Friday, October 12, 2007

The Return of Sci-Fi - Texas Hospital Patients May Soon Be Talking To Robots

Your doctor may soon be a robot, or so the whispers warn. Sound like something out of a bad science-fiction movie? Well, maybe you should ask whichever physician shows up on-screen of the RP-7 Remote Presence Robotic System by InTouch Technologies, a maneuverable robotic system designed to allow physicians to videoconference with their patients from remote locations.

Dr. Alex Gandsas, of Baltimores Sinai Hospital and holder of stock options with InTouch Technologies, introduced the machine to hospital administrators as a way to closely monitor patients after the weight loss surgeries in which he specializes. Since its introduction, the length of his patients stays has been shorter. In Gandsas study published earlier this month in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons, 92 of 376 patients had additional robotic visits, and all 92 of them were medically cleared to return home faster than those who did not receive check-ins with the teleconferencing system. Shorter patient stays would be a welcome change for hospitals, health insurance companies, and patients alike -- all of which have a vested interested in sending patients home faster.

While further studies should, without a doubt, be performed by physicians who do not hold a financial interest in the technology, these preliminary results do show promise. The robotic visits were not used by Gandsas to replace his personal check-ins with patients -- only to add to them. Neither InTouch Technologies, nor Dr. Gandsas envisions the Bari, or so its nicknamed, as completely replacing personal visits with healthcare professionals. Instead, the joystick-controlled system, which employs cameras, a video screen, and microphone, is intended to supplement physicians traditional visits, and to allow patients and healthcare workers to receive advice from qualified physicians and specialists when it may otherwise be impossible. Doctors may soon be able to provide their patients with additional daily check-ins and answer questions much faster, all while sitting in their own homes or while away from the area.

Sinai Hospital isnt the only one with this technology, however. In fact, robots have been in use for some time to assist with patient care, including guiding stroke patients through therapy, and helping them play video games. Many prosthetic devices are now at least partially robotic, and if it werent for a certain amount of robotic technology, the public would not be able to communicate with such great minds as Steven Hawkins.

Johns Hopkins also has a robotic teleconferencing system to help communicate with patients who need a translator when one is not available at the hospital itself. Use of such technology could have tremendously positive effects on Texas healthcare system -- particularly in Dallas, Houston, and Austin -- which handles a high volume of patients who do not speak English. Lack of adequate communication is a major obstacle to receiving quality healthcare for many immigrants in Texas. Lack of quality healthcare, in turn, can lead to serious public health issues, including the transmission of communicable diseases.

Approximately 120 RP-7 Remote Presence Robotic Systems are currently in use around the world, with plans to implement many more in the coming years. China is already using similar systems to help deal with the lack of medical care in rural, inaccessible areas.

Dr. Louis Kavoussi, chairman of the urology department at North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System, took a special interest in this new trend and conducted a study monitoring the effect of the technology on patient care. The study showed no decrease in patient satisfaction, and no increase in complications due to teleconferencing visits. The technology, Kavoussi said, is rudimentary, really, in comparison to other developing systems. The need for fear is minimal.

There are relatively few of InTouch Technologies systems available, and further studies have yet to be conducted. If robotic teleconferencing is used as a supplement to personal physicians visits, however, it has the potential of dramatically improving many aspects of healthcare -- from how quickly patients questions are answered, to how many visits, in total, they receive, to whether or not rural residents receive proper care, to how well (or even if) they are provided with a translator to explain their symptoms. States like Texas, in particular, with shortages of doctors and high volumes of patients who do not speak English, stand to benefit. So maybe robots in hospitals arent something one needs to fear. In fact, they may even get your unpleasant stay over with a few days faster.

Being aware of medical technology is an important part of taking care of your health. How you take care of yourself will certainly affect you as you age, and eventually your wallet, as well.

If youre a young individual who tries to keep informed and maintain a healthy condition and lifestyle, you should take a look at the revolutionary, comprehensive and highly-affordable individual health insurance solutions created by Precedent specifically for you. Visit our website, http://www.precedent.com, for more information. We offer a unique and innovative suite of individual health insurance solutions, including highly-competitive HSA-qualified plans, and an unparalleled "real time" application and acceptance experience.

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Avoid Losing On Stock Options Part 3

In this example, you trade exposure on 100 shares of stock for exposure on 300 shares, but you avoid or delay exercise as well. At the same time, you net out additional cash profits, which reduces your overall basis in the stock. This makes exercise more acceptable later on. Of course, you can continue to use rolling techniques to avoid exercise. Another important point worth evaluating is the potential tax advantage or consequence. Options are taxed in the year that positions are closed; so when you roll forward, you recognize a loss in the original call transaction, which can be deducted on your current year's federal income tax return. At the same time, by rolling forward you receive a net payment while deferring profits, perhaps to the following year. However, because the roll forward may involve in-the-money positions, the stock profit may revert to a short-term gain instead of the more favorable long-term gain.

The roll forward maintains the same striking price and buys you time, which makes sense when the stock's value has gone up. However, the plan does not always suit the circumstances. Another rolling method is called the roll down.

Example: Repetitive Profits: You originally bought 100 shares of stock at $31 per share, and later sold a call with a striking price of 35, for a premium of 3. The stock has fallen in value and your call now is worth 1. You cancel (buy) the call and realize a profit of $200, and immediately sell a call with a striking price of 30, receiving a premium of 4.

If the option is exercised at its striking price of 30, the net loss in the stock will be $100; but your net profit in option premium would be $600, so your overall profit would be $500:

Striking price of shares $3,000
Less original price of shares -3,100
Loss on stock-100
Profit on first call sold 200
Profit on second call sold 400
Net profit$500

The roll down is an effective way to offset losses in stock positions in a declining market, as long as the price decline is not severe. Profits in the call premium offset losses to a degree, reducing your basis in the stock. This works as long as the point drop in stock does not exceed the offset level in call premium. You face a different problem in a rising market, where the likelihood of exercise motivates you to take steps to move from in-the-money to out-of-the-money status, or to reduce the degree of in-the-money. In that situation, you may use the roll up.

Example: Trading Losses for Profits: You originally paid $31 per share for 100 shares of stock, and later sold a call with a striking price of 35. The stock's current market value has risen to $39 per share. You cancel (buy) the call and accept a loss, offsetting that loss by selling another call with a striking price of 40 and more time to go until expiration.

With this technique, the loss in the original call can be replaced by the premium in the new call. With more time to go until expiration, the net cash difference is in your favor. This technique depends on time value to make it profitable. In some cases, the net difference will be minimal or may even cost money. However, considering you will be picking up an extra five points in the striking price by avoiding exercise, you can afford a loss in the roll up as long as it does not exceed that five-point difference.

Tip: Rolling techniques can help you to maximize option returns without going through exercise, most of the time. But the wise seller is always prepared to give up shares. That is the nature of selling options.

Get your Momentum Stock Trading System and sign up for my free weekly online trading system newsletter here at: http://www.stressfreetrading.com

The Secret Of Making Money In The Stock Market

You may have wondered if there are people out there who consistently make money from the stock market. And yes, there are people out there who are consistently making money from the stock market because if they were not making money from market they would not be there and the markets would not be there too. These people are no smarter than you. They do not work any harder and neither are they lucky than you.

But, unlike you, they never seem to worry about having money because they know one or two secrets of making money in the stock market. You see most people miss the big idea here. They think it takes a lot of money to make a lot of money. But that is not how it is done. The idea is to make pennies consistently and to use them to build vast personal fortunes. The stock market is a proven wealth builder and can and should benefit all participants. It is only fair that each one of us should be entitled to a piece of the action.

One thing these traders know is that the market is not an issue of trial and error but a fully quantifiable market by any fundamental Mathematics. You see, when we went to school we learn about the Standard Deviation in probability and statistics. This Standard Deviation is Mathematics and is quantifiable in modern science. Standard deviation was introduced by Mathematician Karl Pearson in 1893 although the idea was by then nearly a century old. This is the single most important idea that should explains all those mysteries, myths and legends you hear of in stock market.

Everything on this planet has properties and, or, characteristics. A stock, just like you and me, has properties and these properties are quantified by calculating the Standard Deviation of the stock. It varies from stock to stock. Our brains are lazy and what we can not understand we turn to astrology which gives our brains a rest. Rather than use planets in signs of the zodiac and financial astrology, or imagining of the latest rumors, invest that time in the study of probability and statistics. If its not you to study, who should? Probability and Statistics is that study that has to do with tossing a coin to get a tail or a head. And as simple as it may sound, tossing a coin and getting a head for only two consecutive times is an extremely very difficulty thing contrary to what our lazy brains would want us to believe.

Standard Deviation is all about vibrations. Vibrations is like in music, vibrations in a string, water vibrations, earthquake vibrations, light and electromagnetic vibrations. The stock market is like vibrations too. For the price to move it must vibrate. The stock spends a lot of time vibrating in a neutral sideway range which unfortunately we do not like. We want the stock to go to the roof the next day after we have bought it. Vibrations are waves. Waves have crests and troughs and travels from one price to another. One crest is often followed by a second crest which is followed by a third crest and so on and so forth. Every crest is separated by a trough to create an alternating pattern of crest and troughs.

