Meet Rayaan Sharif

Rayaan is an inspiring TMC Trader + university student, who continues to give it his all month after month. Recently, Rayaan found himself managing multiple day trades, whilst prepping a dissertation for uni worth a large percentage of his final grade. Like the professional that he is, he followed his trading plan to a T locking in some nice profit, and received an A on his dissertation! But it's not only Rayaan's impressive work ethic that makes him worthy of representing the TMC Club, it's also his mindset, his character, and his collaborative team spirit! Read more about Rayaan's trading journey below...

When did your trading journey first begin?

My journey began in 2017 when I started receiving trading mentoring by a friend’s father who is a very successful FX trader. I learned a lot from him, due to his vast experience within the markets he had developed a strong intuition and used it to make pretty crazy returns. As a young newbie however I found it difficult to tap into that and felt like I needed some really consistent rules/strategies to make sense of the markets and find an edge that worked for me.

In came Trading MasterClass! The story is actually quite amusing, I was in my first year of University living in the halls. I stumbled across Jonny’s IG by pure chance and was immediately fascinated, did some further digging and ended up signing up for the 7 day free TMC trial. At the time my plan was to get as much value as possible then leave because I was a broke student, but I forgot to cancel. I was so annoyed at myself but quickly realized it was pointless anger and I may as well make the most of it. So I began really digging into the lessons alongside attending the webinars and observing members in the slack community and it absolutely astounded me. In the short 30 days I was hooked and my initial excitement about trading had returned, this ‘mistake’ actually led me to moving home so I could save as much as possible and become a full time member. This wonderful mistake is why I am on the path that I am right now.

"This wonderful mistake is why I am on the path that I am right now."

What was it that made you want to pursue full-time (or part-time) trading?

From the age of 16 I knew traditional routes alone weren’t going to bring me what I want. I didn’t enjoy studying at school & I don’t enjoy the academia of University. The most attractive feature of trading for me is the freedom to do whatever I want whenever I want, I am held 100% responsible and I love that.

I have always felt a strong sense of ambition to take things to the next level, falling into the comfort of mediocrity scares me. Seeing successful traders & their lifestyles inspires me greatly, the potential to absolutely change your life & the life of your family/future lineage is something that keeps my vision clear and focused. I have also been blessed with incredibly hard-working and supportive parents who have believed in my vision at every step of my journey. This has made staying focused and centred much easier and for that I’ll always be grateful.

What is something unexpected that you love about trading?

The psychological insights you gain. During one of my worst drawdown months I learned so much about myself and some toxic behaviour patterns that emerged. When you get insights like this it is imperative you journal it so you can implement procedures and protocols to ensure you reduce & minimize the impact of it happening again.

The emotional mastery that it forces you to develop. Any sense of neediness or attachment to specific outcomes will prohibit the chances of developing consistency. This is something I only recently gained, it has been incredibly rewarding seeing the progress made. The best part of this is that it spills into other areas of life naturally, you start to apply the same principles into everyday situations and gain strong confidence in your ability to deal with adversity/challenges that inevitably arise.

"Any sense of neediness or attachment to specific outcomes will prohibit the chances of developing consistency."

What are one to three books that have profoundly impacted your trading journey / life in general? Why?

Rich Dad Poor Dad - Robert Kiyosaki

I read this very basic personal finance book when I was 15 and it completely flipped the paradigms on money/working that I held. The concept of letting money work for you was very fascinating to me. By the end of the book I was motivated and curious about alternative ways that I could reach generational wealth.

The Gratitude Effect - Dr John Demartini

This book highlighted the HUGE importance of gratitude in everyday life, not simple gratitude for only the good things that happen but true gratitude for anything that happens. Learning to expand my perception of events to see both the positives and negatives (underlying equilibrium) has been a game changer for me personally.

‘The quality of your life is based partly upon the quality of the questions you ask yourself.’ - Demartini

What new belief, behaviour, or habit has helped you gain the most forward momentum since becoming a trader?

This has been repeated over and over but structure + routines. Building solid morning & evening routines are absolutely essential to staying at the top of my game mentally and physically. Executing these routines (even when it is painful) builds positive momentum which begins to grow rapidly and before you know it you are operating at peak performance which is a necessity if you want to be the best trader you can be.

Focusing on nailing the processes instead of the outcomes has also played a huge part in finding enjoyment within the journey. Jonny in an incredible Evolve webinar articulated it perfectly, when you focus on consistently nailing the process the outcomes will follow.

What advice would you give to an inspired, driven individual about to step into the trading world?

Put the work in, you won’t achieve what you want to achieve by half assing it. You need to REALLY want it, there will be times where you feel burnt out, deflated and frustrated with the process but you need to find pleasure within the monotony and pain to ascend to higher levels within any field - especially trading.

"You need to find pleasure within the monotony and pain to ascend to higher levels within any field - especially trading."

Like I said before, focus on the processes that you need to nail before focusing on the outcome. Write out a list of all the processes and routines that you think a consistent & successful trader needs (morning routine, exercise, reading, meditating etc) and focus on getting these right. If you have done the required studying and built a tested plan then all that is left is execution + staying on top of your psychology.

How has Trading MasterClass assisted your evolution?

Trading MasterClass has truly been life changing, not only the content but the community. To begin with it provided me with a lens to view the markets, strategies I could mechanically apply so I could make sense of the infinite opportunities. As I began to develop I believe the community has been instrumental in my evolution as a trader, the incredible support from everybody has made the process much easier. Too many names to mention but special shout out to Kris + Sam who have been amazing in always giving me concise and detailed answers to all of my questions.

What is your next immediate trading goal?

My next immediate goal is increasing my risk to 2% once I have hit certain metrics over the next 3-4 months. After that, it is compounding to a level where I can go full time and really build the future that is coming to me.

Any final words of wisdom?

Don’t rush, enjoy the process. Don’t compare yourself to other traders, you are on your own journey. Be active in the community, ask questions and don’t be afraid to be wrong. Dig deep into the content and build a plan that is suited to you and be patient.

"Don’t compare yourself to other traders, you are on your own journey."

How can we keep up with you?

You can catch me on IG = @RayaanSharif_ or in the TMC Club!