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Thanksgiving 2020: What I’m Thankful For This Year

Updated 4/18/2022 11 min read

Thanksgiving 2020 … it’s gonna be a holiday unlike any other.

A lot has changed since this time last year.

For one, the stock market’s been running around like a turkey with its head cut off pretty much the entire year. Total insanity!

For a lot of long-term investors, it’s been awful.

Lucky for me, I’m not a penny stock investor. I’m a penny stock trader. The short-term trading strategies I teach students in my Trading Challenge are suitable for any type of market.

For my students and I, it’s been a year of record-breaking profits.*

Here are some of the things giving me an attitude of gratitude this Thanksgiving 2020…

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

Crazy Market Volatility

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A lot of new traders think they can set — and nail — profit goals on a monthly or yearly basis.

It doesn’t exactly work like that. Not all years in the stock market are created equal — you can never know what kind of opportunities will be out there.

I talked a lot about this during my recent interview on ‘The Iced Coffee Hour,’ a podcast hosted by Graham Stephan and Jack Selby … check it out here on YouTube.

Last year, I made about $125K in profits.* This year, my profits are a LOT higher. I’m achingly close to $1 million in profits for 2020 right now* … You can find every trade documented here.

Did I suddenly strike gold or change my strategy?

Nope. I’m still all about the singles. It’s just that there have been more opportunities this year than I’ve seen in a long time. I’m taking advantage of them. So are my top students.

No matter what kind of market we’re in, there will always be sectors or stocks that spike. That’s proven true this year so far. It’s holding true as we progress into Thanksgiving 2020 and the holidays.

It’s all about being prepared. If you haven’t seen it, check out the NO-COST guide I released earlier this year, “The Volatility Survival Guide.”

It’s a must-watch resource for unprecedented times like these…

Amazing Student Milestones

This year, I was so focused on my students’ milestones that I didn’t even notice when I surpassed $6 million in profits.*

There are too many milestones to list all of them right here, so here are just three incredible milestones…

$1 Million Profit Milestone*

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This year, I’ve had two students pass the $1 million milestone. Earlier this year, Roland Wolf officially hit the mark. I’m sure for Thanksgiving 2020, Roland’s grateful for how his dedication has paid off for him. See how I helped him celebrate here.

And then there’s my student Jack Kellogg who’s still in his early 20s. He’s come a long way in a relatively short period of time. In June, I was celebrating his $500K milestone. Little did I know that just a few months later he’d be passing the million-dollar profit mark.*

This Student’s First Trade for $15K*

My new student David hit the ground running. He took a few weeks to study, then decided to jump in the game.

Guess what? He made a $15K profit … on his first-ever trade. Here’s why his winning trade wasn’t a fluke

6-Figure Profits in 2020*

My student Grant may only be 26 years old, but he’s been trading since he was 15. He’s done something really incredible — he found a way to apply my strategy to long-term investing. Learn more about his trading journey here

For Thanksgiving 2020, I’m grateful for students like this who learn the rules and process, then work to find their own strategy.

Thanksgiving 2020: Unexpected New Opportunities

current ratio what are its components
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Adaptability is the key to staying in the stock market game for the long haul. I love the penny stock game, but I’m not blind to other opportunities.

No, I’m not jumping on the Bitcoin bandwagon or starting to trade options. They’re just not for me. Of course, if you’re interested in options trading, my student Mark Croock has great lessons.

But recently, I did discover an opportunity that grabbed my interest.

Earlier this year, I noticed my friend and fellow trader Paul Scolardi trading SPACs — that’s short for special purpose acquisition companies. And his results are impressive.

So I was inspired to put $1 million of my own money toward trading SPACs.

I just made my first SPAC trade … I’m excited to see how this emerging method of trading shapes up in the coming months and years.

A New Product Release That Almost Broke the Internet

My Thanksgiving 2020 has to include gratitude for this. When my student Matthew Monaco and I started talking about developing a low-cost trading bootcamp, I thought it was a good idea.

When we developed it and filmed it, I knew it had real potential to help new traders get a handle on the market…

But what I didn’t anticipate when I released the 30-Day Bootcamp to the world was that it would explode like it did. The reviews have been phenomenal.

It’s an incredible resource for new traders, but it’s a great refresh for traders who have been at it and might need to brush up on the basics.

It’s also a great stepping-stone to the Trading Challenge. The Challenge is a serious program that requires serious dedication.

Jaw-Dropping Charitable Contributions

I trade to teach, not to become rich. I’m already rich! These days, I donate all my trading profits to charity.

I love giving back … It’s been a big part of my personal development to progress past spending my money on stuff like cars into the world of giving back. I love the work that I do with my charity, Karmagawa.

I’ve donated a lot this year. But for Thanksgiving 2020, I’m looking back at one of the year’s most significant donations — $1 million to the people of Yemen.

I couldn’t have done it without my platform and amazing followers.

Earlier this year, I put out a call on social media to help me raise money to support the children of war-torn Yemen.

And you showed up. Thank you.

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With the combined efforts of your donations plus efforts by Karmagawa and a personal donation by me, we collectively raised $1 million for the people of Yemen.

It was featured in the New York Post … And it got a mention in my recent Forbes feature, too.

Thank you AGAIN to everyone who donated!

Tools for Continued Growth and Learning

tim sykes challenge students
Pictured Left to Right: John Papa, Jack Kellogg, Dominic Mastromatteo, Timothy Sykes, Don Mastromatteo, Matthew Monaco, Kyle Williams

The market’s been insane this year … to take advantage of it, traders need to do anything and everything possible to get an edge.

It’s no secret that I depend on StocksToTrade on a daily basis to scan for the most promising penny stock plays.

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

But this year, they’ve come out with some amazing new add-ons that make the already-great screener even better.

For instance, the Breaking News Chat has become my lifeline for finding news fast. This is an amazing curated news service run by two stock market pros who scour chat rooms, news outlets, and all the resources at their disposal to find the news related specifically to low-priced stock plays.

Another great service they’ve added? Small Cap Rockets. This is an alert system that comes from a place of knowledge and experience featuring finds from Matthew Monaco (yep, the same student who assisted with the 30-Day Challenge), John Papa, and StocksToTrade’s SteadyTrade Team lead trainer Tim Bohen. It’s getting rave reviews.

Lucky for you, they’ve got both of these top-notch add-ons available at ridiculous prices for one week only as a massive Black Friday/Cyber Monday sale. Don’t miss out on these deals.

  • 50% off your first month of Breaking News Chat* — use coupon code bnc2020
  • 50% off your first month of Small Cap Rockets — use coupon code scr2020

Get the full details of the sale and how to use those coupon codes here.

*First month discount on Breaking News Chat — up to 50% off your first month. One-time additional prorated charges may apply, then renewing and recurring monthly along with your base subscription at the standard monthly rate.

Thanksgiving 2020: What Are You Thankful For?

Thanksgiving 2020 is the perfect time to pause and reflect on what’s been going on this year.

Yeah, there have been tough times in 2020. But there’s also so much to be thankful for. The market volatility, the many new emerging sectors, all of the incredible trading resources out there…

I’m wishing the best to you and your family this Thanksgiving. I hope you have a stress-free and relaxing holiday. But don’t get too lazy … take some time over the weekend to study up and be prepared, because I don’t think this hectic market is going anywhere!

What are you most thankful for this year? How is your trading different during Thanksgiving 2020 compared to last year?


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Author card Timothy Sykes picture

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

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* 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”