months, and so have been able to observe him over the course of the last year.
What strikes me the most about him is his sense of humor. I have come to the conclusion that the first thing I want to look for in people that are operating in stressful situations is the sense of humor. Having a visible, appropriate sense of humor reveals some important things:
A. The ability to maintain a sense of perspective for the style and appropriateness of the humor based on the situation and the audience. This reveals a sense of who and what is around you; you are not consumed by your circumstances.
B. The ability to see situations from multiple levels and points of view. If you can only see the seriousness and from your point of view, you are inside your situation and are being acted upon, instead of acting, or being able to choose not to act.
C. You have the emotional energy to be able to apply a different context to your situation and pause to see some of the minor themes that constitute the human experience in a stressful world.
D. An optimistic attitude; the possibility of successful, satisfying outcomes; A willingness to look beyond present difficulties to potential improved futures; a trust in Hope and Opportunity.
In my own experience in combat I have seen what happens to people when they are close to or over the edge and have no emotional reserves or psychological distance to be able to stand off from the environment, and have been reduced to a bundle of knee jerk responses. It’s not pretty; it’s a human tragedy. And upon reflection, it turns out for me that the presence or absence of an appropriate sense of humor, the ability to see the irony and sometimes absurdity of the human condition, is a pretty good indicator of mature and emotional stability and resources. It may very well be one of the most important qualities of leadership. The application of this insight to trading, and achieving your long term goals is direct and immediate and I’d recommend you include it in your routine self-check.