Like a bouncing tennis ball, a lower bounce than the previous bounce means the ball is coming to a halt. In the stock market, strength is quantified by series of crests where each crest exceeds the highest point of the previous crest and weakness by series of troughs where each trough goes lower than the lowest point of the previous trough.

People out there will tell you to trade in the direction of trend and they go further to say getting the trend is easy : do this and that. Contrary to the believe that determining the stock's trend is easy, in real time this is very difficulty and you can not have a probability of 100%, otherwise each one of us would be a winner in the market. Some investment advisers and the media are either oblivious and always bullish or immoral, merely giving the public what it wants. It s only a question of, is it this group of stocks or that group, this sector or that sector?

Back to crests and troughs. Whenever two crests meet up with one another they produce a bigger crest which is constructive, and, whenever a crest and a trough meet one another they tend to cancel each other producing a smaller trough or crest which is destructive. If you have ever wondered why carpenters saw the wood in the directions of the grains rather than up against the grains, wonder no more - these guys find it easier and the bundles they produce are sliced clearly leaving a smooth surface with minimum defects.

A bigger crest or trough is made up of smaller troughs and crests. How many of the smaller ones makes the bigger trough and crest is the puzzle that will make our lazy brains consult astrology. Lets leave that as it is because the market moves yoyo, so we comfort ourselves.

The real forces that move the markets are the moving averages. They are a measure of accumulation of strength and weakness over time due to news, economic growth reports, manipulation, fear and greed. There are many moving averages just as there are different types of traders. It is through the dynamics of the moving averages that there are crests and troughs. The bad thing about these moving averages is that they only tell us about what happened rather than what is happing.

One of the most successful trading tool since time immemorial is multiple moving averages crossover, and the acceleration in all averages is either positive in all averages or negative in all averages that you are using. If the acceleration in averages is positive, you go long, and if the acceleration is negative, you go short. This really is multiple time frame where you trade using the shorter trend but only if the longer trend supports it.

Good trading requires you to have safety measures upfront. Always make sure that every trading position that you open has a corresponding stop loss order, repeat, every position that you open has a corresponding stop loss order. I can repeat this until breakfast tomorrow. Trading without stop loss orders is like driving an automobile with faulty breaking system. Every now and then check to see if your stop loss orders are still active. If your broker's system fails, when it come back it may come without your stop loss orders. These stops are not free. It is among those fees that should keep your broker in business and you should grandly pay him even if your stops are rarely used. And why not? And talking about brokers, get yourself a good and inexpensive broker. There are many out there. A broker who charges more than $1.0 per 100 shares of stock is expensive and if you are paying more than that, then you will develop fear of exiting trades as you contemplates the broker's commission you are to incur. A good broker should embrace modern technology and you should promote them because if its not you, then who? And never get married into certain stocks. A company and its stock are two very different things. A stock that is not making money for you is not a thing. Throw it to the dogs.

The Author's website The Secret of Making Money in the Stock Market is designed to help beginners and average traders make money in the Stock Market. In view of the above I have considered only proven mathematical logics. I now shall invite you to join me here as I attempt to intermarry all these logics and predict profitable market directions with Precision. And if you have been wondering if there are people out there who consistently make money from the stock market, wonder no more.

Selling Uncovered Calls - Part 2

You will need approval in advance from your brokerage firm before you will be allowed to sell calls. Each firm is required to ensure that you understand the risks involved, that you fully understand the options market, and that you have adequate equity and income to undertake those risks.

You will not be allowed to write an unlimited number of naked calls. The potential losses, both to you and to the brokerage firm, place natural limits on this activity. Everyone who wants to sell calls is required to sign a document acknowledging the risks and stating that they understand those risks. In part, this statement includes the following:

Special Statement for Uncovered Option Writers

There are special risks associated with uncovered option writing which expose the investor to potentially significant loss. Therefore, this type of strategy may not be suitable for all customers approved for options transactions.

1. The potential loss of uncovered call writing is unlimited. The writer of an uncovered call is in an extremely risky position, and may incur large losses if the value of the underlying instrument increases above the exercise price.

2. As with writing uncovered calls, the risk of writing uncovered put options is substantial. The writer of an uncovered put option bears a risk of loss if the value of the underlying instrument declines below the exercise price. Such loss could be substantial if there is a significant decline in the value of the underlying instrument.

3. Uncovered option writing is thus suitable only for the knowledgeable investor who understands the risks, has the financial capacity and willingness to incur potentially substantial losses, and has sufficient liquid assets to meet applicable margin requirements. In this regard, if the value of the underlying instrument moves against an uncovered writer's options position, the investor's broker may request significant additional margin payments. If an investor does not make such margin payments, the broker may liquidate stock or options positions in the investor's account, with little or no prior notice in accordance with the investor's margin agreement.

Get your Momentum Stock Trading System and sign up for my free weekly online trading system newsletter here at: http://www.stressfreetrading.com

Day Trading the Emini - Training Ground For Big Contracts

In 1997 the Chicago Mercantile Exchange created a new financial instrument known as the emini futures contract. It started off small but now is a fully mature market with excellent liquidity.

Now in 2005, the emini futures contract is an investment vehicle of choice, for beginning and experienced futures traders the world over.

In this introductory article, I just want to have a look at why that is. You see for an investment vehicle to gain wide appeal it has to have a few characteristics.

It needs to be accessible to a wide public. The emini is such a vehicle. The minimum you need is around $500 to get started, instead of $5000 or more with regular futures.

It needs to be liquid, in other words there must be enough buyers to buy when you want to sell and sellers to sell when you want to buy.

The emini is very liquid.

There needs to be a significant profit. The structure of a well traded account is such that with a small amount of start-up capital very significant profits can be made, enough actually to trade for a living.

The taxation situation is very advantageous, in many jurisdictions only being capital gains tax - you should always check with a professional before making an investment decision.

The lifestyle of a successful emini futures trader can be very comfortable, an hour or so of trading in the morning and that's it for the day. It's possible to make $500 or $1000 in an hour or so depending upon how many contracts you trade. It's also possible to lose just as much, which is my obligatory sobering statement to any gamblers out there.

It's this lifestyle that gives it such appeal to people like you and me.

  • Freedom from the man
  • Working from home
  • Spending more time with the family

But that is the positive. On the dark side, with futures and emini futures there is financial risk, so this is not something that one goes into untrained.

That would merely be gambling. Successful investing, is not so much about being right or wrong or the roll of the dice, but about money management, patience and discipline to following a system. If you are a gambler then stay away from futures, for you will surely lose and can lose big.

If you are willing to learn and trade a system, and utilise money management principles then you can join the ranks of an group of successful traders are making significant profits from home.

Graeme Sprigge is the webmaster of emini-courses.com, a site which presents and reviews more than ten quality emini day trading courses and systems. Graeme has a keen interest in investing in options, shares and futures trading. Visit emini-courses.com to get an eye-opening free ebook, The Truth about Day Trading

Gann His Trading Method's Made Millions Learn Them For a Profit Edge

W D Gann is one of the most famous traders of all time and his unique methods helped him make a fortune of around $50.00 million and best of all he wrote and recorded the way he did it, so anyone can have access to his trading strategy and aplly it for profit.

Trading is one of the ways that small traders can start with small stakes and build real wealth quickly.

The good news is everything about trading can be specifically learned and Gann outlined all his methods in writing for traders to profit from and enjoy today.

His methods are applicable to any financial market from forex to stocks to bonds so you can choose where to apply them, depending on the risk you wish to take.

Lets look at why you should study Gann and his methods of making money.

1. He Had a Track Record

Many e-book sellers or traders sell information but its worthless they dont trade it themselves and simply make up a track record.

Gann made money and his track record and invited newspapers and journalists to track his trades such was his confidence in how to make money.

2. Gann and the Law of the Market Movement

Gann pointed out quite rightly, that market prices depended on humans and that their psychology was constant Because human nature was constant this nature would show up in repetitive price patterns that could be traded for profit

Gann was a technical trader and like all charts believed that what happened in the past would happen again and the key to making profits was to look for recurring price patterns to put the odds in his favor

3. Ganns method
The method was based upon several concepts and one revolutionary which was his concept of price and time.

Gann believed that important price movements occurred when price and time converged.

If price and time however were in synch or did not converge, then time was more important than price.

Time for Gann was the ultimate indicator for seeking clues to price direction.

As he once said:

"Just remember one thing, whatever has happened in the past in the stock market and Wall Street will happen again."

Advances in bull markets will come in the future, and panics will come in the future, just as they have in the past. This is the working out of a natural law"

Gann had many components of his trading plan and his work with the Fibonacci number sequence and Gann angles were legendary.

5. Learning Ganns Methods

If you have never traded before you will have to make yourself familiar with the concepts of technical analysis and there is plenty of free material on the net.

Then simply buy is books and study them They take a little while to get to grips with and you will need to practice the method, but it will be time well spent.

When you have finished your study you will have a method that you can understand and apply with confidence which is the key to trading with discipline and you know it is based on sound logic as it made real dollars in real trading.

Gann has been dead for over half a century, yet savvy traders all around the world are still building wealth applying his unique and proven methods.

