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Marty Schwartz Quotes

Marty has scored enormous percentage gains in every year since he turned full time trader in 1979, but he has done so without ever losing more than 3 percent of his equity on a month-end to month-end basis. In the US Investing Championships held by Stanford University Professor Norm Zadeh, his performance was nothing short of astounding. In nine of the ten four-month championships he entered, he made more money than all the other traders combined. His average return in these nine contests was 210 percent – non annualized! In his single entry in a one-year contest, he scored a 781 percent return.  

“I turned from a loser to a winner when I was able to separate my ego needs from making money. When I was able to accept being wrong. Before that, admitting I was wrong was more upsetting than losing the money.” 
”When I became a winner I went from ‘I figured it out, therefore it can’t be wrong’ to ‘I figured it out, but if I’m wrong, I’m getting the hell out, because I want to save my money and go on to the next trade.”
”By living the philosophy that my winners are always in front of me, it is not so painful to take a loss. If I make a mistake, so what! “
”Before taking a position always know the amount you are willing to lose.”
”The most important thing is money management, money management, money management. Anybody who is successful will tell you the same thing.”
”I always take my losses quickly. That is probably the key to my success.”
”The best advice I can give to the ordinary guy trying to become a better trader is Learn to take losses. The most important thing in making money is not letting your losses get out of hand.

Eleven Rules

Rule #1
Be data centric in your approach.
Take the time and make the effort to understand what works and what doesn’t. Trading decisions should be objective and based upon the data.

Rule #2
Be disciplined.
The data should guide you in your decisions. This is the only way to navigate a potentially hostile and fearful environment.

Rule #3
Be flexible.
At first glance this would seem to contradict Rule #2; however, I recognize that markets change and that trading strategies cannot account for every conceivable factor. Giving yourself some wiggle room or discretion is ok, but I would not stray too far from the data or your strategies.

Rule #4
Always question the prevailing dogma.
The markets love dogma. “Prices are above the 50 day moving average”, “prices are breaking out”, and “don’t fight the Fed” are some of the most often heard sayings. But what do they really mean for prices? Make your own observations and define your own rules. See Rule #1.

Rule #5
Understand your market edge.
My edge is my ability to use my computer to define the price action. I level the playing field by trading markets and not companies.

Rule #6
Money management.
Money management. Money management. It is so important that it is worth saying three times. There are so few factors you can control in the markets, but this is one of them. Learn to exploit it.

Rule #7
Time frame.
Know the time frame you are operating on. Don’t let a trade turn into an investment and don’t trade yourself out of an investment.

Rule #8
Confidence and conviction.
Believe in your strategies and bet wisely but with conviction. There is nothing more frustrating than having a good strategy work as you expect, yet at the end of the day, you have very little winnings to show for your efforts.

Rule #9
Persistence.
It takes persistence to operate in the markets. Success doesn’t come easy, and if it does, then I would be careful. Even the best strategies come with losses, and they always seem to come when you get the nerve to make the big bet. Stay with your plan. If you have done your home work, the winning trades will follow.

Rule #10
Passion.
In the end, trading has to be about your bottom line, but you have to love what you do and no amount of money is worth it if you aren’t passionate about the process. No matter how much success you enjoy, in the markets you can never stop learning.

Rule #11
Take care of yourself.
No amount of money is worth it if your health is failing or you have managed to alienate yourself from family and friends in the process.

13 Trading Rules

  • Let winners run. While momentum is in phase, the market can run much further than might be expected.
  • Corollary to that rule: Do not exit winners without reason!
  • Be quick to admit when wrong and get flat.
  • Sometimes a time stop is the right solution. If a position is entered, but the anticipated scenario does not develop then get out.
  • Remember: if one thing isn’t happening the other thing probably is. Historically, this has never been good for me…
  • Be careful of correlations. Several positions can often equal one large position bearing unacceptable risk. Please think.
  • I am responsible for risk management, money management, trade management, doing the analytical work and putting on every trade that comes.
  • I am not responsible for the outcome of any one trade. Markets are highly random. I do not have a crystal ball. I am not as smart as I think I am.
  • Risk management is the first and last responsibility. I can make almost any mistake and be ok as long as I do not violate my risk management parameters.
  • Opportunity comes every day. Do not neglect the work. Must do analysis every day.
  • Opportunity comes every day. Get out of poor positions. Move on.
  • I am a better countertrend trader than a trend trader. Sometimes the crowd is right, and they will run me over at those times if I’m not quick to admit I’m wrong.
  • If you’re going to do something stupid, at least do it on smaller size.

11 Rules For Better Trading

Trading in the markets is a process, and there is always room for self improvement. So as we start the new year, here are my 11 rules that help me navigate the markets. By no means is this list exhaustive or exclusive.

Rule #1
Be data centric in your approach.
Take the time and make the effort to understand what works and what doesn’t. Trading decisions should be objective and based upon the data.

Rule #2
Be disciplined.
The data should guide you in your decisions. This is the only way to navigate a potentially hostile and fearful environment.

Rule #3
Be flexible.
At first glance this would seem to contradict Rule #2; however, I recognize that markets change and that trading strategies cannot account for every conceivable factor. Giving yourself some wiggle room or discretion is ok, but I would not stray too far from the data or your strategies.

Rule #4
Always question the prevailing dogma.
The markets love dogma. “Prices are above the 50 day moving average”, “prices are breaking out”, and “don’t fight the Fed” are some of the most often heard sayings. But what do they really mean for prices? Make your own observations and define your own rules. See Rule #1.

Rule #5
Understand your market edge.
My edge is my ability to use my computer to define the price action. I level the playing field by trading markets and not companies.

