John Burns

John Burns

Senior Consultant and Performance Advisor

John Burns serves as ReThink’s Senior Consultant and Performance Advisor. His life passion is optimal human performance. John was one of the most consistently profitable options floor traders at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and as a competitive amateur golfer has been often ranked as a top-20 Illinois amateur golfer. In addition to his role with ReThink, he trades several portfolios across multiple global markets employing several fundamental and technical ideas.

Meet John

25 Years + Financial Market Strategist, Former Trader, Athlete

Starting as a runner on the floor of the Chicago Board of Trade upon graduation from Indiana University, John quickly learned to read market dynamics while building strong relationships with key traders. This opened the door for his position as an options clerk, which led to his position as an option market maker on the trading floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange from 1994 to 2014. John profitably traded his own account for every quarter he was on the trading floor.

Through the years, John also realized that optimal performance is not something that can be achieved independently. He sought out experts across multiple fields, creating and customizing his own Masters-level program. Some of his professional consultants include Denise Shull of ReThink; Dr. Michael Gervais, PhD High Performance Psychologist and Co-Founder of Compete to Create; Curt Cronin, Retired Navy Seal and founder of the Broadway Strategic Investment Fund; Robin Mesch, Founder of Mesch Associates Technical Analysis; and various consultants with the Corporate Athlete Program.

He is now studying at the Boston Graduate School of Psychoanalysis, an institute whose teaching aligns with ReThink’s unique angle on human performance. John thrives on sharing his knowledge and experience with others. He knows how to connect high-achievers—and those that want to be—to the emotions that will embolden their achievements.

John works with institutional money managers, professional and independent traders, analysts and financial advisors. He is also currently working with an MLB pitcher and has worked with a variety of professional and amateur athletes.

In His Own Words...

I’ve experienced and spoken to clients about a moment of hesitation in trades. It’s when we have equal and opposite feelings towards a trade which oftentimes causes us to do nothing. By tracking these moments we can understand which patterns need action.

From One of His Clients...

“John has imbued in me a previously missing consciousness and awareness in my trading. This has all but solved my inconsistency problem and has turned wild swings up and down, to calm orderly taking of profits. He has helped me leave behind what were ingrained bad habits, like revenge trading and panic selling, and I have had no slumps nor major drawdowns since beginning my work with him. My account balance now very consistently and repeatedly reaches new all-time highs.”
– Margaret T.

Get to Know John

Selected Blog Posts

I Hear Voices

I hear voices … “That was a great trade; so what, it’s over.” “Yes, we won but I struck out 3 times.” “The only trade

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