Trade Your Way to Financial Freedom [Hardcover]

Van Tharp (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 22, 2006

The bestselling holy grail of trading information-now brought completely up to date to give traders an edge in the marketplace

“Sound trading advice and lots of ideas you can use to develop your own trading methodology.”-Jack Schwager, author of Market Wizards and The New Market Wizards

This trading masterpiece has been fully updated to address all the concerns of today's market environment. With substantial new material, this second edition features Tharp's new 17-step trading model. Trade Your Way to Financial Freedom also addresses reward to risk multiples, as well as insightful new interviews with top traders, and features updated examples and charts.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"The book is clearly written and makes generous use of practical examples and models...The principles he [Tharp] promotes for traders, if followed closely, can be applied to a wide group of investors." (Ticker Magazine 19990617) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Back Cover

Your own strengths, style, and personality­­and the steps found in this book­­can revitalize your trading program!

Praise for Trade Your Way to Financial Freedom:

"While I can't promise you financial freedom, I can promise you a book filled with sound trading advice and lots of ideas you can use to develop your own trading methodology. And, if you don't think that's enough, then you really need this book."­­Jack Schwager, author of Market Wizards and The New Market Wizards

"Van's book gets directly to the heart of what it takes to be a successful trader. It's the best book I've read on trading successfully; not fluff or hype like so many others."­­Tom Basso, President, Trendstat Capital Management, Inc.

"I've read hundreds of books about trading and this is one of the three best EVER WRITTEN. It's straightforward and to the point. Van clearly cuts through the appeal to wishful thinking, instead stressing psychological preparedness, expectancy, and money management. Moreover, he shows clear methods, with simple entry techniques, to push your equity to the moon. It's a great book!"­­Rolf Sigrist, President, Sigrist AG

"Van Tharp's new book...[is] full of new ideas and approaches to developing an individualized trading system; it teaches the principles that are necessary to make you a great trader. The trading public owes Dr. Tharp a debt of gratitude for this insightful masterpiece." -Edward Dobson, President, Traders Press, Inc.

Van Tharp "...cuts right to the essence of professional trading: how to develop winning attitudes and approaches; how to forget trading for accuracy and trade for expectancy; how to master position sizing. If you intend to trade, you'd better know what's in this book."­­Ed Seykota, professional trader

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 482 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill; 2 edition (November 22, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 007147871X
• ISBN-13: 978-0071478717
• Product Dimensions: 6.4 x 1.5 x 9.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (200 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #12,328 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #46 in Books > Business & Investing > Investing > Introduction

More About the Author

In the unique arena of professional trading coaches and consultants, Van K. Tharp stands out as an international leader in the industry. Helping others become the best trader or investor they can be has been Tharp's mission since 1982. Dr. Tharp offers unique learning strategies, and his techniques for producing great traders are some of the most effective in the field. Over the years, Tharp has helped people overcome problems with system development, trading psychology and success-related issues like self-sabotage. He is the founder and president of the Van Tharp Institute, dedicated to offering high-quality education products and services for traders and investors around the globe. Learn more about his work at www.VanTharp.com.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

41 of 43 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Why and how to design a successful trading system July 22, 2006

By Doji Star

Format:Hardcover

Thousands, if not millions, of people waste huge amounts of money and time every year searching for some get-rich-quick Holy Grail of trading. Tharp's somewhat misleadingly titled Trade Your Way to Financial Freedom is definitely not a get-rich-quick technique. Nor is it even a guide to analyzing the markets; there are no fundamental analysis approaches, no technical chart patterns, no quantitative formulae. Instead, Tharp offers something totally different and far more useful: he systematically describes why you should develop your own trading system and how you should go about building and testing it.

Description:

An expert in trading psychology, Tharp quickly covers why most novice traders fail due to psychological problems trading and unrealistic expectations of the market. He advocates that an individual rationally lay out objectives for trading and design their own system, using whatever techniques work best for them, to meet their goals. Tharp goes on to describe the components of a trading system and how to objectively judge between them. He stresses the importance of money management and position sizing; two areas where traders should spend much of their time but often ignore. Just to be clear, there are no trading techniques at all in this book: no technical analysis signals, no material on how to pick stocks or futures, nothing like that - just how to build a system and overcome some of the psychological barriers to successful trading.

