I Mansplained Trading Psychology To A Buddhist Master (Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo), And...
Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo is my root teacher, friend, preceptor... my kalyanamitra (དགེ་བའི་བཤེས་གཉེན་).
So I naturally want to share my observations and learnings with her and that is exactly what I have been doing for years now. Since Jetsunma-la is generally open to different topics and ideas, I sometimes bring non-Buddhist topics to her, and she engages them. Lately, we’ve been chatting a bit about trading.
A teacher's engagement is encouraging, but they're not
means of validation of our own enthusiasm and practice.
Why I had to "mansplain"?
I use the word “mansplain” playfully to describe my tendency to verbalize something I’m captivated by with a lot of enthusiasm. I mansplain things to myself on a regular basis, so.
I’ve decided to organize this section by date. This is an ongoing collection of notes I’ve taken from my conversations with my teacher about trading and trading psychology. I don't know how long this topic would last but ---
Enjoy! :D
Trinley Wongmo
September 15, 2026
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September 5, 2026
Trinley Wongmo:
The market hunts the ego.
Not even AI is spared!
What?? ---
You can see things as they truly are?
Great, you're getting chopped ---
(Just like everybody else.)
So, no praises, no hate. (Please)
Strip all illusions about self and state.
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September 14, 2026
Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo:
I do not understand anything about your trading environment although it sounds quite stressful and precarious. But if you enjoy gambling then it would be a suitable occupation for you and may you soon acquire many profits!
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September 15, 2026
Trinley Wongmo:
I wanna mansplain: 😆
Yes, trading absolutely can spike one's adrenaline and cortisol (and ego). This is why awareness and regulation is so important. (This is not Wall Street and I am not that kind of trader.)
For me, the correct trading condition feels like this, borrowing a more Buddhist angle:
being able to sit indefinitely with minimal reactivity while the market does what it does (focused but not consumed)
notice traces of restlessness, torpor, or discomfort before it gets expensive (things can snowball quickly)
the mind is in flow during observation, execution, and trade management
time flies (ex. 3 hours feel like 30 min)
no greed, no rush, no FOMO, no stress, no tightness, no anxiety, no attachment to profit or loss
We make good decisions when all the noise and pressure becomes zero. When we lose that focus and clarity, we retreat. Trading is only gambling if we don't know what we are doing and we start where we don't know. The ego wants guarantees, a risk-free environment, smooth-sailing; trading is the opposite of all that.
It takes time to override all these evolutionary safety settings (aka ego). To be able to operate and develop under extreme ambiguity is a rare, pragmatic skill.
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