“You don’t need to take reckless risk. But you do need to stop treating your inner-knowing like it’s a dangerous enemy.”
That line’s been bouncing around in my head all week.
I talk all the time about the importance of having a plan and sticking to it. Because, truthfully, trading without a plan is just gambling with a more expensive costume on. I need a framework — some sense of what I'm trying to do, what I'm risking, and what outcomes I'm aiming for.
Planning is visualizing.
When I build a plan, I’m creating a map of what could happen — the likely, the unlikely, the hoped-for, and the dreaded. Mapping out scenarios helps me prepare emotionally and financially for what may unfold.
But sometimes, the market veers off-script. And in those moments, another voice enters the chat.
It’s not part of the plan.
It’s not in my trade journal.
It’s not even easy to explain.
But it’s real — and it’s been right more often than I care to admit.
That voice is what I call inner-knowing. And after 26 years of trading, I’ve learned to give it a seat at the table. Because that instinct isn’t random. It’s built from years of experience — thousands of hours staring at charts, placing trades, managing winners, and getting punched in the face by losers.
So when that part of me starts to speak up — even if it contradicts the plan — I’ve learned not to swat it away like a fly at the picnic.
I listen.
Sometimes I override it. Sometimes I don’t. But I always let it speak.
Because intuition, when rooted in experience, is a valuable data point. It may not always be logical in the moment, but it’s rarely baseless.
The hard part is knowing the difference between true intuition… and fear dressed up like intuition.
But that’s the work, right?
Learning to trust myself — and learning when not to.
Having a plan is essential.
But making space for that quiet voice — that sense of “this isn’t right” or “this is the moment” — is just as critical.
Don’t treat your instincts like the enemy. Give them a seat. Let them speak.
You don’t always have to follow. But you do have to listen.
Sean McLaughlin | Chief Options Strategist, All Star Charts
