Written on 5th Nov 2008 : Bowling vs Trading(Part I)

Have you ever been to bowling alley and play a game or two? If u never, ever wonder WHY NOT?

Have you ever been 'trading' and buy a stock or two? If u never, ever wonder WHY NOT?

Assuming you have(otherwise, WHY would u be reading my trading blog??!), have you ever been LUCKILY strike(all ten pins down in one throw. By the way, if u are wondering how many pins there is in a rack, it is TEN, that is why they called it 10-pin bowling)? What is your first reaction when you STRIKE? You will jump with joy(like a monkey, I would say ... and disrupting me playing on the lane beside! Ha).

Assuming you have, have you ever LUCKILY bought a counter and WIN the trade? Is your re-action similar of getting a strike? Ha!

But, many more throws you dont get strikes, left a few ... or many beginners will throw it into 'longkang'. They NEVER ask WHY!! Ever wonder why they NEVER ask WHY?

But, many more trades you dont win big, lose a bit ... or many beginners will throw their money into KLSE 'hole'. They NEVER ask WHY!! Ever wonder why they NEVER ask WHY?

They look around ... and they saw this youngster who know how to CURL(we called it hook) the ball into the pins(pockets, actually) ... they will think, WOW he knows how to CURL the ball. That is cool ... he must be very good!! Haha. So stupidly naive!

They look around ... and they found this blog, who know how to write(we called it blogging) about the trades ... they will think, WOW he knows how to write a trading blog. That is cool ... he must be very good!! Haha. You are naive if u think so.

In their mind, they will be thinking ... hey, if i know how to curl the ball like him, I could play good too. And i can impress my friends!! I will learn just that, it cant be THAT difficult.

In their mind, they will be thinking ... hey, if i know how to write a trading blog like him, I could trade well too. And I can impress many around!! I will learn just that, writing only ma ... won't be THAT difficult.

So, they quietly read some bowling books or watching few bowling videos. Ah ha!! They said I just need to release my thumb at 10 o'clock and it will curl by itself!!

So, they quietly read some trading books or reading some blogs. Ah ha!! They said I just need to mention a few trading jargons and it will SEEN as impressive!!

They will go to the bowling alley, and try out the techniques. After a few frustrating throws, the ball doesnt curl, and they even hurt their fingers. Damn. Stupid book ... how could they NOT telling me the TRUTH. I just want to get a strike, who cares what bowling is!! Dont tell me about pockets, pre-shots, 5-steps, where to stand, which boards to throw, bending my sliding kness(what!! Bend knee for WHAT), balancing, follow-through, breathing techniques, ... to increasing the leverages, carrying, messengers, oil-conditions(short long), gutters ... etc etc ... STOP!!! I just want to get a STRIKE, WHY u are telling me all these!! Teach me how to CURL the ball. I know what 10 o'clock thumb release is, ok?? Without realising, frustration getting into your head, you will NEVER bowl well ....

They will go to trading ground, and try out the trading system they read. After a few frustrating trades, the trade doesnt work, and they even hurt their pockets. Damn. Stupid book ... how could they NOT telling me the TRUTH. I just want to earn some money, who cares what trading is!! Dont tell me about volumes, stop-loss, averaging, doji, economics, inflations, interest rates, supply-demand, commodities prices, indicators, xxxx , etc etc. STOP!! I just want to get a WIN in my trade, WHY are you telling me all these!! Teach me how to win a TRADE, better still just tell me WHAT to BUY. I know what buying a stock is, ok? Without realising, frustration getting into your head, you will NEVER trade well ....

And they wonder WHY they never be able to beat that old-man who is playing a straight unfancy ball, using 10 pounds yet winning small tournaments, oftenly!!

And they wonder WHY they never be able to beat that un-educated old-man who is trading without any fancy softwares, using common sense yet winning in small trades, oftenly!!

