Why do skilled traders teach/train write books?

[Chewbacca]

There is a huge amount of courses out there, training days, CD/DVDs, books etc.

It's the same in many areas not just investing, e.g. property, personal development etc.

Being cynical I could take the view that many are just chancers/scammers which would be true in many cases but there are some who are reasonably successful also doing this. Presumably for these it is a useful sideline.

But what about people who are successful, why do they do it? From recollection Buffett met Ben Graham when he was lecturing investing, don't recall whether Buffett also did some teaching, think he may have, but what is the motivation for those? Is it egotistical, self promotion, can't imagine lecturing in a college like Ben Graham would have generated huge money?

 

[pboyles]

Well the vast majority of what you see is not written by skilled traders it's written by skilled marketers who are just promoting the latest get rich quick fad. Many of them are fraudsters who will switch from one subject to another once they get caught. For instance the guys that were offering mentorships and managed forex accounts recently were selling slimming supplements a few months ago. Likewise another 'mentor' called Aussie Rob was shut down by ASIC but then immediately started a mentoring business for restaurants.

 

[NVP]

99% are just chancers

The few genuine ones teach for noble reasons alongside their philanthropic gestures

sharing their knowledge that may help others in the future

sounds corny ....but true ..like Buffet

N

 

[NVP]

And this PR doesnt do them any harm in their ongoing businesses as well.........believe me

 

[trendie]

If they're skilled and their trading is profitable, then maybe it just breaks the monotony of trading, which, generally, is a solitary activity.

What about successful athletes who utilise their athletic fame and then go off and make money as motivational speakers?
Do they honestly believe that the 300-400 people they give a pep talk to will all become Olympians?

 

[Chewbacca]

I think athletes and other doing motivational speaking is different, that's not really to inspire athletic performance unless talking to athletes more about mindset, motivation etc in all aspects of life.

Interesting I'd heard of Ausssie Rob and that the courses weren't so great...I can think of someone in the UK who would be a good candidate for the same treatment.

PR, yes maybe though I wonder if say with Graham if it was more passion/altruism for trading.

 

[WallStreetHero]

Most are scams, marketers just looking for money. HOWEVER, there are stuff by experts and professionals like Benjamin Graham, Philip Fisher, Peter Lynch, Toni Turner, Dr. Alexandra Elder, Michael Douglous, Steve Nison etc.

The reason why experts and professionals may want to publish books or courses maybe because they either want to position themselves as an authority in the industry and become some kind celebrity(EGO) or they might just want to help other people and give back (UNLIKELY) or they might just want a bit of both (MOST LIKELY)

 

[BeginnerJoe]

But what about people who are successful, why do they do it?

The truly successful find that success comes to them rather easily. So giving some of it away is no great loss to them. Also for some humans, they are born with the desire to teach. If they are successful and teach, they are merely satisfying an innate need that is selfish in nature but altruistic in effect.

Then there are the mediocre who do it only for the money. The passion would not be there to allow them becoming more than mediocre since they don't have this burning innate need.

Cynicism is good but it needs to be intelligent. I find it easy to identify the successful from their psychology. So I don't have a blanket cynicism for altruism.

 

[new_trader]

I don't know. I've never written a book and I've only posted free advice in this forum.

 

[neil]

Try James16 at Forexfactory -he has a private forum that is not advertised- but you get more than enough from the free stuff. read PAGE ONE first.

james16 Chart Thread @ Forex Factory

 

[thelazytrader]

A great question: "Why do skilled traders write books". I get questions like this all the time from my clients and back in the days when I was being mentored, I wondered why too...

As a trader, mentor and author, I would like to give you my reasons:-

Not only do they provide additional income streams in a profession which does not guarantee a daily, weekly, or indeed, a monthly income, they also act as an outpost to network with other traders or newbies as trading from home can be a little isolating.

As a mentor, I personally like to make a difference and imparting my knowledge onto other people is very rewarding - especially when they “get it”. The truth is though, that my style of trading which is 'End of Day' barely requires any maintenance or monitoring throughout the day so I am faced with this abundance of free time which lends itself to enjoying lifestyle, mentoring and writing.