Rule #6
Money management.
Money management. Money management. It is so important that it is worth saying three times. There are so few factors you can control in the markets, but this is one of them. Learn to exploit it.

Rule #7
Time frame.
Know the time frame you are operating on. Don’t let a trade turn into an investment and don’t trade yourself out of an investment. (more…)

11 Rules for Better Trading

11rulesbettertrading

Trading in the markets is a process, and there is always room for self improvement. So as we start the new year, here are my 11 rules that help me navigate the markets. By no means is this list exhaustive or exclusive.

Rule #1 Be data centric in your approach : Take the time and make the effort to understand what works and what doesn’t. Trading decisions should be objective and based upon the data.
Rule #2 Be disciplined : The data should guide you in your decisions. This is the only way to navigate a potentially hostile and fearful environment. (more…)

Trading Wisdom

Often I think we overcomplicate trading.  All this talk of risk management, money management, entries, exits etc ad nauseum can leave us not being able to see the wood for the trees.

It’s obvious that you need to cut your losses.  If you let them run or get out of control your aren’t going to be in the business for long. 

But there is another very good and often forgotten reason why you should not let your losses run that William O’Neill highlights:

O’Neill “letting your losses run is the most serious mistake made by almost all investors” simply because “if you don’t sell to cut your losses when you get into trouble, you can easily lose the confidence you’ll need to make buy and sell decisions in the future.”

But if you learn to do this then you stand some chance of doing this:

“Take your losses quickly and your profits slowly” because “your objective is not just to be right but to make big money when you are right.”

The first quote is another great one to heed.  If we do and combine it with the second well…… we might just be able to make the big money once in a while.

Confidence, Discipline and Consistency

While day-trading is a great way to make a living when you are consistently profitable, it can also be the worse career choice if you consistently lose. Continue forward with system development, or working towards effective risk management, money management, or mastery of your trading psychology. Trading psychology means the big 3: discipline, confidence and consistency.The trading psychology takes precedence because it is needed to make sure that the other two are followed.

It takes a skilled trader to understand execute all of the things that are needed to be successful and earn a significant amount of profit doing this alone. Money Management is essential to preserve your trading capital and is simply a set of rules that governs how much money you have at risk. Take control of your trading Psychology and adhere to strict discipline in trading your developed and refined Trading System.

Building confidence on the system is extremely important as that is the only reason why you stick to the system during bad times. Day trading requires focus and discipline on the part of the trader with a high degree of risk tolerance since losing trades are numerous. (more…)

Time to Read :Trading Rules !

To me, it’s useful to re-read things like this sometimes, just to remind myself of the obvious.  I hope you find them useful.  (The last rule alone has saved me a lot of money over the years…)

Trade Management

  • Let winners run. While momentum is in phase, the market can run much further than might be expected.
  • Do not exit winners without reason!
  • Be quick to admit when wrong and get flat.
  • Sometimes a time stop is the right solution. If a position is entered, but the anticipated scenario does not develop then get out.
  • Remember: if one thing isn’t happening the other thing probably is. Historically, this has never been good for me…
  • Be careful of correlations. Several positions can often equal one large position bearing unacceptable risk. Please think.

Other thoughts

  • I am responsible for risk management, money management, trade management, doing the analytical work and putting on every trade that comes.
  • I am not responsible for the outcome of any one trade. Markets are highly random. I do not have a crystal ball. I am not as smart as I think I am.
  • Risk management is the first and last responsibility. I can [mess]anything else up and be ok as long as I do not violate my risk management parameters.
  • Opportunity comes every day. Do not neglect the work. Must do analysis every day.
  • Opportunity comes every day. Get out of [crappy] positions. Move on.
  • I am a better countertrend trader than a trend trader. Sometimes the crowd is right, and they will run me over at those times if I’m not quick to admit I’m wrong.
  • If you’re going to do something stupid, at least do it on smaller size.

You Need To Learn How To Dance In The Rain

Dance in RainEvery trader will experience storms during their trading career.

You might have days or even weeks without any storms, but they will come. Violent movements, large losses, markets that react opposite than your strategy tells you will happen and so much more.

We cannot keep these situations from happening; however we can make a decision to either wait for the storms to pass or step out and dance in the rain.

If we are planning on waiting until there are no storms, no struggles, no disappointments or no losing trades then we will be waiting for a very long time. Expect the storms to occur and have a plan as to how you will work through the storm.

When we work through the storm with a higher awareness of our risk management, money management and patience we will come out the other side stronger than before and will be ready for the next time a storm breaks out.

It is not the fact that storms happen, it is being ready to get out in the storm and still be productive. Instead of fearing the storm, learn how to dance in the rain.

Eleven Rules for Traders

Trading in the markets is a process, and there is always room for self improvement. So as we start the new year, here are my 11 rules that help me navigate the markets. By no means is this list exhaustive or exclusive.

Rule #1
Be data centric in your approach.
 Take the time and make the effort to understand what works and what doesn’t. Trading decisions should be objective and based upon the data.

Rule #2
Be disciplined.
 The data should guide you in your decisions. This is the only way to navigate a potentially hostile and fearful environment.

Rule #3
Be flexible.
 At first glance this would seem to contradict Rule #2; however, I recognize that markets change and that trading strategies cannot account for every conceivable factor. Giving yourself some wiggle room or discretion is ok, but I would not stray too far from the data or your strategies.

Rule #4
Always question the prevailing dogma.
 The markets love dogma. “Prices are above the 50 day moving average”, “prices are breaking out”, and “don’t fight the Fed” are some of the most often heard sayings. But what do they really mean for prices? Make your own observations and define your own rules. See Rule #1.

Rule #5
Understand your market edge.
 My edge is my ability to use my computer to define the price action. I level the playing field by trading markets and not companies. (more…)

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