And let this be a lesson to me!

SporeMonger said: "Multiple lessons even... I'm writing this post to anyone not familiar with the stock market that wants to get their feet wet in the market. You should REALLY think about it first. I have made quite a few mistakes, since I started investing at the beginning of July. I have read books, articles, tutorials, blogs, e-books, watched CNBC, etc. I learned as much as I could and then some, until I couldn't stand NOT being part of it all. I'm the type of person that will not make a move until I have a "comfortable" understanding of what I want to accomplish. Some stocks that I chose were high-dividend stocks going sideways. Good money makers just on divs. alone, if I knew how to work them and had enough vested. Others were chosen because they were bottoming. Great idea if I had the funds to keep averaging down to find their true bottom. Here is my personal poo-poo list for all to heed: 1) Not buying enough shares - The stock just rallied 7% in 4 days! That's great! Traders are now taking profits. I'm still below my commission cost. 2) Too diversified - 50% of the time I'm $200 down, 50% of the time I'm $120 up. My stocks that are up, are good solid stocks that will keep going up (YHOO, MRK, ANF), I can't sell them. My stocks that are down (way down in some cases), are stocks that are speculative (PGH, HAWK, EXP, LEA). Maybe they are not even close to bottom yet. Maybe I should have sold by now (LEA comes to mind)... 3) Too many owned stocks - Damn you Sharebuilder! "14 stocks in my portfolio" = "newbie to the max"... $7 a trade is really $7 a purchase. Hey! $1 a trade and 20 FREE trades at their top program! Nice... "Trade" = "purchase only". I'm still gonna pay $11.95 to sell my stock!!! Now let's see... $11.95 x 14 = $167.30 1st month subscription is: $12 2nd month subscription (Upgraded) is: $20 Kept $$ in money market instead (2 months) would have netted: $60 ------------------------------------------ Need to clear: (to take "worthy" profit): $259.30 4) Not enough funds - ANF just went up 20%! Time to sell. YHOO just went up 8%! Time to sell. EXP just went down 5%! Time to buy. PGH just went down 7%! Time to buy. umm... wait a sec. I don't have the funds to keep covering or enough vested to sell. Damn you Wall street! 5) Understand your homework - Ford just dropped their production 21% Gee, I'm glad I don't own Ford. Umm, could Lear Corp. be making stuff for Ford? It would of been nice if I payed attention. 6) Understand the economy - The economy is slowing! Woo Hoo! umm, what about housing (EXP) and the market sentiment about the market slowdown (today)? What else can happen with a slowdown? I thought inflation was something to worry about? I called the Fed's decision correctly... a lot of good that did me! Time for more homework... 7) Hope should not be part of trading - Homework not hope. Enough said... Folks, don't laugh, but I just painted myself into a corner. Nice stock picks, but lack of experience and funds. I know just enough, about investing, to get myself into trouble. This one is for all you itchy, jumpy and anxious noobs (like me) that want to get started. I thought I knew enough to atleast get started. I would worry about the rest "later". Yea right... I can talk the talk but that walk thing is very tricky indeed... And let that be a lesson to me... I humbly write this, so others can keep from my fate, and I sincerely wish you all the best."

SporeMonger said: "Almost forgot... Jim Crammer never gave enough information on "homework", so I will. 3 things I will study as my homework, from now on: 1) Company (What I have interest in NOW and in the future) 2) Economy (What things mean NOW and in the future) 3) Market psychology (How EVERYTHING is digested by the masses)"

Rickster said: "Excellent post SM. I think you are going to do alright because you are obvously willing and able to learn. :)"

SporeMonger said: "[QUOTE=Rickster]Excellent post SM. I think you are going to do alright because you are obvously willing and able to learn. :)[/QUOTE] I said the truth and nothing but the truth. Thanks man. :) Now it's time for me to go to bed... If I can sleep... :eek:"

JAP said: "[QUOTE=Rickster]Excellent post SM. I think you are going to do alright because you are obvously willing and able to learn. :)[/QUOTE] I agree. You're on your way SM! I started in Feb 2006. Several things I've learned since then: 1. The market does not revolve around Jim Cramer. He gives [I]some[/I] good advice, but don't get hung up on every little thing he says. 2. Ditto for the people on CNBC."

