STOP! Before we go any further I have a few confessions to make…
I am not a ‘trusted’, well known figure that has been a part of the fabric of Wall St for the last 47 years like Bernie Madoff… was.
I have not got an MBA and have never received a Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences or co-founded a hedge fund like Myron Scholes who helped found LTCM (Liquidated in 1998 after losing $4.6 billion).
Nor have I ever worked for a big successful financial services firm like Lehman Brothers or Bear Stearns… were.
However I have been described as ‘ill educated‘ because I never went to university. Hey, to be honest – I am a Nobody from Nowhere (New Zealand actually)! So what the heck qualifies me to talk about the stock market with anyone? Results…
The stock market was not always been a place of profit from me though, many mistakes were made and much money was lost before I learnt how to make money. Read the long painfull story – (BooHoo)
Now I want to help you avoid the mistakes I had to make along the road and ETF HQ is my opportunity to do that. Are there any topics that you would like me to cover? What is your single biggest question about ETFs, investing or trading? Just leave your questions in the comments section.
To your profits
Derry and the Team at ETF HQ.
Hi Derry
Please contact me if your Dad was Desmond Brown, born in Portsmouth in 1927
I am Doug Clews and your Dad MAY have been an evacuee with us before leaving us to go to Singapore !!!
Please contact me on deeceeau@gmail.com
Many thanks !!! …
Nice personal summary Derry – you are looking at the market without the biased eyes of a Wall Street ‘professional’. You have no agendas – you just let the math do the talking and (minimize) the emotion (we are human after all).
I have been using oscillators to alert me when to ‘turn on/off’ the use of leveraged ETFs for SWING trading. The media dismisses leverage for DAY traders but I’ve used these quite successfully when market conditions allow (i.e. strong trending). I’m new to your site and haven’t looked around a lot – please comment on the positive use of leveraged ETFs (2x, 3x etc) for scenarios other than day trades – Thanks, Greg Charles
Thanks for your kind words Greg! Using probability to exclude emotion is certainly the goal. It has served me well of late as the results show (http://bit.ly/bLTbAH)
I think that leveraged ETFs can be a good tool for the right strategies outside of day trading. Although they are not particularly suitable for most long term strategies due to the “Constant Leverage Trap”. Also in a volatile crab market they can be the death of you. Persionally I prefer to use margin and wouldn’t use 3x leverage (too rich for my blood).
Cheers
Derry
I am a retired man trying to understand the complex Forex trading. Did a lot of demo trading for the last two years, the results do not encourage me to put my hard earned few K’s to risk in Fx.
Finding your site and reading your honest, inspiring story gives me hope that I can still make it in Forex. Averages filtered to avoid crabs seem to work for me .But I dont know how to identify them. Could you please advise the way forward for me ? How best to trade using averages and MACD ?
I just came across your site today and searching back-test results which may help me in this.
Hope you find time to help me in this.
Thanks.
Hi Mani,
I can’t provide any advice on the FX market but if you keep reading this blog I will endeavour to share useful information about trading ETFs, index funds and stocks. A few rules:
#1, never invest money can’t you can’t afford to lose when you are learning.
#2 when you are experienced never invest money that you need assess to during the next 2 years.
#3 realise that after two years the worst case is probably break even but at any point in between a 50% draw down is a real possibility.
Not very inspiring I know… must start with reality though.
Cheers
Derry
Hello Derry,
Really enjoyed reading a few articles on your site. I myself know a few things about RSI. It is a very dynamic and powerful technical tool.
Andrew Cardwell
I really love what you wrote here. Every research that you have published is very useful to me and others as well.
Many thanks
Regards
Paul
You are most welcome Paul. More to come!
Hi Derry,
Just stumbled onto your website. Great to see that you aplly and teach real techniques and figure out/have figured out what works. A breath of fresh air from a lot of hyped up websites.
Well, I have a few questions for you actually, and you have to know I’m a total newby:
1. I see a lot of articles, tests and so forth, but what would you recommend, if I want to learn the basics of how you get your trade results? Where can I start, working on the basics and toward your trading expertise? Is there maybe a guide or something?
2. Do you ever use leverage and do you even recommend it?
3. Do you always use technical analysis of some sort, using charts?
Or do you also use for example Warren Buffett’s method, looking at the worth of a company you want to invest in. Reading annual reports, checking out it’s finances, earnings, assets, debt etc. and whether the stock price, compared to what you would pay for the whole business, divided by shares outstanding, is right?
Well thanks a lot for reading and hopefully your thoughts.
Best,
Rens