Archive for the ‘Make Money’ Category

Basic Investment Strategies, Part Seven: Start Early

Tuesday, April 1st, 2008

This week, we’re going to cover another one of those “common sense” strategies that nevertheless always seem to be so helpful. The real problem with common sense is simply that: it’s common. It’s always right there, out in the open, so as time passes, people tend to overlook it. A pretty ironic situation, really. In light of that, let’s take a look at one of the bits of conventional stock market wisdom that really needs to be driven home, especially for young investors.

Compounding growth

Nestegg investmentsLike with any other type of savings, compounding growth is more or less the end all and be all of investment. What starts as a 1000 dollar investment that gains 10 percent becomes a 1100 dollar investment. If it hits that same growth again, it becomes a 1210 dollar investment, and then a 1331 dollar one. Simply put, the longer you have your money working for you in some type of investment, the more growth it can achieve.

As such, it is critically important to start investing in the market as early as you can. Young investors need to take a look at the idea of diversification and find some way to balance that virtue with the virtue of having a few core stocks that you tend to keep with you over the life of your portfolio (always keeping an eye on them, of course).

Early means more time to profit

Compound interestInvesting early has another meaning as well: if you invest your funds early in the life of company, they will have more time to spend with that company as it matures and develops. If it goes on to be a successful company, you will have maximized your earnings by investing in them as early as you possibly could.

Remember, the real name of the game here is compounding. Receiving a gain on money that you invest is exactly equivalent to investing that new larger amount. As your initial investment grows, so to does the potential for future growth on that investment. Developing a long term strategy can help you go a long way.

See you next week for part 8 of Basic Investment Strategies.

Sean Rasmussen
The Bullhunters Guide
Universal Wealth Creation © 2004 - 2008

The Gamblers $18,000 Grand Piano

Monday, November 5th, 2007

I have spoken about many stock market strategies, touching on the DJIA or Dow Jones. We have been over the US stock market and ways to understand how to make money with the correct share strategies. Today I want to talk about one of the outcomes of a successful trade; The Profit and the underlying benefits. In other words: when do you take a profit and where do you put the profits?

Taking Profits When Trading

I haven’t got a more straight answer than this. Decide before you place the trade. How much profit would you be happy to take or make? 20%, 50%, 100%? Then if you reach the target, take it. Cash it in there and then. Don’t hesitate! I will give you a great example of a trade that I didn’t set a profit target on. I bought 90000 options on a stock for 3cents each. That cost me around $2,700. I was happy to take the risk and lose the lot. Yes, hardly a great strategy but the gambler does come out if you don’t plan your trades.

Beware the Gambler

Here’s the strategy I call “The Zero Strategy“. $2,700 of 3 cent shares. The stock went up to over $1.00 and the options became worth around 80cents each. Not bad in 15-16 months. My $2,700 was now $72,000! That’s around 2600% Return On Investment. I didn’t take it though. Why? Well, there were a few reasons. One was that I KNEW the stock would keep going up. And it did. Another 10cents or so.

Down Goes The Stock Market

Then it came down. I’ve still got the stock and it’s worth about $17,000 and still in a pretty good margin. When will I sell it? Probably never! It’s too good a story to tell. It’s priceless! So now, what on earth has this got to do with The Gamblers $18,000 Piano? I only put that in the headline so you’d read this… Just Kidding! I bought some other shares around the same time and here comes the Grand Piano…

The Stock Markets Grand Piano

I bought 2000 shares for $1.59 each. This time there was a plan in place. An ambitious one, but realistic however. A uranium explorer. My friend had 3 Million of these shares and bought them for less than 3 cents. He sold them around 45-50 cents. Work out the profit on that! Absolutely Massive! My plan was to sell these shares at $9.00. They got to $9.06 and I sold them, turning $3,180 into $18,120. Then I proceeded to chip in a bit and buy a Grand Piano for my son who now has won a few competitions and wants to become a Concert Pianist when he grows up.

Where is the price on those shares now? Who cares! The stock market sponsored my Kid and gave me memories to enjoy for years to come. (The shares went on to over $11.00 then dropped very fast to $6.00)

So when do you take your profits? When you have something fun to spend the money with. There are always profits to be made. Just know when to take them home with you.

Sometimes the Bullhunter has to be Bearish.

Sean Rasmussen
The Bullhunters Guide
Universal Wealth Creation © 2004 - 2007

Surround Yourself with Like-Minded People

Wednesday, October 3rd, 2007

Hey Bullhunters, wasn’t it great to see Aussie Rob in that last post. I remember when Sean headed off to Queenstown for that seminar with Jamie McIntyre and 21st Century Academy and his post about being snowed in and having to charter a helicopter to get out of there to get to the airport. It looked like a very cold place to be and I really would have liked to have seen some footage of Cherie, just for the look on her face whilst they were waiting for the ride :)


Where to find Like-Minded People

Today I would like to ask you if on your journey as a trader, do you have a support structure in place like family or friends who are heading for similar goals as you. Whether your goals are to replace your income to stay at home or to earn extra income to ensure that you have more money at the end of the month rather than month at the end of the money?

