Trading Wisdom-One Liners

  • “It’s human nature to pick out the stunning successes of a method and to overlook the day-in, day-out losses that grind you down to the bone.”
  • Trade at a reasonable level, if you have too much exposure, override system and cut back
  • Missing a good trade is generally demoralizing (Basso’s silver trade)
  • “Buying on retracements is one of those ploys that gives psychological satisfaction rather than providing any benefits in terms of increased profits.  As a general rule, avoid those things that give you comfort; it’s usually false comfort.
  • If you have the resources to evaluate systems, your time is better spent developing your own idea.  I wouldn’t recommend buying systems.
  • “The human eye tends to pick up the times these indicators accurately called minor tops and bottoms, but it misses all the false signals and the extent to which they were wrong during trends.”
  • What would you do differently?  “Concentrate more on money management.”
  • Average human likes to take profits and play with losses, the exact wrong thing
  • “Watch idly while profit-taking opportunities arise, but in adversity run like a jackrabbit.”
  • Don’t think about what the market is going to do, only on what you will do
  • “It helps not to be preoccupied with your losses.  If you’re worried channel that energy into research.”
  • The majority of people trade worse than a purely random trader would.