Wisdom is forever, regardless of the moment in which it appears. When humans speak the truth, their words remain valid, and it has been demonstrated through the centuries by the legacy of great philosophers and sages.
Ancient Greece is known for having prospered intellectually. As traders, our first duty is to gather knowledge; the best way to do it is to look at the best sources that time can offer. Transcending the limits of a temporal prejudice is a crucial step to allowing our minds to accept knowledge, realize it, and apply it to our work.
Fortunately for us, many of the ancient sayings apply to trading. They reveal insights of immense value, contributing to the ultimate realization of the main concepts behind success in the market.
In this article, we will explore 5 of the most famous Greek proverbs from Ancient Greece and their relationship with trading.
Old things become new with the passage of time. ~ Nicostratus.
Is there any other better way to start this topic? Nicostratus highlights the efficacy of things of remote times when applied in newer times, basically foreseeing the validity of the phrase itself. We will see that it speaks the truth as we explore other sayings and their relationship with trading.
However, there is another way we can interpret it – that things repeat in cycles. Some may say this is the most useful meaning. The history of financial events, but also the similarity between behavioral patterns in the market, or patterns of any other nature, tells us that events have the curious habit to rhyme throughout time. This makes studying history one of the great ways to acquire wisdom.
As traders, the more we know about past events, the more we will prepare for future ones. The most successful traders are also the best students of previous cycles. They figured out how history likes to rhyme, and along with powerful common sense, they became able to act righteously in view of the future and in accordance with their aspirations.
But be careful: on the other hand, if misunderstood, such a concept may turn against us: it is the case when a trader unwisely tries to profit from mainstream technical analysis. So rely on your common sense, and if you feel you don’t have enough, work on improving that too.
There is only one good, knowledge, and one evil, ignorance. ~ Socrates.
Socrates remembers the importance of knowledge in life. One could say that this statement may be conditioned and that the concept of good and evil itself originates from a finite and relative perception. Anyway, trading is done for positive effects, and not everyone disposes of the natural instinct to act righteously without conscious knowledge. Therefore, it is of certain good to be knowledgeable traders, experts of their craft, and the environments in which they trade, but not only: conscious of themselves, their weakness, and their strengths.
Curiously, being conscious of one’s natural instinct is itself knowledge. We could say that a knowledgeable trader is a conscious one, and this surely is an advantage of inestimable value.
Unripe grape gets sweet as honey, at a slow pace.
Its meaning can be described in a straightforward sentence: time is our friend. The market puts its students through intense training before giving them the fruit of their work. No one gets to be a successful trader without spending the necessary time to earn their glory. This is how this world works, whether one believes it or not. There is no long-lasting glory out of pure luck.
Time serves the market by ensuring that only the deserving can eat at its table. Most traders unwisely fight against time. There are two ways to fight against time: the first by making the most out of every minute, the second, the unwise one, by trying to get now what should be built with time. Average traders throw money, use high leverage, disrespect the principle of risk, gamble, and overtrade without cognition, in the attempt to make big money without even being worthy of it. One cannot fool nature: this is true, most certain.
If a grape is unripe, let the time pass. If the grape is not there, do not try to eat the leaves. If there’s not even the trunk of the tree, don’t crave its fruits. The tree itself can describe our career in trading: first, we plant the seed, then we water it constantly until the tree is established; the better we cultivate it with our water, the healthier the tree will be, and with patience, it will grow beautiful flowers and fruits, that we may eat from it.
The crowd is the most unreliable and witless thing in
the world. ~ Demosthenes.
It is the reality of the world that we currently live in, most true thousands of years ago, and remaining valid for now, especially in trading. Unreliability is a relative concept; The crowd is unreliable only for those who aspire to proactiveness, that is creating. Traders are among those since they want to be successful and reach their aspirations. To realize ideas in this world is itself proactiveness, and the idea of being successful is a proactive aspiration. In such a desire, the crowd is unreliable because it fulfills an opposite purpose in the dynamics of universal balance: it belongs to the passive set.
That which is passive is at the service of that which is proactive; passivity is not for creating but to respond to an act of creation. If one relies upon a passive set and that which is for it, he cannot fulfill his proactive purpose.
This principle is easily recognizable in trading: average and losing traders, the majority, are at the service of market makers and successful traders. Trading is a zero-sum game in which proactive traders reach their aspirations while passive ones don’t. If a trader belongs to the crowd, gives trust to it, acts based on information from it and from that which is directed to it, bases his trading on instruments and strategies of and for it, let it be known to him: he will get that which is destined for traders in the crowd and no more. The point is that one aspires to be more than the average trader, legitimately. But let it also be clear: there is nothing wrong with being an average trader.
It may seem unfair. In reality, there is no such thing: good and bad, wrongness, and unfairness, are all human constructs caused by relative perception. It is not about people that are ‘bad’ and people that are ‘victims’, because neither part chooses to be one or the other: they adapt (consciously or unconsciously) to the universal dynamics of balance and growth. Realizing this is vital. One should treat market makers and successful traders as teachers: they indirectly teach us how to be better traders, urge us to learn from our mistakes, and most importantly, force us to enhance ourselves if we want to succeed.
It’s sweet to view the sea when standing on the
shore. ~ Archippus.
With this beautiful ancient saying, we conclude this article. A more intuitive phrasing:
“It’s sweet to see the sea from the land when you don’t have to sail any longer.”
Before becoming successful and reaching his land, the trader has to sail, survive many storms, get lost, fix his boat many times, look at many other lands, and dream about his own. No matter his conditions, he constantly keeps his heart strong and relies on it as he would rely on his best compass. All the suffering and efforts, all the disappointments, the losses, and even all the fake wins that seemed to give hope, then suddenly crushed it: they all serve to show that his desire is sincere and nothing will stand in between, and he is worthy of what he seeks. Therefore, do not despair; keep your focus on the journey, and make the most out of it.
At the right moment: you are on your land, standing on the shore, looking at your old friend, the sea, and smiling at him. He is still there: sometimes he is calm and transparent, sometimes tempestuous, but you are on land now, in safe stillness, enjoying the show and realizing it is beautiful.
In conclusion
There are many things that humans have done throughout their history. That which was worthy and purposeful has stayed: we may only need a little more research. Therefore, we can extrapolate a reason why these ancient Greek sayings are still with us: their purpose in our life is still at work. Their truth can still help those who are coming after.
We, traders looking to realize our aspirations and become the best version of ourselves, are among those who should feel fortunate to learn from every bit of wisdom coming from history, especially that grand enough to survive thousands of years.
Successful traders do not underestimate those who came before because their judgment parameter is not time; they focus on those who speak the truth because they reference the value.
Everything described in this article has the sole purpose of being informative and providing general information. The author has no intention of providing any financial advice, legal advice, or tax advice. Do not rely on this article to make investment decisions. Seek professional help before making any such decision. The author does not take any responsibility for loss or damage of any nature. The use you make of the information contained in this article is your sole responsibility.