Sam Prior on Trading, Sports, and Why Adversity Builds the Right Mindset

Sam Prior on Trading, Sports, and Why Adversity Builds the Right Mindset

Sam Prior joins Kim to talk about the path from semi-pro rugby and orthopedic sales into trading. The conversation is strongest where it connects sport and markets without forcing the analogy. Sam’s view is that the real edge is not aggression or bravado. It is the willingness to absorb feedback, survive setbacks, and keep improving even when the result is far from immediate.

That makes this episode especially useful for newer traders. Sam explains why he changed direction after a wake-up call, how discomfort can become a growth signal, and why the first goal in trading is often just to stay in the game long enough to learn. It is a practical conversation about resilience, not performance theater.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:29:11 — 122.5MB)

About Sam Prior

Sam Prior came into trading after a very different professional and athletic background, including semi-pro rugby. In this episode, he talks about how adversity, discipline, and honest self-assessment shaped his transition. The result is a grounded look at why some mindsets travel well from sport into markets.

Key insights from this episode

• Sports can help traders because they normalize feedback, setbacks, and the need to improve through repetition.
• Growth usually starts at the edge of the comfort zone. Sam frames change as something to lean into rather than wait to be forced into.
• Surviving the first few years is the real test. Many traders underestimate how much endurance the learning curve requires.
• Adversity can be an advantage if you treat it as information instead of identity.
• Trading rewards people who are willing to keep refining themselves even when they are far from polished.

Episode chapters

The current source material for this page does not include a full original chapter list, so none are added here.

Follow Sam Prior

Twitter / X: @TradesTurbo