GRAB 3 X FREE TRADER & FREE TRADER PROFITS NEWSLETTER

On all aspects of becoming a profitable trader including features, downloads and some critical FREE Trader PDF's and more FREE Forex Education visit our website at http://www.net-planet.org/index.html

Forex Strategies

Forex strategies are essential for a forex trader to profit from the market. Forex trading strategies make a trader more sophisticated and confident by helping him in making right calculations about the market. In a market with always changing exchange rates it is foolishness to trade hysterically by just following the emotions or advices from unreliable sources.

There are lots of forex trading strategies followed by forex traders. They can be broadly classified in to two type of strategies are profit maximizing strategies and risk minimizing strategies. The strategy differs with individuals as each trader has unique needs and has unique trading abilities. A trader must design a forex trading strategy according to many factors such as his or her initial investment, account size, trading ability, risk tolerance, currency pairs trading, geographical limitations/advantages, the broker to which he is affiliated, the trading system he/she uses, the profit goal (short-term profit or long-term profit), etc.

The most followed forex profit maximizing strategy is the leverage. Leverage allows forex traders to trade with more funds than in his or her account. The leverages are provided by the forex brokers to their clients. The usual leverage is 100:1 i.e., for $1 in account the trader can borrow $100 from his broker. Day traders get much more leverage than other traders and the ratio leverage differ with brokers and also with the account minimum, type of contract trading etc.

The most popular forex risk minimizing strategy is the stop loss order. Stop loss orders help traders to limit their loss by stopping a trade at a preset price. Forex trading systems allows traders to set their stop loss order prices. One related strategy is the trailing stop losses, which are proportional stop loss prices that come into play only when the prices are falling. There are also many other types of stop loss orders available which mainly depends on the broker to which the trader is affiliated to.

One another related strategy is the automated order entry. Automated order entry enables a trader to enter into a trade at a preset price rate automatically. The trader can set the price at his trading platform. Automated order entry methods help traders to enter the market at most favorable time. Apart from these strategies forex traders can use forex futures and forex options to cover the loss and well as to cover the profit. These contracts help forex traders to buy or sell currencies at a predetermined rate at a point of time in future.

Apart from these trading strategies, forex trader follow many other strategies for choosing currency pairs, trading hours, entrance and exit prices etc. Irrespective of the type of the strategy, all forex strategies involve risks. The success of a forex strategy depends on many factors like the market condition and the discipline of the trader.

Praveen Ortec works for NobleTrading.com, an Online Forex Trading Broker offering free advanced Forex Trading System and forex trading information through Stock and Forex Market Trading Blogs.

Thursday, October 11, 2007

Nasdaq Q's (NASDAQ: QQQQ) and S&P SPYDRS (AMEX: SPY) Traders - Being Right, Or Making Money?

When a market timer trading index funds such as the Rydex Nova Fund and Rydex OTC Fund makes a trading decision based on a news event, fear of losing out on a rally or of losing money in a sell off, or even the stock broker neighbor's trading tip, he or she is trading on emotions.

Wishing Your Were Right

Trading on emotions, news events, market rallies, etc. is basically trading on a WISH.

There is no basis for the trade, at least none that can be counted on to last. There is nothing but "the moment." The trader wishes he or she will be right.

Odds of winning? Slim.

Trades made on wishes have no plan behind them. There is no exit strategy. Invariably, the trade is held until losses become painful enough to force the trader to emotionally sell at a loss.

Making Money

No one makes money on Wall Street without a trading plan. No One! There is only "one way" to be certain of being profitable.

Market timers and traders who have a strategy for entering and exiting positions, and who follow their rules, on a timely basis without hesitation, make money.

Those who trade by daily news events, daily or weekly rallies & declines, and TV hype, will "always" end up losing money. Remember, for every winning trade in the stock market, there is a losing trade on the other side. Only those who follow a plan consistently make the winning trades.

One of the most important questions you must ask yourself is:

Do you want to BE RIGHT for a short time. Or do you want to MAKE MONEY for a long time.

Ignore the news. Ignore the daily ups and downs. You have no control over them anyway. No one knows what the next day will bring. No one!

Wishing will not help. Watching the financial news religiously will not help. There is just no way to know what will happen tomorrow, or even what will happen next week.

But a successful trading plan that creates unemotional buy and sell decisions will, over time, make even the most emotional person, a successful market timer.

Frank Kollar has been timing the financial markets since 1982, with online service since 1996. He is a dedicated trend timer. Kollar is editor and chief analyst at FibTimer.com (http://www.fibtimer.com) which offers market timing strategies for S&P and Nasdaq index fund traders, as well as bond, gold, small cap, sector, ETF and stock trading strategies.

Real Estate Transfer Taxes Overlooked Sale or Purchase Expense

A real estate transfer tax is a one-time tax paid at the closing of a property, and is considered a stream of revenue for state budgets. This transfer tax though, once collected is not generally used for housing-related purposes. The tax is based on the value of a property as agreed to by the parties in a real estate contract.

In the excitement of selling or buying a home, often the real estate transfer tax cost is overlooked. Depending on locale, either the buyer or seller pays the tax at closing or escrow, but beware in New Hampshire both the buyer and seller pay, half of 1.5%!. In some states it can be a formidable amount, you should be prepared for what the transfer taxes will be, and who pays them, before you start a home search or list your home for-sale.

The good news is, thirteen states don't have a real estate property tax. They are: Alaska, Idaho, Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming.

The bad news is that the remaining thirty-seven states and The District of Columbia charge taxes on the transfer of a property. The tax is only levied once when a property is exchanged between parties, unlike general property taxes which are paid annually and are based on the assessed value. Real estate transfer taxes range from a low of .01% in Colorado to a high of 1.28% in Washington state.

Variations on transfer taxes include; in Arizona only charges a tax on deeds. However Alabama and Florida charge on deeds and mortgages. To avoid financial surprises, inquire early as to who pays (buyer or seller) and how much transfer taxes will be. Some states dictate who pays the tax, and some just want the tax paid. This cost can typically be negotiated between the parties. Consult an experienced real estate attorney.

A handy online link for transfer taxes for all fifty states.

http://www.parealtor.org/content/AssetMgmt/Issues Resource Center/Realty Transfer Tax/Transfer tax chart.pdf

Mark Nash, is a residential real estate author, broker, columnist and writer based in Chicago. His fourth book 1001 Tips for Buying and Selling a Home received eighteen five star reviews on Amazon.com. His latest book; Real Estate A-Z for Buying & Selling a Home will be published in December 2006. Mark publishes a free monthly ezine for real estate professionals. Agent to Agent features ten articles that offer free reprints for agents, home buyers and sellers through EzineArticles.com . Real estate news and book reviews, Celebrity Homestyles, Home selling and buying tips and advice, Joke-of-the-Month, Help this Agent, and agent marketing tips. Over 5000 subscribers in the U.S. & Canada. Subscribe at: http://www.1001realestatetips.com/forrealestateagents.html

Harry, The Arrogant Bank Boss

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, I promised I would share the story of what happened with the "bank boss" during the late eighties, early nineties. The story you're about to read was a time of tremendous adversity for me.

Every single person that appears on the stage of our lives has something to contribute, regardless of the outcome. They all take on the role of a teacher with a lesson plan or two.

David, the Bully, was one central character. If he hadnt approached me on the playground that day, I wouldnt have a unique story to share with my audiences. I would also not have known how much courage I really had to stand up for myself on that fateful day.

Harry is another such character. His name is fictitious to protect the innocent (or maybe not so innocent). Little did I know I was in for the ride of my life when I was transferred into his department.

It didn't take long to learn that this man had a reputation for publicly chewing out his subordinates over everything and anything that went wrong. Minor and major events were one and the same. Harry trusted no one and rarely promoted from within. His inner circle consisted of long-time cronies who were "yes-yes-yes-yes" people. Fear and intimidation often ruled the day -- no one challenged him.

Within a short period of time after my transfer, I faced each day with a sickly feeling in my stomach because I never knew what the day was going bring. Harry was like Jekyll and Hyde. One day he would be enraged and the next he'd do a complete turnabout, laughing, joking and having fun. We often knew first thing in the morning whether Harry would be in a bad mood. If he was, we joked amongst ourselves who would be the boss' "whipping boy"' that day. Yours truly certainly had his share of the whip.

At the time, Wall Street was undergoing massive restructuring due to the 1987 stock market crash where thousands were laid off. Job security was shaky at best. In fact, you were considered quite lucky if you had a job those days. This added uncertainty to an already pervasive work environment at the bank. Unfortunately, working for Harry only made things more a lot more challenging.

One day, I stumbled across Norman Vincent Peale's book, The Power of Positive Thinking. This gift of a book that seemed to come out of nowhere was exactly what I needed because one chapter, "New Thoughts Can Remake You" encouraged me to change my perception of the bank boss. In there was a powerful, yet simple idea:

To change your circumstances, first start thinking differently.

I took that sentence and ran with it as if my life depended on it. The moment I read it, I made a decision that I was going to change my attitude and perceive Harry in an entirely different light.

Every morning before going to work, I sat on my couch, closed my eyes and put the power of visualization to work for me. I imagined Harry as a frightened, insecure human being who might have ruled the office with an iron fist but was dramatically transformed into a loving, doting grandfather at home. In my mind's eye, he was seen romping around his backyard beaming and hugging his grandkids. I did this for months with dramatic results.

