What Bruce Kovner said in his interview: Michael Marcus taught me one thing that was incredibly important… He taught me that you could make a million dollars. He showed me that if you applied yourself, great things could happen. It is very easy to miss the point that you really can do it. He showed me that if you take a position and use discipline, you can actually make it.
Thanks for providing the quote as an example. Michael Marcus took Bruce Kovner under his wing and showed him how to take a position and use discipline. But the how part was not revealed in this book. I would pay to listen to if there's a full version. If trader is reading this book and don't have Michael Marcus training you, then he is on his own to figure out what the hell does it mean.
%% LOL WOULD you happen to remember [+ I do ]the IBD founder warning, Jack Schwager top Trader Interview book ; best stock picking gains are like medical school?? . FFTY , sadly has not beat benchmark SPY @ most anytime. [ Edit, priced in US$] But Dave Ramsey still helps alot. Good thing M Marcus invested in RE\ even though strangely he lost money on almost all his estate profits =weird. Most make money in RE. Good thing for me + many, capitalism is NOT like a pie where Bill+ Melinda Gates 7.77% hurts me. I cut a loss on ARGT, lost a bit more than my others..... Good year. Repeating =capitalism is where I can get my sister to bake for me or buy a bakery. or work my metals business also.
I don't think all of the interviewees were mentored. Some of them muddled their way through on their own. It probably took them longer, but they still managed to come out on the other side. The point is not so much the how, but the fact that they did it. Survivorship bias? Sure. But show me any lucrative field where it doesn't apply. No one is going to give you their hard-earned specifics on how to extract money from the markets. Not if it still works, anyway. But there is some direction in the generalities they offer. And since it is in a field we find fascinating, their stories make for interesting reading. It shows what, although unlikely, is possible.
Richard Dennis is maybe the best example of a self taught Hyper successful trader. Shame his career ended the way it did...still a legendary success no doubt.
His interview just resonates with me on so many levels. "I have a real fear of the markets. I have found that the greatest traders are the ones who are most afraid of the markets. My fear of the markets has forced me to hone my timing with great precision. When I am trading properly, it is like a pool player running racks." - Mark Weinstein, italics added I do as well and I am on my 3rd copy of the original Market Wizards book as I wore the first two out. This time I got smart and bought the hardcover. But when I'm driving or involved with a similar activity where I can't read a physical book but my mind is open to additional activity, I do like audible. I never only do an audible book. I alway read a book first. If it is a "keeper" then I will sometimes add the audible edition.
My three favorite interviews are: 1) Mark Weinstein 2) Gary Bielfeldt 3) Tom Baldwin However, I believe I have taken a little something away from probably all of the interviews and made it a permanent part of my trading psyche or whatever you would call that part of your brain that does what it is we are trying to do.
The Market Wizards series are my favorite books and incidentally, I'm re-reading them right now. I think they are more interesting and practical after having gained some experience on my own compared to reading them when I was completely fresh. For me, the main reason I find them interesting is because they are interviews with successful traders and there's a huge variety of styles among those traders. But even with a wide range of styles and approaches, there are some fundamental truths and commmon themes that keeps repeating themselves. Mostly related to risk management, discipline, handling losses and overall psychology.
Dude, your fees are like +70% of your cumulative profit! The first chart and the last doesn't maek sense to me. How is your after fees cumulative profit just under 3k for same time period?
Completely agree. I am much better able to understand the conversation now than when I first read ~3 years ago. Things I "believed" were correct I now "know" are correct. Risk management, discipline, innate ability, courage to size up when it's right, grit to keep going, and the ever important luck factor. All necessary ingredients to bake a successful trader cake. How can something so simple be so incredibly difficult?