StockPunk

I love the stock market. Another one of my passions is Bible Prophecy (yeah, I'm a freak). I find that they both have a lot of similarities. What got me thinking about this? An e-mail I received yesterday about the soon coming of the end times reminded me a lot of folks who try to predict the direction of the market. Here's what the e-mail said:

..Last Wednesday during a fast, the Lord spoke the words to me,
..."3 weeks until the dam bursts loose" I got the impression that it
...was slightly more - as in the 1st week of August.

...I believe He meant in the spirit and in the natural.

...I asked Him to confirm it. I had 3 direct confirmations 3 days in a
...row and one indirect one.

...The 3 direct ones were:

...Wednesday 1) My gas pump stopped at $33.00 even - without me
...trying or looking at it.

...Thursday night 2) I jolted awake at 3:30 am

...Friday 3) I had a client make a 3:30 appointment - the first one all
...summer for this time. She chose the time, as I had left the whole
...day wide open to her.

...Then, on Monday (I think), the Lord reminded me my birthday is 3/30.

...Last night, in the middle of the night, I heard the words, "2 weeks, 3 days".
...However, I was so tired and they did not register at the time. I only
...remembered them after I woke up. I DID hear them , though. Was it my
...own thought process or was it the Holy Spirit? I do not know, although I
...really think it was the Holy Spirit. It was somehow different than my own
...thoughts. More of an impression with the words, if you know what I mean.


That sounds like a lot of traders I know who think they've got an inside track on how the markets work. They use news, charts, rumors, or "gut feelings" to determine where things are headed. They often promote their "Trade You Way to Millions in Less Than A Year" schemes and sucker people in just like those who say they have a direct link to God do.

Trading is hard work. It takes patience, diligence, and knowledge. There are a few crazy traders out there who get rich quickly and effortlessly (I'm not one of them). But the majority put in hours of effort while avoiding the soothsayers who claim to have a direct link to Mr. Market.

With Biblical issues like prophecy, it doesn't take long to get way off track if you listen to what others think. You've got to figure out what makes sense to you by doing the legwork yourself. The same goes for trading. The only way to create a system that works for you is to design one that makes sense to you (and maybe no one else). You'll never stick to a system that somebody else designs because when the big loss comes you'll be disgusted with it and bail.