TEH : I m a bowler ... I used 2 yrs to decide if I m seriously taking up bowling, then I registered with a bowling club in Cheras(one-five), playing with the experienced bowlers, learning how to bowl well. I read many bowling books for 3 years ... and without fail, asking coaches around and share their views. Today, I may no longer very active in competitive tournaments but with GOOD strong foundation, I could easily beat those majorities. So, personally I m applying what I hv achieved in bowling for my trading. I see the parallel. :)

Bowling

After 10 years of serious learning of bowling, I received my bowling coaching cert level II last year, which giving me the licence to coach. I remembered I was proud last year ... from a NOVICE, and being a competitive bowlers ... moving ahead to coaching. I guess i simply love TEACHING!! Due to my other commitments, I DO NOT pursue coaching the youngsters bowling, but I know someday I will ... to do it as a past-time, due to passions!!

Here I m today, after considering whether to go into KLSE for past 3 yrs(playing with the ideas), I finally opened a trading a/c last DEC. I lost many many trades in the beginning, and each trades giving me lessons(wish to learn from other mistakes rather than making it myself! Haha).
After 10mths plus of learning, I started to see that my bowling ball do not go into longkang anymore. I m glad ... but always focus on my goal, to TRAIN others the skills of trading. I m giving myself 5 yrs ... left 4 yrs only. I need to hurry in my learning ... age catching up! Hmm ...

Written on NOV 30th 2008 : Bowling vs Trading (Part II)

First of all, bowling is 60% mental, 30% physical and 10% luck! Perhaps the breakdown for trading will be sometthing like that : 30% mental, 60% emotional and 10% luck. Do correct me, please.

Bowling

I have consistently placed in top-10 in most of the competitions I competed. Firstly, I choosen the tournament I m playing. If I think the format and chances is lower for me to be in top 10(and win some $$. Hehe), then I m very discipline anot NOT to play. So, it could be for 3 months or so I wont play a game!! My fingers will itch, but I wont give in. Look ... we are talking about USING money to play in a game(tho I do enjoy the games but $$ is more practical to me at the moment). If I m not going to be in top 10(to at least cover the game fees) I simply wont play. Logic?

Trading

I m still a novice in trading ... so, I m not expose much to trading yet. But, I m using the SAME logic ... if I m going to trade, I will check out the format(markets and counters) and if the chances is NOT high, I simply wont trade. During the months before my holiday, I hv classes on till night, so I dont hv TIME to monitor ... so, I dont trade. Look ... we are talking about USING money to trade here(tho I do enjoy the trades but $$-sense is more practical to me). If I could not even break-even, logically I wont trade?

Bowling


Tonight the format will be 3-6-9. I played the MQ last night and qualilfied confidently. By the way, I m the ONLY person in top 20(in Sabah here) using 10 pounds ball and playing a very boring straight ball(most NOVICE trying to throw the ball straight?). Most using heavy-ball for hook or even more than 10-pounds ball for spinners.


Formats and equipments are essentially important for bowlers. BUT, it is NOT the ultimate plus points!! Of coz if a person using Urethane ball should have higher carries compared to the plastic ball, BUT if you cant even hit the target, no matter how good your equipments could be ... you simply can't beat those using a cheap lousy ball but hitting the target each and everytime!

p/s : If you are a non-bowler, dont you think so u dont even really understand the SIMPLE terms I m using?

Trading

The market most investors/traders(Malaysians) playing is KLSE(or Bursa). That is the trading center ... equipments is essentially important for traders too but it is certainly NOT the ultimate plus points. You may be using the lastest software for trading(most of us cant afford that), but if you could not pick the right counter(s) to trade, no matter how ... you may not hit your target. But if you are equip with knowledge(with tonnes of patience which I m lacking), and know-how ... surely you have the edge.

Bowling


Playing with handicaps should boost our confidence. I will be playing with 8-pins handicap tonight, against few very good bowlers. They play weekly, and some almost daily!! Many more at the lower level and I have to give them 8-pins handicap too. To be honest, I m not too worry about the lower-level players(they are lower for a reason, right?). If I m playing a step-ladder of a game/or two, I might lose to them(with handicap). But, we are talking about 15-games tournament ... well, they DO NOT have the mental stamina, and I could easily exploit that and steadily beat most of them.

