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242 HOW TO MAKE MONEY IN STOCKS—GETTING STARTED

5. Did you continually weed out laggards and focus your money on
your best-performing stocks?
One common—and costly—mistake many investors make is they sell
their winning stocks and hold onto their laggards. That’s exactly the
opposite of what you want to do. To build a winning portfolio, always
shed your weak or losing stocks first.
Cut all losses short, and look for chances to steer money into your
best-performing stocks when they form a 3-weeks tight or other alterna-
tive buy point. In other words: Maximize your returns by making your
biggest gainers your biggest positions.
See the 8 “Secrets” of Successful Selling (Chapter 5) and Alternative
Buy Points (Chapter 6).

Turn Your Past Mistakes into Future Profits

If you ask these questions for each of your trades—and answer them hon-
estly!—you’ll avoid making the same mistakes in the future. That’s how you
generate even bigger profits for the rest of your investing career.

• ACTION STEPS •

To take these steps, visit www.investors.com/GettingStartedBook.

• Watch my 2-Minute Tip video: 5 Questions to Help You Do
a Profitable Post-Analysis.
• Use the questions above to review any trades you’ve made
in the last 12 months.