cat brain.log | less » Quotes

The 5 Fundamental Truths About Trading

Paul — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 01:47:47 +0000

Anything can happen.
You don’t need to know what is going to happen next in order to make money.
There is a random distribution between wins and losses for any given set of variables that define an edge.
An edge is nothing more than an indication of a higher probability of one thing happening over another.
Every moment in the market is unique.

Douglas, M. (2001). Trading in the Zone: Master the Market with Confidence, Discipline and a Winning Attitude. Prentice Hall Press

The 7 Principles of Consistency

Paul — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 01:45:23 +0000

I objectively identify my edges.
I predefine the risk of every trade.
I completely accept risk or I am willing to let go of the trade.
I act on my edges without reservation or hesitation.
I pay myself as the market makes money available to me.
I continually monitor my susceptibility for making errors.
I understand the absolute necessity of these principles of consistent success and, therefore, I never violate them.

Douglas, M. (2001). Trading in the Zone: Master the Market with Confidence, Discipline and a Winning Attitude. Prentice Hall Press

On Credit Worthiness and Dependability

Paul — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 01:41:39 +0000

Every banker knows that if he has to prove that he is worthy of credit, however good may be his arguments, in fact his credit is gone Walter Bagehot

Quotations from Reddit

Paul — Sat, 05 Jun 2010 05:58:57 +0000

If you are surprised by anything, question your underlying model, for it has led you to be surprised by the true state of affairs. Since the beginning, not one unusual thing has ever happened. Paraphrased from Eliezer Yudkowsky

The surest way to corrupt a youth is to teach him to hold in higher regard those who think the same as him

If voting made any difference, they wouldn’t let us do it. Mark Twain

Yesterday is yesterday. If we try to recapture it we will only lose tomorrow. Bill Clinton

Lower your voice and strengthen your argument. Lebanese proverb

Time is a great teacher, but unfortunately it kills all its pupils. Louis Hector Berlioz

Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else’s opinions. Their lives a mimicry. Their passions a quotation. Oscar Wilde

I do not feel obliged to believe that the same God who has endowed us with sense, reason, and intellect has intended us to forgo their use. Galileo Galilei

Rent vs Buy – In Regards to Housing

Paul — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 18:08:56 +0000

The cross-over point is about 15 times annual rent, [trulia] believes. In other words, as a rough rule of thumb, homes are probably fairly valued in a city when they cost about 15 times a year’s rent. So, for example, if you’re paying $10,000 a year to rent a place, think twice about buying a home that costs more than $150,000. Dean Baker, economist at the Washington, D.C. think-tank The Center for Economic and Policy Research, came to a similar conclusion in research on the subject in recent years. Fifteen times is the historic average, he said. Brett Arends at the Wall Street Journal

On the Millennials and Having Children

Paul — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 21:14:19 +0000

Everyone wants a baby, but no one wants a kid these days. Runaway1956

Kids today get emo and suicidal because they have been given everything, never had to earn anything, never been hungry, never had anything real to fear, never been punished for their behavior and are bored with having too much entertainment. Nadaka

On Intelligence and Learning

Paul — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 19:25:53 +0000

A wise man can learn more from a foolish question than a fool can learn from a wise answer. Bruce Lee

Paradigm-Shifting Words on Creativity

Paul — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 06:45:59 +0000

You can never solve a problem on the level on which it was created. Albert Einstein

There is nothing in a caterpillar that tells you it’s going to be a butterfly. Buckminster Fuller

On Happiness and Success

Paul — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 06:14:15 +0000

Satisfaction of one’s curiosity is one of the greatest sources of happiness in life. Linus Pauling

The best way to have a good idea is to have a lot of ideas. Linus Pauling

On “Dreamlining” (a la Timothy Ferriss)

Paul — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 06:25:40 +0000

Definition by citation: If I had 100 million dollars in the bank right now what would I want to do, be or have over the next 12 months? Timothy Ferriss

Why? You don’t want to be rich and bored. You want rich and happy. Boredom is the antonym of happiness. If there were no hold-backs, what do you want to do, have, or learn in the next 3 months, 6 months or 1 year? If you don’t know what to do, determine what do you want to be? We can rewrite be as actionable steps towards doing.

You must name your enemy before you can defend against it. You must define your future before you can take action. Only after this identification process can you move towards your goals. If you so much as complete one dream, that’s a dream that wouldn’t have come true without taking action. Do it. It’s doable. Think Nike®.

JFK on Setting Goals

Paul — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 01:49:41 +0000

Once you say you’re going to settle for second, that’s what happens to you in life. John F. Kennedy

Niels Bohr on Expertise

Paul — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 01:28:02 +0000

An expert is a person who has made all the mistakes that can be made in a very narrow field. Niels Bohr, Danish physicist and Nobel Prize winner

Founding Statement

Paul — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 02:00:06 +0000

I have never thought of writing for reputation and honor. What I have in my heart must come out; that is the reason why I compose. Ludwig van Beethovan

I wish that this noble statement were true for me as well, but that’s not often the case. When I try to be humble, I spare the details, often at great expense to the lesson. When I try to be overly showy, I don’t get to the point.

In just the past month alone, I have been hesitant to write out my thoughts, and have lost any possibility of pursuing those endeavors further, as I can no longer remember them. I failed to ask questions in fear of projecting uncertainty. What I have succeeded at doing is completely passing on the opportunity to reflect later on.

I don’t write because I don’t re-read. This post has already grown so long. Will I read it later? So let the lesson be this: Write often, write succinctly, and reflect.