CONeal Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 With my contract coming to an end would like to devote the next year to investments and research for personal use. I have set aside the income need to live without having to tap my portfolio. Wondering of the people on the board that does this full time if they have any tips? Like time management or anything you think would be beneficial or to watch out for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
finetrader Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 I'm not doing it full time but my first though concerning your situation is don't force return on your investment to necesserily happen in that 1st year. Just because you are doing it full time doesn't mean you should 'double' your return.. You still won't be able to control outside elements. Also don't micro manage your portfolio.. I tried to do it and it's been worse that if I would'nt have done it. ex: there was a stock I owned that kept on oscillating between 7-10$ back in forth. One time I decided to sell it a 10$.. only to see it go to 15-17$ right after. Hope that helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scorpioncapital Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 My tip for investing full time is to do it part time, and even better no-time. Inaction is brilliance (I know sounds kind of Zen). The way to do this is to practice what I call "constructive hypocrisy". It means that you do not actually do what you appear to do. Read, post, talk, but inside your head say this is all really for amusement and in no way will I act on these noises! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oddballstocks Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 Check out the book "Free Capital" it's a profile of 12 British investors who do exactly what you're looking to do. In each profile it talks about success and mistakes. What's interesting is most of them do what scorpioncapital mention, they're posting on message boards, talking to their network, and then rarely trading on it. I enjoyed the book, maybe at some point I'll be able to invest personally full time, but not currently unfortunately. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liberty Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 Check out the book "Free Capital" it's a profile of 12 British investors who do exactly what you're looking to do. In each profile it talks about success and mistakes. What's interesting is most of them do what scorpioncapital mention, they're posting on message boards, talking to their network, and then rarely trading on it. I enjoyed the book, maybe at some point I'll be able to invest personally full time, but not currently unfortunately. Thanks for the recommendation. unfortunately, the public library here doesn't have it. Do you think it's good enough to be worth buying, or is it just nice if you can find it, but not worth paying for..? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NormR Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 Check out the book "Free Capital" it's a profile of 12 British investors who do exactly what you're looking to do. In each profile it talks about success and mistakes. What's interesting is most of them do what scorpioncapital mention, they're posting on message boards, talking to their network, and then rarely trading on it. I liked the book, but it did scream survivorship bias. (That is, how many other people following the same strategy failed? You might be looking at 1/10 or 1/100 success rate.) Nonetheless, good for a business book if you keep this in mind. (Warning, I've a low bar for business books. One good idea is enough for me. But may business books fail on this count ...) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NormR Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 My tip for investing full time is to do it part time, and even better no-time. Inaction is brilliance (I know sounds kind of Zen). I second this. I might make a trade or two a year. Some years (2008-2009) there were many trades. Other years, none at all. I've held some might good investments for over a decade. Quick action is not a requirement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oddballstocks Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 I thought Free Capital was worth paying for, it looks like it's going for about $20 on Amazon. I think it was worth it, most investors have different strategies and I picked up a few good tips that I've started to use myself. As NormR posted there is an element of survivorship basis in the book, I was thinking about that as well. As a total random aside about business books I actually prefer to read about failures because there is always something actionable to ensure I don't end up in the same situation, whereas with success often elements that lead to one person's success can't be replicated. Failure can always be avoided. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Uccmal Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 CONeal, I expect you have been a student where you set your own schedule. When I was a student my job was to get my work done to the best of my ability. Now, of course there were external pressures. I think what you are doing is well worth a try. You will have to figure out what works for you. If you find yourself 'hooked to the ticker' and trading frequently, then, like me, you will probably have to go back to work somewhere, in order to protect your investments. Sounds like my pal Finetrader has been down that road. NormR has his other side interests that he has cultivated such as his website, and his exceptional investment writing. He is obviously not inclined to trade much. I hear second hand that Buffett likes to read, and analyze numbers. He probably has the ideal temperment for investing as a full time job. I dont. I'd like to think it was too much testosterone, but that is probably just wishful thinking. Your question saved me from making a trade for nearly 15 minutes :P Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liberty Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 I thought Free Capital was worth paying for, it looks like it's going for about $20 on Amazon. I think it was worth it, most investors have different strategies and I picked up a few good tips that I've started to use myself. As NormR posted there is an element of survivorship basis in the book, I was thinking about that as well. As a total random aside about business books I actually prefer to read about failures because there is always something actionable to ensure I don't end up in the same situation, whereas with success often elements that lead to one person's success can't be replicated. Failure can always be avoided. Very good points. It's one of the reasons why I like the study of heuristics and biases.. Best to learn how to fail and figure out how to avoid it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smazz Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 I'm not doing it full time but my first though concerning your situation is don't force return on your investment to necesserily happen in that 1st year Thats a great point. I would add, if you are working from home - set in your schedule to go to the library x times per week. Unless you are super disciplined you will get distracted for reasons out of your control. Also, dont feel you HAVE to be invested if you dont feel the reward is worthy of the risk. People forget, investing is really taking the best possible return for the risk associated. If that answer is to just hold cash then so be it. Dont get romantic about this role. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CONeal Posted September 15, 2011 Author Share Posted September 15, 2011 I appreciate everyones responses. For the last couple of years I have been telecommuniting so hoping the dicipline needed for that will become helpful doing this. I do agree with the post regarding if I start looking at the ticker every 15 minutes I will have to go back to work. Thanks for the library idea, didn't think about that and I do love to read both business and pleasure also give the opportunity to be social. Have 4 books on my to do list so that should keep me distracted when I need down time. Looking at the first year more as a student and looking doing this is improve my investment knowledge and background more then could be done on a part time basis. If I come away with finding 10 companies I really like but the price and wrong price right now I'd be satisified. Current portfolio doesn't need to cahgne any as I like the companies and the prices paid, time will help me on that side of things. May sound weird but I am more concerend with heath, exercise and becoming a reculse then what happens to my portfolio on a day to day basis. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liberty Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 May sound weird but I am more concerend with heath, exercise and becoming a reculse then what happens to my portfolio on a day to day basis. About health, have you looked at standing desks? Recent studies seem to show that sitting too much is pretty bad for your health, so that's a nice solution: http://www.geekdesk.com/default.asp?contentID=613 You can also set up an alarm on your computer that reminds you to take walks outside once or more per day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cofabmd Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 -I am more concerned with heath, exercise and becoming a recluse- All valid concerns. Successful money management is partly about having an information edge. This means it's easy to start spending too much time sitting and reading. I installed an exercise machine in my office. A couple of times a day I use it for exercise and stretching. It is one of the best investments I've made. At times you will need to walk away from the office and just walk. It's important for processing information. Too much input leads to scrambled brains. The Dalai Lama was asked what surprised him the most. He said, "Man, because he sacrifices his health in order to make money.Then he sacrifices money to recuperate his health. And then he is so anxious about the future that he does not enjoy the present; the result being that he does not live in the present or the future; he lives as if he is never going to die, and then he dies having never really lived." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carvel46 Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 The chart below touches on many of the issues being discussed on this thread. (It's based on “Focus: A simplicity manifesto in the age of distraction” by Leo Babauta (available free online). Looks like a good book, although I haven't read it yet. http://learningfundamentals.com.au/wp-content/uploads/Focus-medium-border.jpg Larger chart: http://learningfundamentals.com.au/wp-content/uploads/Focus-mindmap-for-web.jpg Review of Book: http://learningfundamentals.com.au/blog/developing-razor-sharp-focus-with-zen-habits-blogger-leo-babauta/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NormR Posted September 16, 2011 Share Posted September 16, 2011 NormR has his other side interests that he has cultivated such as his website, and his exceptional investment writing. Oh, thank you for the kind words. (Since I was asked via PM, here's the link for the curious www.ndir.com) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
biaggio Posted September 16, 2011 Share Posted September 16, 2011 Norm thanks for posting your web site...looks good/a lot of info, look forward to reading it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frog03 Posted September 28, 2011 Share Posted September 28, 2011 Thanks for the book recommendation. Free Capital is indeed a very nice book. Several of the folks there have not only outstanding results but also outstanding approches to investing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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