I wanted to write a short and sweet post to share a list of traders, Fintwits, chat rooms and books that have transformed my trading over the last couple of years and post my fourth profitable year in a row.
These resources are very suited to trend, intermediate to long term stock traders and swing traders alike, I avoid day trading as I don't find it as lucrative or enjoyable as trend trading or following longer term price action. This list of resources reflects the style of:
- Niclos Darvas
- Jesse Livermore
- William O'Neill
- Mark Minervini
- Richard Wyckoff
- Stan Weinstein
- Victor Sparendeo
The above traders have as style that makes sense, is easy to follow and produces a solid foundation on which to build.
Here is a list of purely Trading books written by them which are a solid foundation on which to start (in no particular order).
- How to Make Money in Stocks - foundational to any real trader
- How I made $2Million Dollars in The Stock Market
- Think and Trade Like a Champion this book changed my life...
- Trade like a Stock Market Wizard
- Methods of a Wall Street Master
- Secrets for Profiting in Bull and Bear Markets
- How to Trade in Stocks
There is enough information in these books to put a true base under your trading. Combined with some of what I call the "new age O'Neill types" these books all have bits and pieces that compliment each other. Read these at least twice or even more. They are manuals not novels.
More modern traders worth following and learning from:
- Oliver Kell super cool guy!
- Matt Caruso, very humble and experienced, shares tons for free.
- Qullamaggie Swedish guy who turned around 50 k to 80 million (verified) also gives his stuff away for free!
- Anything from Traderlion (Richard Moglen) mostly on resources as I have no idea how he trades but their Youtube channel is the absolute best there is out there. Many interviews with some of the trading greats, similar to Market Wizards.
Many of these newer traders have returned 200% up to 1000% and won the coveted USIC or United States Investing Championship . They have audited returns so it's not some get rich quick BS that plagues this industry.
I've written a few times on the danger of social media, the impact of blindly following others on trades etc. so please keep in mind these resources are starting points. Having a true trading system will be the real goal of using resources and that's on us! Make sure you know what is needed to get there and keep it in mind when read books and do courses.
Best Books on Technical Analysis and Price Action
Many of the traders above have will mention particular charts, patterns and price action nuances. To get more acquainted with the terms and sharpen your eye, there are some useful books on the matter (not in any specific order):
- How Charts can help you in the market Recommend by Mark Minervini
- Technical Analysis of the Financial Markets: A Comprehensive Guide to Trading Methods and Applications Recommended by Oliver Kell
- A Complete Guide To Volume Price Analysis: Read the book then read the market Recommended by me
The above books, traders and general high level approach to trading should be a very strong starting point. Having spent years of reading, wasting time with day trading and "Time Sykes" garbage, I would highly recommend starting right.
There are tons more but these are very solid starting points.
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The Best Trading Courses Money Can Buy
- Master Trader Program from Mark Minervini, I reviewed this here, fantastic resource and was the first course in trading that helped things "make sense" for me. The only downside is the heavy price tag. I would read a few books, practice a little and then take the plunge.
- Oliver Kell Swing Trading Masterclass: take MTP and add a microscope to price action personally the best value for money that exists right now, this guy is a grinder, super knowledgeable and a USIC winner.
- I haven't done it myself but one of my close friends mentioned the course by Matt Caruso is like "William O'Neill on Steroids"
- Anything available by Dan Zanger, his newsletter has helped me put these concepts together in a big way last year.
Best Psychology and Performance Books
If you are struggling to get profitable and are sabotaging yourself I would recommend a few things:
- See a psychologist, I have done this and it changed my trading completely.
- Anything by Brett Steenbarger my personal favourite was "Enhancing Trader Performance" it really hit a nerve and it helped me trade better.
- The Disciplined Trader (Mark Douglas)
- Trading in the Zone (Mark Douglas)
Personally, I have spent more time in the psychology department than the trading department over the years. I would highly suggest building the technical skills required to be profitable and use coaching and psychology in parallel. I will write more on this part in future.
Useless Without Practice
These resources are great and all but one thing I would change if I could jump into the old Dalorian and go back in time is as follows:
- Make sure you really practice what is written by these people and burn into your head a few key concepts at a time
- Make sure you understand key concepts, put them on charts and really get a feel for the methods in action
- Take "fake trades" based on the assumptions by rewinding a few charts. How does the method feel to you? Does this style resonate with you or is it too much effort?
Just make sure you put these things on charts. I wish I did years ago as this has accelerated learning by leaps and bounds. Knowledge without practice has no wisdom in it. The wisdom and experience is where the money is at. The only way to get wise on how to trade is to practice.
The tools are listed above. The rest is on you!
