http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com Realistic Advice for Successful Investing. Wed, 07 Jan 2009 07:02:23 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en The dreadful year of 2008 is finally over and though there is no guarantee that we're even close to the bottom, I can't help but feel like we've gotten past the darkest part of the day and the sun is finally rising. If only for psychological reasons, our nation has ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/thoughts-on-2008s-economy-and-stock-market/ Today as I viewed a foreclosed house that gave off a weird vibe that had my instincts telling me to stay alert, I'm reminded that investing in foreclosed homes can be dangerous for reasons beyond financial. Foreclosed homes are often targets for breaking and entering, squatters, and other such illegal activity. ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/foreclosure-investing-safety-tips/ For the majority of people with even the slightest degree of economic intelligence, the real estate bubble's collapse was like being a beach lifeguard and seeing a massive tidal wave off in the distance. It was frightenly visible, you knew it would create massive chaos when it finally touched down, ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/confessions-of-a-subprime-lender-book-review/ Although it's debatable whether real estate investing is superior or inferior to stock market investing, what isn't debatable is that real estate provides a multitude of ways to make money in the long run. There are many reasons to choose real estate investing over stock market investing, and many reasons ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/real-estate-investing-pros-and-cons/ In times of uncertainty, when many fear the sky is falling and that there is no hope for recovery, the wise investors plant their seeds. The wise investors are not bothered that the seeds will not grow into anything for many years; This is expected and can be considered the ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/be-greedy-when-others-are-fearful/ Sometimes investing can be incredibly simplified using common sense techniques. Applying common sense to your investing usually results with profitable returns too. The reason that using common sense works is that for some unexplainable reason there is a lack of it used in the stock market. As such, you can use common sense to ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/common-sense-investing/ Click image to enlarge It feels great to have outperformed the market this year. This year ended with my portfolio up 15.78%, while the three major indices (S&P500, Dow Jones, Nasdaq) finished up for the year 4.24%, 7.24%, and 10.73% respectively. However the most significant percentage is the S&P500's 4.24%, as ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/i-beat-the-market-in-2007/ It's funny to me when I think back to the first day I opened an account with Ameritrade and bought my first shares of stock. I knew so little about investing, the stock market, and economics at the time. But I couldn't care less; I was so enthralled by my fascination ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/the-story-of-my-first-time-investing/ I'm going to begin posting polls atleast once per month. This month's poll asks what you think about 2008's future. Bullish means your outlook is positive, Bearish means negative. {democracy:2} http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/what-is-your-outlook-for-the-stock-market-in-2008/ A commonly used phrase throughout the financial media is "the market". While it seems like "The Market" and "The Stock Market" are the same thing, they actually share little in common and represent two entirely different things. Because of this common misunderstanding, many novice investors often can interpret news incorrectly. So I'm going to ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/the-market-versus-the-stock-market/ E-Trade Financial (Ticker Symbol: ETFC) is showing their appreciation to their loyal customers by offering one full day of commission free trading on Wednesday Dec 19, 2007. This is coming after E-Trade's stock price recently plummeted on lending troubles followed by rumors of takeovers or bankruptcy. As you may or may not know, I ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/e-trade-offers-commission-free-trades-this-wednesday/ I just can't get enough of these hilarious Stock Market comics. Here's another comic brought to you by Cyanide and Happiness. Enjoy. http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/funny-stock-market-comic/ If you're really into the stock market or know someone who is, then you know how hard it is to find good stock market gifts during the holidays. So hopefully I can give you some ideas with some products I really enjoy myself. Here's my list of stock market gift ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/gift-ideas-for-stock-market-junkies/ There is saying that no matter what is going on with the stock market, you can always make money somewhere. But what if the stock market is crashing or prices are on the decline? How then can you make money? This is where the need for short selling becomes apparent. With the ability to both ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/introduction-to-short-selling/ Knowing how much you should invest in the stock market is incredibly important to figure out for your own financial sake. We're all different in terms of our age, net worth, and risk-tolerance; A simple "invest 50% of your net assets in the stock market" recommendation is too vague for