A little while back, a story about a mountain lion attacking a horse circulated through our rural “neighborhood.” Someone told me that she heard the lion had raked (pulled claws across) the hindquarters and neck of the horse. This, of course, put us on high alert, as we always have at least four horses on our little ranch tucked far away from the reality of most.
Mountain lions live among us. I carry a gun when we ride and when I hike with my dogs, but I don’t worry about this reality. In the years I have been out here, we have coexisted nicely. When we see one another, we simply go in opposite directions, so when I heard this story, I naturally wanted to know the facts. The first bit of research I did was to ask another neighbor if he had heard anything about this. He had, and his story included a hired worker had also been attacked. Then I heard from another “source,” the Department of Fish and Game had sent out a tracking team to find and kill this lion, and it succeeded. Well, something about all of this seemed “off,” so I called my friend, who happens to be the District Ranger for these parts, and I asked her directly what she knew of the story. She told me that yes, my neighbor had reported a mountain lion attack, and no, a hired worker was not attacked, and yes, a tracking team had been dispatched, and no that team did not find, nor did it kill a lion. Furthermore, there were no marks on the horse’s neck, and the marks on the hindquarters could have been from a mountain lion, coyotes, or barbed wire, for that matter.
What does this have to do with trading? More than you might think. You see, one thing I have learned over the years of studying markets is that rumor often obscures facts, that stories often displace reality, and that in order to truly understand a market, or markets in general, or to avoid potential ripofffs, one has to do the work of getting down to the facts. This is especially true with the nonsense flowing on the Internet these days and from the mouths of many on the tube who have an agenda. Gold is going to $5,000, the DJIA is going down to a 1,000, and, this company is on the verge of acquiring the rights to a huge oil field somewhere in the hinterlands of Asia, for example. My point is, no matter what the trading topic, whether it be the price of gold, a hot stock, or a trading system that promises consistently high returns, take the time to do your research. If you do, you will come to the reality of whatever it is, and, perhaps, you might even find out something else that will help you trade more successfully, which brings me back to my lion story …
In my discussion with my friend the District Ranger (research), I learned something of great interest (fact), something that raised my awareness and has made me a better inhabitant of these parts. What I learned from her that day will help me avoid potential future problems. She told me, “By the way, just about two miles east of your property is the spot where we release mountain lions captured in southern California that have wandered into highly populated areas.” Like I said, knowing the facts makes one more aware of reality, and allows one to better do whatever it is he or she does, whether it is avoiding mountain lions or trading.
Trade in the day; invest in your life …
