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Mentor Updates

Millionaire Mentor Update: Drill Down and Hustle Every Day

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Written by Timothy Sykes
Updated 1/16/2023 12 min read

Last week was amazing. Why? The common theme between a billionaire and a great young trader was this: drill down.

I spent nearly an hour on the phone asking a billionaire questions about life and trading. Then I spent a few minutes with the amazing young TWIST podcast hosts. This week they caught up with lost but found trader Dominic Mastromatteo.

Keep reading as I share one lesson from my conversation with the billionaire. (And keep it on your radar. We’re working on something so you can learn all the lessons he shared.)

Also, be sure to watch Dom’s resurrection. I’m really proud of him for being transparent and sharing how important it is to drill down and be meticulous.

Charity Work Takes Time, But It’s Worth Every Second

I just got back to Miami from Tulum — it was a fun little trip. Now that I’m back home, I’m spending a lot of time talking with various charities around the world. It’s my honor to donate 100% of my trading profits to charity. And I’m grateful to be able to make a difference.

One thing many people don’t realize is how much time it takes. There’s a lot of planning and talking. You don’t just throw money at a problem. That’s how it goes down a black hole and doesn’t help. We make sure the money gets used properly.

Here’s an example…

In Bali, we’re not constructing schools right now. That’s because construction has stopped. So we’re feeding families instead.

We’re also still talking with charities in Mauritius and Lebanon. In Mauritius, they’re dealing with the after-effects of the oil spill. And in Lebanon, they’re trying to deal with the after-effects of the explosion. We’re hoping to announce a new charity there very soon.

If you want to help: one of the best things you can do to spread the word is to wear Karmagawa gear. Learn more and get your Karmagawa gear here.

Time to answer a few questions…

Trading Mentor: Questions From Students

The first question is about the upcoming election and how it might affect the stock market…

“With the election coming, is there anything traders should watch for in the markets?”

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I think there’s gonna be a lot of volatility. People are placing their bets. But it’s not only about who wins — it’s also about how someone wins. I think that’s the biggest thing.

(HINT: Review the no-cost “Volatility Survival Guide” BEFORE the election.)

Let’s drill down…

Not only are there two candidates, but there are two ways of voting — in person or mail-in ballot. If you follow the research, we could end up with a split. We could get one winner based on in-person voting and a different winner based on mail-in voting.

So in-person versus mail-in voting creates this whole possible mess. The markets will probably seesaw back and forth. Why?

Well, the election affects the stock market in a lot of ways…

From defense spending to energy, there are big differences between the candidates. In the energy sector alone, the election affects clean energy versus fossil fuels. And there are tax implications for corporate taxes and even trading taxes.

I’m not one to try to predict elections any more than I try to predict stocks. I just react. So we’ll see the news, the rumors, and what’s in play. But prepare for some volatility in early November.

Next question…

“The big $HALB move shows that with news and volume, coronavirus stocks are still in play. Is it a good idea to keep a ‘coronavirus watchlist’ until the pandemic ends?”

It’s not just about keeping a watchlist based on the pandemic. It’s a good idea to keep track of ANY big percent gainer.

How to Find Trades: Big Percent Gainers and Multi-Day Movers

Again, let’s drill down…

Halberd Corp. (OTCPK: HALB) was already a big percent gainer on this positive antibody news. I knew it was hot news because it was up so much right near the open. But I also knew it could have legs.

Here’s the HALB five-day chart:

HALB stock chart
HALB chart: 5-day, 1-minute candle, breaking news supernova — courtesy of StocksToTrade.com

The small green icon shows when StocksToTrade picked up the press release. And you can see my time-stamped buy alert.

Every single person reading this post should be using StocksToTrade. You should be looking at the biggest percent gainers at 9 a.m. Eastern and again at 9:30 a.m. And, you should look at the news to see what has the most legs.

StocksToTrade Breaking News Chat alerted HALB. Every person reading this post should utilize this tool.

(Quick disclaimer: I helped design and develop StocksToTrade.)

I say trading is a battlefield…

You need the best weapons in your arsenal. StocksToTrade’s Biggest % Gainers scan can help you find low-priced stocks that many websites don’t track. And StocksToTrade Breaking News narrows down the news to what really matters.

It astounds me that more people don’t use StocksToTrade. People actually asked, “How did you see $HALB?” Look for big percent gainers. 

