This week I’m visiting New York, and while I have been on the road I have had a lot of time to think. One of the quotes I have given significant thought to lately is a quote by a famous investor and hedge fund manager, Bruce Kovner.

Financial media, specifically financial television, tends to get a bad reputation. People refer to it as noise and discuss how financial TV has a tendency to sensationalize things. Personally I don’t feel that this is a fair assessment, rather I think it is important to look at how you are using financial media to influence your own thoughts and beliefs on the market.

Fall is upon us and for many of us, that means the excitement of football season has finally arrived!

Being a life-long Cleveland Browns fan been a tough life. As someone who has grown up a Browns fan, seeing them leave Cleveland and the organization starting over it is always interesting to see how the team has developed each year.

A recent Barron’s article quoting a couple of my technical analyst industry peers made a number of comparisons between technical analysis and astrology. 

 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 a secret. I love video games.

One of my favorite games a few years back was a game called Batman Arkham City. It was a childhood dream of mine to BE Batman and fly through Gotham City, fighting crime, helping the police, and chasing the Riddler – and this game allowed me to do exactly that.

I am just wrapping up my first week of hosting my closing bell show on StockCharts TV, The Final Bar (you can catch it on weekdays at 4pm EST). Most of the days this week I have had the opportunity to have a guest on the show. This has given me the opportunity to pick the brain of some really capable market strategists and analysts. The one thing that has struck me the most is that I give them 3-5 minutes to give me their individual take on the market and most of them are coming at me with really long term charts.

When I first started to learn how to fly an airplane I very quickly learned the value of checklists. You don’t just take the plane out to the runway, and fly. There are a hundred odd meticulous steps you must go through individually to ensure that the mechanics of the airplane are fully functioning, and the safety gear is also ready to go.  While a checklist does not minimize the chances of something going wrong, it certainly lessens the probability.

One of my goals for 2019 is to read more long-form, timeless wisdom which will further my quest toward being a more thoughtful investor. 

It’s been two months since I last posted a book list, mainly because I did not do a lot of joy reading when my entire library was still in moving boxes!  The good news is we’ve settled in well to the Pacific Northwest and I’m happy to report that the Dave Keller Library is back open for business.

“The road to mediocrity is paved with good intentions.”