anyone to go by. So this ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/how-much-should-i-invest-in-the-stock-market/ As an investor who is very actively involved in the stock market, I hear a lot of unrealistic and outright wrong beliefs regarding the stock market. Sometimes it's harmless myths being perpetuated, other times it's dangerously wrong beliefs that lead to terrible advice being given for your portfolio. Here are some very common stock market myths: Short ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/common-myths-about-the-stock-market/ It all started during the mid 1990's. The Stock Market soared on technology and Internet stocks, IPOs were all the rage, and the sky was the limit for stock prices. The masses believed there was a new world upon us, and the internet was to become the future of business. Then reality set in ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/lessons-from-the-dot-com-bubble/ Imagine a stock that falls fifty percent one day and rises fifty percent the next day. Seems like you'd have broken even, right? Wrong. This is the beauty of mathematics, and it occurs in the stock market all the time. While this shouldn't be a significant problem for your investments, it can often be misleading and ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/stock-market-percentages-and-mathematics/ It's times like these that I realize that the only thing I know is that I know nothing. I learned it first when I started investing in the stock market over 2 years ago, and I was reminded yet again when I decided two months ago to start my own 'how-to' ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/what-ive-learned-about-blogging-after-2-months/ Keeping yourself up to date with daily stock market happenings is necessary if you wish to be successful and grow your money. It is a rule to invest by that I strictly adhere to, and you should too! However this doesn't mean you need to read every tidbit of information that occurs ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/easy-ways-to-keep-up-with-the-stock-market/ It is possible to never fail in the stock market. So what is the catch, you ask? The catch is that you never give up on the stock market, that you don't ever get discouraged, and that you believe in yourself while simultaneously never letting mistakes happen without learning from them. If ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/how-you-can-never-fail-in-the-stock-market/ I'm happy to say that as I write this article I am up over 21% in my stock market portfolio. I'm not assuming this will be where I end the year, but I'm still really proud of how well I've done so far in the stock market. This is my second ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/my-stock-market-performance-in-2007/ If someone were to ask what I thought was the best method to make money in the stock market, investing or trading, it would not be an easy question to answer. Both investing and trading offers their pros and cons. I personally wouldn't consider myself an investor or a trader. My own method to ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/investing-vs-trading/ E-Trade is arguably the most popular and well known online discount stock brokerages. Boasting over 4000 employees and having a net income over 600 million dollars per year (2006), E-Trade clearly is sitting high on the list of top online brokerages. I personally use E-Trade for all of my investment needs ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/e-trade-brokerage-review/ Have you ever played a game of poker with just chips and no money on the line? In those games players bluff, they call hands they know they have no chance at winning, and will ultimately play in a manner that displays one huge underlining problem: they don't care because ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/paper-trading-is-a-waste-of-time/ Every day the stock market tempts me to be a gambler and not an investor. Each day that I become a better investor, I am tempted to throw it all away for some risky trade. Becoming successful in the Stock Market is never something that is easily accomplished, and one ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/the-temptations-of-the-stock-market/ Every investor needs a self created list of rules to invest by so that they stay disciplined and successful. Many investors learn the hard way what the do's and don't's of the stock market are, but fail to write them down so that they don't repeat these mistakes over the ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/how-to-make-a-list-of-rules-to-invest-by/ October is the black sheep of the annual calender with it's history of crashes that occurred in that month. While not typically a dangerous month to be invested in the stock market, it still bolsters a resume of some of the biggest stock market crashes in our history. From the 23% drop that led started the Great Depression to ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/interesting-fact-october-holds-record-for-most-severe-market-crashes/ Many if not all of the blog sites in the stock market niche are more than happy to offer you with their opinions and stock picks for your portfolio. This is something The Investor's Journal does not and will not ever offer. Some might see this as a disadvantage for the ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/why-i-dont-offer-stock-picks/ * Note: this article is satire * I have a confession: I love watching late night infomercials. It's like seeing the aftermath of a train wreck; it's terrible to witness but you just can't turn your head away from it. After