Overview

Stock Plays for Busy People (FbP)

We are Busy People constantly juggling many things.  All day, we are consciously or unconsciously, prioritizing items and putting the less important ones in the – to be addressed later bucket.  Interestingly, as life happens, our dreams and aspirations are often placed in the – to be addressed later bucket.  Between little league games, dance recitals and of course the J.O.B – it becomes prudent to shelve the idea that requires hitting the lottery to realize. Isn’t it ironic that we encourage kids to dream big – long after ours have faded?  What are the chances of that cycle repeating itself?

Whether your dream is to retire in style, to start a business or to trade for a living – you need capital.  I like to refer to it as Capital Needed to Walk (CNTW) – when you have enough you can walk out of your boss’ office with a big smile on your face.  Start-ups fear nothing more than running out of capital; it means the party is over.  Running out of capital in retirement means going back to work.  After the market melt-down in 2008, retirees are going back to work in increasing numbers.

Very few people pursue their dreams in life, because they never accumulate enough CNTW.  Most find it a challenge just paying the bills and trying to squeeze in a vacation every now and then.  I have found that the stock market is one of the best ways of accumulating CNTW.  Mainly, since it is possible to grow small sums of money into larger sums; while still working a full-time job.

That sounds great, but  in reality most people lose money in the stock market.  Believe it or not, there is a simple reason for it.  Many don’t have a proven plan.  Relying on  friends to continually dole out hot stock tips is not a good plan.

Once that is understood, many switch to the late night infomercials for help.  A few really dig in and start studying the market.  Sooner or later interest wanes as the work to success ratio is out of whack.  It is amazing how important other things become when we are losing money.  However, during a hot streak there is always time to step out of a meeting to make a trade.

I have suffered from the “I’m too busy” syndrome many times and know it well.  Fortunately, I was able to overcome my last bout and while doing so I figured out how too accumulate enough CNTW.  In March of 2006, I ended a rather successful and lucrative 20 year career in Sales, Marketing and Engineering.  I now spend my time trading for a living.  Mostly from my home office, but occasionally from a resort overlooking the beach as long  as they have high speed internet access.

My success can be traced back to developing a plan (that works) and working each day to refine and master it. As I said, I worked a full-time gig up until 2006.  In 2001, I earned Executive Premiere status on Untied Airlines the hard way (60 one-way segments in a year).  I had no plan unless it worked for a busy person on the run.

I am a testament that the plan works and I have been sharing it with my subscribers since 2006.

Michael,

I’m very excited and wanted to share this with you and thank you. I opened an investment account with $5,000 and really didn’t know what the next step was. I allocated it out to your Fab Four last week, and between Wed and Fri, I was up nearly 5%. Unbelievable. Trust me, I’ll be reading closely and telling my friends.Thanks for helping me achieve my goals, which are Time and Money,

Aaron

Strategy

Our approach to the market has been refined over many years. It is essentially a swing trading methodology using a combination of market timing and momentum strategies. The stock determines the duration of our trades. On average, we are in trades for weeks. On occasion, we ride trades for months. This is not a buy and hold strategy. The nitty gritty details of the strategy can be found here.

If that all sounds like mumbo jumbo don’t worry.  Over time it will become clear.  In the meantime, we will  hold your hand and guide you around the land mines.  On each actionable day,  around 2:30 PM EST,  an email ALERT is sent with execution orders for the market’s close.  Simply, place the trades and you are back doing your thing in no time.

The ALERTS are quite simple:

• 3/31/09:  Buy QLD at close if greater than 27.00, allocate 20%, with stop at 25.66
• 4/6/09:  Buy TBT at close if greater than 45.20, allocate 20%, with stop at 42.50

In addition to the ALERTS, each week updates reviewing the past week’s performance and plans for the upcoming week are sent.  Here are some samples.

Hi,

I am so happy that I found your website via a kitco commentator. Anyway, I am just starting out investing. I wanted to know the process you followed. Did you buy the software for learing about trades, did you subscribe to various expert’s letters etc. I really want to become financially free but there are so many people with so many items for sale. I am confused about where to start. Thank you and keep up the great work of inspiring others to become financially free.

Karol

The Bottom Line

Our 2009 performance is highlighted in the right sidebar.  In 2007 and 2008, our strategy out performed the market by 25%.  Each one of our trades from 2007 and 2008 can be found here.

Unfortunately, we lost 8% in 2008.  However, it will only take a 12.5% gain to recoup our losses.   If you were one of the many to have lost 40%; you are looking at a 150% return just to break-even.  Mathematics works against you as the losses pile up.  Our strategy addresses loses quickly making a quick recovery possible.

Hello Mike,

I’ve been reading your reports and insights and want to take the step into buying/selling/trading stocks on my own. How do I get started? Should I setup an on-line trading account? If so, with who? Thanks for pursuing your dreams and giving others like me the courage to reach for financial independence!

L.

Dollars and Cents