“It wasn’t on my big percent gainers list.” It’s because you’re not using StocksToTrade.

“Oh, I can’t trade $HALB. Webull or Robinhood won’t let me…” Because you’re using the wrong brokers. I use these brokers.  

Sometimes I feel like I’m taking crazy pills. Why would you NOT use the best tools available to you when doing so has the potential to change your life? WHY? 

How to Prepare BEFORE You Enter the Trading Battlefield

If you come onto this battlefield unprepared for battle, you will NOT profit. HALB ended up being a 7x winner from my initial buy alert.

Anybody who doesn’t have StocksToTrade Breaking News, you’re missing out. If you’re not using StocksToTrade to find the big percent gainers, you’re missing out. And if your broker doesn’t let you trade stocks like HALB, you’re missing out.

What are you missing out on? The single hottest stock in the entire U.S. market that day was … HALB. It might even have been the hottest stock in the world that day.

So we’re talking tens, if not hundreds of thousands of opportunities. If you’re brand new to penny stocks it can seem a little overwhelming, so start with this FREE guide.

If you missed HALB, you missed the biggest opportunity in the market. I nailed it. I’ve made $7,111 trading HALB seven times since October 13. And for me, it all comes down to experience and using StocksToTrade.*

(*Please note: My results are far from typical. Individual results will vary. Most traders lose money. I have the benefit of years of hard work, dedication, and experience. Trading is inherently risky. Do your due diligence and never risk more than you can afford to lose.)

Trading Lesson of the Week: Drill Down

Last weekend I had an amazing experience. I got to spend nearly an hour talking with a self-made billionaire. We talked about life and business. We talked about trading and the markets. I got to ask him questions and he was very candid with his answers. I’m grateful.

I look forward to sharing what I learned. I’m working on something where I can share the lessons but still respect his privacy. Keep an eye out for it. But I want to share one really cool lesson…

We were talking about losses. My rule #1 is to cut losses quickly. But I also teach students to learn from their losses. So I asked him, “What’s your biggest loss?” His answer really drove the point home…

He told me it’s not just about the money you lose on any trade. You have to drill down…

How did it happen? Was your thesis off? Was there some unpredictable event that happened in the market? Did you take too big of a position size?

So you have to drill down into the nitty-gritty to figure out what you do right on good trades and bad trades.

More Breaking News

It’s All About the Details

I already teach this to students. And my top students get it. But I still found it fascinating coming from a billionaire. It’s very ‘Moneyball-esque.’ 

If you’re familiar with the book “Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game” by Michael Lewis, you know what I’m talking about. It’s all about how the stats are created.

(As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.)

It’s not good enough just to look at a baseball player’s batting average. You have to drill down deep. What if you hit a perfect ball, but the shortstop makes an amazing play? Should that really count against your batting average? The answer is no.

Look at it this way…

Maybe you get a lot of lucky hits. Let’s say you hit the ball and it gets weird bounces. Say an infielder makes two errors in the game and you get two base hits. For whatever reason, they don’t get counted as errors.

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But you didn’t really hit the ball that well…

The point is, you have to look into the details. You have to drill down. That’s how championship sports teams get created. There’s someone whose job it is to look beyond the average stats.

As a trader, you have to do the same thing. You have to look beyond your dollar gains or losses. Look at every part of your trade. Be willing to pick it apart and put it back together. Then try to do better on the next one. This is exactly why I encourage students to keep a trading journal.

Millionaire Mentor Market Wrap

What an amazing time to be a trader. Especially if you’re trying to learn. I can only imagine where I’d be if there were so many resources available when I started over two decades ago.

Think about it…

You have access to amazing tools like StocksToTrade and podcasts like TWIST. Combine those with everything you’ll learn in the 30-Day Bootcamp. Then drill down with the Trading Challenge. (Ready to hustle every day? Apply for the Trading Challenge now.)

You have NO EXCUSE not to learn.

There are two key ideas I hope you take away from this post. First: Drill down. You won’t last long in the stock market if you don’t get into the details. That’s why I focus on seven indicators and not just one.

So go deep. Make it a goal to master penny stocks and master the stock market. But that brings up the other big idea…

It takes time. Don’t try to cheat it — drill down and hustle EVERY DAY. Over time your knowledge account will grow. Only THEN will you be ready for your trading account to grow, too.

That’s a wrap. Have a great week!