Written on 14th Nov 2010 : Bowling vs Trading (Part III)
TEH : Those were written 2 YEARS ago when I was just less than 1 year in markets, still grasping those jargons, terms and started to look into charts WITHOUT any soft-wares!! I seldom participate in any bowling competitions as I m too busy with my stock-markets(new and raw) and family comes first. Yes, I was still in Sabah.
But, against those better players, who played regularly, I dont really stand good chances against them. I have to admit that I might lose to them as I dont even touch my balls, I mean BOWLING balls. Hehe. So, what is my strategies against them? MENTAL STRENGTH, NEVER GIVE UP AND FOCUS ON EVERY THROW!! Only with strong determination to WIN, and also confidence, I can beat some of them. But, hey ... I will be glad to be in top 10!! Anything extra will be a bonus?! Hehe

TEH : I m playing MUCH better than I was in Sabah now. More matured, wise and controlled. The confidence is building well for me to go for bigger competitions during my college-break.

Youtube - yes, we can use You-tube to learn indicators, terms etc etc about trading. It is a good resources BUT it is only on the surface. Do you think you could learn 'follow-through' and 'delivery' just by watching this short youtube clip? Think again.
I was sharing with my two young colleague about how I was controlling the game with my mental and NOT really physical. Bowling is NOT a physical game. In fact, we dont touch our opponents!! Just like a chess game and badminton!! That is why I like these games and excel in them. MENTAL ... less physical. I m no longer fit to play badminton, just leisurely once a while. Also, I m thinking of going back to big-walks or mini-marathon next year!! That needs me to be discipline to jog and train!! Arrghh ... I m lazy ...

Each time when I play bowling, I do think of trading. There are so many similarities and analogs.

Example : Knowledge about the game ... I have read a lot of bowling books, watch video clips and discussed with many good players when I was novice. I will remember their pointers and trying to apply them in my game during practises!! To speak their language, I have to learn the terms etc etc ... and trying to digest what they meant when they said 'increase the leverage' and then HOW we could do just that in our game!! I m in bowling game for 14 years now!! So, I m no longer a novice?

Knowledge about trading ... I have read a lot of trading/investment books, watch video clips, also Bloomberg/CNBC ... and discussed with many good traders/investors when I was novice. I am STILL a novice, in my opinion. I will remember their pointers and trying to apply them in my trading/investment in my trading. To speak their language, I have to learn the terms ete etc ... and trying to digest what they meant when they said 'quantitative easing' and then HOW we could use it to our advantage in our trading!! I m only 3 years in the trading game. So, I m STILL a novice.

Example : Equipments and tools to be used in bowling. The most important equipments we need for bowling will be a bowling ball which FIT your fingers. And the bowling shoe, of coz. Proper attire and few necessary items to play a good game in bowling! You may have the most expensive bowling ball and those expensive SSV shoes, but putting it to a person who dont know bowling, it is a disaster!! Nope, they cant beat me with equipments. I m only using my old 10-yr-old 10 pound ball and my 10-yr old 'Master' bowling shoe. Seriously, I could go to bowling alley next weekend and beat most of the competitors there with those much much better equipments than mine!

Tool to be used in trading. The most important items could be our pc/notebook/netbook ... that could go online with good internet assessments. Then, a good trading platform which wont jam or blank-out or crash in the most crucial moments!! You may have the most expensive notebook in town with the fastest broadband, but putting a person who do not know trading, it is a disaster!! Nope, they cant beat me with equipments. I m only using my 2-yr-old ACER net-book and my digi-narrowband(cheapest package la). Seriously, I could go to a trading platform next week and beat most of the 'traders' there with those much better equipments than mine.