DaveinJapan said: "Regarding which brokerage firm to use (and unless you are a serious daytrader I'd think those offers of a certain number of "free" trades is nothing more than a scam encouraging you to trade too much...which I've been HORRIBLY guilty of in my trading career but I'm trying to learn patience), I use Firstrade. Seems to be pretty reasonable, decent website, $6.95 per trade, no minimum. Only thing I've encountered is that you have to set up your statements to be electronic only, else they charge like a buck or so to send you mail. They're pretty prompt in responding to questions too. Seems like an okay bargain brokerage to me (no hidden stuff that I've found yet). Anyone else have any experience (good or bad) with Firstrade?"

buy2gain said: "Great Analysis SM. Almost the same mistakes/learnings for me, in fact for every new comer to the stock market world."

lb19984 said: "goop post i myself use soginvest its $1 a trade (sell/buy) for the first 3 months and $3 a trade after that I alos dont have a lot of funds and this broker keeps me from loosing on the commision only problem is they dont have a trailing stop but its all goooooooood :D amd gooood luck!"

ndoggy said: "Kudos to the post. Sadly we have much in common :(...The point is to learn from your mistakes. I'm determined to whip this beast...now, it's personal"

thezster said: "[QUOTE=ndoggy]Kudos to the post. Sadly we have much in common :(...The point is to learn from your mistakes. I'm determined to whip this beast...now, it's personal[/QUOTE] NOOOOOOOOO :eek: It's not personal!! :o Getting the upper hand on your emotions is one of the keys to being a successful trader. Yes, it's true, you have no one to blame/credit but yourself for your successes and your failures. But, don't get into a fight with that computer screen nor the ambivilent beast known as Wall Street. Have a positive attitude, to be sure - winners expect to win - and those who expect to lose have lost before they start. Keep pluggin - learn from your mistakes and the mistakes of others... expect some "bad days" - but keep working at it - the good will outnumber the bad... Great post to start the thread!!:)"

ndoggy said: "[QUOTE=thezster]NOOOOOOOOO :eek: It's not personal!! :o Getting the upper hand on your emotions is one of the keys to being a successful trader. Yes, it's true, you have no one to blame/credit but yourself for your successes and your failures. But, don't get into a fight with that computer screen nor the ambivilent beast known as Wall Street. Have a positive attitude, to be sure - winners expect to win - and those who expect to lose have lost before they start. Keep pluggin - learn from your mistakes and the mistakes of others... expect some "bad days" - but keep working at it - the good will outnumber the bad... Great post to start the thread!!:)[/QUOTE] Agreed, and...expected after my "personal" comment. What I really mean is I'm not quitting till I succeed. That's the only personal aspect of it. I've had my battles with the screen and have the scars to prove it. But, I'm getting better at it. I must say, I dumped most of my holdings early this week and am sitting on the sidelines right now...waiting... A couple years ago I'd be getting clobbered right now."

BenHouston said: "I may be a little late posting this but 11.95 to sell isnt bad at all. My broker charges me 25.95 to buy and 25.95 to sell! I don't know what you are working with, capital wise, but 14 stocks does seem like a lot to own when you are just starting out. Maybe you should have bought say 3 stocks and see how you do rather than go all out right at the start. Planning an exit is just as important as making an aquisition."

JohnL said: "When I first started trading I had two securities. I think fourteen is far too diversified. I know a person who invests with millions of dollars and he averages 12-13 securities."

BenHouston said: "[QUOTE=JohnL]When I first started trading I had two securities. I think fourteen is far too diversified. I know a person who invests with millions of dollars and he averages 12-13 securities.[/QUOTE] Agreed, I like Warren Buffets approach on things. Find a solid company, put your eggs in that basket and watch them closely."

lil dickie said: "I definitely think you learned a lot. You arent kidding about overdiversification. Its a huge problem."