The reason I saw him in this way was because on the days when he was in a good mood, he would chatter incessantly about his grandchildren to everyone who would listen. As he was talking, his eyes -- often called the window to a person's soul -- gave us a rare glimpse beyond the Jekyll and Hyde facade. His million dollar smile literally knocked off your socks if you were fortunate to be nearby. It was an astonishing sight to behold.

Once this grandfatherly image took root in my subconscious, I couldn't help but transcend the illusion of power he had over me. It put a positive spin on my attitude toward him because I no longer perceived him as a tyrant.

Although he certainly wasn't aware I was doing this, he did notice a different, more positive energy about me. Naturally, this made him curious. He took more of an interest in my abilities rather than focusing on my disabilities. Eventually I was treated as an ally rather than as someone to keep at an arm's length, dramatically transforming the nature of our boss-employee relationship. No longer did I feel sick in the mornings - in fact, I actually looked forward to work!

Almost a year later, Harry did the unimaginable.

He pulled me into his office on the day of our performance reviews and gave me the shock of my life with an announcement that he was promoting me to a senior staff position! I almost fell off my chair. Within hours, the entire division heard about it. Everyone knew a miracle had happened. So did I.

A few months later, I received an opportunity to work for Merrill Lynch. It was as if the universe was telling me, "good job, you learned a powerful lesson and now it's time to move on."

Food for thought: Even people who pushed our buttons and make our lives more challenging are teachers put on our path to help us learn our lessons. They should be remembered too.

Profoundly deaf since birth, Stephen Hopson is a former award-winning stockbroker turned motivational speaker, author and pilot. He works with organizations that are ready to explore and overcome adversity because no one is immune from it - adversity does not discriminate. His professional speaking services, Obstacle Illusions, include fun and passionate presentations, especially the story of how his fifth grade teacher forever changed his young life with THAT'S RIGHT STEPHEN! You can view his website at http://www.sjhopson.com Stephen also maintains a blog called "Adversity University" at http://adversityuniversity.blogspot.com/

Currency Trading Courses - What Makes a Good Training Manual?

Many Forex courses use past information and facts as a basis for their training materials. The main problem with this is that they do not spend enough time on the practical side of investing. A better than average currency trading course should be able to help you understand the practical and technical workings of the Forex market which in turn will help yoin in developing and applying a strategy that you have formulated yourself.

Good courses should not spoon-feed you all of the information, sure they should teach you new things but it is important they also get you thinking for yourself. This is the only way you will learn how to apply the information they preach. You should be asked to think of your own approach to solving a particular problem.

Another sign that you have found a great course is if the manual is able to provide you with some first hand experience of the market or at least something simulating it. Video demonstrations, access to a safe, practice trading arena and a good level of support are always good signs that the currency trading course in question is worth purchasing.

Whilst Forex courses have their advantages, the one thing that has no substitute is confidence. A currency trading course must implant in you a confident attitude in making decisions related to Forex trading. Trading after all, is about taking risks and that is not possible until and unless you are confident about your own abilities.

When you are buying a currency trading educational course you must be sure that the material it offers you will prime you for successful trading in the real world not just in a practice environment. You will have to make a number of decisions in Forex trading and these actions that you choose will depend a lot on your instincts and on the knowledge. Therefore you are using the course to gain knowledge, which in turn builds your trading confidence and brings better results - thats the theory anyway!

It goes without saying that like any other field you want to enter, you need to have a basic understanding of the field. Forex trading is no different, if anything it is even more important to understand the fundamentals of the market than with any other market. Unlike stock trading you do not just need knowledge in one company or industry, you need global knowledge as a change in one currency can effect a change in another.

Most of the currency trading courses start with the US Dollars for the simple reason that it is the most predominant player in the market. With time, you should gain experience and knowledge about Forex trading with the US Dollar and after some practice you will find yourself more able to trade intelligently in other currencies also.

The currency trading courses can also teach you how to calculate the pip which, put simply, is the difference with which a currency rate increases or decreases. In other words, if the current exchange rate for two currencies is 1 to 45 and the next day it turns to 1 to 45.3, this means that the pip is 0.3. Calculating pip is not difficult but predicting it is essential in making profits and analyzing risk in any Foreign Exchange trade.

In summary, if you are looking to utilize a currency trading course to learn more and improve your Forex profitability then please do remember to consider the issues raised in this article carefully. A course should not be seen as a magic tutor that will bring you instant profits but should instead be viewed as a very useful learning experience that will boost your confidence and make you a more secure trader.

Paul Bryan operates Forex Reviews, News and Advice - A site aimed at bringing you the best and most independent Foreign Exchange information and articles.

Daytrading And How To Get Started

One working definition of a Day Trader is, A person whose goal is to make his or her profits from a security in the shortest amount of time [preferably during a single day.] Though this definition is simplified, the day-to-day job of a Day Trader is a far more complex series of events and strategies that must be learned and implemented.

My description of daytrading has largely been based on past experiences with the markets, as well as the changes in the markets and the global economies themselves. Keep in mind; the stock market is not your friend. Much like war, in day trading and/or short-term investing, you are pitting your wits against every other person in the market. Every dollar you make is on the back of someone else's losses. Your goal is to win with your investments and your trading, and that requires someone else to lose. Try to make sure it's not you. Never forget that, and you'll be off to a much better start in the markets.

How risky is daytrading? Well, before you read on any further, imagine taking about $10,000 in crisp, brand new one hundred dollars bills out into the backyard. Put them on the ground and douse them in lighter fluid. Then strike a match. Don't burn your money just yet, but just stand there. That's about how risky daytrading is.

Always remember: at any given time, when you are daytrading for a living, you are risking probably that much money (if not quite a bit more), and your money is in perhaps just as much risk. While we are not suggesting that you actually set fire to your money in the backyard, our analogy is fairly accurate. If that bothers you, then perhaps you might consider another line of work, or a good mutual fund, because I don't know any good day traders that haven't seen at least $10,000 go up in a puff of smoke during market hours. It's simply unrealistic to expect to be able to trade professionally and profitably from day one. Mistakes will be made; lessons will be learned; money will be lost as you learn. It's a never-ending process to a large degree. In fact, the day you feel you have mastered the markets, that's the day you get your head handed to you.

In the years I have traded, I have seen many people come and go. I've seen people make and lose large sums of money very quickly. I have made and lost large sums of money very quickly! I've seen stocks go from pennies to hundreds of dollars and back again, taking traders and investors for a ride in both directions. And yet, still, in all the years I have been in this business, I am sure of only one thing about the stock market--that I have not seen it all yet. If anyone claims to have all the answers about the stock market, or claims to be the only person you should listen to - run, don't walk away from them and/or their services.

One of the most frequently asked questions is, How much capital do I need? It is a somewhat difficult question to answer. How much do you really need in order to start day trading? How big a "stake" (a term used to refer to your starting capital) is required to get going? The only answer is that it's different for each person, and it's something you must consider for yourself before you start. However, I personally feel, in general, you should have enough trading capital to purchase between 500 to 1000 shares of any given stock. Ideally, this would be without having to use margin.

If you are in the habit of trading $40 to $80 stocks, this could mean you need as much as $40,000 to start. At the same time, one can trade with as little as $10,000 and get their feet wet. It also doesn't hurt to have enough capital to diversify into several different positions (two to five generally) at one time - each with say 300 to 500 shares. Just remember, if you are starting small, keep your expectations realistic. Certainly, someone trading with $10,000 to $20,000 is going to have a much more difficult time generating $1,000 per day than someone using $100,000 or more. As long as you keep this in perspective, it will help keep you grounded as you begin learning.

When you get into the bigger leagues of day trading, then it's nice to be able to "step on" (i.e. purchase or short) a "block" or two of stock. This would be generally defined as 10,000 shares of stock. This typically is going to require $500,000 or more of trading capital, plus some use of margin in limited situations and for a limited time. When you reach this level, it's easy to see how daytrading can become quite profitable (and quite risky!). A few points (or even a few fractions) across 10,000 shares can return quite a bit of money quite rapidly. Just remember it goes both ways; you can quickly lose quite a bit as well.

As you can see there's no right or wrong answer with regard to how much you need to start. Simply keep your objectives in perspective and reasonable. This will go a long way to giving you a good start in the markets. Also understand that if you are starting small, factoring in things such as equipment fees and transaction costs may become much more important.

Good luck in the markets!

No permission is needed to reproduce an unedited copy of this article as long the About The Author tag is left in tact and hot links included.

Ray Johns is the founder and Senior Market Editor of Daytraders.com, Proudly serving day traders & short-term investors since 1996, at http://www.daytraders.com

Daytraders.com is the publishers of the award winning Morning Stock Market Report and the home of the Internets finest real time trading desk. Ray has been on the forefront of trading and investing in the markets and has appeared as a guest on a number of radio and television shows including CNBCs Market Talk. If you would like a free trail of the newsletter and the live trading desk log on to Daytraders.com. Comments and questions can be sent to articles@daytraders.com

Ten Simple Investment Tips

When I first started trading the stock market, there was not the wealth of information available online like there is today. I read a lot of books and learned the terms and thought I knew everything necessary to make my fortune trading the market. I found a discount broker and started plugging away, and immediately lost my shirt.

Even though I had read these same tips in numerous places, I really didnt understand the importance of them until I had learned them the hard way. As they say, experience is the best teacher, if you survive the lesson.

