Anatomy of a port snapshot

We've always said that the stock market is a game or contest between yourself and hundreds of thousands and even millions of traders out there. In this dog eat dog world, you will need every advantage to get ahead. And you will need all these little things since they will add up. 

One of the best ways to improve your trades is to document them. This is one of the secrets that differentiate an average trader from a good or even great one. 

Taking port snapshots is one way for us to be able to grade ourselves in this game. Think of it as our report card to check our progress in our trading journey. Like an iceberg, the port snapshot is just the culmination or the result of our hard work. 

What you don't see is the work and difficult times that we had to endure to get to the level of achieving those port snapshots. 

The port snapshot can tell if we did enough preparation and legwork in doing our trade plans and if we were able to execute properly on these said plans. It can tell a lot of things if you only know how to look hard enough. 


Let's take a look at the most common components of a port snapshot:

STOCK NAME/CODE - This shows that out of the 200+ stocks out there in the PSE, a trader is able to identify which one would make a possible move. A port doesn't need to have too many stocks in it to earn. Contrary to popular belief, too much diversification is not good for your investing/trading. 

PORTFOLIO % - Sometimes a 100% allocation does not mean that the trader went 'all in' with no money left to spare. Maybe the trader just saw that this was the only stock or setup worth trading and only used a portion of their port allocation there. 

Nevertheless, the higher the allocation, the higher the conviction of the trader in that stock. 

AVERAGE PRICE - The entry price of the trader to the trade. If all buying was done in one tranch then this should be on an ideal breakout point and easy to trace. If buying was done in tranches, the aep should only be slightly higher than the ideal breakout point.

Having a great AEP shows the precision of the trader's entry. It can also usually show the trade profile of the trader. A bounce player or tsupitero or a position trader. 

CURRENT/MARKET PRICE - The exit price of the trader to the trade. The trader could have set GTCs and sold at this particular price. 

PERCENT GAIN/LOSS - Similar to the current/market price this can be treated as the final grade of the trader for a particular trade. Again, they could have sold here using GTC or sagasa sell. 

BLACKED OUT PORTIONS - This is usually for security reasons to protect the trader. But some traders out there would rather not have any blacked out portions and are secure enough with themselves that they feel it's not necessary. Kudos to them. 

See the many possible stories in one port snapshot? Learn to read between the lines and maybe it can help you to improve in your own trades. 

This is the beauty of people posting port snapshots, it can serve multiple purposes. One is to prove that it is possible to make it in the market. Another is to show that we walk the talk and don't just post analysis on a variety of stocks. First and foremost, we at the tribe are traders. We do this for a living and to earn. We want to prove to others that it is possible to trade full-time. That it is possible to survive without relying on tips and analysis of others. 

Keep this in mind next time you see someone post a port snapshot out there in the world wide web. Don't just admire or be jealous of the gains. Stop and try to dissect it. That might help tremendously in your own trading. 

It is possible to live the dream. You just need to work for it. 

So to all my fellow traders out there, cheers!

Choosing the right mentor

Just like what a wise creature from a galaxy far, far away once said, there is always an apprentice and a master or mentor. That is the way things work in the universe, wherever you may come from.

In the current stock market setting, multiple mentors have come up in the hopes of guiding or showing newbies the way to profits or even just respectable trading. These mentors have come in all shapes and sizes. 

Given the variety of choices, how do you choose which mentor is the right one? Well, here is a simple analogy on how my mainframe chose to be mentored by the entity known as Zeefreaks. I'll make it easier for the basketball loving fans out there, let's say you were given a choice of being mentored by Gregg Popovich of the San Antonio Spurs or Phil Jackson of the Chicago Bulls/LA Lakers and now NY Knicks.

Here is a list of their achievements:

Gregg Poppovich 5 time NBA champion 3 time NBA coach of the year

Phil Jackson 11 time NBA champion 1 time NBA coach of the year

It looks like a tough decision huh? Like choosing apples and oranges as they say. One doesn't seem to be so different from the other. Both of them are extremely and highly qualified. Their achievements speak for themselves. So they passed the first criteria. Moving on to the next checklist.


Here is a list of their NBA tree (a list of general managers and coaches in the NBA who have trained with either one):

Gregg Poppovich

Phil Jackson

Click the images for a better view

As you can see, the NBA tree of Coach Pop is much more diverse and it's branches have reached to almost a third of the NBA teams. That is quite an achievement! As for Phil's tree, it doesn't look to have too many branches. There seems to be something that limits the passing on of his success to others. 

This trait is what my mainframe puts more weight on. A good mentor should not just be good and inspiring and all that. They should also be able to train people to replicate their success. For what is the point of following or learning from a mentor if you are left in the same state as you were in before following them. The best mentors should take you under their wing and help you to take flight by yourself. 

This is why I think the ZF system stands out from all the rest. There have only been several batches yet the number of successful students have been increasing with the passage of time. We may not have achieved ZF or Kap's level of consistency or foresight but we have all been taught to stand on our own. And I know for a fact that we will continue on our journey in the stock market. Some of us even turning into mentors for new batches as well. 

And that is the mark of an excellent mentor.