Customer Reviews

Sell and Sell Short (Wiley Trading)

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

If you are searching around on Amazon for a book on trading stocks then look no further, this is it. I have been a successful trader for years and read over 85 books on trading, in my opinion this is the best. While as the title suggests it teaches when to sell your stocks for profits, and also does the best job I have seen on explaining short selling and when technical indicators show to short. This book is a complete book for any trader. The main lessons of this book is when to lock in profits and exit a trade using a target, and how to double your potential for profits by not only buying stocks but also selling stocks short and buying them back at a lower price for profit. Professionals sell short because while overall the stock market drifts upward, when a stock falls it falls over twice as fast as it rises. I sell short and it is a powerful tool when used correctly. This book will show you when it is appropriate to short.
Dr. Alexander Elder is the only author I am aware of that integrates trading psychology, money management, and record keeping into one book. These three factors will determine whether you are successful in the market or not, even more than the trading method you choose.
You will learn the three great divides in trading, technical vs. fundamental, trend vs. counter trend, and discretionary vs, systematic. The author follows a discretionary strong technical approach trading counter trend for the most part. However what you learn in this book can be applied to any type of trading. The authors own technical approach uses prices, volume, exponential moving averages (13 day, 26 day), envelopes, MACD, and force index. Limit your tools to no more than five, more is less, any more just causes confusion. The main method you will learn in this book is using the moving averages as a technical base for agreed upon value and buying at the lower edge of the envelope and selling at the high edge of the envelope when you have favorable MACD and force index agreement, or buying at value between the EXP MAs.
If you are going to be a trader you must follow the money management suggestions in this book. NEVER risk more than 2% of your total equity on a trade, and if you lose 6% of your equity in a month you must stop, clear your head and start back next month. If you follow the 2% rule from the book, it will be a major life lesson in your trading and save you a ton of equity draw downs.
Your long term success as a trader is determined by your ability to learn from your mistakes and not repeat them. The best way to do this is to keep detailed records on a spreadsheet and charts of each trade and a diary of why you traded. You must look squarely at each loss and win. If you learn from each bad trade and limit your loss to less than 2%, it can turn into a long term positive.
This review only scratches the surface of this great book. It is packed with very helpful principles, real trades, humour, and is just outstanding. I really grew as a trader from reading and implementing Dr. Elder's best selling classics "Come into my trading room" and "Trading for a living", but in my opinion this one is the best, using exerpts from his past books to build an even more complete picture. If your dream is to trade for a living or just trade succesfully this is the book to buy.

$53.55 plus shipping. So is this book worth the price? I will hopefully be able to give you an objective answer through this review. I would like to preface this review by saying that I have not read Elder's "Come Into my Trading Room" for a couple years (so my memory might be sketchy). I remember reading it at the time and coming away with a profound respect for Elder and how well he outlined the steps to becoming a professional trader.

This book is a bit of a paradox to me. On one hand, it is a very good representation of what it takes to become a great trader. If you follow the things Elder says, and have the discipline to stick to them, then it is improbable that you will not eventually become a successful trader.

With those things said, I felt that this book was much lighter in some ways then his most famous book. "Trading Room" is a tough act to follow as one reviewer on here said. That book has everything you need, and a lot more in depth knowledge then "Sell and Sell Short" offers. While reading this book, I was constantly a bit disappointed at how much it was angled towards the beginner. That's fine if that is what the book is aimed for, but with this price tag, I felt that it was a bit of a contradiction.

If you are going to price your book at an 80$ tag price, it should have some very in depth, and advanced materials. I know some of the expensive books I have purchased are the kind that you can keep coming back to over and over again to gain new insight into what the author was communicating (Mark Douglas comes to mind, not to mention Elder's previous bestseller). So while I thought this material was all relevant, I felt a bit like I was reading a high priced update to "Trading Room."

To show a bit of what I am talking about, let's take the example of keeping records. Elder goes to great lengths to convince his reader that keeping good records is the most important part of being a good trader. I happen to agree with him, but I was disappointed that he did not elaborate more on WHY it is so good.

I understand that it lets you correct past mistakes, but he did not really go farther then that. Good records are important because it keeps you focused in the NOW. If you take good records, it makes you focus on how you did on each trade. Most people who are new to the markets tend to focus immediately on the P/L of their account; they think its all about making money.