Opinion:

As a professional commodities trader, I believe that a thorough reading of Tharp's work will give a novice trader the benefit of years of hard-earned wisdom. It can take years of mistakes and losing money before internalizing the lessons Tharp gives out for a relatively extremely cheap price! It is very important to think about position sizing and money management. It is equally important to have a technique that can be objectively evaluated rather than trading randomly. No matter how you choose to approach the markets, whether by reading technical charts, fundamental reports, or quantitative models, Tharp's advice is excellent.

231 of 265 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Groundbreaking Research in Layman's Terms January 9, 2000

By Dr. Timothy Wilson, Options Trader

Format:Hardcover

Dr. Van Tharp's excellent book "Trade Your Way to Financial Freedom" is truly a work of groundbreaking proportions. It is the single most important book I have ever read on the subject of trading sucessfully. Using a very organized and readable format, Dr. Tharp leads the reader step by step through the maze of myths about trading and arrives at the true meaning of the Holy Grail -- that the secret of success is inside you. Dr. Tharp serves as your personal guide, taking you safely through the treacherous terriroty surrounding information about trading systems. In the end we are much wiser for the experience, arriving at our destination stronger for having completed the journey. In short, we gain the wisdom that comes with knowing one's Self and become very clear on what works...and what doesn't. By interviewing thousands of successful traders during a 15 year period, Dr. Tharp was able to find out what was common in their individual systems of success. He then created a "model" of those variables, arriving at these basic truths: Low risk ideas combined with appropriate exit strategies and position sizing create the foundation for developing successful trading systems. Dr. Tharp shares his research with the reader, supporting his conclusions with rich examples. After finishing Tharp's book, even a layman has the tools to design a highly profitable trading system that contains all the strengths common to the best trading systems but also "fits" that particular trader's personality. This book transformed my experience of trading and allowed me to trade with the confidence that comes from knowing the truth about what works. Since implementing Dr. Tharp's strategies to my trading style, the results I have experienced are nothing short of miraculous. Quite frankly this is the first and last book you will ever need if you are serious about trading (or investing) your way to financial freedom. If you want to develop a highly profitable, low risk trading system that produces consistently strong returns, then read this book! All you need is an open mind and the courage to put some of Dr. Tharp's innovative research to the test. I promise you, if you read this book and apply Dr. Tharp's proven concepts, your trading will immediately improve and your bottom line will stay in the black. Without a doubt, Dr. Tharp's book is the best "investment" I have ever made. My return on this "position" is incalculable...

357 of 416 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars ProTrader February 8, 2006

By ProTrader

Format:Hardcover

Out of kindness I have chosen to rate this a two-star publication. There are a few, very few, useful statements here for traders.

What else would one expect from a person that does not trade? Merely talking with successful traders does not imbue one with trading wisdom.

Like all of Tharp's work, from what I have seen, the title belies the content. That is, little to no worthwhile content, but a captivating title. Anyone that honestly believes themselves to be credible enough to write a trading book that can deliver "Financial Freedom" that has never traded professionally should not be believed. It would be similar to seeking advice from a homeless person about becoming a billionaire.

Another credibility issue for me with this author is that he is now hawking "No Money Down" and "Get Rich in Real Estate" tapes, books, seminars, etc. I would speculate that Tharp would sell widgets, or, at a minimum, books about widgets, if he believed there was money to be made.

I find it impossible to believe this person could ever be a credible source of information about trading! His trading resume consists of ..., well nothing, except the idea of how to make money by writing words on a subject he knows nothing about.

Many more useful, credible books exist that will help in attaining real financial freedom. Brett Steenbarger is a trader and has produced good material on the psychology of trading, and Mark Douglas, even though he does not trade, has produced more interesting and valuable books.

The most useful advice, read books about trading that are written by traders, and read reviews written by people who trade every day.