One of the best things about being a graduate of the Jamie McIntyre homestudy is that we can all come together on a forum where we can share our experiences. You don’t actually have to be a graduate to register but this would mean that you would have limited access to all of the areas of the forum. It is a way of staying in touch and discussing different strategies and stocks and trades and just getting to know others who want to do what you do. Learning from others experiences, or at least from those who are willing to share of course.

It’s also a place where some of the members have been able to meet up with people in their area to catch up and get to know each other better and also to grow that support system that you need to keep you on track.

Being disciplined with your trades or other goals and strategies, cements it further when you actually share it with someone and makes your dream more alive. If within your support structure, whatever that may be, you tell others what you want to achieve, it holds you accountable. If for some reason, you were not able to do something that you said you would, then you just acknowledge it and start again.

If you like this idea of meeting people like yourself and are not yet a member of Sean’s wealth forum, please head on over now and register here. It doesn’t cost anything to join and you never know who you might meet :)

To Our Success

Angela Recchia
Graduate Support
Universal Wealth Creation © 2004 - 2007

The Day I Fired My Boss…

Friday, September 7th, 2007

The Day I Fired My Boss!

I posted this letter in the Wealth Creation SuperHighway Forum after achieving a goal of replacing my income through various investment strategies thanks to participating in the Jamie McIntyre Homestudy program. I acheived my financial target 6 weeks short of schedule on the 8th of December 2005.

The only reason it took me nearly 2 years to fire my boss was purely because that’s the time I set for the goal. Had I set a 1 year target, I have no doubt that it would have been acheived in that time ” - Sean Rasmussen July 2006

So here’s the letter I wrote on that day, in it’s entire unedited form:

The Path To Freedom - leaving captivity

Sean Rasmussen - Karratha, Western Australia, Thursday, 8th December 2005

I’m finally there! In the next level.

Today, 8th December 2005 at 7am I walked away from my job a free man. No more shackles from the day to day grind of conforming to the will of society. I’ve replaced my income thanks to Jamie McIntyre (thanks Jamie) and the road is no longer rocky. My life has turned for the better. Big Time.

My new title: Full Time Investor & Life Coach

I can now do what I love to do. Invest during the day and help others achieve the same.

Look up the word Happy in a dictionary and you’ll see a picture of me. Actually, you’ll probably find my photo next to “ecstatic”, “excited” & “over the moon” as well.

Nearly 2 years ago, when I did the Jamie McIntyre homestudy program (the same month as Bill Stacy did his), I set a 2 year retirement target. Retire to do what I want to do, not what I have to do. There’s a big difference. I have been getting up in the morning and going to work because I had to.

Now I’ll be getting up and doing what I want to. Big difference.

My target has been achieved 5 weeks ahead of the deadline, January 15, 2006.

Meanwhile, I’m living my dreams. I’m in the Next Level. I’ve stepped up to the plate and I’m ready! Bring on life. It’s beautiful!

I’ve met some fantastic people over the last 21 months. Jamie McIntyre, Andrew Dimitri, Bill Stacy from Planet Wealth (mate, do you inspire me), Nik Halik, Adam Thomas & John Chapman from Investor Finance, Ian Daley, Roger (my graduate mate from Brisbane), 150+ Graduates that joined 21st Century Academy with me in the last 18 months, numerous speakers at seminars and literally hundreds of new people I’ve met through Jamie McIntyre’s program.

Has this been a fortune cookie of life, or what? Small things make big changes. I nearly didn’t see Jamie’s add in the paper that day in December 2003. I sent away for his free VHS and the rest is history.

Look up the word Happy in a dictionary and you’ll also see a picture of my wife, Cherie.

When she broke the board at the seminar in Fiji, I knew there and then. This is it. We are in the Next Level. Financial freedom is only a matter of time in my own mind. Success is approaching fast in the shape of happiness, freedom, gratitude, love, security, and financial rewards.

I am actively supporting charities. People want to know what I’m doing and want a piece of it. Life is looking pretty great right now, to say the least.

I’m really excited and there are a thousand things I want to do. Now I will be doing so with balance. For nearly 18 months, I have been working in a day job (10 hour days, 13 day fortnights), investing on the stock market, helping people get started with Jamie’s program and pretty much been up to 11-12pm every night with few exceptions.

Most mornings, I’ve got up at 4.30am to walk the dog and be at work on a construction site for a 6am start. 45 degree heat in summer, working in the sun in North West WA. I was nearly crippled or possibly killed by a near miss 6 weeks ago when a 6.75kg scaffold tube was dropped 12meters to the ground, landing within 6 inches of my right shoulder.

In all this time, I’ve watched about 6 movies, read no newspapers, watched maybe 1 hour of news and been 100% committed to the task. I only had $20,000 to start investing with and had no stock market knowledge worth mentioning 2 years ago.

Then I went to Fiji with my wife and 2 boys. That took me to the next level.

Now, I am planning balance in my life. This means evenings off. Lots of time with my family is not only on the cards but happening from today onwards. I’m scheduled to take my family to New Zealand in July 2006 and Hawaii in November 2006, followed by a few more destinations in 2007.

