Customer Reviews

The Adam Theory of Markets or What Matters Is Profit

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I read this, eager to learn a deep secret about the markets. What I learnt was interesting and certainly original - but my big issue is that choosing WHEN to use the theory is left open. This is an important source of arbitrariness, which goes against the grain of the theory. Choosing the moments from which to project is something where no serious insight is given and the language becomes very fuzzy. I don't know - does it work? Could it work? I'm not convinced. If I'd paid a million dollars for this, I would probably have been left wanting.

On the one hand, this book is worth the price-tag many times over. While those traders who can't resist complexity stay forever confused in a pile of "indicators," Mr. Welles' "system" helps one hear where a *TRENDING* market is saying about itself. The extremely simple "method" is almost Zen-like. It bars one from kidding oneself, especially when stuck with losing positions.

Besides, probably unbeknownst to Mr. Welles himself, this book contains a fairly reliable way of picking the end of minor corrections in a trending market.

On the other hand, this book is worthless and may even kill one's trading account. If one were foolish enough to apply the simplistic "system" to an illiquid or sideways market, one will get whipsawed until one's wiped out.

In a world of computerized trading, volatility is much higher and corrections deeper than when Mr. Welles wrote this. If you blindly apply his trailing profit-stops, you will keep getting stopped out of profitable positions.

Mr. Welles' "system" should be borne in mind as central to playing a confirmed trend, but stay carefully within its limitations. Also, you need a better system of your own to determine your exit points.

I like the book for it is written in simple, straightforward text for even a non-professional traders to understand. Not like other technical trading books, this one give you another insight on how to ride on a big trend to earn and more importantly how to consistently ride on profits - The adam way of tradings !

I cant belive i spent $50 on this book !! this book is for the very new trader (and i mean NEW) it is filled with cliche 1. trend is your friend

2. cut losses let profits run.....ect If you are a serious trader then look elsewhere....sorry

The basic idea is that markets will mirror their past. If there has been an uptrend, the uptrend will be mirrored in the future. If the market has been choppy, the choppiness will be mirrored in the future. This will go on until things change.

Maybe with good money management routines, you can use this method to make money. In that case by riding on the trends. However, I think you should use a bit more sophisticated approach than the one presented in this book. I have also read recent interviews with Welles Wilder and he does not mention that he is using this method.

If you want to stick with this author who has been around 30+ years and has invented many useful indicators, I would rather recommend his The Delta Phenomenon. That is certainly more complex, but might have better potential. Note that I say "might". There is no need to stick with one author!

I have written several short reviews on trading books. The best way is to compare the score on the books I've read. Many reviews on amazon.com are just glorious 5 star reviews. I use all five categories; sorry but everything isn't "great". Books rated 5 are very good. Books rated 4 are good solid books well worth reading. Books rated 3 can be bought by some people who read a lot or have very specific needs. Books rated 1 or 2 I would not recommend buying or reading. Naturally all in my humble opinion.

This small and simple book has a breakout system and a exit that uses the markets own price and volatility. It is a unique idea develop by Jim Sloman. This method is subjective and best used by a trader that has a good feel for price action. Like any trend following system it will be subject to whipsawing. I bought this book many years ago and had a aha moment when I saw the Zen like writing. It got me on the path to thinking about price as the only relevant information and to disregard everything else. To me that is what this book is about, not the entry and exit method. This book came around in a time period when some people believed that there was order in the market. Elliot Wave, Gann, Astrology, cycles. You will see some of this flavor in the book. The important information in the book is really about getting you to tune out the noise and focus on learning to flow with price action. The book has a few well chosen examples showing it in action.

you need to combine it with a 100% systematic trend following approach or the book is useless.

Wish I read the book sooner. It took me 3 years to figure out how solid the concepts of the book are and how well they work once you have the tools ( a trend following system ) to apply them.

Well presented! A lucid, easily comprehesible account of the author's Adam Theory. However the theory, in this reviewer's opinion, would have limited application to certain situations which may not arise as frequently as the author would suggest.

The book remembered me to give more discipline on my trades following the rules of Adam Theory. I beleive is a very helpfull book mainly for the beginners.

The book has all of the axioms (or is it axia) of trading covered.

1.) The trend is your friend.

2.) Cut your losses short and let your winners run.

3.) Be disciplined with your stops.

Taped to the back cover of the book is a solicitation to join Welles Wilder's 'Delta Society'(which membership might or might not be offered in the future), where all secrets will be revealed. Funny thing is that his 'delta turn dates' listed in the pamphlet couldn't have been more off the mark.

Hats off to Jim Sloman for selling J. Welles Wilder two of the biggest secrets in trading while developing his own "Ocean Theory" and software and lectures.

Hilarious is the fact that Welles Wilder has invented a good number of modern technical analysis indicators, but in this book says you must surrender to the markets. There is no such thing as overbought and oversold, etc.... unbeleivable.

I would give the book 5 stars for it's timeless trading truths, but for the fact that they want you to join the delta cult when you finish.

Nothing quite like learning the ageless order of the markets to find out you need to spend hundreds or even thousands more to learn delta or ocean theory which will really give you all the 'real' answers.