Remembering the life and legacy of Van K. Tharp. Click here to view memories

Core Concepts and Considerations

Trader Self-Evaluation

/ 6 minutes of reading

By Van K. Tharp, Ph.D. Posted on October 30, 2018 A note to readers: While Dr. Tharp’s content is timeless, this article is from a past publication and may contain outdated information, missing links or images. I believe the most significant work that anyone can do to increase market returns is self- work. Really understanding yourself and how you think can give you an edge that others in the market don’t have. As part of my training, I give a long questionnaire to each trader to do an evaluation of […]

Trader Self-Evaluation Read More »

Your Beliefs About Trading

/ 2 minutes of reading

Posted October 16, 2018 A note to readers: While Dr. Tharp’s content is timeless, this article is from a past publication and may contain outdated information, missing links or images. You do not trade the markets—no one does.  Now that might sound surprising to many of you.  But what you really trade are your beliefs about the market.  Furthermore, your ability to do so is tempered by your beliefs about yourself. I’d like you to write down your beliefs about yourself.  These beliefs will typically start with words like I am I feel I

Your Beliefs About Trading Read More »

What Can We Expect From a Trading System?

/ 6 minutes of reading

What Can We Expect from a Trading System? by D. R. Barton, Jr. Posted on June 13, 2018 A note to readers: While Dr. Tharp’s content is timeless, this article is from a past publication and may contain outdated information, missing links or images. I really enjoy small sayings that capture the essence of issues. During one of our trading courses, we were discussing various trading systems and execution platforms. One of the attendees summed up the essence of where the responsibility for performance lies by saying, “It’s the dancer,

What Can We Expect From a Trading System? Read More »

The Loss Trap By, Van K. Tharp

/ 9 minutes of reading

The Loss Trap By: Van K. Tharp Ph.D Posted on October 16, 2018 A note to readers: While Dr. Tharp’s content is timeless, this article is from our newsletter archive and may contain outdated information, missing links or images. Do you remember playing with a toy called the Chinese Finger Trap when you were a child? This toy is a woven straw cylinder with an opening at each end just large enough for a finger. Once you insert a finger in each end, you are in the trap. You pull

The Loss Trap By, Van K. Tharp Read More »

System Performance

/ 9 minutes of reading

June 13, 2018 A note to readers: While much of this article’s content is timeless, it is from a past publication and may contain outdated information, missing links or images. Part I “When I was losing, they called me nuts. When I was winning they called me eccentric.”— Al McGuire, college basketball coach “That system I bought stinks! The first three trades I made with it were all losers. I wasted a thousand bucks on that piece of junk! I’ll never trade that thing again.” I have heard such tales

System Performance Read More »

Scroll to Top