My next Big Holiday will be 4 weeks in France with my family. Don’t know when, but it will have to be soon. The world is too big to be sitting around, waiting for things to happen.

I’d like to share parts of my goal list I wrote out during a Jamie McIntyre homestudy session in January 2004:

• Retire to full time investor by January 15, 2006 - achieved
• Financial protection by 5 May 2005 - achieved
• Financial security by 5 May 2006 - on track
• Financial independence by 5 May 2007
• Financial freedom by 5 May 2008
• Absolute financial freedom by 5 May 2010
• Take my sons to all 7 continents by their 20th birthday – on track
• Travel to one major world destination every year – on track
• Donate 10% of profits to charity – ongoing and being honored
• Establish my own charity for educating children by 2016

There are many more. Some were achieved a lot easier than I thought. Others were possibly a bit ambitious but still workable. The main thing is this:

If I hadn’t written these goals down, I would have lost track and got off target. Today, I would still be at work and heading on a path towards retirement at the age of 65.

My inspiration source is massive. I will be sharing as much of my learning with as many people as I can. Anyone who wants to be a part of this, email me urgently. I’m building a team of 10 people to help me share this with many more people and help them do the same as me and many other 21st Century Academy Graduates. Who doesn’t want to be a Bill Stacy, right now? ( Bill, you’re a legend)

While I was writing this post, I jumped on the phone and joined up as an ongoing monthly sponsor of Greenpeace to add to my list of charities. When I nominated the amount, the response was hugely rewarding! Look. I’m taking action! I’ve been an onlooker for too long. Now I’m taking action.

One piece of advice I can give from all this:

Write down your dreams, Take Action and do it!

It’s all in your mind.

I’ll see you in the next level. Join me there.

Regards
Sean Rasmussen

So that was it. I wrote that testimonial within 1 hour of leaving the workforce forever. At the time I was overwhelmed by the fact that I had actually done it. All the critics, sceptics, cynics… all the people who told me it was a pipedream… they are still back there somewhere at the same job or another one. The beleivers who rewarded me with their support and who listened to me; some are advancing in leaps and bounds. Others are on their way or thinking about it. Life is surely beautiful and must be lived to its potential.

I beleived in Jamie McIntyre and 21st Century Academy. It paid off for me. I decided to make up my own mind and not let anyone else do it for me.

As I write this, I’m at a 21st Century Academy Education For Life seminar on the Gold Coast in Australia. It’s day 1 of 4. I have been to 6 or 7 of these now (it’s a benefit of working close with Jamie). I was listening to Jamie McIntyre inspire the 400+ people attending and I was inspired to jump into my hotel room during the break and post this. I remembered how easily I could have given this whole “wealth thing” a miss… The though scares me.

Beleive in your ability, back yourself in and take action! It’s the only way to find out what is really in store for you in life.

Thanks for reading my story.

Sean Rasmussen
21st Century Academy
Universal Wealth Creation © 2004 - 2007

Advanced Strategies

Wednesday, August 1st, 2007

Hello fellow Bulhunters

Looking back at the last post, I sincerely hope that you have sorted out the Fundamental Analysis and the Technical Analysis and know how to use both to your advantage. Reading charts is something I love to do and when the various patterns show up, looking for entry and exit points can be fun when you know what to look for. Of course trading is a lot more than just looking at charts so today we will be discussing an advanced strategy known as going short or shorting a stock. More from the Bullhunters Guide eBook…

Going Short - The Napoleon Dynamite Example

When you own a stock, you are said to be long it. The owner of 100 shares of Wal-Mart would be long 100 WMT. When you sell a stock you own, you cancel out your position. You are no longer 100 WMT nor are you short of any shares. But did you know that you can actually sell a stock that you do not own.

Imagine your friend got an autographed picture of John Heder who is the star of Napoleon Dynamite, right after the movie was released on DVD. A few days later you noticed that Heder’s autograph was selling for $500 on eBay. You ask your friend if you can borrow it for a while and he says yes. So you take Heder’s autograph and sell it online for $500.

Six months later Heder has faded back into obscurity. Your friend asks you if he can have his autograph back and you say sure. You go online and see that eBay is flooded with Heder autographs and you buy one for $10. As soon as you receive it in the mail you return it to your friend. He doesn’t even know that you made $490 in the process.

In Wall Street gibberish, you shorted the John Heder autograph. Instead of the old adage, buy low, sell high, you sold high and then bought low. You can do this with stocks and the good news is that you don’t even have to ask permission.

Great Trading Strategy

Well who would have thought. Thanks Sean for bringing this to our attention. How many of you out there even knew this existed. It is another way to bring in some cashflow although it may take some time to actually see the cash depending on how volatile the stock is.

We are powering through The Bullhunters Guide to the US Stock Market and next we will look at an introduction to trading options. That’s right renting shares will be the topic of my next article so stay tuned and subscribe to the feed so you don’t miss out on any of these strategies.

To Your Success

Angela Recchia
Graduate Support
Universal Wealth Creation © 2004 - 2007