I agree Maurice. I’d also add:
[ul]
[li]Not understanding that traders trade their beliefs about the market
Thinking chart support lines, shapes etc give them some kind of control over the future price action
Not taking the time out at the beginning of the trading day to check in with where you are at emotionally (e.g. are you angry at some external thing / event? May cause you to override your rules / trade irrationally)
Thinking that the entry is the most important aspect to trading
Not understanding that position sizing is one of the most important aspects of trading and a large determinant of whether or not you will reach your trading objectives
Having no objectives
[/li]
[li][/li]
[/ul]

Nick raised the question how do you get out of the beginners cycle. For me the beginners cycles is a mindset that you evolve from with time(patience) and profits.I don’t think it ever really goes away unless you are experienced in trading like Nick. The course and development of correctly backtested systems is only the beginning. I think I will evolve to the next stage after I have complete confidence in my systems. This means that I start making money in a reasonable amount of time as suggested by my system backtesting.
I bet even many successful system traders have doubts during
drawdowns that are greater than historical testing.