Last week I spent time in Minneapolis speaking to the local CMT Association chapter and while I was there we had the opportunity to interview and speak with some prominent technical analysts. One individual we got to spend an unforgettable afternoon with was a friend and personal mentor of mine, Ralph Acampora.
I have known Ralph for many years and he was one of the first people who encouraged me to get involved with the CMT Association, which I later became of for a time. While we did do some interviews and a lot of talking for StockCharts TV, one thing that I reflected on during the plane ride back was something Ralph taught me early on, and that is not to take myself too seriously.
Ralph spent 50+ years working on Wall Street and one of the most valuable and impacting things he shared with me while I was learning and going through my CMT programs years ago, was this: “Amateurs know the rules, the experts know the exceptions.” I still carry this with me today.
At the time, I was talking to him about expertise and learning the entire tool kit and how to analyze stocks and commodities. He continued that learning the tool kit was not the end of my journey; rather it was only the beginning. As you start learning all of the pieces and move throughout your career, you will learn how your expertise has value when the unexpected things happen. You learn how to adapt and adjust (and will have the battle scars to prove it) as you learn the exceptions to what works and what doesn’t work.
Having a mentor, especially early on in a career, and especially one like Ralph, is an invaluable resource. I am nineteen years into a career (hopefully with many more years ahead of me) and I am still seeing how right Ralph was with that statement.
This also forces me to think about how I can still continue to grow as an analyst. I learned the tool kit early on and still learn new things. However, my experiences now are learning different ways to continuously use the tool kit as the market continues to change.
My daughter and I have been watching a series of YouTube videos where a gentleman goes up to people and attempts to communicate with them conversationally using their language. He has learned to speak languages fluently, simply by just trying it.
My encouragement to you today is to consider what role(s) you are in and learn new ways to apply your existing lessons and tools. Think about learning the rules and guidelines as learning a language. Learning grammar is good, but putting the language into practice and conversation is really where you will learn the most, earn your ‘battle scars’, and gain the most expertise.
RR#6,
Dave
Disclaimer: This blog is for educational purposes only and should not be construed as financial advice. Please see the Disclaimer page for full details.
