Author:rektdiomedes
Compiled by: Deep Tide TechFlow
Over the past two years, I have become obsessed with martial arts.
This basically includes a lot of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ), Muay Thai, and mixed martial arts (MMA) combined striking and wrestling classes.
Although two years is not a long time, and I am still a complete novice, it has been enough for me to train with hundreds of different partners and observe how they respond to various situations during training.
Additionally, since I was 15, I have been a passionate strength training enthusiast, so I have also seen countless people's efforts in the field of strength training.
Looking at it from another perspective, in the investment field, I have been active on Crypto Twitter (CT) for 4 years, and even before that, I had been lurking on CT and macro financial Twitter (FinTwit) for many years.
During this time, I have noticed a significant pattern that applies to both worlds—there is a similar parallel phenomenon between certain participants in the gym and the investment field.
Martial Arts + Strength Training
When training in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Muay Thai, you encounter a variety of participants:
Some are really good at these sports (we’ll discuss this in detail later).
Some just try it and find it’s not for them.
Others love it very much but either give up or can only participate occasionally due to scheduling conflicts.
There are also those who just play around casually. Although relatively disciplined, they are not highly motivated to make it an important part of their lives.
However, there is another category of people, which I want to focus on in this article, whom I call the "self-driven" type.
These people are usually highly motivated.
They go all out from the start, always giving 110%, completely in "beast mode," and are very serious.
They do not lack strength, energy, motivation, or courage, but ultimately, they are inevitably tripped up by their own "ego."
Sometimes, they overexert themselves and get injured.
Sometimes, they perform too intensely during sparring, even losing control, which annoys the regulars.
Or, they push themselves to the limit, only to be defeated by someone calmer, more experienced, and smaller, leading to frustration or anger.
Usually, this pattern causes them to give up completely within a month or fall into a cycle: coming once a month, going all out, and then disappearing for another month.
But in either case, their motivation and discipline are repeatedly defeated by their own "ego."
In strength training, you see similar phenomena.
Typically, I notice men in their forties who were once very strong and athletic but whose physical condition has declined over time.
They are obsessed with returning to their peak condition at age 22.
They come to the gym, warm up for 45 minutes to get their bodies moving, and then try to challenge their limits with maximum weight training for squats, deadlifts, or bench presses.
However, almost every time, they either get injured or exhaust all their energy.
Many are even clearly aware that they are stuck in this cycle and know they should be doing high-repetition hypertrophy training or at least combining it with powerlifting. But they cannot let go of their "ego," stubbornly clinging to their past personal records (PRs), ultimately harming themselves.
Whether in martial arts or strength training, these people have high skills and motivation but ultimately defeat themselves due to their "ego."
Connection to Investing
This pattern also appears in the investment field. Over these four years, I have observed this phenomenon from time to time on Crypto Twitter (CT) and macro financial Twitter (FinTwit).
Here, there is a category of people who view "investing" or "trading" as an important part of their identity and self-worth.
Some are individual investors focused on active trading... some are fund managers professionally managing others' money... some are authors of macroeconomic newsletters... and some are just ordinary retail investors.
But they all share a common trait: they take trading and/or investing extremely seriously and are very proud of their investment skills. However, this attitude sometimes manifests in a self-defeating way.
Essentially, these specific individuals—like those mentioned earlier in martial arts or strength training—are ultimately defeated by their own "ego."
I have seen several different manifestations:
- They self-destruct due to "revenge trading."
- They argue with every critic, even starting various personal feuds online (often over silly things, like which meme coin is better or whether the long end of the yield curve will soar), ultimately collapsing their timeline.
- They become too attached to a specific investment or idea and then, to prove the trade is correct, start creating a whole new, evolving worldview.
The third—obsession with an idea—is probably the most dangerous, as all of us can be affected by it.
I have particularly noticed that this often happens to very smart people.
They form an idea in their mind about a certain asset, asset class, or investment, and when the idea encounters difficulties, their brain (driven by "ego") fights against itself, constructing a whole set of reasons to explain why the initial assumption was not wrong.
They start changing their views... start trying new ideas and methods... unknowingly, they create a complex and vast belief system around a very specific investment or idea.
It is difficult to describe exactly how this phenomenon manifests and the underlying self-hypnosis pattern.
Although I generally dislike vulgar metaphors, I cannot find a more fitting description than "obsessed with smelling their own farts." They are basically沉迷于自己的智力探索,最终迷失其中,导致巨大的财务损失.
Ultimately, it all stems from "ego," even if this ego is hidden under many layers of intellectual manipulation, almost like a form of "self-hypnosis."
Of course, this does not mean these people are bad—in fact, I think each of us does this to some extent—but it is an easy and very dangerous trap to fall into...
The Secret to Success
So, what are the common traits of those who achieve long-term success in martial arts?
Those who persevere, continuously improve, and eventually excel in amateur or even professional competitions, or those who truly make progress in strength training, especially those with amazing physiques even at an older age—what is their secret?
In my opinion, the answer lies in combining that powerful drive, desire, and motivation with conscious management of the ego.
They have an ego just like everyone else—we all do—but they have enough perspective and self-awareness to know they must control the ego, not be controlled by it.
Therefore, they just keep their heads down and do the work, sticking to what needs to be done day after day.
They don’t treat every sparring session like a championship match, leading to frequent injuries...
They don’t nitpick and get into trivial arguments or conflicts...
They don’t get discouraged or angry after being defeated by others and give up training...
They just persistently show up and practice every day.
I think this also applies to the investment field and Crypto Twitter (CT).
Having a strong ego is good, but you need to control it, always maintaining restraint...
You need to transform ego into discipline...
Persist in learning and improving day after day...
No investor or trader is always right; it’s all a game of probabilities.
As the old saying goes, the world’s top traders may only have a 55% accuracy rate...
The biggest enemy is not a single failed trade or something you said wrong on Twitter...
The real enemy is those irreversible "permanent failures"—whether it’s losing all your money,崩溃到删掉账户, closing your fund, or other similar things.
Therefore, in my opinion, the key is to cultivate your ego—a strong self-confidence and desire for success—but at the same time, sublimate ego into wisdom.
Guide it purposefully...
Let it be your source of fuel...
Then use it to drive you to take massive action every day.
Note: This is the first "article" I’ve written on Twitter/X... If you have any thoughts, feel free to comment below; if you liked this content, please retweet to show support—I would greatly appreciate it! :)