These are things that I wish I had really used when I first started trading.

1.Never invest money you cant afford to lose.

2.Never invest money you are afraid to lose. If you are too uptight, you are guaranteed to make bad decisions.

3.Never buy a stock you receive in an unsolicited email or in a mass mailing. Many times, these turn out to be low cost, thinly traded penny stocks that some one is trying to pump up the price and dump them.

4.Most of them time, you should not buy stocks at the open of the market. The first hour of the trading day typically has a lot of volatility. Stocks tend to stabilize after the first hour; you could end up paying too much trying to get a stock, only to have it settle down in price 30 minutes later.

5.As a new investor, never buy stocks on margin. It is ok to have a margin account; just dont use the margin until you have enough knowledge to keep yourself out of trouble.

6.Dont worry if you think you just missed the biggest trade of the year. Never chase a stock trying to get on board, if you wait 30 minutes, another trade will come along that is just as lucrative. (This one tip would have saved me a fortune)

7.Learn how to use a trailing stop. Immediately after buying a stock, put in a stop loss order, and keep raising the stop limit. This will preserve your gains, but more importantly will preserve your capital.

8.Never buy until you have determined when you are going to sell. You need to know what point you will accept a small loss and move on. Then when you buy, keep that stop loss point; never change this point in the heat of the battle, because this is guaranteed to cost you money.

9.Never get greedy. The old market saying is Bears make money, Bulls make money, Hogs get slaughtered is very true.

10.Dont treat the stock market like it is your private Las Vegas gambling casino. Its ok for a small portion of your portfolio to gamble, but its called investing for a reason.

If you follow these simple tips, they will save you some of the misery that I went through early in my trading career. Try not to get bogged down in all of the information overload that is coming at you from all directions. Slow down, there will plenty of good trades available to you tomorrow, if your trading capital is still available.

If you would like additional trading information, please go to Trade The Stock Market or to my Forex Review Site.

Shaking Your Money Tree: Seven Ways to Make Quick Cash

Does your business have a money tree you can shake when a little extra cash is needed? Every business should have one!

What I mean by a money tree is something you can do to quickly generate revenue when you need it. Where can you find a money tree? Although you can't buy one at your local garden store, they are more common than you might imagine. Just as in a forest, there are many species of money trees, so you need to find one that is right for you. Here are a few common varieties:

The Sale Tree brings in cash by making a discount offer to customers. Buy before June 30th, and you get a lower price. This creates a sense of urgency for customers to buy now in order to save money and can create a new flow of sales for you.

The Bonus Tree can work like the Sale, but instead of a discount, customers get a free item with purchase. Buy one, get one free, for example, or buy this item and get a free accessory. You might make the bonus item something only available as a bonus, and not available to buy. Booklets, books, audio programs and other items with a low production cost and high perceived value are great bonus items.

Generate cash with the New Product Tree by introducing a new product. Customers love new things, so announce it with a flourish. You might cross the New Product tree with the Sale or Bonus tree to get a hybrid with extra appeal.

Shake the Personal Touch Tree by contacting current or former customers and reminding them it may be time to do business with you again. Perhaps the supplies they bought from you a few months ago are running low, or it's time for a follow-up service.

The Referral Tree should be in bloom all the time, but you can get better results when you tend it. Do a mailing or phone campaign to ask current customers to refer their friends and colleagues. You may be able to generate lots of sales quickly this way.

The Cold Call Tree can be hard to shake, but the results can be worthwhile. Identify your best prospects and call or visit them.

One of my favorites is the Publicity Tree. It's an odd one, in that you never know when it is going to bloom, or what it will look like when it does; however, the results are often magnificent. Provide a jumpstart in its growth by regularly sending press releases and pitches to the media.

Decide which money tree is right for your business, then nurture it and keep it growing. And, every once in a while, shake the heck out of it and watch the dollars come floating down!

Copyright Cathy Stucker. As the Idea Lady, Cathy Stucker can help you attract customers and make yourself famous with inexpensive and free marketing ideas. Get free tips, articles and more at http://www.IdeaLady.com/.

How To Learn Forex The Smart Way

Many people see the Forex market as a place to invest for the future. Many of these have previously invested in the stock market with mixed results and look to the currency market to increase their wealth. The problem is that most of these people ignored the fundamentals of the stock market, and are behaving the same way with the currency market. If you learn Forex trading properly, you will succeed. Ignoring the fundamentals will bring you the same results you had in the equity markets.

If you want to become a successful trader, it is important that you understand the basic principles about Forex trading. The best way of doing this is by finding a reliable trading platform that you can use to learn from. Interest in currency trading has been growing at fantastic rates. Online trading is even more spectacular because you can now trade from your home or office. Major currency dealers have met this demand by installing online trading platforms that are easy to learn and use. Once you register with one of these traders, you can begin learning currency trading without spending any of your money.

But it is not just these companies who have set up trading platforms who can help you to learn about Forex trading. A search on Google for "learn forex" will bring you hundreds of websites with different offerings. You will have to pay for some of these offerings while others are at no charge. You will also find websites run by traders who just enjoy sharing their knowledge with you. In addition, many websites provide general and specific information about the currency market.

Such sites offer a basic education to speed up your learning. You can watch videos online or download special software. You can also browse through forum posts or attend webinars. Also, these sites include ebooks and articles that can help you to gain basic knowledge about currency trading. Each site will provide you with a different method for learning about trading, and you can do all of it online, so no need for you to wait for CD's, DVD's or books to arrive in the mail. Some of these materials are also available off-line if you have a slow Internet connection. But, in almost all of these materials you will find the basic information you need to start trading.

However, if you are looking for a more personal approach, or want to speed up your learning even more, you can attend an off-line seminar. Of course, some of these seminars are also available in the form of teleseminars and webinars, but you get a physical person to talk about and discuss your concerns. You also get the support of the other seminar attendees who may have the same concerns as you do. They can also help you understand material that they have mastered.

Physical seminars are more expensive than other means to learn Forex trading because the organizers have to secure a suitable room and provide other supplies that help the attendees make the most of the training. For example, binders, photocopies of charts, graphs and other educational material. However, if you can afford the prices for these events, it is worth your while attending at least an introductory seminar. You would speed up your learning of the Forex market.

Get the latest in learn forex know how from the only true source at http://www.forextradingline.com

Check out our learn forex pages.

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Forex Trading - The 3 Keys to a Winning Trader's Mindset

Forex trading is simple to learn, and anyone can acquire the skills - so, why is it that 95% of traders lose money? Many traders lose money because they have poor methods, though some have sound methods but still lose - because they lack the right mindset to succeed.

Here well look at the three keys for getting the mindset of the millionaire traders.

1. Desire and Passion

If you want success in anything - including forex trading, then you must desire success. If you have the desire, then youll do whats required to succeed. If you look at any of the legendary traders, they all had desire - and they loved what they did with a passion.

You must also have desire and passion for what you do. However, thats not enough - you must also avoid worrying about risk and setbacks. Currency trading success doesnt come easily so, if you cant build up the strong desire and passion required for successful trading, then you should find something else to do - as youll lose your money trading in the currency markets.

If however, you accept that its not any easy road - and youre prepared to put in the effort, then forex trading can earn you an income that most people can only dream of.

2. Confidence

You hear traders talk a lot about discipline when forex trading - but you dont hear them talk much about confidence. However, confidence is a vital component of your forex trading strategy - confidence in yourself not in some mentor, or guru youre following.

If you want to succeed in currency trading, then you have to have rock solid confidence that your currency trading system this will lead you to currency trading success. You must retain your confidence, even when youre losing money - and therell be periods when you lose money, for weeks, or months on end.

If you dont have unshakeable confidence that youll ultimately succeed, then currency trading will break you and youll throw in the towel before you become a winner.

To have confidence, you need to understand exactly how, and why your forex trading strategy works. This will give you a trading edge - and ultimately, success. If you dont know what your trading edge is, then youll be joining the majority of traders - the ones who lose money!

3. Discipline

Youve probably heard that discipline is vital to trading success - and if you think that following a system with discipline is easy then, think again.

Lets look at an example of just how hard currency trading with discipline really is: In the eighties, legendary trader Richard Dennis taught a group of traders with no previous experience, how to trade - and he gave them a method they could all use. In 14 days, these traders were given trading accounts - and collectively, they quickly made over $100 million.

They were all successful traders - yet there was a huge variation between the results of the individual traders. In Curtis M. Faiths great book The Way of the Turtle, he discusses this in depth and the lesson is: Learning a successful trading system is not enough! You need the correct mindset to execute the system correctly and nothing can prepare you for this. You simply have to experience it yourself - and its tough trying to stick with a currency trading system, when the pressure is on - and youre losing money. Money is on the line and emotions are involved.

Many forex traders try to prepare for trading, with demo accounts - and making big percentage wins. However, theres no pressure - its practice, and its easy try doing it for real, with real money thats when if becomes difficult!

Now you have them - the three keys to adopting the right mindset, in order to achieve currency-trading success. Its not easy to achieve the winning traders mindset - but when the rewards are as great as they are in FX trading, you wouldnt expect them to be.

If you can adopt the right mindset, the world of currency trading will give you immense rewards for your effort. Good Luck!