many nights of watching these infomercials, I believe I have come up ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/how-to-create-a-late-night-infomercial/ Investing is all about managing risk, reward, and choosing the best locations to grow your money. Sometimes in the path towards successful investing you encounter a few speed bumps that hinder your performance. Other times, you run into a hurdle that knocks you flat on your ass. Significant losses to your portfolio are something every ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/how-to-cope-with-significant-money-losses/ I just watched the movie "The Secret", and my oh my was I disappointed in both the creators and the supporters of this movie. The movie basically takes the simple concept of "stay positive, be passionate about what you desire, and apply yourself to find ways to achieve your desires" ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/there-is-no-easy-path/ Emotions are the handicap of the novice investor. They hinder your rational thought process and increase your chance of failure. So it should be obvious that you'll need to ignore your emotions if you ever want to make a profit while investing. Here are some quick ways you can become as cold as ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/5-ways-to-invest-without-emotion/ Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert T. Kiyosaki Rating: 5/5, A must read book Investor, businessman, motivational speaker, and author Robert Kiyosaki wrote an instant classic with his book "Rich Dad, Poor Dad". In it, Kiyosaki describes the unique difference in perspectives between his poor father and his best friend's rich father. The book explains why the average middle class person is usually financially troubled even ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/book-review-rich-dad-poor-dad/ Every investor has their own strategies, methods, and techniques to achieving success. Though despite these differences, all successful investors share the same distinct traits which truly separate them from the herd. The five traits of a successful investor are: 1. Highly disciplined and committed Discipline is the backbone of a successful investor. Being highly disciplined means ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/5-traits-of-every-successful-investor/ I found this amusing comic strip while browsing the web. You can find more by this comic writer at his website toothpastefordinner.com. http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/funny-comic-on-investing/ The Stock Market is a significant entity of our society that seems to have too much ignorance surrounding it by the non-investing individuals.  The intention of this mini-series entitled "Introduction to the Stock Market" is to enlighten the average individual with no background or knowledge in the investing world. What is the point of ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/introduction-to-the-stock-market-pt-i/ Most people would argue that you're either an investor or a trader. However I would argue that an investor can possess characteristics of a trader while still maintaining the core attributes of an investor. The definition of an investor or trader shouldn't be relative to a time period. If you invest in a stock for ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/definition-of-an-investor/ It is important when viewing this article to keep in mind that no one can truly know if and when a stock market correction or crash will occur. However, it is entirely possible to spot the signs of a coming correction or crash, and this article will show you how to assess the current market ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/how-to-avoid-market-corrections-and-crashes/ The investing industry is one that is plagued with a history of deceit. Forunately for the average investor, the Securities and Exchange Commission is there to protect us from these deceitful companies. Public companies that you can invest in are required to report important documents of information to the SEC ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/the-dangers-of-penny-stocks/ As I write this article, the Federal Reserve has taken a firm stance indicating that they will not bail out investors and institutions who are now in trouble due to subprime lending issues. The Fed did however, state that they will take action if the subprime lending issue begins to ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/thoughts-on-the-fed%e2%80%99s-current-stance/ Currently, I’m up 14% for the year, significantly beating the S&P 500, Dow Jones, and Nasdaq indexes. The market is in turmoil over the currently subprime lending crisis. For the past two months, the market voilatility has been extremely high, 200 point ranges in the Dow Jones Industrial Average index ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/first-portfolio-journal-post/ Investing in the stock market is a scary thing for new investors. It is even scarier for anyone who is doing it alone. I know, I started out with an online brokerage account with under a thousand dollars in the account. When you first start out, it is very important to not ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/the-fundamentals-of-successful-investing/ The Investor’s Journal is a completely free website that offers realistic advice to succeed in the Stock Market. This site contains articles for novice to expert investors, as well as non-investors who are considering entering the investment world. You will not find any subscriptions or fees to use this site, nor will ... http://www.theinvestorsjournal.com/welcome/