SporeMonger said: "[QUOTE=BenHouston]I may be a little late posting this but 11.95 to sell isnt bad at all. My broker charges me 25.95 to buy and 25.95 to sell! I don't know what you are working with, capital wise, but 14 stocks does seem like a lot to own when you are just starting out. Maybe you should have bought say 3 stocks and see how you do rather than go all out right at the start. Planning an exit is just as important as making an aquisition.[/QUOTE] My capital invested is $6300 and having 14 stocks to work with, being a major problem, is one of the main points of the post. I know that now. $11.95 might seem like it's not too bad and that is what I first thought, however, I spread my small amount of money out across 14 stocks. In doing so, large gains in the stock only add up to small gains from my position. I did not appreciate or even comprehend this problem until I experienced it first hand. The other thing I never checked on, until I tried to realize some gains, was that the word "trade" only means purchase. All along, I thought I can buy/sell for free or at most $1 per transaction, in my current plan. Isn't that false advertisement? I'm going to look for the fine print that states that a "transaction" or a "trade" really means a "purchase only". I am working on my exit stratagy. So far, I think I should sell my winners. Except for Yahoo, I think they are going to rally soon. I think I should pick 1 or 2 good stocks and put that money into them. Then either cut my losses with the other ones or dollar-cost average when the stocks are close to their 52 week lows. Eventually, I should have enough shares that I can take a profit, when the stock rallies. That way, I could pick away at my portfolio until I have a more reasonable amount of stocks with considerable amount of shares. Lather, rinse, repeat... Any suggestions?"

Darren said: "I think you've described the major newbie trouble. $6,200 should be concentrated in one stock, IMHO."

BenHouston said: "[QUOTE=Darren]I think you've described the major newbie trouble. $6,200 should be concentrated in one stock, IMHO.[/QUOTE] I would say 2000 per stock. But I agree that there is noooooo way 6200 should be spread across 14 stocks thats insanity."

thezster said: "[QUOTE=Darren]I think you've described the major newbie trouble. $6,200 should be concentrated in one stock, IMHO.[/QUOTE] Agreed.... I probably never have more than 6 equities in my portfolio at any one time.... spread over $475K........"

dumaman said: "And Id just like too say in my NOOby exp thus far, is that Crammer is great too listen too and more importantly when hes telling you too get IN, get the hell out or Short the hell outa of anything he says. and for cnbc they are the greatest sales people of deception. As for sharebuilders i like there website but they offer nothing as far as trading tools. There charts have improved, as of now I use Tdameritrade and so far am very happy with them. As for having 6200 invested in 14 stocks.. WOW!!! thats insane and I made the same mistake and whats more funny is i started with that exact amount. Lost almost 2 grand, licked my wounds.. As of now im just about too break even.. And another thing i have learned so far, is that no matter how much you know, how much you study a stock its fundmentals, its teq charts and info givin, you can never really know what the hell is gona happen next, but have a perhaps an inkling as too whats gona happen and when you hit it good... take it off the table and dont be greedy.. "greed is good" and sometimes not.. :D"

SporeMonger said: "I state that I'm insane in every post. ;) I learned a hard lesson. I'm not glad that I learned that lesson. Yes, I'm quite inexperienced. I am a bookworm that wanted to become experienced so badly, that I went overboard. Now that I'm living in the house of pain, I will be consolidating some of my stocks. I already sold off Lear Corp. (LEA) at a loss of $97 after commissions. I'm going to dump (from my position): ANF with a 15% gain (they will go up but I need capital right now) EXP with a 9% loss (oh well, it's just time to sell, no more pain please) MRK with a 4.33% gain (this one would be great but I have enough problems) YHOO with a 7.17% gain ($1200 on this one. I'm taking my money off the table) Yea, I screwed up, now it's time to do something about it."

dumaman said: "Its all good!! and this whole game is alot of fun:D Once you start sweating and loosing sleep its just not worth it in my opinion. Unless ofcourse you are a total profesional that does not have a job but do this for a living. Its not fun taking food away from your family and the nicer things in life because of a oopsy..:)"

SporeMonger said: "[QUOTE=dumaman]Its all good!! and this whole game is alot of fun:D Once you start sweating and loosing sleep its just not worth it in my opinion. [/QUOTE] Maybe I still have a lot to learn, but I worked for that money. Long hours and all. I am investing it... well, trading it, to make it go further so I can have more in the near future. I chose safer investments for my retirement. But the thought of losing money I sweated for, will always make me sweat when I put it to work for me. I'm just learning to except this feeling of handing my hard earned cash over to a bunch of roller coasters that play with my head. I don't think that it will ever be "fun", maybe exciting at times, but simply necessary."

sprite said: "[QUOTE=SporeMonger]Maybe I still have a lot to learn, but I worked for that money. Long hours and all. I am investing it... well, trading it, to make it go further so I can have more in the near future. I chose safer investments for my retirement. But the thought of losing money I sweated for, will always make me sweat when I put it to work for me. I'm just learning to except this feeling of handing my hard earned cash over to a bunch of roller coasters that play with my head. I don't think that it will ever be "fun", maybe exciting at times, but simply necessary.[/QUOTE] Its okay, dont worry, at least you didnt blow your money on some stupid $hiet that you wont ever use. You could have took that money and gambled at the casino and definetly LOSS it all. BUt u didnt. And even if the stock is down, as long as u DO NOT SELL, u did not LOSE that money either.. so theres always a chance for it to bounce back up compared to the casinos playing poker or blackjack. But at the end, you learned a valuable lesson, which is absouletly PRICE LESS and will help you from years to come!"