They should be focusing on how well they perform on each trade, the level of emotion they are letting make their decisions for them, how losses feel, etc. If you focus on the money and whether you're winning or not, you are not focused on a long term winning attitude that will make you a professional trader in the long run. A professional knows that any trade is pretty much a toss up; there are too many unknown variables that can take you out of a trade. If you beat yourself up about it, then essentially you are attached to the trade, and will, in the long run, be a loser.

So because he did not explain why it was so essential to keep records, the reader does not know how to replicate that needed element in something that may not be concurrent with what the author advised. For example, before charts were electronic, one could get the exact SAME psychological benefit of focusing on the now moment and improving attitude by taking records of what the market does, and updating charts manually.

Jesse Livermore's 1940 book "How to Trade Stocks" displays this perfectly. Livermore advocated keeping strict records of what the MARKET did, not essentially what his trade did. If Elder showed why a certain aspect of his book was important, he would leave the door open for traders to creatively find other ways to achieve the same effect as taking good records. (I have heard of market makers keeping great records of delta exposure daily that were great for them when they could not keep track of every trade they did.)

I was hoping that Elder would go a bit more in depth into why psychologically, he had his methods, but I have one more complaint. The way he constantly tells the reader how a professional trader compares to an amateur is a bit annoying after awhile. Professionals share one thing in common, and that is a winning attitude, but they DO NOT share methods in common. There are tons of ways to skin a cat, Elder may think that buying options is for amateurs, but he should talk to a lot of hedgies that were long volatility into some of the events that rocketed the markets in the 90s. They were glad they were long options, and they are still around today to tell the tale, unlike LTCM and other firms that thought selling volatility was the only way to go.

My final verdict? I respect Elder immensely for what he has done, and like the fact that he released this book to help people when he easily could have been trading and making more money. But this book's value is really not worth it over "Trading Room." If you then add in all the other great trading books out there, buying books like this for this price really cannot be justified unless you are like me, and just want the experience of Elder's latest. Great book Elder, bad price, hats off and congratulations.

Why the book's title? - Traders love to buy, but hate to plan when to sell. (Spontaneous selling in the heat of trading does NOT work out well.) Dr. Elder's new book has great ideas and examples of how to set stop-losses, how to define sell-targets, when to "cut-and-run" from a stale trade, and how to sell short. But there's much more to this succinct book.

It's also a complete review of Dr. Elder's trading approach, as it has evolved over his career. More than a "cook-book", it's like being in the kitchen with Dr. Elder and his trader colleagues as they plan, implement and document a series of trades.

His perennial themes are present: hope is not a strategy, so plan your trades; every trader must develop a style that suits his or her own personality; show me a trader who keeps good records, and I'll show you a good trader.

These themes come alive in this new book, perhaps because they are spelled out so clearly and succinctly. They feel achievable.

Of course, getting there is a process. I've studied Dr. Elder's books for 5 years, participated in his "webinars" and a week-long "traders camp". I'm here to say he's not peddling dreams (like so many trading "gurus") but offering up the tools he developed over 20+ years of becoming a top trader.

Dr. Elder's new book has given me renewed energy to make changes and take my trading to the next level.

I work with several colleagues of mine in late 30's and early 40's studying their MBA. They spend quiet a bit of money, time and family time ( cases where kid's tv addiction linked to parents doing their MBA). Few of them managed to get promotion,some had their titles changed, some moved to different companies doing similar jobs etc. I asked some of them what was their objective of studying MBA at this age. Most have a vague objective,but as Dr.Elder quotes "A caged animal trying to grab it's tail"!. All of them have invariably tried their hand in stock market, got burnt and move back to the comfort of 'cubicle jungles'.

Had they spend the $20,000 or $30,000 they spend on MBA with proper training on trading, losses, trial and error in stock market, software many would have come far ahead in trading and 'self reliance' and 'early retirement' . Instead they fear the corporate layoffs and meaningless promotions that involve travel and less family time and divorce and rebellious kids. I have started the trading career like most others and lost money and thankfully got access to Dr.Alexander Elder's materials before a wipe off!

