Tag Archives: Humphrey Neill

Ten Ways to Lose Money in Wall Street by the Market Cynic (1930)[1]

After many hours of toil and deep thought I have compiled a dependable guide for stock traders: Ten Ways to Lose Money in Wall Street. I shall not attempt to explain or qualify these precepts, realizing that my readers will doubtless follow them regardless of any advice, from any source, to the contrary.

1.  Put your trust in board-room gossip.
2. Believe everything you hear, especially tips.
3. If you don’t know—guess.
4. Follow the public.
5. Be impatient.
6. Greedily hang on for the top eighth.
7. Trade on thin margins.
8. Hold to your own opinion, right or wrong.
9. Never stay out of the market.
10. Accept small profits and large losses.

**Your Editor will add:

• Never read the proxy before and after investing.
• Never look carefully at the financial and financial footnotes before investing.
• Never look at the terms and conditions of debt if the company has debt outstanding.