Mr. Gekko said: "[QUOTE=BenHouston]Agreed, I like Warren Buffets approach on things. Find a solid company, put your eggs in that basket and watch them closely.[/QUOTE] That's the approach I've been taking of late. I sold GE with a profit, sold LOW and SGP breaking even. Now I have all my funds in VLO and KNBT. I've studied how they trade for months now and... well... we'll see how it plays out. :cool:"

JAP said: "[QUOTE=Mr. Gekko]Now I have all my funds in VLO and KNBT. I've studied how they trade for months now[/QUOTE] ALL your funds? May not be such a great idea. God forbid something serious happens to just one of these companies. Many things could take them lower... bad earnings, accounting irregularities, whatever. KNBT is currently in a downtrend and is trading below its 50 and 200 day MA... Hmmm. Make sure you put stops in at the support levels."

dumaman said: "i think you have tooo put all your eggs in one basket when your capital is less then 50k, its just soo hard too make any real kinda money otherwise, unless your trading stocks under 3 dallars a share witch in some cases is very risky.."

Rickster said: "Regarding the diversification problem: I recommend studying the methods described in a book titled "Calculated Risk" by Robert Sharp. It is cheap on the used book market (try Amazon), but dont let that fool you. It is a gem. Basically, he advocates buying 3 high beta/low PE stocks of companies that you have some way monitoring. He gives solid criteria for getting in and out. He takes into account factors I havent seen addressed elsewhere. His average holding time is about 18 months. I cant describe it all in a paragraph so I will just say that this is the most no nonsense and best thought out book of the hundred or so that I have read. From the books preface: In 1966 a savings and loan bankruptcy closed the doors on my life savings of $11,567.22. The money had been carefully saved for nearly 20 years and all that escaped was $2,246.00 in common stock. It was a devastating experience!...That is what this book is all about-personal experience and probability. My conservative methods had brought me full circle and taught me that there is no such thing as a risk-free investment. The knowledge transformed me from a "saver" into a "player." I became a more aggressive investor with liberal use of margin. In 1982 my goals were met and I retired on the proceeds of the $2,246 that survived 1966. Stock market speculation is a probability science-like weather forecasting-and some failure is cetrain. The object is to find favorable situations and play these consistently enough for the statistical laws to effect a net profit. There is an art to stock selection, but it is science that produces the proper payoff...I have analyzed my performance to tell you what works, what doesn't and why. If you're disciplined enough to incorporate the principles into your investment practice, then you can join me in "shaking the money tree.""

JAP said: "[QUOTE=Rickster] From the books preface: In 1966 a savings and loan bankruptcy closed the doors on my life savings of $11,567.22. The money had been carefully saved for nearly 20 years and all that escaped was $2,246.00 in common stock. It was a devastating experience!...That is what this book is all about-personal experience and probability. My conservative methods had brought me full circle and taught me that there is no such thing as a risk-free investment. The knowledge transformed me from a "saver" into a "player." I became a more aggressive investor with liberal use of margin. In 1982 my goals were met and I retired on the proceeds of the $2,246 that survived 1966. Stock market speculation is a probability science-like weather forecasting-and some failure is cetrain. The object is to find favorable situations and play these consistently enough for the statistical laws to effect a net profit. There is an art to stock selection, but it is science that produces the proper payoff...I have analyzed my performance to tell you what works, what doesn't and why. If you're disciplined enough to incorporate the principles into your investment practice, then you can join me in "shaking the money tree."[/QUOTE] I understand the nature of what Mr Sharp is saying, but I highly doubt BAC or any of the other major financial institutions will be going bankrupt anytime soon. I may be wrong, but it sounds like Mr. Sharp is advocating 'balls to the wall' margin trading, which is very risky. That said, I have noticed that stocks do tend to fall faster than they rise. If you get it right, you can make a LOT of money. Before I started trading and shorting, I back-tested (and re-tested) my strategies on paper. Since then, I've been fairly confident and successful trading up to 500-1000 shares at a time -which I realize is peanuts for some people on this board :eek:"

Rickster said: "I only recommend the book to those who dont already have everything figured out."

