You Can Be a Stock Market Genius Even if You’re Not Too Smart - Book Summary

Posted on January 28th, 2008 in Book Summary by David H Walker

So, I’ve been realized that other than holding on to some shares of Microsoft since my 16th birthday, I really know very little about the stock market—and picking winners.  I figured I’d lessen the gap of knowledge a bit by picking up a couple books on investing in the stock market.  Here’s what I learned from the first one:

You Can Be a Stock Market Genius Even if You’re Not Too Smart: Uncover the Secret Hiding Places of Stock Market Profits
by Joel Greenblatt

  1. increase # of stocks to decrease risk. (seems obvious, i know…but there was this cool set of statistics mentioned the book that shows the risk going down 75% when you have 4 stocks and all the way up to something around 80 stocks.  never seen it written out in statistics like that, rather than simply saying “don’t put all your eggs in one basket”)
  2. Buy spin-off companies.  (This is was the biggest point of the authors.  Says this is where the guaranteed cash is. There’s proven statistics on it)
  3. invest in companies that might be acquired soon
  4. invest in good companies that are coming out of bankruptcy.
  5. invest right after corporate restructuring has been announced
  6. look for cool concept stores and invest in their public parent company (if there is one)
  7. the Wall Street Journal is the best source for investment news.  (I guess this makes sense given that the WSJ Online is one of the few successful subscriber based periodicals online. Now that you know what tips off a good investment you can make sense of the news.)
  8. Look into investment newsletters (but it costs some cash to subscribe)
    1. Outstanding Investor Digest - the best
    2. The Turnaround Letter


So I’m going to start reading the financial news more, watch the announcements, etc.  Mainly looking for company spin-offs as the authors seemed so confident as money makers.  Was searching for a website or blog that specialized in making announcements like this, but have yet to find one.  My first investment may not be for a little while, but I’ve got my ETrade and Zecco accounts all ready to go.

Popularity: 57% [?]

Is your advertising simply false hope?

Posted on January 16th, 2008 in Marketing, Advertising by David H Walker

It does not make sense to have an advertisement that appeals to a small group of people in a mainstream location.

For example, I saw a big poster on the wall advertising a cement truck company.  When people see this, it does not apply to them.  Find out where cement truck customers go, and advertise there!  I’m not sure where that is—perhaps near a a construction site, cement supply store, industrial areas, Home Depot type places, etc.  But not just randomly in the middle of mainstream walkers!

Probably the biggest reason this is a problem is because it makes you feel as if you’re putting yourself out there—you’re advertising.  It’s this sense of “I’m working towards success!”  But in reality, putting up that ad was a waste of your time.  It will not bring you any new customers.  And no, it does NOT help build brand awareness, despite what some may say. As soon as it’s looked at by someone who’s not in your niche market, they dismiss it almost instantaneously.  It’s viewed as an interruption—spam.  In effect it may even promote negative brand awareness.

We’re not in the same kind of interruption-based advertising world we used to be. Grow up!

Popularity: 76% [?]

Trump: How to Get Rich - Summary of Main Ideas

Posted on January 13th, 2008 in Book Summary by David H Walker

Trump: How to Get Rich by Donald Trump

I just read this book in one sitting. It was a casual, fast read. I didn’t have super high expectations as the reviewers on Amazon only rated it 3/5 stars. There were a few good nuggets of wisdom, though, just as I had hoped. Here are my favorites:

Manage people tip

  • “People have different ways of achieving results. I enjoy figuring out how each of my key employees excels. If people are your resource, you’d better try to learn something useful about them. Being able to do so is what makes a good manager a great one.”

Be an informed world citizen

  • “Perhaps one of the reason I’ve been able to sell and rent apartments to people of so many foreign nationalities is that I’ve made an effort to understand where they’re coming from.”

Be detail oriented (I still need to work more on this one)

  • “If you don’t know every aspect of what you’re doing, down to the paper clips, you’re setting yourself up for some unwelcome surprises.”

Public speaking (tailoring your speech to your audience)

  • On winging a speech 5 minutes before showtime: “all in all, it was a valuable lesson in public speaking. Think about your audience first. The rest will fall into place.”
  • Never read off your note cards. You can have the best written speech, but the audience will feel it’s contrived.

Comparing yourself to others’ achievements. Don’t do it.

  • “Comparing ourselves to others is a waste of time. I’ve heard people say, “well, Mr. Lucky had a million dollars before he was thirty and I’ve worked just as hard as he has.” Well, Mr. Lucky has nothing to do with you, your possibilities, your success, or your failure. Don’t let anyone else be your yardstick. That’s taking power away from yourself in a big way.”

Popularity: 64% [?]

Communication from your front line workers

Posted on January 4th, 2008 in Entrepreneur Articles, Interconnectivity, Marketing by David H Walker

Willie, a delivery guy from Dean Foods, comes to Mozarts Coffee in Austin TX every day at 12noon and goes through the same process. With a huge cart on wheels stacked with gallons of milk, he clumsily navigates his way down 7 stairs and then up 3 stairs. I wonder if anyone has ever thought of giving him an easier way to deal with this. It’s got to hurt his back. He looks to be in his mid 50s.

Companies have got to listen to their workers on the front line. But more importantly, the workers must know that their opinion matters that way they’ll be thinking about making things more efficient.

Popularity: 71% [?]

Why Mainstream Advertising Creates a Dying Paradox

Posted on January 2nd, 2008 in Marketing, Advertising by David H Walker

Paradox goes as follows:

  1. Company A buys mainstream advertising. Ex. TV advertisement
  2. Competitors, Companies B & C, must spend extra money on ads to keep up with Company A. This causes an oversaturation of messages to consumers, which decreases effectiveness (and sales).
  3. In response to decreased effectiveness and decreased sales, Companies A, B, & C spend more on advertising.
  4. Cycle repeats.

I wonder how companies can spend their advertising budget with a bit more innovativeness and subsequently eliminate this otherwise inevitable paradox.

P.S. Happy 2008. ;)

Popularity: 69% [?]