Lessons from a Legend

Famous hedge fund manager Stan Drunkemiller just recently announced his retirement.
http://http//noir.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601109&sid=aQSyeyQp8fOI

He made big money for his clients during his 30 years and he did so riding big trends not by day trading, scalping or whatever you want to call it. I've said it here before; big money is made riding the big trends. If you want to become a winner like Drunkenmiller, you need to emulate what winners do. As per the article above here are some valuable points


Fierce Competitor

Druckenmiller’s friends say the money isn’t the reason he’s continued to trade long after becoming wealthy.

“It’s about winning -- he’s a fierce competitor

When you’re sure you’re right, no trade is too big. And the bigger your gains in a year, the more aggressive you can be. (comment: I don't agree with the notion that no trade is too big. If a trade puts you in a position whereby an small adverse move wipes you out then the trade is indeed too big)

“It takes courage to be a pig,”

"He’s also quick to change his mind when he’s wrong."

“I’ve always loved to play games, and face it, investing is one big game,” he said. “You need to be decisive, open- minded, flexible and competitive.”

“You need to have a certain amount of intelligence, but it’s wasted over a certain level. After that it’s more about intuition.”

I agree whole heartedly with this last statement. I've said before that you need to approach the market more so as an artist rather than a scientist...this has to do with the intuition part of the game which is critical to success.

I believe it takes both experience and natural ability to have good intuitive instincts about the markets. Some people are just born with sharp instincts but that's not enough. They need to be honed through experience and the person needs to be in the proper state of mind i.e. confident and emotionally dethatched from the market.