Of course I do not speak for all authors of trading related material - but I hope my reasons helps to address your question.

Happy trading!

 

[thelazytrader]

Most are scams, marketers just looking for money. HOWEVER, there are stuff by experts and professionals like Benjamin Graham, Philip Fisher, Peter Lynch, Toni Turner, Dr. Alexandra Elder, Michael Douglous, Steve Nison etc.

The reason why experts and professionals may want to publish books or courses maybe because they either want to position themselves as an authority in the industry and become some kind celebrity(EGO) or they might just want to help other people and give back (UNLIKELY) or they might just want a bit of both (MOST LIKELY)

Agreed. There are a lot of scammers out there. If you are looking for a mentor then demand to see their results. Anyone who refuses or says "they don't have to" or "why should they" is most likely a fraud. Often is the case of those promising the most riches are most likely to be a fraud.

 

[DionysusToast]

There is a huge amount of courses out there, training days, CD/DVDs, books etc.

It's the same in many areas not just investing, e.g. property, personal development etc.

Being cynical I could take the view that many are just chancers/scammers which would be true in many cases but there are some who are reasonably successful also doing this. Presumably for these it is a useful sideline.

But what about people who are successful, why do they do it? From recollection Buffett met Ben Graham when he was lecturing investing, don't recall whether Buffett also did some teaching, think he may have, but what is the motivation for those? Is it egotistical, self promotion, can't imagine lecturing in a college like Ben Graham would have generated huge money?

Well - scammers aside, why would anyone write a book?

Why would a succesful pilot, doctor, actor, politician , businessman write a book?

Why does Steven King even bother? I reckon the guys not really a proper writer myself - he's just scamming people into thinking he is. If he was really a successful writer, he wouldn't need to write books.

 

[thelazytrader]

Well - scammers aside, why would anyone write a book?

Why would a succesful pilot, doctor, actor, politician , businessman write a book?

Why does Steven King even bother? I reckon the guys not really a proper writer myself - he's just scamming people into thinking he is. If he was really a successful writer, he wouldn't need to write books.

Fair point- I think in the case of traders who trade on their own at home it's perhaps the need for validation. There are some very good trading books out there which have inspired me no end (ie. Raghee Horner, Wayne McDonnell) but you can be sure they even though they give a fair amount of their "method" away - they would will never give you their FULL strategy...and why should they for small fry like $9.99 - especially if they, like many highly successful traders of this age, lost a lot of money in their journey to get consistent.

 

[BigPointValue]

I agree with NVP; just take a look at Buffet's annual newsletter! He and Charlie Munger literally spell out how to make money every year but few people bother to listen. Technical traders could learn a lot from these guys.

Regarding cynicism, I'd define it differently: Healthy scepticism is good; cynicism is bad. The most devastating thing for a new or intermediate trader is being certain of an idea and then watching it crumble in a heap when traded live or properly tested (on out of sample data).

An attitude of positive scepticism is likely to lead to new hypotheses. That same attitude should be applied to the ideas of those who say they are sharing "amazing" trading secrets with you. i.e. There may be something in it...

Look for the ideas and try them out.

 

[MrLeverage]

Read a book on Buffet recently. Impressive man.

 

[gedward3]

Try James16 at Forexfactory -he has a private forum that is not advertised- but you get more than enough from the free stuff. read PAGE ONE first.

james16 Chart Thread @ Forex Factory

Neil but wasn't he outed as a scammer a while back.

The Pin Bar crap that has been spouted by god knows how many people new and old on this site and others.

 

[Kinley14]

I believe, they think, it's their time to give something back to the community they've looted for so long

 

[forever_young]

I believe, they think, it's their time to give something back to the community they've looted for so long

It would be nice to us) But I believe that people, who can earn really big money, won't just share their knowledge with others... It would be too stupid from them)

 

[c6ackp]

Agreed. There are a lot of scammers out there. If you are looking for a mentor then demand to see their results. Anyone who refuses or says "they don't have to" or "why should they" is most likely a fraud. Often is the case of those promising the most riches are most likely to be a fraud.

I'll take the bait - let's see your results then (BegJoe is on an "ism" course today)