Grab 5 FREE Trader PDF's and get the support you need to trade like a pro with our user-friendly multi-lingual learn forex trading. Get up to date financial news, real-time market prices, tight pip spreads, built-in risk management system, and 24-hour professional support.

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Real Estate Foreclosure: Taming The Beast

For those who are intimidated by the prospect of investing or purchasing foreclosures for profit or simply to have a roof over your head, well don't be. Here's why.

You can easily break down the process of foreclosures into three primary stages. Ready? The first stage is pre-foreclosure the second stage is foreclosure auction and the third and final stage is bank owned foreclosures or real estate owned properties as they're interchangeably called.

In general as you move along the timeline of the foreclosure process your potential for profit will decrease the later you get to the foreclosure a property. In other words there is probably much greater profit potential if you are able to identify a property right before it enters into the initial stages of foreclosure in a market that you are familiar with as opposed to calling up the bank for real estate owned properties.

Now let me clarify one thing, this doesn't mean that one model is better than another. It's actually a bit more complicated than that. It depends on what you're looking for when all is said and done. If you're planning on making a full-time living eventually from real estate investment then you'll definitely want to learn in baby steps how to get the most out of your time and efforts.

With that said for those who are ambitious enough to do this full time you will want to learn how to find pre-foreclosures because they generally offer you the maximum leverage and profitability relative to the most deep discounted properties available via bank owned properties

However if you are simply looking for a deep discount at home without wanting to start an entire business involving marketing, distribution, and promoting yourself while driving around neighborhoods every day looking up MLS listings conducting market research and paying all all the costs overlays involved in running a business, then it is definitely advisable if you are looking to simply purchase a more inexpensive home to come to call up the bank for a foreclosure property.

Or another way is to simply subscribe to a foreclosure listings service or browse through some free foreclosure listings for a limited time. Visit http://www.a1-foreclosure.com for more information.

Tuesday, October 9, 2007

Put Buying Strategies, Part 1

Strategy 1: Gaining Leverage

There is value in the leverage gained using the put. With a limited amount of capital, the potential for profits is greater for put buyers than through stock short selling, and with considerably less risk.

Example: Safer than Shorting Stock: A stock currently is valued at $60 per share. If you sell short 100 shares and the stock drops five points, you can close the position and take a profit of $500. However, rather than selling short, you could buy 12 puts at 5, for a total investment of $6,000. A five-point drop in this case would produce a profit of $6,000, a 100 percent gain (assuming no change in time value). So by investing the same amount in puts, you could earn a 100 percent profit, compared to an 8.3 percent profit through short selling.

This example demonstrates the value in leverage, but the risk element for each strategy is not comparable. The short seller faces risks not experienced by the put buyer, and has to put up collateral and pay interest; in comparison, the put buyer has to fight against time. Risking $6,000 by buying puts is highly speculative and, while short selling is risky as well, the two strategies have vastly different attributes. The greater profit potential through leverage in buying puts is accompanied by equally higher risk of loss. However, even without a large sum of capital to speculate with, you can still use leverage to your advantage. This comparative analysis shows the flaw in analyzing two dissimilar strategies. Because the risk attributes are so different for each, it is not accurate to draw conclusions based only on potential returns.

Example: Comparing Apples to Oranges: You buy a LEAPS put for 5 with a striking price of 60 and 18 months until expiration. The stock currently is selling at $60 per share; your option is at the money. Aware of the potential profit or loss in your strategy, your decision to buy puts was preferable over selling short the stock. The luxury of 18 months in the LEAPS put is preferable over remaining exposed to short selling of stock. A drop of five points in the stock's market value would produce a $500 gain with either strategy (assuming no change in time value premium).

The short seller, like the put buyer, has a time problem. The short seller has to place collateral on deposit equal to a part of the borrowed stock's value, and pay interest on the borrowed amount. Thus, the more time the short position is left open, the higher the interest costand the more decline in the stock's value the short seller requires to make a profit. While the put buyer is concerned with diminishing time value, the short seller pays interest, which erodes future profits, if they ever materialize, or which increases losses.

A decline of five points in the preceding example produces an 8.1 percent profit for the short seller and a 100 percent profit for the put buyer. Compare the risks with this yield difference in mind. Short selling risks are unlimited in the sense that a stock's value could rise indefinitely, creating ever-increasing losses. The put buyer's risk is limited to the $500 investment. A drop of $1 per share in the stock's value creates a 1.6 percent profit for the short seller, and a 20 percent profit for the put buyer.

Potential losses can be compared between strategies as one form of risk evaluation. When a short seller's stock rises in value, the loss could be substantial. It combines market losses with continuing interest expense and tied up collateral (creating a lost opportunity). The put buyer's losses can never exceed the premium cost of the put.

Get your Momentum Stock Trading System and sign up for my free weekly online trading system newsletter here at: http://www.stressfreetrading.com

What is Forex Trading?

FX, Forex, Foreign Exchange are all names for the transaction of one currency for another, e.g. you buy 100.00 with $150.25 or sell $150.25 for 100.00. Traders buy and sell currencies with the hope of making a profit when the value of the currencies changes in their favor, whether from market news or events that takes place in the world.

Forex trading has been around for years. It is viewed as the largest financial market in the whole world. The estimated amount of daily volume is 1.5 trillion (US) dollars. A true 24-hour market, Forex trading begins each day in Sydney, and advances around the globe as the business day begins in each financial center, first to Tokyo, London, and New York.

Unlike other financial markets, Forex Allows investors to respond to currency fluctuations caused by economic, social and political events instantaneously, at the time that events occur, day and night. The market only closes on weekends.

A benefit of forex trading is that it is not really subject to the same kinds of swings in the market that stocks are subject to. Of course if you always buy and sell the same currencies then there will be market swings. But, because there are hundreds of currencies out there, there is always going to be something for you to make money on because while one currency is up in value another one is down and vice versa.

Forex trading does not take huge amounts of capital to start. Traders can begin investing with as little as three hundred dollars. Transaction costs are usually minimal. Often brokers will provide you with the tools and data you need to make trades for free. There are a large number of buyers and sellers all selling the same products. Information is free-flowing and there are few barriers to participation.

Forex trading is an over-the counter (OTC) market. This means buyers and sellers do not meet in central locations to make exchanges. Instead transactions are completed by phone, fax, and email or through the websites of brokers specializing in this market. Currencies are always traded in pairs. Transactions always involve selling one currency and buying another. If you believe the euros would gain against the dollar you would sell dollars and buy euros.

A very liquid market, your money is not held up for long periods of time. You will have full control of your capitol. With planning, a good system to follow, strong money management skills, and self-discipline, Forex trading can be relatively low risk and quite lucrative.

Milos Pesic is an expert in the field of Forex Trading and runs a highly popular and comprehensive Forex Trading web site. For more articles and resources on Forex related topics, online forex trading, trading tips, forex software and much more visit his site at:

=>http://forex.need-to-know.net/

The Seven Most Traded Currencies in FOREX.

Currencies are traded in dollar amounts called lots. One lot is equal to $1,000, which controls $100,000 in currency. This is what is known as the "margin". You can control $100,000 worth of currency for only 1,000 dollars. This is what is called High Leverage.

Currencies are always traded in pairs in the FOREX. The pairs have a unique notation that expresses what currencies are being traded. The symbol for a currency pair will always be in the form ABC/DEF. ABC/DEF is not a real currency pair, it is an example of a symbol for a currency pair. In this example ABC is the symbol for one countries currency and DEF is the symbol for another countries currency.

Here are some of the common symbols used in the Forex:

USD - The US Dollar
EUR - The currency of the European Union "EURO"
GBP - The British Pound
JPN - The Japanese Yen
CHF - The Swiss Franc
AUD - The Australian Dollar
CAD - The Canadian Dollar

There are symbols for other currencies as well, but these are the most commonly traded ones.

A currency can never be traded by itself. So you can not ever trade a EUR by itself. You always need to compare one currency with another currency to make a trade possible.

Some of the common PAIRS are:

EUR/USD Euro / US Dollar
"Euro"

USD/JPY US Dollar / Japanese Yen
"Dollar Yen"

GBP/USD British Pound / US Dollar
"Cable"

USD/CAD US Dollar / Canadian Dollar
"Dollar Canada"

AUD/USD Australian Dollar/US Dollar
"Aussie Dollar"

USD/CHF US Dollar / Swiss Franc
"Swissy"

EUR/JPY Euro / Japanese Yen
"Euro Yen"

The listed currency pairs above look like a fraction. The numerator (top of the fraction or "left" of the / however you want to SEE it) is called the base currency. The denominator (bottom of the fraction or "right" of the /however you want to SEE it) is called the counter currency. When you place an order to buy the EUR/USD, for instance, you are actually buying the EUR and selling the USD. If you were to sell the pair, you would be selling the EUR and buying the USD. So if you buy or sell a currency PAIR, you are buying/selling the base currency. You are always doing the opposite of what you did with to base currency with the counter currency.

If this seems confusing then you're in luck. You can always get by with just thinking of the entire pair as one item. Then you are just buying or selling that one item. Thinking like this will still enable you to place trades. You only need to be aware of the base/counter concept for Fundamental Analysis issues.

