This is just a point of view, but I have a hunch I will learn quite a bit if other people share their ideas about this topic. Investment style #1: Long term investing; buy a small number of reliable companies that produce with an eye to holding them for a lifetime Odds of becoming independently wealthy using IS#1: 1/1 Investment style #2: Frequent trading based trends and news Odds of becoming independently wealthy using IS#1: 1/1500 Investment style #3: Trading hot tips from the internet Odds of becoming independently wealthy using IS#3: 1/1,000,000,000
Agree with #1 since that is my style. I prefer to get rich the old fashioned way.....slow and steady with explosive spurts along the way. Although to me slow and steady means doubling my money about every 6-7 years. AND....my style is not easy because you have to have the guts to be fully invested all the time and hold through some really nasty market conditions. You also have to be smart in your investing choices. As to trading, it is not MY skill. In addition, I believe the research that shows that the VAST MAJORITY of traders will not come anywhere close to beating the SP500, especially when you consider short term capital gain income taxes, commissions and fees, etc, etc. Trading does satisfy the human brains craving for complexity, doing something, thrill chasing, and seeing patterns and systems when none really exist.
