Want to learn about stocks and investments.

[ajizzle]

i just graduated from college with a degree in math, and was recently got a position at Charles Schwab as a trader, working on the phones. Anyways, I'm increasingly interested in finance, money management, stock markets, and investments. But I have absolutely no knowledge of the subject. Can anyone suggest books, websites, tv shows that will get me a good start in the field. I've been fairly successful in poker, so taking a similar approach to learning stocks would be great.

[ski]

[ QUOTE ]
and was recently got a position at Charles Schwab

[/ QUOTE ]

You mean you didn't get a degree in grammer?

j/k

"intelligent investor" is good.

[Nomad84]

[ QUOTE ]
You mean you didn't get a degree in grammer?

j/k

"intelligent investor" is good.

[/ QUOTE ]

It's grammar. Or was that part of the joke? [img]/images/graemlins/confused.gif[/img]

[UCLAseetoK]

How did you get a job out of college as a trader without any actual trading knowledge or experience? I don't mean that as any type of insult, as I got a job out of college as a commodity trade analyst without a relevant background.

[ajizzle]

this might be hard to answer without sounding arrogant, but....

1) it's an entry-level position. they are basically gonna teach me everything.
2) math majors are generally (not always) as or more intelligent than graduates with other majors.
3) I interview well.

[mal_noles]

What are you going to be trading? I dont know of any traders that use the phone all that often anymore.

[yellowbastard]

How did you get the interview? What has the job been like so far?

Read Buffett's letters to shareholders here

[ajizzle]

to the best of my understanding, my job is to take calls from people with Schwab accounts, make trades on their accounts as they please, and then advise them on market trends, hot stocks, etc. i can't be sure exactly what the job is like because I havent started yet. I begin training on july 23rd, and the first month is spent studying for/taking the series 7/63. the next month is spent actually training for the position.

[APXG]

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What are you going to be trading? I dont know of any traders that use the phone all that often anymore.

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Trader as in Michael Lewis in Liar's Poker = salesman. Calling random rich donks and asking them to buy $hitty stocks. Perhaps the farthest thing from actual trading possible.

[Carl_William]

ajizzle
addict


Reged: 09/26/03
Posts: 462
Loc: Tempe (formerly Seattle) Want to learn about stocks and investments.
#11070924 - 07/05/07 07:27 PM







i just graduated from college with a degree in math, and was recently got a position at Charles Schwab as a trader, working on the phones. Anyways, I'm increasingly interested in finance, money management, stock markets, and investments. But I have absolutely no knowledge of the subject. Can anyone suggest books, websites, tv shows that will get me a good start in the field. I've been fairly successful in poker, so taking a similar approach to learning stocks would be great.


Hi ajizzle,

It seems to me you haven’t told cognizant people at 2+2 much to go on concerning your position at Chas Schwab.

I’ll give you some of my opinions.

A trader is usually an experienced person (probably always) who uses brokerage money to trade securities and make a buck for the brokerage house. Since you have no experience, there is very little chance that you will initially be trading for SCHWAB to make money for them.

It’s been my recent experience that current young Schwab (or TD Ameritrade, etc)stock brokers (or so called account executives) are people who are trained to try to get people to move their 401Ks, 403Bs, and IRAs (or accounts with other brokerage houses) into Schwab accounts. There are many unsophisticated baby-boomers and retiree’s with large accounts, and are ripe for the taking. All of the brokerages houses are trying to get these accounts. For instance, if a young broker can get a baby-boomer with a million dollar 401(k) to move this account to Schwab or TD_Ameritrade (whatever) this could mean five to ten thousand dollars a year for the brokerage house for maintaining this account. Enough of these accounts can add up to big bucks.



As a sidebar or side note; I would like to mention things that happened at my company about 18-20 years ago. My company is a good-sized Dow Jones 30 aerospace and other products company. We had probably the best 401(k) plan at that time in the USA – the company matched up to 8% of the employee contribution (IBM at that time only matched 5%). Anyway, some of our office employees evidently passed on how much money my company employees had in their company saving accounts (which eventually became 401(k) accounts). A few investment companies (some with well known names) came into this information and invited hundreds of my fellow engineer workers to free breakfasts, dinners, and wine tasting parties.

Another sidebar: I do my trading over the Internet, but when I visit the brick & mortar brokerage building where I have a few accounts; I don’t see many smiling account executive faces. They just ask me to move my IRAs, and 401(k) to them (no way will I do this). In fact, I’m planning to move most of my accounts to the Vanguard Group.