No sooner do we discover a new apparently good method for trading, when it becomes obsolete and something new is needed. I was struck by how many Spikers and members were long at the beginning of last week. I did not enter a pick last week because I could not figure out what I wanted to do by the Sunday deadline. Somewhere Alex has written that “standing by” is a wonderful advantage we individual traders have over institutional traders.

It’s easier said than done. One needs to learn to enjoy just sitting at the screen, relaxing and watching it all unfold without a penny in there (for the moment).

I have found that the strong emotion of anxiety that one is going to miss a move is usually a prelude to a bad trade. That was why I did not enter a full position last Thursday in TVIX when it took off for the races the moment the market opened. In fact I bought only 10 shares premarket when I saw it was up 9% (it eventually closed up over 40% and added another