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Tag: risk management

Risk, Reward and Uncertainty

Posted on by Michael Covel

Trend followers understand that life is a balance of risk and reward. If you want the big rewards, take the big risks. If you want average rewards and an average life, take average risks. Charles Sanford gave a commencement address that is timeless. It said in part:

“From an early age, we are all conditioned by our families, our schools, and virtually every other shaping force in our society to avoid risk. To take risks is inadvisable; to play it safe is the counsel we are accustomed both to receiving and to passing on. In the conventional wisdom, risk is asymmetrical: it has only one side, the bad side. In my experience—and all I presume to offer you today is observations drawn on my own experience, which is hardly the wisdom of the ages—in my experience, this conventional view of risk is shortsighted and often simply mistaken. My first observation is that successful people understand that risk, properly conceived, is often highly productive rather than something to avoid. They appreciate that risk is an advantage to be used rather than a pitfall to be skirted. Such people understand that taking calculated risks is quite different from being rash. This view of risk is not only unorthodox, it is paradoxical—the first of several paradoxes which I’m going to present to you today. This one might be encapsulated as follows: Playing it safe is dangerous. Far more often than you would realize, the real risk in life turns out to be the refusal to take a risk.”

Life is fraught with risk. There is no getting away from it. However we try to control the direction of our lives, there are times when we fail. Therefore, we might as well accept that life is a game of chance. If life is a game of chance, to one degree or another, we must be comfortable with assessing odds in the face of risk.

How can you move forward immediately to Trend Following profits? My books and my Flagship Course and Systems are trusted options by clients in 70+ countries.

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Trend Following is for beginners, students and pros in all countries. This is not day trading 5-minute bars, prediction or analyzing fundamentals–it’s Trend Following.

Drawdown Wisdom

Posted on by Michael Covel

In the early 1990s, Commodities Corporation (a famed trading incubator that taught and bankrolled new traders) invited a group of Japanese traders to its company for in-house training. One up-and-coming trader at Commodities Corporation took his new friends to lunch. He told his guests how important risk management was, and to risk only 1 percent per trade. He was clear that experiencing small losses were part of his process to ultimately finding big winners. The Japanese traders, with puzzled looks on their faces, asked, “You have losses?” Ouch! Time for everyone regardless of country to learn about small losses, and to love them, even if that means your account will occasionally have drawdowns. What are drawdowns? Drawdowns are those non-fun time periods where your small losses add up to reduce your account size. They happen. The key is to quickly and successfully recover from them by sticking with your trend trading system and waiting patiently for big trends to reappear, which let you get back to making new money again (and paying for all of those small losses). How much can you lose? That’s an important question to answer, and it comes down to the risk you take (which will vary by your personal choice). However, trend following is much easier to believe in when you consider the length of professional trend trading track records, especially the really long track records that offer proof of viability. That said, some will spend a lifetime trying to avoid any loss (even though that is impossible).

How can you move forward immediately to Trend Following profits? My books and my Flagship Course and Systems are trusted options by clients in 70+ countries.

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• Trend Following Podcast Guests
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Performance
• Research
• Markets to Trade
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• Trading Technology
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Trend Following is for beginners, students and pros in all countries. This is not day trading 5-minute bars, prediction or analyzing fundamentals–it’s Trend Following.

The Trend Following Questions to Answer

Posted on by Michael Covel

Now, let’s get practical. Answer the following five questions, and you have a trend following trading system:

1. What market do you buy or sell at any time?
2. How much of a market do you buy or sell at any time?
3. When do you buy or sell a market?
4. When do you get out of a losing position?
5. When do you get out of a winning position?

Said another way (Bill Eckhardt inspired):

1. What is the state of the market?
2. What is the volatility of the market?
3. What is the equity being traded?
4. What is the system or the trading orientation?
5. What is the risk aversion of the trader or client?

You want to be black or white with this. You do not want gray. If you can accept that mentality, you have got it.

How can you move forward immediately to Trend Following profits? My books and my Flagship Course and Systems are trusted options by clients in 70+ countries.

Also jump in:

• Trend Following Podcast Guests
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Performance
• Research
• Markets to Trade
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• Trading Technology
• About Us

Trend Following is for beginners, students and pros in all countries. This is not day trading 5-minute bars, prediction or analyzing fundamentals–it’s Trend Following.

Ep. 253: Perry Kaufman Interview with Michael Covel on Trend Following Radio

Posted on by Michael Covel
Perry Kaufman
Perry Kaufman

My guest today is Perry Kaufman, an American systematic trader, index developer, and quantitative financial theorist. He is considered a leading expert in the development of fully algorithmic trading programs.

The topic is systematic trading.

In this episode of Trend Following Radio we discuss:

  • How Kaufman came to the idea of 100% algorithmic trading systems
  • The difference between being systematic and being automated
  • Optimization vs. validation
  • The biggest advantages of testing
  • Why discretion is not part of Kaufman’s toolbox
  • The problem of tail events
  • Why discipline is the most important characteristic of a systematic trader
  • The “loose pants fit everyone” philosophy
  • Preparing yourself for uncertainty
  • Comparisons between risk management and risk measurement
  • The Sharpe ratio
  • High volatility trades vs. low volatility
  • Why Kaufman places equal weight on both risk management and the underlying system
  • Systematic trading in established mature markets vs. emerging markets

Listen to this episode:

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Investing in Fake Markets

Posted on by Michael Covel

“Investing in Fake Markets” is a PPT that made it across my desk. Excerpt: “Risk not taken in one way…will show up in another way instead.”