So now, we have a better way of self graduating to "MBA of trading' where you can be self reliant and retire by simply digesting Elder's books, his suggested reading materials, software ( ex : Metastock , tradestation), bite the painful bullet of losses, enjoy the pleasure of successful trade and slowly evolve to a mature trader. If you are a working professional, you will spend as much ( or more) time as a regular MBA Course, but at least if you happen to be a person fit for becoming an "MBA In Trading", you will be far better off than a MBA in a corporate culdesac.


Here is the suggested order to graduate yourself to an "MBA in Trading".

1. Trading for a Living: Psychology, Trading Tactics, Money Management ( You will need to read it twice)
2. Start making journals and learn from your on trading experiences
3. Come Into My Trading Room: A Complete Guide to Trading (Masterpiece...Read 4 or 5 times to absorb the spirit and content of the book.)
4. Entries & Exits: Visits to 16 Trading Rooms (Wiley Trading) (Read couple of times)
5. Sell and Sell Short (Wiley Trading) (Read couple of times)
6. Read the books mentioned by other full time traders in "entries and exits" ( ex: Trading in the Zone: Master the Market with Confidence, Discipline and a Winning Attitude)
7. Understand Metastock, Tradestation, esignal type tools.
8. Attend his seminar if you can afford it.

Think about all the time ,money and effort you are going to put into it, it will be similar to the money spent on an MBA...and your title might be "Work from home CEO" with your job description like Self reliant full time trader who looks forward to Monday Mornings and for whom work is an everyday vacation and will work during a vacation also. He is available when kids need him

Reviewing his book in solitude will not serve the reader since it is a sequence of learning material in a tough world and should be treated as such.

I would call Come Into My Trading Room: A Complete Guide to Tradingas his masterpiece,but Trading for a Living: Psychology, Trading Tactics, Money Management is highly recommended because of the sections like all technical indicators explained. Some tools might be tailor made for you. In Come Into My Trading Room: A Complete Guide to Trading, the book has narrowed down to exact trading tools Elder uses which is great,but for a newbie , it is better to read the entire menu ( Trading for living) and then chose your dinner ( Come Into My trading room). In trading parlance, The above two books will have to be your "core" positions .

Entries & Exits: Visits to 16 Trading Rooms (Wiley Trading) And Sell and Sell Short (Wiley Trading) are the perfect desserts.E and E is a classic which walks through some sample trades and also a glimpse of tools those users use. All of the traders are trading for living, some with less than 250k equity . Elder looks at their trade and see how simple he makes his trading decision . Sell and Selling short is more like an addendum to his previous books with focus on exit strategies.

I know there are plenty of readers who read financial (and wealth making) books for entertainment. If you are one of them ( The way to check is if you read financial books constantly AND do trading BUT do not have proper records), still this book will fit your case. Choice of words all along the book and subtle comedy makes it an equally interesting read.

EXAMPLES of some punch lines (not verbatim):
> A person who pees against the wind has no right to complain of laundry bills
> Newbies swarm to options to get more bang for their bucks,but it is usually their head that gets banged.
> What beginners call gut feel is usually an urge to gamble, and i tell them they have no right to a gut feel.
> If you pay high above EMA, you will find a greater fool who will pay even more
> Traders dream of profits but often freeze like deer in the headlight when a loss hits them

Whichever book you read in whatever order, make sure to read it, read again and read again .. tread carefully on stockmarket.You might win and in small and subtle ways it is happening to me!

Determining when to sell or cover are the most difficult decisions I face when trading. Lacking a sound plan, I find myself relying on instinct and emotion, often to my detriment.

In Sell and Sell Short, Dr. Alexander Elder--a trader, teacher, and practicing psychiatrist--addresses this issue. Not since Justin Mamis' When to Sell: Inside Strategies for Stock-Market Profits, has there been such a comprehensive discussion of the art of selling.

Elder provides practical strategies. He discusses the selling process from a variety of angles: technical, fundamental, and psychological. Unlike Mamis, who during the period we were both employed by the same firm seemed to be a perpetual bear, Elder is disciplined and analytic in his approach.

I found the chapters "Selling at a Target" and "Selling on a Stop" to be particularly insightful and provocative. Elder punctuates his thoughts with illustrative charts. They are both readable and printed in color. No doubt this adds to the book's expense, but the clarity they add more than compensates.

