The single most expensive stock market trades are those made with emotions, but, of course, you are not an emotional trader are you?
Before you bought that stock, mutual fund or Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) you did your research to be sure that what you were buying would return a good profit over the long haul. You bought it and over time you look at it less and less.
Ask yourself: when you plunked down your hard earned money did you have any idea where you would sell it or where you might exit the trade should the stock go down instead of up? And suppose it has gone up have you made any plans to protect those profits?
There were many geniuses in 1999 who bought a tech stock at $20 and saw it run to $200 only to come back down to $2. Those who had an exit strategy probably sold out as it turned over and dropped like a rock. They kept most of their profits as well as their original investment.
What kept those BuyNholders in? It was emotion. They fell in love with the stock because they "knew" it was worth more and would "come back up".
Investing is not an "I hope, I hope" business, but it is a business. Never become emotionally attached to anything you buy. If you were in the buggy whip business in 1900 and saw the automobile putting the horse out to pasture you easily knew it was time to sell out. That also applies to any investment you make in the stock market.
Once each month you should be checking to see if your various stocks are advancing as planned. Forget all those pretty research reports your broker sent you. Burn them. Now you must not care anything about that company. What you care about now is your money. As long as the stock price is advancing you may continue your love affair, but when it starts down it is time for a divorce. Time to leave before the damage gets worse.
This is where emotion becomes expensive. If you just bought it your ties are strong and you know if you sell you will have a loss. Never fall for that old broker's adage that you don't have a loss until you sell. Anyone who believes that will be eating cat food at retirement.
When you bought that new car you knew as soon as you drove it off the lot it would be worth 20% less than you paid for it. Twenty percent is a lot and more than most folks should be willing to risk when investing. Forget "the long haul" as you don't want to take the 40% losses that many investors did in 2000.
Usually a good rule of thumb is 10%. When you drive that stock off the exchange floor your risk should be limited. You decide how much you are willing to lose if it goes down instead of up and as it goes up carry that risk percentage along to lock in your profit.
If you do sell never look back. Fagedaboudit! In 80% of those sales when you do look back six months later you will see you are way ahead in the money game.
Do not allow an emotional attachment to keep you in any stock or fund. It will drain you both mentally and financially.
Al Thomas' book, "If It Doesn't Go Up, Don't Buy It!" has helped thousands of people make money and keep their profits with his simple 2-step method. Read the first chapter at http://www.mutualfundmagic.com and discover why he's the man that Wall Street does not want you to know.
Copyright 2005
http://www.mutualfundmagic.com; 1-888-345-7870
one time home cleaning Highland Park ..The Winter Games for the Olympics are coming up soon... Read More
For the year 2000 we have seen hundreds of mutual... Read More
In my opinion, due to the volatility of stock market... Read More
On Friday or Saturday evening my wife gets a movie... Read More
Mutual funds and brokers are always preaching not to buy... Read More
We all know the expression, "My country, right or wrong",... Read More
Money management starts with protecting your capital, realizing profits and... Read More
Disclaimer: Please note that I do not necessarily purchase, own,... Read More
After the publication of the first part of this two... Read More
With all the bad news that has been dumped upon... Read More
Spread trading is a technique that can be used to... Read More
At some time in your life you have been on... Read More
When is a dividend not a dividend?The latest thing "conservative"... Read More
Before you embark upon a journey of trading stocks or... Read More
The gleam and bright lights of Wall Street lure in... Read More
Let me start by saying that...Most online brokers do not... Read More
Invest in the stock market for the RIGHT reason, using... Read More
Two weeks ago I wrote about what the Securities and... Read More
For years I have been saying you must have a... Read More
You read and hear a lot about hedge funds. Unfortunately,... Read More
Every year I go to the Money Show in Orlando,... Read More
When will the stock market stop going down and start... Read More
The trash business in its efforts to cook their books... Read More
The debate rages all over Eastern and Central Europe, in... Read More
I'll bet with almost anyone that has stocks or mutual... Read More
licensed cleaning services Park Ridge ..Ever turn down a street, get half way and suddenly... Read More
You must take the time once a month to review... Read More
As I said in Part I everyone in the insane... Read More
I don't know what kind it is, but I saw... Read More
A common problem I often see when working with living... Read More
Today we are inundated with tons of information about the... Read More
Invest in the stock market for the RIGHT reason, using... Read More
Forget making a profit; instead focus on the income provided... Read More
People are always asking me when should I sell my... Read More
How do you make money without picking tops and bottoms?I... Read More
Starbucks earnings are up again and so is their stock... Read More
Well maybe that's overstating it a little, but it's certainly... Read More
This article describes the model of a natural relationship between... Read More
With all the bad news that has been dumped upon... Read More
As one of my regular readers you know I have... Read More
Now where have I heard that before? I know. It... Read More
During the day I watch CNBC-TV, the stock market channel.... Read More
If you don't know what a Roth IRA is then... Read More
If you were to find that you had some severe... Read More
Yesterday I received my monthly issue of MONEY magazine. This... Read More
Let's hope you did not have any of the Enron... Read More
I read a comment by a forum member on another... Read More
We learnt the following the hard way! If any of... Read More
Are you paying any attention to your retirement savings? Do... Read More
For years investors have been taught to look into the... Read More
Stocks & Mutual Fund |