BenHouston said: "[QUOTE=JAP]I understand the nature of what Mr Sharp is saying, but I highly doubt BAC or any of the other major financial institutions will be going bankrupt anytime soon. I may be wrong, but it sounds like Mr. Sharp is advocating 'balls to the wall' margin trading, which is very risky. That said, I have noticed that stocks do tend to fall faster than they rise. If you get it right, you can make a LOT of money. Before I started trading and shorting, I back-tested (and re-tested) my strategies on paper. Since then, I've been fairly confident and successful trading up to 500-1000 shares at a time -which I realize is peanuts for some people on this board :eek:[/QUOTE] I kind of agree, but I think that the guy is more of a zster type of trader...he's saying trade based off of probability, he probably knows his stocks in and out. He knows exactly how they act to certain types of news and can make a pretty penny per trade."

Mr. Gekko said: "[QUOTE=JAP]ALL your funds? May not be such a great idea. God forbid something serious happens to just one of these companies. Many things could take them lower... bad earnings, accounting irregularities, whatever. KNBT is currently in a downtrend and is trading below its 50 and 200 day MA... Hmmm. Make sure you put stops in at the support levels.[/QUOTE] Well, these are trades... not investments. I'll have sold every share (except those that are in my core position) way before either reports earnings. Besides, I'm only trading with $4,000. A very small amount in comparison to my net worth as a whole."

Rickster said: "[QUOTE=BenHouston]I kind of agree, but I think that the guy is more of a zster type of trader...he's saying trade based off of probability, he probably knows his stocks in and out. He knows exactly how they act to certain types of news and can make a pretty penny per trade.[/QUOTE] My initial post seems to have given the wrong impression of Sharps methods. Here is a list of his basic guidelines. • Secure a minimum stake of $4000 (in 1986 dollars) before speculating in stocks. • Plan for 25% average annual rate of return. • The stock market is a game of chance that should be played only when the mathematical expectation is positive. • When selecting stocks, seek enough volatility and time for potential gains of 100 percent. • Accept your losses and learn from them. • Value is determined by earnings in prosperity and book value in adversity. • Select stocks with low P/E and high beta. • Buy quality companies at half value. • Buy each share of stock as if you were buying the entire company. • Balance your portfolio with near equal amounts in all stocks. • I buy stocks that meet one of the following criteria. 1. They are companies that I have worked for or done business with. 2. They are located nearby. 3. They produce a product that I am familiar with as a professional. 4. Their product is well known and its appeal is easy to understand. • The portfolio should contain no fewer than 2 stocks and no more than 5. • Ensure that the correlation is less than 50% between any two stocks in your portfolio. • Liquidate and replace stocks in your portfolio one at a time. • Buy each stock in five installments spread over a six month time period. • Don’t buy stocks that have had a recent run-up in price. This represents a psychological inflation that presents little opportunity. • Don’t buy stocks that are excessively active, even if it is to the downside. Wait for dullness that suggests that the market has lost interest in the company. Major movements begin in dullness and end in dullness. • Don’t buy a stock that is priced in multiples of book value. No bargains there. • Only conduct a buying program in one stock at a time. • The first six months are for accumulation, the next six months are for observation and, if the stock does well, the third six month period is spent seeking the right time to sell. • Sell loses short term; hold gains long term. • Sell losses this year, gains next year. • Occasionally, I’ll sell half, or take out my original investment, if I am uncertain about what to do. • If the stock is still dead after 2 years, bury it. • Seek enough dividend yield to cover commissions and inflation. • Trend, timing, emotions, potential, taxes, dividends-all work against you on the short side of the market. • It is good policy for the serious investor to conduct his operations in secret in order to avoid performance pressure. • We tend to lose money because we are afraid to lose it. • If the stock has been discovered, it is too late for you. • When the majority concludes that a company has glowing prospects, the market has already reflected this in the price, and the probability is set for a reversal. • Any time a consensus has been reached, particularly by the experts, it is probably wrong, and your best course of action is to expect the opposite."

