Long-term Investing Versus Day-trading

[AmberPetrovich 10]

I'm a passive investor, in it for the long haul. I buy... and buy... and buy. To hold, and hopefully, make some gains. And I have, in the 10 or so years I've been doing this. Started when I was 26.

 

So I have 2 questions:

 

-Is there a good book or website I can read to go further with my long-term strategies? Something mid-level and recent.

 

-And my biggest question: my parents recently bought and completed Online Trading Academy's courses. They are raving about it.

 

I have no intention of spending thousands of dollars to take it but I'm curious to know what they learned about day-trading... and if they could've learned it by reading a book. And if so, what book?

 

I always thought day-trading was akin to gambling...

[DbPhoenix 42]

I'm a passive investor, in it for the long haul. I buy... and buy... and buy. To hold, and hopefully, make some gains. And I have, in the 10 or so years I've been doing this. Started when I was 26.

 

So I have 2 questions:

 

-Is there a good book or website I can read to go further with my long-term strategies? Something mid-level and recent.

 

-And my biggest question: my parents recently bought and completed Online Trading Academy's courses. They are raving about it.

 

I have no intention of spending thousands of dollars to take it but I'm curious to know what they learned about day-trading... and if they could've learned it by reading a book. And if so, what book?

 

I always thought day-trading was akin to gambling...

 

People raved about daytrading in 2000 as well. You know how that turned out.

 

And, no, you can't learn daytrading from a course or a book. They will find that out.

 

And, yes, daytrading is akin to gambling IF one doesn't have a thoroughly-tested and consistently-profitable trading plan. Few do. Which is why so many fail. Those who trade without plans are little different from gamblers who don't know whether or not a straight beats a full house.

 

As for your long-term strategies, I suggest you explore The Motley Fool site. Though the Gardners have become big-time vendors, there are plenty of people there who are actually doing it rather than just writing books about it. I don't know that anyone has written anything really useful regarding long-term investing since Graham.

[AmberPetrovich 10]

Thanks.

So is there some happy medium between long-term and day-trading? For instance, should I dump some of my stocks/ETFs when the market starts its slide that is inevitably coming, and then buy in again when they're lower?

[DbPhoenix 42]

Of course. Do you know how to read charts? By that I mean plain ol' price charts: no indicators, no envelopes, no bands, no whatever. Just price bars on a white background.

[AmberPetrovich 10]

Well yes, I can read charts. I mean, I passed the 3rd grade.

[DbPhoenix 42]

No intention to offend. Many LT investors trade solely on the basis of fundamentals and have no interest in charts. Think they're nonsense. There were a lot more of these people before 2000 and 2007, but one never knows.

 

In any case, you might be interested in this. It's less than 20p.

[AmberPetrovich 10]

Thanks for the link. You know, I think I'm trying to find some good advice on when to sell - because I never sell.

 

But if I'm up, say 75 percent on SPY, maybe now is a good time to sell. And then buy back in when it's lower.

[DbPhoenix 42]

How much you're up isn't pertinent. No reason to sell until the trend is over. Bull markets can last much longer than this one. If it keeps you up at night, just put stops underneath what you own, remembering that buying back is not necessarily a walk in the park.

[josephhawkins 10]

There are many resources that you can use to get more information on day trading and also get other perspectives on the market and what strategies people have been succesful with. I'm still learning about investing and fairly new. I've been watching videos about stocks on youtube and it has been a tremendous help throughout the learning process.

[CrazyCzarina 17]

Forex trading is the best way to make some good money online, but you need to have proper skills to achieve success and for that you should practice trading with small capitals.