Dr. Elder has penned some great books. Unfortunately in this one, he opted to include wholesale sections of them as adaptations. Reading this book is often like a W. E. B. Griffin novel, much time is spent re-hashing the past. This practice, no doubt, makes the author's job easier. Yet, the purchaser is left to question why he or she is paying for information that pads to the book's length and adds virtually nothing to the author's point.

Despite its flaws, this book fills a gap in the literature of trading. It is well-written, skillfully edited and beautifully illustrated. Traders of all levels will benefit from its insights.

I have always considered Dr Alexander Elder as a writer par excellence as he gives a touch of humanness to the cold hard Technical Analysis. Maybe it is because of his background as a trained psychiatrist. It is often said that the entry is the easiest thing, but it is the exit that matters the most, because that defines the net outcome of the trade: whether it results in profit or loss. We give so much importance to entry and let our exits be governed by our emotions. There are plenty of books on perfect entry but very few which stress on a perfect exit. "Sell and Sell Short" is an attempt to bridge that gap and teach a trader how to sell profitably. The book is divided into two parts, i.e., Sell and Sell Short.
By Sell he means booking profits on your existing trade or getting out with a minimal loss. Here Dr. Alexander outline various ways of how one can exit trades such as: selling at a target; selling on the stop; selling `engine noise' and so on. Segregating each chapter distinctly he moves from one topic to another outlining themes such as selling at the moving averages or envelopes or channels or resistance. Various techniques such as Iron Triangle, Market or Limit Orders have been explained while also elucidating on Hard and Soft Stops. A new concept introduced in this book called Volatility-Drop Trailing Stops gives one the direction of the trends without compromising on the locked profit. Dr. Alexander also teaches to take profits or exit trades in the event of weakening momentum. He outlines ways for discretionary exit from long term trade: How to sell before earnings report and how to sell using his favorite indicator, The New High-New Low Index.
For newbie's like me who are the product of the current Bull Market, and haven't yet encountered the real Bear Market, the Sell Short section is a real delight as it outlines ways to short at tops and short at down trends or how to short fundamentals.
Dr Alexander stresses the need for following strict money management rules and maintaining of good records. In fact he often stresses that show him a person with good records and he will show you a successful trader. It is a must read for those who want to become serious traders and make some intelligent trades... oops I mean Intelligent Exits!!!

I agree with Tiger Taco's one star review. I was impressed with earlier books by Elder. But lately it appears that he is interested in publishing same stuff with slightly different flavor. To be fair to his readers, he should publish his trading results for the past year or so for a comparison with some benchmark and methods from his own books. I am getting suspicious now.

This book is a must have for a trader. It even explains shorting in detail, which can be hard to find info on. The book is actually fun to read, it is not dry and boring. I have enjoyed reading this book, and learned some new things. I will definitly keep this book handy for a reference. I also recomend Elder's other books, "Come Into My Trading Room" (which is great for beginners), and "Entries and Exits". Another book that is great is "Timing the Trade" by Tom Obrien.

This reasonably sized book outlines what a trader needs to know about selling (rather than holding) stocks. It also provides a good guide on how to approach short-term buying and selling, of which I am a fan. (I am not interested in selling short, but the information provided on the subject is useful for both directions.)

It is not an exhaustive work on trading as it touches upon chart patterns, but does not dwell upon them. Instead, it helps provide the framework in which to organize one's thinking. I took notes on the book and used these notes for further research. Based on curiosity, I created, for example, a Microsoft Word document listing 150 chart studies. I continuously update this document with my own SnagIt-based observations on selected studies, making it a slick, inter-active guide.

My friends, who are "investors," rather than traders, have been losing money left and right. I think that this book is the perfect gift for anyone who lets money slip through their fingers - either in retirement accounts or by their own active investing - without being preachy.

I've read most of Elder's excellent books. I was disappointed to find that this book contains, I believe, only one chapter on short trading. Most of what is in the book is contained in Elder's previous books. Of course, Elder's masterpiece "Trading for a Living" is a difficult act to follow. For me, Elder's "Trading for a Living" or Bill Cara's terrific new book "Lessons From the Trading Wizard" are superior to this book.