6 months of 2026 are already gone and I feel like I’ve wasted a good chunk of it. Need some direction.
I’m free for about a month right now. Right now my days look like: wake up, check trades, watch series, repeat. I do intraday trading on the side, but I’ve been in a losing phase, and I’ve noticed my entire mood for the day depends on whether I’m in profit or loss. That’s a problem in itself, but it’s also making me realize I’m not using this free time for anything that actually builds me up.
I don’t want to look back at the end of this year and realize I spent another 6 months just watching series and stressing over green or red candles.
So I wanted to ask people here directly:
If you had a genuinely free month, what skill would you actually spend it learning? Something practical, not just “learn to code” as a buzzword, but something that actually paid off for you personally.
Any podcasts or channels that actually added value to how you think, not just entertainment dressed up as self-improvement?
For those who’ve traded before, how did you stop your mood from being tied to daily P&L? Did you find something else to focus your energy on instead?
Not looking for generic “just be productive” advice. Looking for specific things that actually worked for you, even small ones.
If you had a genuinely free month, what skill would you actually spend it learning? Something practical, not just “learn to code” as a buzzword, but something that actually paid off for you personally.
I would exercise everyday. it would teach me so many things about my body that I’ve forgotten in the past year
If you’re actively stressed about price movement, trading is not just a side thing.
If your mood is dictated by market momentum, trading is not just a side thing.
You’re losing to the degree that you’re risking and you’re looking for a distraction because you genuinely believe you can and will change the outcome.
That only happens if you focus and make changes to your trading strategy.
It doesn’t benefit you to be in the market every day if you haven’t perfected your intraday strategy.
Discipline is key. Trade what works and manage your risk accordingly. If nothing works, don’t trade at all (trade on paper).
Good luck.
For me, woodworking for almost every question. There’s a reason it’s the stereotype.
100%. I turned 30 and somehow that flipped a switch and now it’s one of my favorite hobbies
Grindset is not the mindset. Create art from your heart
Cash out, stop trading, reclaim your life.
Trading is a choice, if it’s causing you stress, stop doing that.
Move your body, and get out into nature.
If you have to trade daily, find a beautiful (or at least somwhere green, or by a body of water) spot within maybe 30 min walking or biking distance and only check your trades in that spot. Perhaps hanging out in nature, having a little swim or dippingyour feet in the water, or picking some local berries on the woods, or listening to birds or dogs in the park, and then getting your heart rate up again before coming home will wash away some of the negative effects.
If your strategy allows it (or you can pivot your strategy), only check your trades every week or month instead of day.
Rule 5, though quitting gambling is generally sound advice.
I handed in my 3-month notice recently and have to take the rest of my vacation days and overtime before October. That amounts to about a month, although I’m not taking all of it in one piece.
I have booked a 5-day beginner course to learn Windsurfing for the end of the month, plus I warned my boss that for the month of August, I’ll be taking days off whenever the waves look good. That’s my dedicated “touch grass” hobby for this time period.
Other than that… I have a lot of programming stuff I want to learn, but only because I already program a lot. Zig and htmx are at the top of the list right now, but if I find the motivation I’ll be dabbling in Django and Angular as well (need them for my next job).
Otherwise, I’m not stressing about being productive or acquiring any “useful” skills. That kind of “constant self-improvement” mindset just doesn’t mix well with my existing burnout. Just surviving is a good enough goal imo
In a single month? Apprentice level skills of any trade. Learning to change a faucet, fix a lamp or adjust the length of a pair of trousers are skills that will pay off long term an maybe motivate you to learn more.
Honestly ? I’d dive into game development. It’s hard, there is little room for juniors but if i go indie, at least I’d do what my inner child always wanted to do
