Most of you (basketball readers) have never heard of Paul Tudor Jones. We can learn from the best in their business. Excellence has certain intrinsic themes. Steve Burns shares dimensions that made Paul Tudor Jones one of the best in his profession.
#1 He has a strong work ethic based on passion for the business.
Every great (fill in the blank) puts in the work, because they don't see it as work. It is our purpose.
#2 He followed price action not fundamental valuations.
What is working is what matters. Sports are a copycat industry. Maybe it's the Sky Hook or Triangle Offense. But that can change to '3 and D' and 'Positionless Basketball.'
#3 He was able to stay humble and stay flexible. He was always ready to admit he was wrong and exit any trade.
We will be wrong. Change when wrong. We have to be able to get off the road when we miss our exit.
#4 He did not believe in adding to a losing trade.
"Do more of what is working and less of what isn't."
#5 Mr. Jones adapted, evolved, and was a competitor in his trading.
Competitiveness is at the core of excellence.
#6 He learned the lessons of early failure instead of quitting or repeating the failures.
Einstein said, "insanity is doing the same thing and expecting a different result." We need to identify when to change and how to do what we do better.
#7 Paul Tudor Jones was a risk manager first and a trader second.
"Life is about the management of risk." We take excessive risk when we take on characters instead of character.
#8 He cut losses quickly instead of holding them and wishing they would come back. He saved a lot of mental pain and stress that way.
We all share cognitive biases...like loss aversion. But we are vulnerable to 'sunk costs' instead of moving on from mistakes.
#9 Paul Tudor Jones traded smaller during losing streaks.
Some teams throw money at problems instead of finding alternative solutions. Leaders find solutions not problems.
#10 He looked for only the very best risk/reward trading opportunities.
When we analyze players, we understand that four quarters doesn't amount to a dollar. We need to maximize our opportunity by getting our best combinations in play while developing everyone on our team (portfolio).
