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Trading Strategies

The Power of Being a True "Connoisseur of Extremes"

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On Monday, people all over the world were able to witness one of nature's greatest extremes – an eclipse.

Whether you were only able to catch a partial eclipse in your hometown or you were one of the lucky ones in the 68.35-mile-wide swath of land stretching from South Carolina to Oregon that was able to witness a total eclipse, this was a truly historic moment.

That's because onlookers witnessed the first total solar eclipse in the United States in 99 years.

Extremes in the natural world come in many forms, but eclipses have always intrigued me.

When I was senior in college, we had an annular solar eclipse – when a small ring, or "annulus," of light remains circling the outside of the moon as it passes across the sun.

Since I was viewing the eclipse in the southeast, we had near blackout conditions with 99.7% of all light blocked – dark enough for the animals to freak out.

Dogs were visibly agitated…

The waterfowl at the famed Virginia Tech Duck Pond tucked their heads under their wings…

And for me, the strangest eclipse observation was that everything from leaves to branches to buildings cast eerie crescent-shaped shadows as the height of the eclipse came and went.

It happened when I was in college… And again yesterday.

It's easy to understand why such an event that changes the visible world around us for a brief time causes folks to act strangely…

Extremes have that effect on people.

That's why learning how to recognize extremes – recognize when traders act emotionally and drive prices to extreme highs or lows – is at the heart of our strategy.

Because once we understand how to feed off of the "strange" behavior of other traders, we can tap into the tremendous profit potential extremes have to offer.

That's why it's been my mission to make each and every one of you a "connoisseur of extremes."

Piece by piece, I'm going to teach you everything you need to know about extremes until running this system feels like second nature.

Including the lesson I have for you today...

Trading Strategies

How Not to Lose Everything and Die Broke

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We've just been through a very healthy post-election rally that pushed the S&P 500 up a bit more than 6%, as of this week.

The history buffs out there, like me, will note the S&P 500's "Trump Bump" was a little less than twice as powerful as the 3.7% shot in the arm Franklin D. Roosevelt's election dealt the index, but a bit less than half as potent as the ripping 13.29% rocket ride Herbert Hoover's victory "catalyzed" on the S&P 500 between his election in 1928 and his swearing-in. 

But… we all know how that rally ultimately played out for investors of Hoover's day.

At his inauguration on March 4, 1929, "the Great Engineer," as Hoover was called, could rightly boast of huge market gains. And of course barely eight months later, by Oct. 29, the U.S. stock market was a smoking ruin, closing the door forever on the Roaring 20s and lifting the curtain on the Great Depression.

Now, I'm not saying we're in for a repeat performance. Not at all. But I am conscious of the history, and as a dyed-in-the-wool contrarian, I'm inclined to prepare for the worst, especially if the good times are rolling. 

Besides, I agree 100% with our Chief Investment Strategist, Keith Fitz-Gerald, when he says that, "Chance favors the prepared mind."

So even if it's the farthest thing from your mind, there's no time like right now to take in a few of what we here at Money Map Press like to call "Downturn Lessons." They'll not only save you a lot of heartache when the weather changes, but you'll be in a much better position to make money at a time when nearly everyone else is losing it.

So let me share them with you...