Meditation makes me a better trader

Brett Traynor (right), 33, runs Saxon Financials, a company that provides support and training to traders. Having worked as a trader on the SGX floor, he has had his share of intensely stressful days.

'I remember getting off the SGX floor one day, sitting in a chair, shaking and feeling my heart racing. I remember thinking, 'What's wrong with me, am I having a heart attack?' And then I thought, 'Maybe its the four coffees I've drunk today.'

'I discovered the Clairvision School of Meditation 41/2years ago. I started with five minutes of meditation a day and now I meditate for an hour every morning before I go to work.

'It's hard at first, but rewarding in the long run. When you talk of meditation, you hear the word 'relaxation' being bandied about. But it's made me more focused, more driven and, as a trader, it has taught me not to get sucked into things even in the middle of a chaotic day.

'Meditation gives me a clear sense of space, peace and stillness. I find that I am a lot more centred and a lot less reactive. This means more productivity and less conflict. It also gives me clarity in a situation.'

'It's a myth that if you meditate, you won't get angry. The stillness just enables you to have a delay before that whooshing angry feeling takes over. There's a sense of 'me' separate from the things that are happening. You learn to feel and hold emotions better and that improves your willpower.

'I think it really is about quieting the mind, building vision and seeing the things that hold you back, the structures that prevent you from improving and doing better.'