I want your video feedback and reviews. Turn on your camcorder, your video Skype or iChat or whatever video source you want and put your video statement on “tape” so to speak and email it along. What am I looking for? Feedback, reviews, praise, thoughts, success stories or even fiery criticism where you rip me to shreds…all about:

1. My books “Trend Following” and or “The Complete TurtleTrader“.
2. My film “Broke“.
3. My websites.
4. My courses and DVDs.
5. The subject of trend following.
6. Or even my review of Michael Moore’s film!

Let me know what you think on video! It’s a great way to get your message out there!

Feedback in today:

“I had the pleasure of watching the Salem Abraham DVD yesterday. First, I have to thank Michael for putting this together. I think some people (including me) think of these great traders as having something no one else has, something that allows them to be as successful as they are. Maybe they grew up with the proverbial silver spoon in their mouths, and/or blessed with a certain type of intelligence and ability that can’t be learned or attained.  After reading Michael’s two books we know they are just like anybody else. The one thing that separates them from the rest of the investing public is passion for what they do and the desire to make it work. Several things in this DVD will leave a lasting impression on me. First, when Abraham talked about some of the lessons his grandfather taught him; specifically, “Don’t look for good deals, look for great deals.” And he followed that up with “…a person only needs a few great deals to make a lot of money.” This summed up what trend following is all about. Look to hit the home run, not singles and doubles. Second, Michael asked him to suppose his son decided to play the lottery and roulette in Vegas all summer long. How would you address this? Abraham spoke about calculating the odds of whatever you do. If the odds are not on your side, don’t do it. Third, one learns after listening to Abraham that risk management is at the forefront of all of his trading decisions. You can have a system that wins 99% of the time, but if you bet the ranch every time, you will go broke. But the best lesson that I learned was in listening to him talk about his days at Notre Dame and on to working for the family business. His thoughts like “What am I going to do to make a living” were thoughts I’m sure everyone goes through. Thanks again Michael.
Todd M.

An quotation from an old pro trend follower that appeared in an article written by Michael Martin:

“Why do people think they’re smarter than the market long-term? What gives them that confidence? I guess people feel dumb if they can’t predict what the market is going to do in the short term. They’re too proud to admit they don’t know what to do when they’re wrong. They don’t have the capacity to understand the digits that are scrolling by on the bottom of the television. I don’t. It’s too much noise. That’s why we rely on our system.”

Who is being quoted? Hint: he did not start trading until his late thirties.

We recently brought on board a client from Côte d’Ivoire. Our clients are in 72 countries now.

Feedback in today:

Mike, I wanted to thank you again for taking the time and effort to put together the trading course. The material is fantastic.  It lays out the ground work for YOU (meaning Me) to make your own decisions regarding investing. You take out all the people and companies that can cloud your judgment.

I just finished watching Broke. It was the last item of the course for me. I am glad I saved it for last because it cemented the ideals behind the theory of trend trading. When you interview all the people that have had a rough go because of their own decisions, but yet still want to place blame on something else, made me realize that I now can be different. Different in thinking, different in doing, different in acting, and by different I mean not in a bad way.

Thank you for opening my eyes to a different than the herd style of investing. The theory makes perfect sense to me. I have started to incorporate it into my investing. My big problem will be trying to deal with being wrong 60% of the time. It has been drilled into my head that you have to have a 70% winning percentage if you want to make money. I now realize that this is scalping and not what I want to do. I want to ride the wave of the trend until it is done.

When I always looked at charts and see a big long trend in a direction. I always asked myself how can I get in that trend and ride to the end. I now know the way to do it. And I can’t wait to take responsibility for my own investments without having to listen or think about what others say or do. I will have a plan in place and I will run with it.

Thanks again. This is the best Christmas present I ever gave to myself.

-Chris C.

Feedback in today:

Michael, Thank you for sending me your film on DVD. I thought it was an excellent film for beginning and veteran speculators. It’s a great reminder of what makes or breaks traders in our business. I found Jim Rogers statement about mutual funds very interesting. I am aware of his thoughts about the US in general, but he really laid into Wall Street. Many of my veteran clients are also not fond of Wall Street or even buying stocks in general. I dislike mutual funds but am still a believer of a self-directed stock portfolio. When new traders enter or research the futures arena, I generally give them the “train wreck” story of what can happen trading derivatives. But in reality only trading can instill this sense of humility and discipline traders develop over time as the trains come off the tracks on occasion. Not one successful futures trader interviewed appeared the least bit “cocky” like you might expect with Wall Street folks. Your movie complements my “train wreck” story. I am excited about the prospects of an increased appetite in commodities. There will be many road blocks along the way as institutional investors find the best way to diversify into our field whether through veteran funds of CTAs or through ETFs, etc. Either way, the demand is there. I will recommend your movie to my clients and prospects. I think it is ideal for individuals learning how become “traders or speculators” (I do not think it is particularly appropriate for everyday mom and pop long-term investors as it is biased towards a handful of successful futures traders with little positive portrayals of equity managers). Thanks again.

xxx xxx
Global Execution Services
MF Global
Private Client Group
141 West Jackson Blvd.
Suite 1800A
Chicago, IL 60604
http://www.mfglobalfutures.com

Thank you for the review, but I do disagree 100% on one issue. The film is for everyone. If people don’t learn how the best do it they will in the long run be left with average returns.

Recovery this and growth that — I don’t get it. If you borrow a ton of money to make economic growth happen…how can you leave the debt owed out of the discussion? It’s like a guy with a $5M house bragging about his wealth, but failing to mention that he owes $10M.