JAP said: "[QUOTE=Rickster]My initial post seems to have given the wrong impression of Sharps methods. Here is a list of his basic guidelines. • Secure a minimum stake of $4000 (in 1986 dollars) before speculating in stocks. • Plan for 25% average annual rate of return. • The stock market is a game of chance that should be played only when the mathematical expectation is positive. • When selecting stocks, seek enough volatility and time for potential gains of 100 percent. • Accept your losses and learn from them. • Value is determined by earnings in prosperity and book value in adversity. • Select stocks with low P/E and high beta. • Buy quality companies at half value. • Buy each share of stock as if you were buying the entire company. • Balance your portfolio with near equal amounts in all stocks. • I buy stocks that meet one of the following criteria. 1. They are companies that I have worked for or done business with. 2. They are located nearby. 3. They produce a product that I am familiar with as a professional. 4. Their product is well known and its appeal is easy to understand. • The portfolio should contain no fewer than 2 stocks and no more than 5. • Ensure that the correlation is less than 50% between any two stocks in your portfolio. • Liquidate and replace stocks in your portfolio one at a time. • Buy each stock in five installments spread over a six month time period. • Don’t buy stocks that have had a recent run-up in price. This represents a psychological inflation that presents little opportunity. • Don’t buy stocks that are excessively active, even if it is to the downside. Wait for dullness that suggests that the market has lost interest in the company. Major movements begin in dullness and end in dullness. • Don’t buy a stock that is priced in multiples of book value. No bargains there. • Only conduct a buying program in one stock at a time. • The first six months are for accumulation, the next six months are for observation and, if the stock does well, the third six month period is spent seeking the right time to sell. • Sell loses short term; hold gains long term. • Sell losses this year, gains next year. • Occasionally, I’ll sell half, or take out my original investment, if I am uncertain about what to do. • If the stock is still dead after 2 years, bury it. • Seek enough dividend yield to cover commissions and inflation. • Trend, timing, emotions, potential, taxes, dividends-all work against you on the short side of the market. • It is good policy for the serious investor to conduct his operations in secret in order to avoid performance pressure. • We tend to lose money because we are afraid to lose it. • If the stock has been discovered, it is too late for you. • When the majority concludes that a company has glowing prospects, the market has already reflected this in the price, and the probability is set for a reversal. • Any time a consensus has been reached, particularly by the experts, it is probably wrong, and your best course of action is to expect the opposite.[/QUOTE] Nice write up Rickster. About 6 months ago I bought a CD book called: "Rule#1" by Phil Town. Both Sharp and Town's methods/stratgeties are very, very similar. Almost plagiaristic!"

SporeMonger said: "I said that I would update so here goes... I sold off LEA at a loss. (18% down. That was a loss of discipline.) It should have been done at 8% down... *I'm slapping tha back of my hand right now* ow! ow! I sold off ANF, MMM, YHOO, and MRK at a gain. Well, I didn't make a profit because it took these 4 stocks to cancel out the loss of the LEA sale. Atleast 4 good things came out of this so far: 1) I didn't lose my ass. 2) I became more comfortable and confident. 3) I learned that I do have a feel. I decided to sell those 4 stocks last night and only one (MMM) kept going up. 4) I do have conviction and discipline. I managed to sell at a loss and also sell my good stocks, without bating an eyelash."

kho0ni said: "if you arent planning on investing in any stock anytime soon, i suggest you put it in a CD along with anymore $$ your thinking of adding on to your investment buget, atleast you'll make something other than just have it idle in your account."

Rickster said: "[QUOTE=SporeMonger]I said that I would update so here goes... I sold off LEA at a loss. (18% down. That was a loss of discipline.) It should have been done at 8% down... *I'm slapping tha back of my hand right now* ow! ow! I sold off ANF, MMM, YHOO, and MRK at a gain. Well, I didn't make a profit because it took these 4 stocks to cancel out the loss of the LEA sale. Atleast 4 good things came out of this so far: 1) I didn't lose my ass. 2) I became more comfortable and confident. 3) I learned that I do have a feel. I decided to sell those 4 stocks last night and only one (MMM) kept going up. 4) I do have conviction and discipline. I managed to sell at a loss and also sell my good stocks, without bating an eyelash.[/QUOTE] You do seem to have unusually good self awareness (and empathy too, I suspect). I think that it will prove to be an asset as you gain experience."

SporeMonger said: "[QUOTE=Rickster]You do seem to have unusually good self awareness (and empathy too, I suspect). I think that it will prove to be an asset as you gain experience.[/QUOTE] Thank you Rickster, that is quite a compliment. :)"