How can you move forward immediately to Trend Following profits? My books and my Flagship Course and Systems are trusted options by clients in 70+ countries.

Also jump in:

• Trend Following Podcast Guests
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Performance
• Research
• Markets to Trade
• Crisis Times
• Trading Technology
• About Us

Trend Following is for beginners, students and pros in all countries. This is not day trading 5-minute bars, prediction or analyzing fundamentals–it’s Trend Following.

Where Are You Placing Your Bet?

Posted on by Michael Covel

Some love risk. Others avoid it till the grave. Whether you take it head on or run in the other direction it will always catch you. Risk cannot be avoided so you better know how to put the odds in your favor. Consider the following:

You want to see life as a continuum running on a loop back and forth from risk to reward. If you want a big reward, take a big risk. If you want an average reward and an average life, take an average risk. Easier said than done, however, if you want the big reward. Our system is notorious for playing Whac-A-Mole with achievers.

From an early age, people are conditioned by families, schools, and virtually every other shaping force in society to avoid risk. To take risks is inadvisable; to play it safe is the message. Risk can only be bad. However, winners understand risk is highly productive, and not something to avoid. Taking calculated risks is different from acting rashly. Playing it safe is the true danger. Far more often than you might realize, the real risk in life turns out to be the refusal to take a risk.2 If life is a game of risk, then to one degree or another, being comfortable with assessing odds is the only option for a fulfilling life.

Consider trading from a “startup” business perspective. Every business is ultimately involved in assessing risk. Putting capital to work to make it grow is the goal. In that sense, all business is the same. The right decisions lead to success, and wrong ones lead to insolvency. Blunt, but true. There are ways to go in the right direction, however. Ask yourself these questions:

  • What is the market opportunity in the market niche?
  • What is your solution to the market need?
  • How big is the opportunity?
  • How do you make money?
  • How do you reach the market and sell?
  • What is the competition?
  • How are you better?
  • How will you execute and manage your business?
  • What are your risks?
  • Why will you succeed?

Those questions are just the start of your trend following journey. The next step is thinking deeply about your understanding of risk nuances. There are two kinds of risk: blind and calculated. The first one, blind risk, is always suspect. Blind risk is the calling card of laziness: the irrational hope, something for nothing, the cold twist of fate, winning the lottery, etc. Blind risk is the pointless gamble, the emotional decision, or the sucker play. The man who embraces blind risk never wins in the long run.

However, calculated risk can build fortunes, nations, and empires. Calculated risk and bold vision go hand in hand. To see the possibilities, work things out logically, and to move forward in strength and confidence is how you win.

Calculated risk lies at the heart of every great achievement and achiever since the dawn of time. Trend followers thrive on taking calculated risks. Like the original Karate Kid movie: Wax on, wax off. Risk on, risk off.

Taken from my book Trend Commandments.

How can you move forward immediately to Trend Following profits? My books and my Flagship Course and Systems are trusted options by clients in 70+ countries.

Also jump in:

• Trend Following Podcast Guests
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Performance
• Research
• Markets to Trade
• Crisis Times
• Trading Technology
• About Us

Trend Following is for beginners, students and pros in all countries. This is not day trading 5-minute bars, prediction or analyzing fundamentals–it’s Trend Following.

Exploring Trend Following for the First Time

Posted on by Michael Covel

Feedback:

Michael: I have received [your] CD. Thank you very much for all the work you are doing in compiling this eclectic knowledge and putting that in one central place. I have been in tune with your work through books and podcast last few months. I am on my journey, searching for [a] method that works for me. I have not purchased anything but getting increasing[ly more] curious about your techniques that you have derived [from] primary sources and are not in public domain. Following are basic questions, when you get a chance have someone reply: Do you have one system (set of rules) or many systems that work independently? How much emphasis [do] you have on instrument selection? Out of 30 or so liquid markets even if all signals are taken with 1% risk, that is 30% risk in book? Are your systems incorporating position sizing? How long have you done back testing for systems, is there a way to see back tested data by trade? I am big in looking at contribution of individual trade to total P&L.(I am not looking for all trades to make money, but more interested in P&L distribution). Regards, Maulin P.

There are a few core systems that allow variables to be changed to meet your risk objectives. Portfolio selection is critical and how you manage the risk in said portfolio is critical. I explain all. There is a process. Not as simple as you describe, but always operates under the guise of protecting capital. Yes, position sizing. 100%. No back tests are provided. Clients can choose varying portfolios and varying risk levels. Not one size fits all. Success stories: trendfollowing.com/success.

How can you move forward immediately to Trend Following profits? My books and my Flagship Course and Systems are trusted options by clients in 70+ countries.

Also jump in:

• Trend Following Podcast Guests
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Performance
• Research
• Markets to Trade
• Crisis Times
• Trading Technology
• About Us

Trend Following is for beginners, students and pros in all countries. This is not day trading 5-minute bars, prediction or analyzing fundamentals–it’s Trend Following.