All the richest investors already know this. Do you want to know how to be a successful investor? "Ride the Wave, then get the hell out"! Be a 2-3 year buy and hold guy, then get out and wait for the next disaster to happen. Oh, believe me, every few years Wall Street or Washington will make sure another disaster happens .
There use to be a time in the investing world where buy and hold meant something. 30 or 40 years ago you could buy stock in a big blue chip company, reinvest the dividends for 20 years, and in the end, you would have a nice nest egg to live on. Not anymore!
So what has happened? Society has changed. I attributed most of it to a lack of discipline and greed. Discipline can be lacking in many aspects of ones life. It can be a lack of fiscal discipline is directly linked to greed (spending, real estate, the NASDAQ in 2000). Greed makes a person do unethical things in order to gain possessions, or an advantage over another person.
Imagine you were a conservative investor in GE or Bank of America. You bought your initial shares 20 years ago, reinvested the dividends, and add a few hundred a month along the way. Thinking you were doing the right thing, one day you wake up and find that your financial nest egg has been decimated.
The investor above would not be characterized as a "trader", and certainly not a "gambler". They were simply long term investors thinking they were doing the right thing.
Character in our society, particularly on Wall Street, no longer exists. The once-proud capitalist system that transformed the U.S. into and industrial powerhouse is essentially dead.
Beady eyed executives at Goldman Sachs (Wall Street) continue to receive huge bonuses while the rest of the nation is worried about a recession, their retirement plans, and making the house payment.
These are the same Wall Street clowns that try and convince you to be a longer term investor. What a load of crap.
How about this arrogant idea former IBM CEO Lou Gerstner. Gerstner said that US authorities ought to have a tax of 80% for those who buy in the morning and sell in the afternoon; a 50% tax if you hold for a year, and zero tax if you hold forever.
The arrogance of these fat ass CEO's is amazing. How about this rule Louie? No stock options, and no stock grants for corporate executives unless the are directly expenses against earnings. No more free rides on the small investors back.
Now that you know how the game is played, "Ride the Wave, then get the hell out"!
