But not all Turtles were successful after the program. The next chapter is all about the Turtles’ strategies, risk management, position sizing and rules around it. Dennis and Eckhardt were very strict about their rules and they had to let some people go, so not everyone made the cut. One of the key factors here is why people with outstanding intelligence can be terrible traders.
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If you like the review, I recommend to read the whole book. Some of the true / false questions asked from the applicants are listed in the book and I tried to quickly answer them myself. It sounded too good to be true to many and it did change the life of so many people. More detailed descriptions about the legendary ad, people who applied, what they had to do in order to get selected, what kind of traits Dennis and Eckhardt were expecting from the applicants. Some thoughtful points from Richard Dennis about luck in trading.
There are twenty more like you, just starting out in commodities, all sitting around trading these huge sums of money. “Buy high and sell higher,” and “sell low and buy lower,” are the fundamental, but counterintuitive concepts of trend trading. He is recognized for his efforts in popularizing the story of the Turtle Traders and their trend following methodology. Covel’s work focuses on educating traders about systematic approaches to the markets and the importance of risk management.
What role did psychology play in the Turtles’ trading success in The Complete TurtleTrader?
For two weeks, Dennis taught them his investment rules and philosophy, and set them loose to start trading, each with a million dollars of his money. Dennis taught the Turtles his theory-driven quantitative trading approach – mechanical trend-following based on a set of rules. It’s the story of the famous experiment in 1983 about teaching a group of inexperienced people to become traders led by Richard Dennis and his partner William Eckhardt. The ongoing experiment shows that there is more to it than just following mechanical trading rules. In a bizarre twist to the story, in spite of how rigid the trading rules were, Dennis’s allocation of capital to the Turtles themselves was not uniform.
Salem Abraham: Second-generation Turtle success story
The inspiration came from a trip Dennis took to a turtle-breeding farm in Singapore, stating, “We are going to grow traders just like they grow turtles.” Covel’s segment discussing what separated a successful Turtle, Jerry Parker, from his less successful peers is perhaps the most insightful portion of the book. One of the most interesting segments of the book covers Salem Abraham, who by chance met one of the original Turtles, took a 180 degree life turn, and began his own highly successful fund.
- The moral of the story is that trading can be learned and you don’t need to be born with special skills.
- This is where we get to the heart of the Turtles story.
- He is recognized for his efforts in popularizing the story of the Turtle Traders and their trend following methodology.
- The next chapter is all about the Turtles’ strategies, risk management, position sizing and rules around it.
- These rules worked—and still work today—for the Turtles, and any other investor with the desire and commitment to learn from one of the greatest investing stories of all time.
- For those who like inspiring books about successful trading, this one is as good as they come.
Many readers found the story of Richard Dennis’s trading experiment fascinating, praising the insights into trading psychology and risk management. Richard Dennis, a successful Chicago trader, believed that trading skills could be taught to anyone, while his partner William Eckhardt thought trading success was innate. Because Covel so clearly lays out these ingredients of success, his book is relevant not just to trend traders, but to anyone who aspires to greatness in the markets. A very enlightening portion of the book concerns Richard Dennis himself, the ending of the Turtle experiment, and the master’s departure from his own trading rules and principles. Michael W. Covel narrates how Richard Dennis, a successful commodities trader, taught 23 novices his trading strategies, transforming them into millionaires.
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Anyone interested in the Turtles story, in the psychology of trading, or just a great American story period should read this book. The only condition is that you have to follow the trading rules exactly as they were taught in the first two-week training session. To settle a bet with his business partner about whether traders could be taught or were simply “born,” the an experiment was conceived. You’ve no doubt heard a bit about Richard Dennis, the trend trading pioneer who discussed his mid-1980’s Turtles experiment in Market Wizards.
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Trend following takes a small town guy at a gas station to trading legend worth $100 million? “The book was wonderful…”Michael ShannonOriginal TurtleTrader “I did enjoy the book…I hope it’s doing well for you.”Tom ShanksOriginal TurtleTrader This inevitably leads money managers to refine (and ultimately eviscerate) the Turtle methodology. Investors who place their money in funds simply don’t want to see 20% of their money evaporate in a quarter.
- It is the only narrative account of trader Richard Dennis and his student traders nicknamed the ‘Turtles’.
- For these reasons this book is an easy pick for my list of top ten trading books of all time.
- “Buy high and sell higher,” and “sell low and buy lower,” are the fundamental, but counterintuitive concepts of trend trading.
- Anyone interested in the Turtles story, in the psychology of trading, or just a great American story period should read this book.
How did the Turtles’ performance vary after the program ended in The Complete TurtleTrader?
The students were going to trade the firm’s money and be able to keep a part of the profits. The two men decided to put their debate into action and through the training experiment find out about the nature vs nurture aspect. For Dennis money was just a way of keeping score. Richard Dennis had always thought trading to be something that could be the complete turtletrader review learned. Simulated trading programs, in general, are also subject to the fact that they are designed with the benefit of hindsight.
Michael W. Covel’s The Complete TurtleTrader chronicles Richard Dennis’s experiment to turn 23 novices into millionaire traders in the 1980s. This is the original Turtle trading site. Comments and insight welcome If you would like to be notified of future book reviews, please sign up to my low volume e-mail announcement list. The answer takes wisdom and solemn reflection but clues are sprinkled copiously throughout the book. Part two take place after the experiment, when the Turtles have to face the real world as individuals and human nature reenters the picture.
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That’s a formula for success in any field of endeavor, which may be why the Turtle story finds universal appeal. It is this well-rounded perspective that makes “The Complete Turtle Trader” complete and a definitive contribution to the trading literature. The Turtles were traders in the 1980s trained in a trend-following methodology by Richard Dennis and William Eckhardt.
The Books
The Complete TurtleTrader was Covel’s second bestseller and Stocks, Futures, Options Magazine named The Complete TurtleTrader as one of 2007’s top 10 trading, investing and personal finance books. After having a debate with his partner, William Eckhardt, about whether trading is learnable or an inborn talent, they proposed an experiment where they would spend two weeks training novices in the science of trading and then give them each $1 million to invest. There are quite a few resources there, including articles on money management and trend following.”Brett SteenbargerTrading coach, Psychologist, Author And, by the way, for readers who want to dig a little more into Turtle trading before purchasing Michael’s book, I recommend his website.
This is the true story behind Wall Street legend Richard Dennis, his disciples, the Turtles, and the trading techniques that made them millionaires. The moral of the story is that trading can be learned and you don’t need to be born with special skills. I have read about the traders featured in this book and listened to them on podcasts. There were couple of guys from the group who tried to make easy money by selling Dennis’s rules.
These rules worked—and still work today—for the Turtles, and any other investor with the desire and commitment to learn from one of the greatest investing stories of all time. He reveals how they made astounding fortunes, and follows their lives from the original experiment to the present day. He describes how Dennis interviewed and selected his students, details their education and experiences while working for him, and breaks down the Turtle system and rules in full.
Large drawdowns inevitably accompany the quest for large gains, and it’s those large gains that ultimately provide trend following with its edge. For those wanting access to the Turtle philosophy and rules, they’re laid out clearly and unflinchingly. He also casts a critical eye on his subjects, investigating why some Turtles found long-term success and why others didn’t.
This created tension, rivalries and confusion among the group, a fascinating story in and of itself. The rules are not difficult to grasp – in fact, in the program’s second year, the training for the new recruits was cut down to just one week! This is where we get to the heart of the Turtles story. Most traders try to apply the old adage, “buy low and sell high,” which is why most traders fail. Dennis was a trading genius and a quick study.
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