The Secret Of My Success
Let me say,
the best thing about the first quarter is that it is finally over. Anyone
who remained fully invested, especially in Technology,
is feeling serious pain. I hope my cautious commentary contributed to a better
quarter for each and every one of you. The Nasdaq was down almost 26% for the
quarter and, amazingly, 33% since Feb.1. The Dow and S&P were no great shakes
either, dropping 8 and 12% respectively.Â
To be brief, caution and careful
selection remain paramount in what I consider to be the toughest times most
people have ever experienced with the markets. Maybe the market has put in a
near-term low, maybe not. If the latest lows can hang in there, suspect a
further up leg will be in order. The most important thing you need to know is
there remains a ton of resistance in front of the market. So the going will be
slow.
Now, what to buy? The intermediate-term
trader has been stymied by many brutal months. It has been a short-term traders
market and mostly on the short side. Went deep, deep, deep into the market this
weekend. Can’t even begin to tell you how many charts I went through. I have
been working overtime because I am sure the market will not ring a bell at the
bottom but when it ultimately bottoms, it will do it in a very subtle fashion.
Most investors will not notice it when it happens. Â
I am
still not seeing much. All major indices continue to trade below their
200-day moving averages and there continues to be a complete lack of quality
set-ups and breakouts. I went through every chart on today’s NEW HIGH LIST. To
say the least, depressing: 209 on the list. At least 75% of the names trade less
than 50,000 shares/day. I doubt Regional Banks,
S&Ls, Utilities and Energy have the leadership to get this market going, and I mean going, not bouncing.
Now, onto my weekend. I thought I would talk about what I did this weekend
because it is very important to my success. Every quarter I go on a retreat by
myself. I go over the past quarter with a fine-tooth comb. I am not just talking
about my business. I am talking about family, health, finance,
spending…everything I can think of. Why? It’s called Influence. I have learned
from some of the most successful people in the world about some of the things
they do to ensure their success.Â
Well, Bill Gates goes on these retreats…good
enough for me. More on the weekend later. I thought I could tell you about some
of my influences because they have been so important to me. You see, back in the
late 80s, I was ready to chuck it. My first few years in the business ended up
amounting to a big fat zero. I always had the best intentions but you all know
the old line about the “best laid plans.” Â
I had to change. I had to do something
different. I had no roadmap. I had no plan. I had no thought process…just the
best of intentions. I decided to search out and find the people that were successful in life and find the common
ingredients in each of them. I have to tell you, the most amazing thing about all of them…all their successes were borne out of failure or horrific
bad luck. They all failed miserably at one time or another. At that point, I
knew there was hope. I started reading about people, not just any people but
people who turned all kinds of failure and bad luck into success.
Like Jim Maclaren who in 1985 was hit by a 40,000 pound bus in the middle of New
York City. He was pronounced dead on the table more than once: 18 hours and an
amputated leg later, he woke up. Did this stop him? Not! Two
years later, he ran the New York marathon in a little over four hours. I kept
the article about him and read it each quarter for inspiration.
Like Ray Kroc who sold real estate, sold paper cups, sold milkshake machines and
played jazz piano. This man was all over the map. Until he decided to sell
hamburgers…and at the age of 52. In case you don’t know who he is, think of
the golden arches. Almost 100 billion sold. I read his inspirational words every
quarter:
“Press on; nothing in the world can take the place of
persistence.
Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent.
Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb.
Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts.
Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.”
Like my wife SuzAnne, who in the late 80s almost lost her life because of a
debilitating illness. After months in the hospital, she finally was able to go home. She never complained. Several years later, because of the drugs she had to
take to help her recover, both hips collapsed. She had to have double-hip surgery.
She never complained. One hip was fixed. The other wasn’t. She has been limping
ever since. She never complained. She now owns one of the most successful
courier services in South Florida and is now taking on another one on Orlando
and never complains. All this and bringing up three kids, one of the kids is
me…and she never complains. I complain when I have a cold.
I am bringing these people up because of some of the prospects that have walked
through my doors in recent weeks. The 65 year-old lady who took her account from
750k to 90k, the high-growth trader that turned 1.3 million to 400k…the list
goes on and on. I saw their faces and felt their pain. Now, this will never
compare to a person who loses a leg, but life is relative. If you have been hit
hard and have had a bad year, don’t give up!
Other people I have learned from include Mark McCormack who is the CEO of Intl.
Management Group, one of the most prestigious sports agencies in the world. I
read that he rises at 4:30 a.m. and keeps meticulous track of his time. This
includes how long he sleeps, how much time he spends with family and everything
else in his life. I will never aspire to wake up at 4:30 a.m., but I now keep
meticulous track of my time. One of my best friends is my legal pad. I have
zillions of them. I keep a “Things To Do” list
every day and try to follow it to the letter. Do you keep track of your day?
Mike Ovitz, one of the most successful agents in the world is another. He rises
at 6 a.m. (more reasonable for me) and reads six newspapers a day while riding
his exercise bicycle. He too, takes a few days off each summer to plan out his
life. His days are tightly scripted. I now read six newspapers a day and devour
magazines and books.
I bet you don’t know who Chung Ju-Yung is. Back in 1991,he was honorary chairman
of Hyandai. At the age of 76, he would wake up at 5 a.m. and read biographies of
great people who changed the world. He would cap his 16-hour days with drinks
with friends. He would always say that it wasn’t work. It was fun.
After reading about all these people for the umpteenth time, I moved on to last
quarter. I go over the good and the bad. I become my biggest critic for everything. I go over ways I won’t repeat the mistakes as well as how I can
enhance the successes. This is not just for business. It is for everything. Then
I move on to the most important part of the weekend, planning and goals. I treat
myself like a corporation. Do you? I decide where I want to be by the end of the
next quarter and then go to lengths as to how will I get there. IN SPECIFIC! I
leave no stone unturned. It gives me a clearer view. This way, instead of waking
up each day letting things happen, I make things happen.
Just remember, just because things may not be too rosy right now, the past does
not have to represent the future. Go over the last quarter. Find out what you
did wrong. Figure out how to fix things. There is almost always a solution…but
don’t expect it to come knocking at your door. I gave you some of the secrets of
my success. They are not the end-all-be-all, but they have worked for me. I hope
I have started you on the right road.
Best of luck and have a great quarter!
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