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An S&P 500 Bear Market: How to Cope With All the Differing Opinions By, D.R. Barton, Jr.

May 26, 2022 May 26, 2022 / 4 minutes of reading / Leave a Comment

The broader U.S. markets sold off earlier this week into bear market territory. I’ve been overwhelmed by how negative everyone has been about this decline – and not only the media. Just recently the American Association of Individual Investors Bull/Bear spread hit its worst level since 2009 with the bullish component at an amazing 30-year low (data back to 2017 shown below): There is so much competing data out there about where the market goes next; I thought we could all step back and look at data overload with a …

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The ABC Secrets That Prevent Overtrading By, Chuck Whitman

May 26, 2022 May 26, 2022 / 10 minutes of reading / Leave a Comment

Every trader falls into one of two camps: the overtrader category or the afraid-to-trade category. My 30 years of training traders has taught me that, no matter a trader’s successes or struggles, every trader falls within one of these camps. When it comes to differentiating an overtrader from those afraid to trade, the distinguishing factor of the latter camp is their difficulty in pulling the trigger. Fearful traders don’t go broke quickly; they die a slow death. It’s the death of paying their living and trading expenses, with no trading …

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15 Elements of a Good Business Plan By, Van K. Tharp, Ph.D.

May 19, 2022 May 19, 2022 / 2 minutes of reading / Leave a Comment

Editor’s Note: Dr. Van Tharp’s content is timeless and our goal is to continue to share his material with our readers. Today’s tip is material from a past article, “Business Planning, An Important Consideration for Traders”. Trading is a business. It’s a profession. It’s a skill to learn. Most businesses fail because they fail to plan. Business planning is the backbone of success. It shows you where you’re coming from and helps you to organize your thoughts and your objectives so you can create a plan to keep you trading …

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My Favorite (and Most Used) Entry Edge. You Can Use It, Too. By, D. R. Barton, Jr.

May 19, 2022 May 19, 2022 / 6 minutes of reading / Leave a Comment

More than two decades ago, Van introduced me to the concept of “parts” of our personality—roles that compete for our attention and influence over our decision-making. If you’re not familiar with that concept, this is a psychological construct that I’ve found quite helpful for understanding how we make decisions. You may have a safety part, a joy-seeking part, a big spender part, and a pleaser part—all acting from their perspective in our own best interest. While perhaps not a clinically exact description of personality, it is a useful model. Under …

My Favorite (and Most Used) Entry Edge. You Can Use It, Too. By, D. R. Barton, Jr. Read More »

System Design by Market Type By, Van K. Tharp and R.J. Hixson

May 12, 2022 May 12, 2022 / 3 minutes of reading / Leave a Comment

Editor’s Note: Dr. Van Tharp’s content is timeless and our goal for the future is to continue to share his material with our readers as written by him. Today’s tip is an excerpt from a past article, “How to Design a Trading System to Trade a Particular Market Type”. System design and development become easier and more effective when you think about how prices behave in each market type. Let’s assume that what works in a bull market will also apply to a strong bull market and the same for bear and …

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Guessing Is NOT a Good Thing for Traders and Investors. Do This Instead. By, D. R. Barton, Jr.

May 12, 2022 May 12, 2022 / 4 minutes of reading / 1 Comment

Through the years (okay, decades) I had the joy and pleasure of teaching many classes with Van. Even though he was a mentor to me early in my transition from chemical engineering to the financial markets, he and I always had the type of relationship where conversations could range from deep intellectual or spiritual discussions all the way to crazy fun diatribes about pop culture. We also LOVED to play his trading simulation games, sometimes jumping in with students. There was one trading simulation game that I loved to play …

Guessing Is NOT a Good Thing for Traders and Investors. Do This Instead. By, D. R. Barton, Jr. Read More »

May 2022 Market Update Bear Volatile Market Type By, RJ Hixson

May 12, 2022 May 12, 2022 / 7 minutes of reading / Leave a Comment

Part I: The World Market Model Stepping back from the US equities, let’s start this month’s update with a look at the markets globally via the World Market Model. The model uses Van’s Market SQN® methodology which evaluates trend and volatility for the last 100 trading days in a single score. He added colors to help with a quick indication in the model about how each market is performing. The model uses ETF symbols as proxies for what’s happening in the markets. As you look at the following table, what …

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What Kind of Trader Am I? By, Ken Long

April 29, 2022 April 29, 2022 / 3 minutes of reading / Leave a Comment

A VTI student asked for ideas on how to address that question in an organized way. Below is my offer to them. Your situation may be different but taking into account the criteria by which you evaluate yourself can help answer your own questions. My Offer to Them: You are not a Day trader. You would know already if that were the case, and nothing anyone can say could persuade you otherwise. If you DON’T have that mindset in your bones, you are not a day trader. Then it’s just a …

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Inflation: How We Got Here and One Low-Risk Play By, D.R. Barton, Jr.

April 29, 2022 April 29, 2022 / 5 minutes of reading / Leave a Comment

My guess is that many people reading today’s article haven’t before experienced inflation in the way that it’s showing up now—as higher prices for regular stuff you buy. And if the stuff you buy is a home or a car, those prices are not higher, they are a whole lot higher. Same for gasoline or lots of food products. Houses in my neighborhood are up 30% or more year-over-year. Used car prices have zoomed up almost 40% in 2021 (though the rate of increase slowed a bit in March 2022 when the …

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Remembering Van Tharp By, Gracia Rosslow

April 21, 2022 April 21, 2022 / 5 minutes of reading / Leave a Comment

I was asked to say a few words about my memories of Van Tharp but this may be more than a few words since I have known him for more than three decades. This means I have known Van for half of my life. During that time, Van has been my teacher, a mentor and a friend. Like most people, I met Van through his work and my interest in trading. I started with the Peak Performance Home Study Course after I listened to one of his lectures at the …

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