#118 Adam Birkett – Global Trading Lead Cargill OT: The Power of Non-Attachment
Oct 19, 2023
45:51
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Adam Birkett, Global Trading Lead at Cargill Ocean Transportation, discusses the power of non-attachment in trading. He explains how traders can achieve clarity and emotional balance by detaching from ego-driven impulses and negative outcomes. Birkett emphasizes staying true to the trading process and not succumbing to impulsive reactions. The podcast also explores the importance of diversity and inclusion in trading teams, as well as the value of vulnerability and seeking support.
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Quick takeaways
The power of non-attachment in trading allows traders to achieve mental clarity and emotional equilibrium amidst market turbulence.
Assembling diverse trading teams with different backgrounds and perspectives helps challenge individual biases and leads to better decision-making as a team.
Deep dives
The Power of Non-Attachment: Trading from a Probabilistic Perspective
Adam Birkett, global trading lead for Cargill Ocean Transportation, reflects on his journey in trading and the importance of non-attachment. He shares how his sense of self was heavily tied to his role as head of the Cape trade desk, leading to challenges when the desk faced losses. Through self-reflection, he realized the power of non-attachment and the role it plays in successful trading. He observed that the best traders were those who disassociated from their market views, challenged their own beliefs, and remained unattached to their predictions. This perspective enabled them to navigate challenges more effectively.
The Role of Diversity and Inclusion in Trading Teams
Adam highlights the significance of diverse trading teams and how they help protect against biases and groupthink. By assembling teams with different backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives, they can approach trading situations in an unbiased manner. Emphasizing inclusivity and diverse perspectives helps challenge individual biases and leads to better decision-making as a team.
Separating Results and Performance
Adam talks about the importance of separating results and performance in trading. He emphasizes that performance is within our control, while outcomes and results are influenced by external factors and randomness. By focusing on performance and decision-making processes rather than outcomes, traders can better evaluate their performance and make improvements.
The Importance of Self-Awareness and Asking for Help
Adam emphasizes the significance of self-awareness in trading and the importance of recognizing and managing one's thoughts and emotions. He recommends reading books on spirituality and self-improvement to gain a deeper understanding of oneself. Additionally, he encourages traders to ask for help and foster a supportive environment where individuals can seek guidance and support from their teammates.
In this insightful episode, we sat down with Adam Birkett, the Global Trading Lead at Cargill Ocean Transportation division, which trades physical and derivative cargo, freight, and shipping products globally across all major markets, to delve into the profound concept of "The Power of Non-Attachment in Trading."
Adam has spent nearly his entire career at Cargill Ocean Transportation. He has been a trader, led a major trading team, worked in Risk Management, and then transitioned to becoming the lead for the trading side of the business, overseeing over 80 traders across multiple centres worldwide.
At the core of our conversation lies a fundamental principle: the ability of traders to distance themselves from ego-driven impulses and negative outcomes while making critical decisions amidst market turbulence. Adam eloquently describes how seasoned traders master the art of non-attachment, disentangling their identities from their trading activities, whilst also candidly acknowledging how challenging this is to do and sustain in real-time.
Adam discusses how, by detaching from ego-based desires and fears of negative outcomes, traders can achieve greater mental clarity and emotional equilibrium. This enables them to navigate the unpredictable waters of the market with a calmer, more rational mindset. Adam emphasizes the importance of staying true to one's trading process and not succumbing to impulsive reactions to market fluctuations and unfavourable outcomes.
In this enlightening chat, Adam illustrates his views with real-world examples from his extensive experience, speaks candidly about his own humbling episodes in his career, and shares some insights into the work they do at Cargill to aid better decision-making and performance across their highly successful business.
AlphaMind: Powering Performance in Global Markets AlphaMind brings powerful change, growth and development to people and businesses within global markets. Driven by a deep understanding of how markets work, and how people and businesses function within them, we partner with clients to create personal performance improvements that elevate returns across their trading activities. Go to the AlphaMind website to know more.
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