So why is it important to know about the base/counter currency? The base/counter currency concept illustrates what is actually taking place in a Forex transaction. Some of you reading this, know that short-selling was restricted in the stock market *(Short-selling is where you sell a stock/currency/option/commodity first and then try to buy it back at a lower price later). But in the FOREX you are always buying one currency (base) and selling another (counter). If you sell the pair you are simply flipping which one you buy and which one you sell. The transaction is essentially the same. This allows you to short-sell with no restrictions.

You want to be able to short-sell with no restrictions so you can make money when the market drops as well as when it rises. The problem with traditional stock market trading is that the market has to go up for you to make money. With FOREX trading you can make money in all directions.

http://www.1-forex.com

Omar Vargas; FOREX Trader and Freelance writer.
http://www.1-forex.com

Vertical Spread - Vertical Option

When option traders or investors engage in spread strategies, many times they are working with vertical spreads.

Any spread is created when a person buys and sells call options on the same stock or buys and sells puts on the same stock.

A vertical or price spread gets it's name from the vertical movement of prices. In this options strategy, the strike prices are different but the months are the same.

Vertical vs. Horizontal

A horizontal spread is when the strike prices are the same, but the months are different. They are also called calendar spreads. A vertical strategy is the opposite. The months are the same, but the strike prices on the options are different.

The strategy behind this is to make money on the strike price difference potential or the premiums - if a premium gain was achieved. All spreads come down to premium gain vs. trading or exercising potential. Verticals can be credit or debit.

Debit Spread

When a spread is created and the investor has lost money on the premiums (more money was spent on the buy then the sell), it is a debit spread. Because money was lost on the options, the investor will lose money if the options expire worthless (which is possible). The only way a debit spread holder can profit is by the options widening or getting exercised. Widening refers to the premiums growing and the contracts becoming valuable enough to trade later on. A vertical debit spread tells the trader that these contracts need to be traded or exercised for profit.

Credit Spread

When a spread is set up and the investor has gained money on the premium, it is a credit spread. The profit here rests with the options expiring worthless and the person making the premium as their maximum gain. A vertical credit spread is a strategy that does not work if the options are exercised. The strike prices would be inverted - profit wise.

Examples

Buy 1 WEF Oct 60 Call for $500
Short 1 WEF Oct 70 Call for $200

This is a vertical or price spread because the strike prices are different. It is also a debit, because the premiums have resulted in a $300 loss. This is also a bullish spread. It is bullish because the trader needs the market to rise, hoping the options get exercised. The buy call gives him the right to buy the stock at 60 and the short call carries an obligation to sell the stock at 70. This 10 point potential gain on the stock is why someone would create a vertical debit spread. If the options expire, the maximum loss would be the $300.

Buy 1 GHF Apr 30 Call for $600
Short 1 GHF Apr 20 Call for $900

This is a price or vertical spread as well, but it is a credit spread. It is also bearish. The strike prices are not attractive to this investor, as he will suffer a 10 point loss on them - if exercised. The goal here is for the stock to decline and the vertical options to expire. Credit spreads are always bearish.

These and all spread strategies are most effective profit wise, when working them with stocks you are familiar with. Knowing the trading ranges and price habits of your stocks can make them attractive candidates for options or vertical spreads.

More on Stock Option Trading HERE

Good Luck!

Nick Hunter is the President of American Investment Training. Their website http://www.aitraining.com offers investors and brokers with education courses, trading investment information and a free financial glossary look-up.

Alternative Medicine under Attack from Pharmaceutical Companies

It would seem that we in the developed world have traded our health and personal freedom of choice, on what we might feel would be the best course of action to take in regards to treating our own illnesss.

With more and more regulations put in place every day, the war between alternative medicine and pharmaceutical companies in the U.S. is heating up. Were government agencies dictate to us, what it is right or not in regards to whether we chose alternative medicine or conventional.

It would seem that we are becoming victims of economics. As it is apparent that in order To have a healthy economy you need to have a capitalistic environment to keep people working harder and always striving to produce better products for trade. It is this competitive environment that keeps the cogs of the economy turning and people working.

It is unfortunate that this same highly competitive thinking, has gotten out of control and we are all paying a heavy price in the U.S. as well as in other countries of the world. The pharmaceutical companies that generate billions of dollars into the economies of many countries, and generate thousands of spin off jobs, have effectively taken control of government agencies through the use of lobbyist, political contributions and economic pressures on governments. These efforts are made, so they can have amendments made to our laws to give them more power and control over the various agencies and regulators.

So now you have government agencies working on behave of big money and not on your behalf, and not looking out for your best health, as these institutions were originally put in place for.

This sets the stage for a very dangerous situation were it is better for big pharmaceutical companies to have the population chronically ill all the time, with many different illness and never finding cures. By having lapdogs agencies pushing for laws to take away your choices of whether or not you want to take alternative medicine, or continue taking the poison put out by the big pharmaceutical companies at absorbent prices.

Were they feed you propaganda about the dangers of natural medicine? Hire medical experts that are willing to lie to the population to give these agencies credibility. Brain wash our medical practitioners and give them incentive to keep pushing there drugs.

And the worst of it is if people were to wake up tomorrow and take back there government, and stop the madness it would cause an economic disaster. It looks like the people of the world are going to continue to needless die and suffer, for the sake of a healthy economy and the lust of money.

To avoid the trap of government agencies and pharmaceutical companies learn more about Natural herbs and remedies Or drop us an email at healthbooks@aweber.com to join our mailing list and receive biweekly information natural health issues.

Isn't It Time You Step In Front Of The Big Money-Instead Of Getting Stepped On By It?

The Trade Mechanic is committed to making you a consistent winner in the Stock Market. If you are tired of making some gain, then giving it back, tired of worrying about every news story, Futures, etc, then you have come to the right place. The Difference: Please note, other services give you a list of 15 stocks that they like every morning, then leave it to you to do the rest. Members of the Trade Mechanic, trade only the stocks that I am trading.
I will give entry and exit points, trading tips, trading rules to live by, informational blogs, and the hand holding you deserve, to help make you a winner.

The System:

The Trade Mechanic system was designed to give timed entries that are almost to the exact day a stock will move up $1 or more. This is very important because it limits our exposure time to the market, thus reducing our risk to potential hazards.

Having traded Wall Street well over a decade, probably like you, along the way I read and tried every book by all the experts. Cup n Handle, Triple Top Break Out, Candlesticks, Dogs of the Dow, so on and so on, have tried them all.

The flaw with all of these methods is they are backwards looking, work only some of the time, and expose you to high risk entries, keeping your money in the market too long, for little gain. These methods take too long to produce winners even when they are correct. Bottom line, you end up booking too many loses and burning through dollars, scratch trading.

Trademechanic.com, unlike other trading systems, does not base trades on percent moves, backwards looking chart patterns, or any other method you have read about. Our swing trade formula factors in, value, timing, external and internal bias, and a host of other mechanical factors, into a tradable system.

We base our trade results on actual dollars, assuming a 100 share purchase. We make trades that lock in $1 gain or more, over and over. You will find the key to beating the stock market, is to lock in gains, again and again, and limit loses.

We will be long no more than 1-4 stocks on any given day, and we will hold these stocks no longer than 3 days. I keep the trade amounts at 100 shares, so its easy to understand for the average trader. However, this system also sets up fantastic for 1000 or more share day traders, who can take advantage of the early pops, locking in profits.


The Stocks we Play:

The stocks we trade are best of breed, strong industry uptrend affiliation, strong institutional ownership, and have a daily range of 1 or more. Preferably we like growth over 15% and price to sales ratio above 1.50.

The simple goal is to get one of these stocks to move up just $1 a week, allowing us to lock in $100 profit on 100 shares traded. Sounds small but in 52 weeks, assuming you are starting with a $10,000.00 dollar portfolio, you have made over 50% return. Now, as you can see by the daily trades we post, we get a lot more than $1 moves most weeks. But I like to keep the goal simple, so its easy to realize the enormous amounts of money that can be made by just getting one stock, to move $1, every week.

Swing Trade Education: Along the way, you will also have regular access to my trading blogs, with trading philosophy and tips that will educate you on not only our system, but will help you start thinking like a trader, not an investor.

Try Us for Free!

It is my job, Jon Anthony, to make sure you win, win again and then win again, over and over.

The Trade Mechanic system delivers the set ups, then over a decade of trading stock experience does the rest. I would love to help you make more money then you ever thought possible. I am asking you to sign up for free, create a mock portfolio and paper trade with us for a while.

Join our community of traders, you have nothing to lose and financial freedom to gain.

Jon Anthony is has been a successful stock trader for over 10 yrs. If you are tired of the stock market taking your money, Jon is here to help. Get Jon's free stock picks for a limited time at TradeMechanic.com

Selling Uncovered Calls - Part 2

You will need approval in advance from your brokerage firm before you will be allowed to sell calls. Each firm is required to ensure that you understand the risks involved, that you fully understand the options market, and that you have adequate equity and income to undertake those risks.

You will not be allowed to write an unlimited number of naked calls. The potential losses, both to you and to the brokerage firm, place natural limits on this activity. Everyone who wants to sell calls is required to sign a document acknowledging the risks and stating that they understand those risks. In part, this statement includes the following:

Special Statement for Uncovered Option Writers

There are special risks associated with uncovered option writing which expose the investor to potentially significant loss. Therefore, this type of strategy may not be suitable for all customers approved for options transactions.

