Archive for the ‘Investing’ Category

Dancing With A Gorilla for Better Trades

This is reported to be an actual radio conversation of a US naval ship with Canadian authorities off the coast of Newfoundland in October 1995. Radio conversation released by the chief of naval operations, 10-10-95.

(Please Note: This story is an example of why it is important to listen and blend with the market. It is not meant as a political statement of any kind.)

CANADIANS: Please divert your course 15 degrees to the south to avoid a collision.

AMERICANS: Negative, Recommend you divert your course 15 degrees to the north to avoid a collision.

CANADIANS: Negative Sir. You will have to divert your course 15 degrees to the south to avoid a collision.

AMERICANS: This is the captain of a US Navy ship. I say again, divert YOUR course.

CANADIANS: No Sir, I say again, please you divert YOUR course.

AMERICANS: This is the Aircraft Carrier US LINCOLN, the second largest ship in the United States Atlantic Fleet. We are accompanied by three Destroyers, three Cruisers and numerous support vessels. I DEMAND that you change your course 15 degrees north. I say again, that’s one-five degrees north, or counter-measures will be undertaken to ensure the safety of this ship.

CANADIANS: Uh, Captain, This is a lighthouse. Your call.

The market, like a lighthouse, will send signals and it is incumbent on us to listen and to blend with the market. In a collision, the lighthouse (market) always wins.

Markets Maxims

One of my maxims says… “The stock will never listen to you, but, it will speak to you if you learn to listen”. Another one says, ” If you dance with a gorilla, don’t try to lead”. Folks, you must learn to listen (read charts and interpret news) and you must bend and blend with the market to avoid being crushed by it. This is not natural to our independent and proud natures. While we may be on the verge of a market upswing, every market upswing for 3 years has been met by a lower lows. Each upswing was seized upon by hopeful enthusiasm and dashed with the next roll over.

This has been a wonderful market for traders who trade both ways. It has been frustrating and devastating to one directional traders hoping for the return of a bull market. Trading is more than jumping in and holding on. It is dynamic and fluid and bidirectional. You must be trained in dynamic and tactical trading to flow with the market. You can and you must learn to do this. The following thought may help put this into perspective. It is paraphrased, as I cannot recall the author.

“The learners will inherit the earth while the learned will find themselves perfectly prepared and suited for a reality that no longer exists”.

Workshop Update

Boy what a week, we have just finished two great days of filming new materials for you in Phoenix and a “Two Days of Tradin’” boot camp in Denver. I was exhausted after the events but very pleased with the results. Both events were a success and the students loved the classes.
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Creating Your Businesses’ Sense Of Style

The look of your business-and a great design concept-can make a powerful impact on customers and help generate revenue. That’s the word from Susie Mendíve, a graphic designer who has spent years helping brands-from nonprofit organizations to large beauty companies- create their own unique image.

Mendíve believes it is important to create an image that is consistent throughout-from Web site to letterhead to the storefront window. The image should clearly communicate what it is your company does.

Here are her five tips to step up your business style:

• Observe, observe, observe. Consider your favorite clothing designers, boutique hotels you love and your must-have magazines. Each of these can provide clues to how they created their business style through hangtags, labels, menus, drink napkins, font choices, color schemes and Web sites.

• Get organized. Every small business has a similar list of tools, including a logo or specialized version of their company name, letterhead, stationery, business cards and a Web site that shows current and potential customers that it is in business. Take time to think about your customers and what they need from you and your business.
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Crane Hire or Contract Lift? – That is the question.

Crane hire companies have a complete range of industrial cranes available for hire.

Even deciding what kind of crane you need is a complex process that will require you to provide planned location, weight of load and distance from the centre of rotation (slew) of the crane that the load will be moved. This is because a crane can move a heavy load a small distance from the centre of slew, or a lighter load a larger distance from the centre of slew. There are tables for each crane type, detailing safe distances and loads that can be moved.

You have two options, Crane Hire or a Contract Lifting Service

Crane Hire

Hiring a crane is a much more complex procedure than you might expect if you are a first time hirer.

As can be expected with any large piece of industrial machinery there are complex Health and Safety procedures to comply with.

When hiring a crane conditions the client must provide an appointed person and supply the hire company operator with a detailed method and safety statements, drawn up by a competent and trained person, prior to the lift. The appointed person must supervise the lifting operation as detailed in BS 7121 (Safe Use of Cranes) and provide qualified personnel such as slingers, signallers and crane operators.

Hiring cranes and plant is inevitably accompanied by risk. The cost of a modern mobile crane ranging from £100,000 to more than £2million, the financial consequences in the event of an accident could be immense.

As a customer hiring a crane or other item of plant, you will have to satisfy the crane hire company that you have adequate insurance cover for the following risks:
1. Loss of, or damage to, the crane whilst on hire.
2. Continuing hire charges whilst the crane is under repairs
3. Injury to the operator.
4. Third party cover (injury to other parties, including damage to their property.)
Crane hire companies can arrange cover for loss of, or damage to, the crane whilst on hire and continuing hire charges whilst the crane is under repair. Insurance cover for lifted materials is also available.

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Covered Calls, A Godsend in a Flat or Falling Stock Market

It is amazing to me that not many retail investors understand the concept of generating cash flow from their stock positions. When I tell people that I utilize covered calls to generate extra income, hedge my stock positions, and set strict sell disciplines they look at me like I am crazy. I was introduced to the concept from a stockbroker, Scott Masse, who runs Masse Wealth Management, in Smithfield, RI. Scott is also the owner of a few bars and one night over a few diet cocktails, ie. barcadi and diet cola, he explained the concept to me. The idea of writing covered calls is the only option strategy that you can employ at most of the major brokerage firms for your IRA investments. The reason is that writing covered calls is a very conservative strategy relative to other option strategies.

The strategy is very similiar to selling an option on a piece of real estate. For example, I’ll give you $10,000 now, if you allow me to buy your property 6 months from now at a set price. If I choose not to exercise my option, you keep the money and we go our seperate ways.

With a stock, if I buy 1,000 shares of ABC OIL at $10 and the stock goes to $11 in the following month. I can sell someone the “right” or option to buy the stock from me six months from now at $12.50. For that right or option, the option buyer has to give me some consideration, similiar to the above real estate example, let’s assume it is .50 per share or $500.

The $500 is immediately deposited into my brokerage account, but an option position also shows up on my statement. I can not sell the stock prior to 6 months unless I buy back the option in the open market. The option price can fluctuate from day to day, therefore, I typically hold my stocks until expiration.

Six months from now, two things can happen. One, the stock goes above $12.50 and the person “calls” me out of the position, which I am more than happy to do since I bought it at ten. Second, the stock has declined below $12.50 and the option holder is holding on to a worthless option. The option holder would not “call” the stock from me at $12.5 when he or she might be able to buy it in the open market at $11.50.
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Costa Rica Real Estate Baby Boom

As the real estate market in the US takes a nose dive, alternative investments like Costa Rica real estate could keep you afloat and in the sun! In times like this it’s good to have an alternative to futures, options, and hedge funds. The real estate market in Costa Rica is said to be one of the most stable in the world. It has been quietly booming for a few years and is expected to continue on its path.

What makes Costa Rica real estate such a promising investment?

About 15 years ago, you could buy a piece of land 50 meters from a beach of powder white sand and aqua blue water for $10,000 and it would be worth $500,000 today. There are still investment opportunities like this available in undeveloped costal areas, and up and coming trendy tourist destination. Although there are fewer than in the past, steals like this can still be found.
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