You have rowed a boat at some time havent you? Yes, put the oars in the water and pull. Of course, you dont know where you are going because you are sitting backwards. Every so often you have to turn to look ahead to see if you are pulling in the right direction.

Reminds you of the stock market doesnt it? You have your money invested and you are pulling hard (working) trying to get to that rainbow where the pot of gold is supposed to be, but you are sitting backwards and you cant see where you are going.

The stock market is more like one of those Olympic shells with a bunch of people rowing together to the finish line. Unfortunately, in the stock market each person is putting his oar in the water at a different moment and some are even pushing on their oar. What a mess. How is anyone ever going to win if they dont all pull at the same time? Let me give you a clue. They wont.

And why wont they?

You, the little guy in the row boat, doesnt have a coach or the coach you might have doesnt know what he is doing. Those coaches have been taught how to row by the big guns on Wall Street and the big guys dont care about you.

In order to become a stock broker the person must pass a very tough test. That test has nothing to do with helping investor make money. It is all about rules to keep them from lying to you and cheating on your account. Thats good and it works, but they are not taught how to trade or protect your money.

When the broker or financial planner does pass that test he is given two manuals. The first one is a copy of all those rules and regulations. The second is how to open account in other words get you to send him your money.

There is no third manual on how to protect a customers money. You cant expect to row your boat in the right direction if your coach doesnt know what he is doing. When your boat starts to leak (the market starts down) your coach has no idea how to patch those leaks and you slowly sink. Does this sound familiar?

You have to learn how to row your boat in the right direction by steering through the maze of Wall Street lies. The first rule is not to let your boat sink. When you see a leak you must patch it immediately. In the stock market that is called selling a losing position. Stop the leak so your boat wont sink.

Wall Street coaches are not taught this simple technique and the brokerage house always wants you to have a position. When you sell you have cash and learn this CASH is a position. Many times it is better to be out of the market than sinking with it.

That way you will still have a boat to row.

Al Thomas

Albert W. Thomas has spent most of his life in the field of finance. In 1965 he founded an insurance holding company, Security Dynamics Investment Corporation, after having been an agent and General Agent for several life insurance companies. In 1970 he became cofounder and president of Real Life Estate, Inc., that marketed a unique real estate and life insurance package.

After he became interested in commodities he bought a seat for his personal trading on the Chicago Open Board of Trade, which is now known as the MidAmerica Commodity Exchange. Later he became a full time trader and also acted as a commodity broker for a few select clients. By fellow floor traders Al is considered to be an excellent technical analyst much of which is outlined in his book IF IT DOESN'T GO UP, DON'T BUY IT! It became a best seller on Amazon.

In 1981 he sold his membership on the Exchange and with his wife, Carolyn, lived full time aboard their 41' ketch, the Aumakua (which means guardian angel in Hawaiian). They sailed in Florida and the Bahamas for two years.

He founded World Trading Group in 1984 that grew to the seventh largest introducing commodity brokerage firm in the U.S. with 35 offices from coast to coast, Alaska and Canada. It was sold in 1992.

Al is a graduate of Northwestern University with a B.S. degree in Commerce and is a member of MENSA. He is now president of Williamsburg Investment Company that syndicates his weekly financial column since 1999 to more than 300 newspapers and writes a financial market letter called Over My Shoulder that is quoted in Barron’s and many other publications. A 3-month trial subscription is available on his web site. He is a regular guest on several financial radio talk shows.

His favorite pastime is fishing.

Mr. Thomas is available for speaking engagements. Please call 321-453-5300 for more information.