Page 815 - How to Make Money in Stocks Trilogy

Breaking Boards: Successful Trades and Lessons Learned 91

The CAN SLIM rules are something that appealed to Jerry, and he
learned the importance of going to cash if the market was in a downtrend.
Jerry says he also learned why “the buy and hold strategy will kill you.”
Jerry had been successful trading options but was concerned about his
401(k). When investing in his “nest egg for the future,” he uses the paper and
Investors.com to locate potential big winners and invests in CAN SLIM stocks.
Jerry has learned to keep his losses small and sticks to the 7 to 8% sell rule
without fail.
He bought Apple shortly after the follow-though day on December 21,
2011, knowing the importance of buying stocks after a follow-through day in
order to capture the moves of the best performing stocks. He bought Apple
at $396 and sold April 11, 2012, at $624, logging in a gain of 57%.
His strategy is simple: follow the overall trend of the market by reading
The Big Picture column in IBD daily, look for the market’s biggest leaders
through the many features found in IBD, and buy them as they break out of
price consolidations. Take most profits at 20 to 25%, and stay in touch with
other investors to help discuss the general market as well as leading stocks.
Jerry started a Facebook trading group as a way of sharing information
with other like-minded investors. He says that trading is a very isolating
thing. “It’s easy to get too elated or down on yourself with your trades. You
need to communicate with other people to stay balanced.”
Jerry is also a member of the IBD Diamond Bar Meetup Group and says
the quality of teaching and intelligent participation within the group has
helped him solidify many of the CAN SLIM principles.

• KEY POINTS •

• Follow the overall market trend by reading The Big Picture
column.

• Look for the market’s biggest leaders through the many
features in IBD.

• Join an IBD Meetup Group.

John Mackel
John is a lawyer and the leader of the Pasadena IBD Meetup Group, one of
the most active IBD Meetups in the country. In order to keep the conversa-