A day like today . . .

Sucky days like today are the bane of emotional traders (I still count myself among this group). Nothing seems to be working. Stocks that were making huge gains are taking huge losses. I'm down way more than the market and there's really no explanation why out there.

It's easy for days like these to shake your confidence and make you question yourself. Don't let it happen. It's how you handle the crummy days that separate you out from the traders who lose money.

My first instinct is to panic, take my losses and run. Even though I've been doing this for four years, I still get caught in unrealistic thinking--that I should never have a down day. However, experience tells me that this is all part of trading.

It best on days like these to let your trading plan do the work. Turn off all news and all the tickers and do something else. The market will take care of itself and your portfolio will recover.