Hell Yea 2014
2013 is all but over and in market terms will probably be remembered as one of the most bullish market years in history. It’s been since my early trading career in 1999 to 2001 since I have seen such a strong BTFD mentality. The jury is still out on how long this bull market will last and when the time comes for it to end will the correction be as deep and violent as what we saw in 2001.
We are in a much different financial landscape than we were in 1999- 2001. Back then there were a surge of new neophyte traders who got their first taste of independent trading from online brokerage firms. This opened up the door and created a whole new way to earn a living that we had ever seen before. Dot com companies were the powerhouses of the time, with much larger moves and loftier valuations than the social media stocks we see today. The market bubble of 1999 2001 was fueled by how the Internet would open up a whole new way of life for us and change the way we communicate and do business. There is no denying the Internet has become everything we thought it would be and more but many of those companies in 1999 -2001 were watered down, over evaluated copycats that ultimately met their demise.
In 2013 we’ve seen an incredible rally that was created from trillions and trillions of Fed injected capital into the marketplace. What began as a tactic to stabilize, restore faith in the markets and bring back the Ma and Pal investor into mutual funds has turned into one algorithmic, schizophrenic and confidence inspiring market. As to how this will play out in the future we’ll will just have to see. Either way there were fortunes made on the way up and there will be fortunes made on the way back down, well hopefully on the way down. I’m sure there are a plethora of naive bagholders out there that will get taken out on the way down that thinks the market only moves one way and that is up. There is always carnage for the unprepared. I know this first hand as many years ago I was one of wall streets expendable victims. Read below.
2014 will mark my 14 year as a stock trader. During that time I’ve met some crazy people traded some crazy markets went through a crazy amount of emotions and won/lost a crazy amount of money. However, during the last three years since I started the LincolnList I’ve never had so much fun in my trading career. Don’t get me wrong I’ve met some crazy people out there in social media land but for the most part I’ve met a lot of great people. I’ve had the privilege to take my life’s trading experiences and teach others how to sustain a long term profitable trading career. It wasn’t until this year that I really felt like I have come full circle as a trader. Many of you know my story where in my early trading career I lost over $162,000 trading stocks, if not you can watch the story about it here. Although this was a very emotionallyand trying time for me that experience made me the trader that I am today. And this February, if all goes well, I will be celebrating eight straight years without a losing month. That’s right, my last losing month was February of 2005. I truly believe that if it weren’t for the disastrous start to my trading career an eight year winning streak would not be possible. Those losses tested my character and strengthened me emotionally. It didn’t seem like a blessing at the time but this was the best thing that happened to me as a trader. Although I don’t recommend that you go out and lose $162,000 of your hard earned money so you can figure out how to trade, the point is we always learn more from our losses than our victories.
With this new year comes a new opportunity. Some of you may be celebrating your best trading year ever. Some of you may be on the cusp of breaking through as a trader but it hasn’t quite happened yet and unfortunately some of you might have experienced the most trying, frustrating and financially downtrodden year ever. No matter where you’re at remember there’s always a tomorrow. As Lucy Maud Montgomery said “Tomorrow is always fresh with no mistakes in it”. Learn from the things that you did wrong and take the things that you did right and make them better. The longer you can survive as a trader the more you will prosper. Survival points always count!
I want to thank all of you who’ve ever been to my website, read one of my posts or watched anyone of my training videos. My greatest triumphs come from teaching and helping others. I want to thank all of the different traders I’ve met over the last three years. I’ve probably learned as much from you as you have learned from me if not more. And last I want to thank all of the past and present members of the LincolnList. I want to thank you for your support, your kind comments and your camaraderie. Unlike most people in this world I am very fortunate in that I look forward to going to work every day. I love what I do for a living and I love the people I’ve surrounded myself with. I must say I’m lucky to be who I am. Here is wishing each and every one of you a prosperous and healthy 2014
Say “hell yea” to 2014 by taking advantage of a free trial to TheLincolnList.
Till next time
Doug