Please enjoy my monologue Buy and Hold for 50 Years with Michael Covel on Trend Following Radio. This episode may also include great outside guests from my archive.
In this episode of Trend Following Radio:
Diversification
Goal setting for 2016
Crystal ball prediction
The importance of rules in goal setting
“We’re going to bet 50 years into the future on idiocracy? That we can all instant message each other and pass photos back and forth, and there will not be any innovation in the future that could not possibly cause anybody or everybody to tune out of Facebook?” – Michael Covel
Alan: Thank you for your thoughtful analysis of my market commentary March 16th. A “Trend Follower” should appreciate my confidence and reasoning that the bull run is still intact. As a market veteran of 25 years with thousands of TV appearances this may be a great opportunity to discuss the insignificance of news nonsense with your podcast listeners. Pick a time I would like to come on to talk media and its negative impact on trading discipline. I am the first to tell traders to turn off the TV as there is very little to help you make money. It is mostly infotainment to keep you emotional and tuned in to pay advertisers. In fact, I have developed a financial news aggregator to search, sort and share market video. The time saving app breaks down the markets into categories and plots the videos from news sources on price and time charts for perspective. That said I make the best effort to give a well thought out actionable trade idea on each of my appearances as opposed to speaking in broad generalizations. Trading is all about risk control, probability, money management and implementation of a trading plan. It should be methodical and boring and as we all know watching television to cheer lead positions does not add to profitability. Looking forward to schedule the podcast interview.
Covel: Hold on. You are the guy on CNN? The guy with videos literally every day providing near useless fundamental factoids and interpretations of what will happen next? And now you are emailing me to say trading is all about risk control, probability, money management and implementation of a trading plan. Don’t you think that is disingenuous? You tell me you have made 1000s of appearances, but [now] you tell people not to watch? I am not [Jim] Cramer. My podcast is not that. Best we agree to disagree right here, unless you can convince me how my eyes are lying to me when I watch your videos of broad generalizations.
Alan: I cannot change the game if I do not appear on TV. Producers and hosts do not understand the markets and create a crisis de jour. My job is to be optimistic of opportunities in any and all market conditions. Stressing a plan of action instead of fear is what I do. Having CNBC on for 10 hours a day or watching Cramer doesn’t help anybody make money. At best it may give 2-3 nuggets of information that could be explored for profit potential. People think news helps when in fact the WHY is of no importance compared to the HOW the market is moving.
Covel: You can’t let the TV hand feed you non-stop and then bite the same hand. None of what you are saying to me was on CNN.
Alan: I gave CNN reasons why I remain optimistic at a time when investors have renewed fears. Calm confidence. Participating in the TV discussion is more productive than not doing so to showcase my disciplined approach. My development of the [name] shows my recognition of this news noise issue and the need to better inform investors.
Covel: Maybe you know the truth, but to appear on TV so much is for you to play a game–their game. Try appearing on TV and tell the real truth. They won’t ask you back. Then you will have made a real advance in your credibility.
All these years later, all these stories later, and CNBC still has a difficult time explaining trend following to the masses. One good excerpt:
Funds managed by ISAM, Cantab, AHL, Systematica and others produced double-digit gains over the first three months of 2015, according to private performance figures obtained by CNBC. “Trend followers and other macro investors clearly outperformed,” said Robert Christian, head of research at K2 Advisors and Franklin Templeton Solutions. “What’s carried people is just classic, good old trend following.”
Note: ISAM is Larry Hite’s shop. One of my favorite no-nonsense trend following pros.
Hey Mike, Hope you’re well. I’m sure you’ve come across this before, but in case you haven’t, I thought you might enjoy it. BBC documentary on novice traders. I think when you surround yourself (via social media) with people that trade in a similar way and have a similar ethos and perspective, it’s easy to forget that this is still how the majority of trading occurs.
An Agenda or Acting Job with Michael Covel on Trend Following Radio
Please enjoy my monologue An Agenda Or An Acting Job with Michael Covel on Trend Following Radio. This episode may also include great outside guests from my archive.
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