Note : I have recently upgraded my charts(was using tradesignium or shareinvestors or those OSK charts) by using chart-nexus software. It is a good advance too as I m moving away from novice level, one day. Please understand that I m NOT promoting CNX and CERTAINLY do not encourage any retired aunties/uncles to learn technical analsis. DO RETIRE ... enjoy the remaining of our lives in a MORE meaning way rather than attending meetings to listen to TIPS and stress buying stocks in markets!!

Example : ATTITUDES ... I shared the most about RIGHT attitudes with my two-colleagues that to excel in ANYTHING, we need to put our efforts on it to IMPROVE. TO LEARN and continuously learning!! Tho my bowling game has reached its 'peak' with a 10-pound straight ball averaging 190-195, I could STILL improve in my game!! MENTALLY and improve my attitudes in the game!! Yup, a higher level required ...improving in my focus and such. Non are physical!! Attitudes in taking our losses and attitudes to accept a victory.

In trading, ATTITUDES play a BIG role here. The right attitudes could lead us to the right ways of seeing a trade. I m too novice to speak about these but I m still learning and trying to improve my attitudes towards trading. There are so much rooms of improvements in this aspect and I will be monitoring my progress. How I take defeat and cut loss to accept defeat and how I take profits to 'win' the trade.

Example : Experiences ... it is not a matter of how many years you have been playing bowling. Seriously. Many egoistic bowlers will proudly said they have played 5-10-15 years of bowling, as if that carry any weights! I have known so many bowlers who have been playing for ages but could not even get a CONSISTENT 185 average!! Of coz, they will find ALL the excuses to justify why their scores not improving!! I gave you an example how I see the so-called last year champion threw a first few balls, to gauge if he is as good as many told me. Hmm ... then, through expereinces, I could see that he is NOT even a good bowler with his WRONG footsteps, to the in-correct way of him holding a ball!! Sharp experienced eyes could see flaws VERY clearly. So, I told my colleagues before the game started ... 'dont worry, he is not good'. If he could beat me in a game, i could accept. May be he could LUCKILY beat me in 3 games and get to retain his title, but I doubt it. And it he is to play 10 or 15 games with me for a looong period of time(say, one competition per month for 12 consecutive months!! That is 120 games!), I could beat him FLAT with huge difference of the scores seen!! That is called EXPERIENCE and CONSISTENCY.

Experiences ... it is not a matter of how many years you have been in stock markets. Seriously. Many egoistic traders/investors will proudly said they have been trading/investing 5-10-15 years in KLSE, as if that carry any weights! I have known so many traders/investors who have been in markets for ages but could not even get a good CONSISTENT average returns !! Of coz, they will find ALL the excuses to justify why their returns not improving or still losing money!! Novice traders MIGHT get luck with first trade and took good profits. Then, they thought that they are good enough for a bigger BET. And they profitted from their second trades handsomely. Wow ... this time confidence grow, ego covering their rational thinking and GREED starts to control them. This time HWGB should be a good bet!!

If you see these, they cant be LUCKY in 10 trades and consistently doing well in every month for ayear. That is 120 trades!!

I do not have the experiences enough to share or even talk about it but I think most long enough in markets will know/understand what I m pointing at. We are talking about CONSISTENCY, not one or two of your good trades, ok?

I have many good trades recently due to market is bull. Many doing well too, but making sure that when we have a good trade, we KNEW what is going on behind it, and not merely PUNTING and betting on it. Flip the coin --- tmr buy HWGB or KBunai?

Note : Someone just told me that KBunai target price is 0.360. Well, what are you waiting for? Take out your FD, sell your house ... put ALL your money into KBunai tmr at 0.22, afterall ... wow ... we will be rich SOON.

Experience is the best teacher. Bowling and Trading have many similarities as it is a MENTAL game. It is consistently of learning and improving our game through acquiring of knowledge about the game.

Today : A re-post of what I was thinking about trading and bowling when I was still in early years. Yes, I might as well re-post few of those posts I like to share!!

TEH