The Stock Market’s Silent Storms and the Art of Mastering Emotion

The first half of this week was destined to feel calm on the surface yet full of hidden undercurrents. With the election results and the FOMC meeting looming, short-term trends are on pause—there’s really not much to trade right now. So, with nothing pressing on the charts, let’s talk about something deeper: emotion in the stock market.

If you asked me the single most important skill for making consistent money in the market, I’d say this without hesitation: emotional stability. Of all the lessons I’ve learned over more than a decade of trading, the thing I’m proudest of is this—market swings no longer rattle me. I’ve largely tamed the two emotional demons Warren Buffett warned us about: greed and fear. His golden advice—“Be fearful when others are greedy, and greedy when others are fearful”—is something most traders have heard. But living it out is another story.

To reach that level, you have to stay centered no matter what. Neither fear nor greed can be allowed to dictate your moves. Your mind must stay as calm as still water so you can watch the candlesticks rise and fall without flinching, stepping in only when the setup is right. Bottom-fishing or locking in profits shouldn’t be about squeezing out every last dollar. And if your stocks dip below water for a while, you can’t panic or lose focus. Don’t look at a few red days and start calculating how many Michelin-star dinners you’ve “lost.” Unrealized losses aren’t real losses.

Take AMD, for instance. Some of you might be holding it now and feeling uneasy—wondering if it’ll keep falling or if it might take years to recover. Worrying won’t help. Instead, ask yourself: are you on margin? Hopefully not. And if you sold AMD tomorrow, do you have another stock you’re more confident will outperform? If yes, make the switch. If not, hold your ground.

Let me share a personal AMD story. Back in 2017, my Roth IRA was only in the low six figures. I loaded up with around 10,000 shares of AMD at just under $13. Then came the May earnings report. Some of you might remember—AMD plunged nearly 25–30%. In the thick of that fear, I panic-sold at just under $11, convinced it might fall back to $5 or $6. In reality, it only dipped to the low $10s, then spent over a year grinding sideways before beginning its steady climb. By 2018 and beyond, it surged—eventually topping $200.

Imagine if I’d simply held those 10,000 shares. They’d be worth far more today than all my years of trading and tinkering combined. Even if I hadn’t held to the very top, waiting just one more earnings cycle would have turned my loss into a win. Decisions made in fear rarely stand the test of time.

As for today, I’m holding 1,700 AMD shares and five sold puts—I even posted about them recently. So if it pulls back, I’m losing right alongside some of you. But I’m confident AMD isn’t anywhere near its ceiling. I believe this trade will close out tens of thousands of dollars in profit eventually.

The market will always have its storms, sometimes quiet, sometimes violent. The real battle isn’t on the charts—it’s in your head. Master your emotions, and the rest becomes a whole lot easier.