Are you ready to drill down so you can earn a life of freedom? Comment below, I love to hear from all my readers!


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Timothy Sykes

Tim Sykes is a penny stock trader and teacher who became a self-made millionaire by the age of 22 by trading $12,415 of bar mitzvah money. After becoming disenchanted with the hedge fund world, he established the Tim Sykes Trading Challenge to teach aspiring traders how to follow his trading strategies. He’s been featured in a variety of media outlets including CNN, Larry King, Steve Harvey, Forbes, Men’s Journal, and more. He’s also an active philanthropist and environmental activist, a co-founder of Karmagawa, and has donated millions of dollars to charity. Read More

* Results are not typical and will vary from person to person. Making money trading stocks takes time, dedication, and hard work. There are inherent risks involved with investing in the stock market, including the loss of your investment. Past performance in the market is not indicative of future results. Any investment is at your own risk. See Terms of Service here

The available research on day trading suggests that most active traders lose money. Fees and overtrading are major contributors to these losses.

A 2000 study called “Trading is Hazardous to Your Wealth: The Common Stock Investment Performance of Individual Investors” evaluated 66,465 U.S. households that held stocks from 1991 to 1996. The households that traded most averaged an 11.4% annual return during a period where the overall market gained 17.9%. These lower returns were attributed to overconfidence.

A 2014 paper (revised 2019) titled “Learning Fast or Slow?” analyzed the complete transaction history of the Taiwan Stock Exchange between 1992 and 2006. It looked at the ongoing performance of day traders in this sample, and found that 97% of day traders can expect to lose money from trading, and more than 90% of all day trading volume can be traced to investors who predictably lose money. Additionally, it tied the behavior of gamblers and drivers who get more speeding tickets to overtrading, and cited studies showing that legalized gambling has an inverse effect on trading volume.

A 2019 research study (revised 2020) called “Day Trading for a Living?” observed 19,646 Brazilian futures contract traders who started day trading from 2013 to 2015, and recorded two years of their trading activity. The study authors found that 97% of traders with more than 300 days actively trading lost money, and only 1.1% earned more than the Brazilian minimum wage ($16 USD per day). They hypothesized that the greater returns shown in previous studies did not differentiate between frequent day traders and those who traded rarely, and that more frequent trading activity decreases the chance of profitability.

These studies show the wide variance of the available data on day trading profitability. One thing that seems clear from the research is that most day traders lose money .

Millionaire Media 66 W Flagler St. Ste. 900 Miami, FL 33130 United States (888) 878-3621 This is for information purposes only as Millionaire Media LLC nor Timothy Sykes is registered as a securities broker-dealer or an investment adviser. No information herein is intended as securities brokerage, investment, tax, accounting or legal advice, as an offer or solicitation of an offer to sell or buy, or as an endorsement, recommendation or sponsorship of any company, security or fund. Millionaire Media LLC and Timothy Sykes cannot and does not assess, verify or guarantee the adequacy, accuracy or completeness of any information, the suitability or profitability of any particular investment, or the potential value of any investment or informational source. The reader bears responsibility for his/her own investment research and decisions, should seek the advice of a qualified securities professional before making any investment, and investigate and fully understand any and all risks before investing. Millionaire Media LLC and Timothy Sykes in no way warrants the solvency, financial condition, or investment advisability of any of the securities mentioned in communications or websites. In addition, Millionaire Media LLC and Timothy Sykes accepts no liability whatsoever for any direct or consequential loss arising from any use of this information. This information is not intended to be used as the sole basis of any investment decision, nor should it be construed as advice designed to meet the investment needs of any particular investor. Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future returns.

Citations for Disclaimer

Barber, Brad M. and Odean, Terrance, Trading is Hazardous to Your Wealth: The Common Stock Investment Performance of Individual Investors. Available at SSRN: “Day Trading for a Living?”

Barber, Brad M. and Lee, Yi-Tsung and Liu, Yu-Jane and Odean, Terrance and Zhang, Ke, Learning Fast or Slow? (May 28, 2019). Forthcoming: Review of Asset Pricing Studies, Available at SSRN: “https://ssrn.com/abstract=2535636”

Chague, Fernando and De-Losso, Rodrigo and Giovannetti, Bruno, Day Trading for a Living? (June 11, 2020). Available at SSRN: “https://ssrn.com/abstract=3423101”