1. The potential loss of uncovered call writing is unlimited. The writer of an uncovered call is in an extremely risky position, and may incur large losses if the value of the underlying instrument increases above the exercise price.

2. As with writing uncovered calls, the risk of writing uncovered put options is substantial. The writer of an uncovered put option bears a risk of loss if the value of the underlying instrument declines below the exercise price. Such loss could be substantial if there is a significant decline in the value of the underlying instrument.

3. Uncovered option writing is thus suitable only for the knowledgeable investor who understands the risks, has the financial capacity and willingness to incur potentially substantial losses, and has sufficient liquid assets to meet applicable margin requirements. In this regard, if the value of the underlying instrument moves against an uncovered writer's options position, the investor's broker may request significant additional margin payments. If an investor does not make such margin payments, the broker may liquidate stock or options positions in the investor's account, with little or no prior notice in accordance with the investor's margin agreement.

Get your Momentum Stock Trading System and sign up for my free weekly online trading system newsletter here at: http://www.stressfreetrading.com

Types of Foreign Currency Hedging Vehicles

The following are some of the most common types of foreign currency hedging vehicles used in today's markets as a foreign currency hedge. While retail forex traders typically use foreign currency options as a hedging vehicle. Banks and commercials are more likely to use options, swaps, swaptions and other more complex derivatives to meet their specific hedging needs.

Spot Contracts - A foreign currency contract to buy or sell at the current foreign currency rate, requiring settlement within two days.

As a foreign currency hedging vehicle, due to the short-term settlement date, spot contracts are not appropriate for many foreign currency hedging and trading strategies. Foreign currency spot contracts are more commonly used in combination with other types of foreign currency hedging vehicles when implementing a foreign currency hedging strategy.

For retail investors, in particular, the spot contract and its associated risk are often the underlying reason that a foreign currency hedge must be placed. The spot contract is more often a part of the reason to hedge foreign currency risk exposure rather than the foreign currency hedging solution.

Forward Contracts - A foreign currency contract to buy or sell a foreign currency at a fixed rate for delivery on a specified future date or period.

Foreign currency forward contracts are used as a foreign currency hedge when an investor has an obligation to either make or take a foreign currency payment at some point in the future. If the date of the foreign currency payment and the last trading date of the foreign currency forwards contract are matched up, the investor has in effect "locked in" the exchange rate payment amount.

* Important: Please note that forwards contracts are different than futures contracts. Foreign currency futures contracts have standard contract sizes, time periods, settlement procedures and are traded on regulated exchanges throughout the world. Foreign currency forwards contracts may have different contract sizes, time periods and settlement procedures than futures contracts. Foreign currency forwards contracts are considered over-the-counter (OTC) due to the fact that there is no centralized trading location and transactions are conducted directly between parties via telephone and online trading platforms at thousands of locations worldwide.

Foreign Currency Options - A financial foreign currency contract giving the buyer the right, but not the obligation, to purchase or sell a specific foreign currency contract (the underlying) at a specific price (the strike price) on or before a specific date (the expiration date). The amount the foreign currency option buyer pays to the foreign currency option seller for the foreign currency option contract rights is called the option "premium."

A foreign currency option can be used as a foreign currency hedge for an open position in the foreign currency spot market. Foreign currency options can also be used in combination with other foreign currency spot and options contracts to create more complex foreign currency hedging strategies. There are many different foreign currency option strategies available to both commercial and retail investors.

Interest Rate Options - A financial interest rate contract giving the buyer the right, but not the obligation, to purchase or sell a specific interest rate contract (the underlying) at a specific price (the strike price) on or before a specific date (the expiration date). The amount the interest rate option buyer pays to the interest rate option seller for the foreign currency option contract rights is called the option "premium." Interest rate option contracts are more often used by interest rate speculators, commercials and banks rather than by retail forex traders as a foreign currency hedging vehicle.

Foreign Currency Swaps - A financial foreign currency contract whereby the buyer and seller exchange equal initial principal amounts of two different currencies at the spot rate. The buyer and seller exchange fixed or floating rate interest payments in their respective swapped currencies over the term of the contract. At maturity, the principal amount is effectively re-swapped at a predetermined exchange rate so that the parties end up with their original currencies. Foreign currency swaps are more often used by commercials as a foreign currency hedging vehicle rather than by retail forex traders.

Interest Rate Swaps - A financial interest rate contracts whereby the buyer and seller swap interest rate exposure over the term of the contract. The most common swap contract is the fixed-to-float swap whereby the swap buyer receives a floating rate from the swap seller, and the swap seller receives a fixed rate from the swap buyer. Other types of swap include fixed-to-fixed and float-to-float. Interest rate swaps are more often utilized by commercials to re-allocate interest rate risk exposure.

John Nobile - Senior Account Executive
CFOS/FX - Online Forex Spot and Options Brokerage

Day Trading the Emini - Training Ground For Big Contracts

In 1997 the Chicago Mercantile Exchange created a new financial instrument known as the emini futures contract. It started off small but now is a fully mature market with excellent liquidity.

Now in 2005, the emini futures contract is an investment vehicle of choice, for beginning and experienced futures traders the world over.

In this introductory article, I just want to have a look at why that is. You see for an investment vehicle to gain wide appeal it has to have a few characteristics.

It needs to be accessible to a wide public. The emini is such a vehicle. The minimum you need is around $500 to get started, instead of $5000 or more with regular futures.

It needs to be liquid, in other words there must be enough buyers to buy when you want to sell and sellers to sell when you want to buy.

The emini is very liquid.

There needs to be a significant profit. The structure of a well traded account is such that with a small amount of start-up capital very significant profits can be made, enough actually to trade for a living.

The taxation situation is very advantageous, in many jurisdictions only being capital gains tax - you should always check with a professional before making an investment decision.

The lifestyle of a successful emini futures trader can be very comfortable, an hour or so of trading in the morning and that's it for the day. It's possible to make $500 or $1000 in an hour or so depending upon how many contracts you trade. It's also possible to lose just as much, which is my obligatory sobering statement to any gamblers out there.

It's this lifestyle that gives it such appeal to people like you and me.

  • Freedom from the man
  • Working from home
  • Spending more time with the family

But that is the positive. On the dark side, with futures and emini futures there is financial risk, so this is not something that one goes into untrained.

That would merely be gambling. Successful investing, is not so much about being right or wrong or the roll of the dice, but about money management, patience and discipline to following a system. If you are a gambler then stay away from futures, for you will surely lose and can lose big.

If you are willing to learn and trade a system, and utilise money management principles then you can join the ranks of an group of successful traders are making significant profits from home.

Graeme Sprigge is the webmaster of emini-courses.com, a site which presents and reviews more than ten quality emini day trading courses and systems. Graeme has a keen interest in investing in options, shares and futures trading. Visit emini-courses.com to get an eye-opening free ebook, The Truth about Day Trading

Switch From Casual Trading to Forex Day Trading

Forex day trading is the buying and selling of foreign currency within an individual trading day. Most day traders take on this role as a full time investor and are working with significant amounts of money. Day traders tend to be highly educated as well and without them, there would be no liquidity within the Forex market. Forex day traders have a pivotal part to play by keeping the markets flowing liquidly through their daily activities on the Forex market.

Many people who initially set out to invest in the Forex day trading field are typically funded through various sources and have made it the full time job of choice. There have been many companies that promise huge results to the beginner. Specifically promising large returns in Forex day trading however, the majority of those who try to day trade without a fundamental understanding of the workings of the market generally lose their shirts. Don't be fooled, there is no get rich quick scheme hidden behind the curtain of Forex day trading. It has to be understood and all aspects of the Forex day trading business need to be comprehended fully in order to succeed.

The pivotal difference between casual trader and Forex day traders is usually the amount of capital, which is a definite advantage. The average Joe who gets into Forex day trading hoping to make a ton of money on intra-day movements is in for a huge disappointment. In order to benefit from Forex day trading, a large amount of capital is required as well as able to be lost. Capitalizing on small investments can accrue earnings but it is a much longer process when using small amounts of capital. Like most things, you've got to spend the big bucks to generate the big bucks. But not without the knowledge and safeguarding measures that Forex brokers can provide for any investor.

Gaining a complete understanding of the Forex day trading market will bring forth personal strategies. Coupled with the tried and true strategies that are utilized in by Forex brokers will give an individual investor the tools needed. Forex day trading strategies such as swing trading, trading news and arbitrage are a few of the most common ones that are implemented by brokers and investors. Remember that these strategies that are in print are strategies that have previously tried until they showed effective limit losses and a solid history of profits consistently.

With the Forex day trading system rising so rapidly in popularity there has naturally been a negative connotation associated with this controversial subject. The Forex day traders that are both professional and individual investors keep the Forex market rolling day after day. Many people suggest avoiding day trading at all costs while others will state that Forex day trading is the only way to generate substantial income from the foreign exchange market. If there is not the presence of required skills to navigate the financial markets and the resources needed, it is best the amateurs leave the Forex day trading to the professionals.

Troy Degarnham is the author and webmaster of http://www.forex-trading-brokers.info an informative website about Forex Trading Brokers.

Extensive help and tips on systems, software, signals, forex day trading, forex brokers, courses, and other secrets to help you gain financial freedom.