5 comments about 9 Steps to Financial Freedom: Practical and Spiritual Steps So You Can Stop Worrying; Revised and Updated Version.

1. 
   I found this small, hand held, version with nothing profound. Simple common sense



2. Having just gone thru a divorce, Suze Orman gives you the financial down-to-earth motivation you need to move on. Her heart-felt honest advice gives you that feeling that you CAN and WILL be able to handle your money no matter how it is affecting your life.



3. I wanted to like this, and there is some good 101 style advice in there about lump sum versus slower investing and trusts versus wills but this is basic info - the rest is baby boomer rubbish about "attracting money" with your beliefs, treating money as a "cherished friend" etc. She says it makes you "powerless" to help people out financially, that you should not help your kids pay bills, and that the only "powerful" way to give away money is to give it to your parents because you owe them for having you, and to give your money to a charity or church. So baby boomers if your gen x kids are swimming in debt from student loans hand more money to charities and places of worship and don't "lose power" by helping your kids. There is nothing in here for people under 40 and/or those struggling to start out in life under a mountain of student loan debt. Pass this one by.
   
   I strongly recommend "Pat The Money" as the antidote to this book.



4. I love suze, but i didnt know this book was 2 inches big. It is a litlle tiny pocket sized book, for a person of very small pockets:) I didnt realize how miniature, minature edition was.



5. Getting young people early on and actually learing about finances before it gets out of hand is a wonderful concept all parents need to have to instill in their/our children!
   Suze Orman make thing so simple and easily understood.
   Her approach should be taught in High School and beyond.

5 comments about Trading to Win: The Psychology of Mastering the Markets (Wiley Trading).

1. Ari Kiev's book Trading to Win might seem like just psycho-babble to some traders. That is odd, given that some of these same critics are devout followers of technical analysis, which premises that psychology factors firmly into market movements. Why then is it such heresy to believe that you can improve the performance of a trader by working on his psychology?

   It is not a strange concept to Steve Cohen, who hired Ari Kiev as a "trading coach" for his hedge fund S.A.C. Kiev, who was profiled in Jack Schwager's Stock Market Wizards , teaches that traders need to stretch themselves in the goals they set. They also need to eliminate the negative thinking that prevents them from reaching those goals. Much of Trading to Win is thus actually "common sense" (as is most psychology, it seems), but sometimes it is useful to hear someone reiterate sound principles.

   One principle for which critics have taken Kiev to task is his suggestion that traders should set or raise their profit goals, which seems like a veritable "no no" from a risk management perspective. The criticism misses the fact, however, that Kiev is really saying that raising your performance goals means raising your work ethic. What are you going to do to raise your game? Squeezing out extra percentage points of return requires getting onto the trading floor hours earlier (or hours later) than you normally would-and researching companies more assiduously on paper or by working the phones harder. Moreover, Kiev actually recommends stricter risk management through such time-tested techniques as understanding your reasons for each trade, as well as the setting of target entry and exit prices. He also wants you to figure out if fears and doubts are keeping you from cutting your losses and riding your winners.

   This book is clearly not for everyone; it is easily too "touchy feely" for traders concerned solely with the quantitative or more tangible aspects of trading. Kiev also tends to float heavily from topic to topic, often without a clear path. But for those traders who wonder how "fixing their heads" might result in greater success, Trading to Win is definitely worth a read.




2. This book is about developing the right attitude and relaxing. It can be applied to almost any risk taking endeavor or competative profession.
   
   The parts that profess to teach about trading per se are not useful. This book will not teach anybody anything about buying or selling financial products.
   
   It repeats a lot of the same stuff over but the real message is to chill out and get serious about performance. Be a winner, examine your losers and why you went wrong and vow to change for the better. Again, have the right attitude and approach and learn to control stress with breathing exercises and muscle relaxation. To be a good trader, one must learn to endure stress and not react to it just to releive it but focus on the trade and do what is right based only on the objective analysis. This is hard to do because it is pleasurable to close out a trade and avoid the stress of being in it.
   
   The book is useful in order to help one focus and work through stress. I imagine there are a number of self-help books that are similar in this regard. Nothing special.



3. 
   The Trading profession is a tough one because there is not 1 school that teaches it per say. So being only about 300 to 400 good books on trading. You need to get a bit from each and discard the rest.
   
   There are a few but very valuable pieces of information that can be applied in this book. Just because 80% of the content of a book does not apply to you does not make it bad , you have to be objective and open in your assessments.
   
   If you are a trader and want to be a Master Trader then this book is really for you.
   
   I personally only trade futures at the moment so all of the Stock examples did not really apply to me.
   But that does not make the book bad, there are little gems in there you will seem them sparsely around the book specially in Part 1 and Chapter 12
   
   Chapter 12 is worth the price of the whole book on its own !!
   
   At the beginning of the book there is some really good content on behaviour modification for traders the chapters at the start of the book are worth the price of the book in it self.
   
   No book is ever the perfect book for you unless you wrote it yourself. You need to get bits and pieces from here and there and make your own.
   
   If you like Mark Douglas's "Trading in the Zone" then you will love this book.
   
   This is an absolutely excellent book, but all of the goods are in 20% of the text.



4. This and his other book, Trading in the Zone, are a complete waste of time. Instead, read the books by Mark Douglas (he is not even trained as a psychologist) and Richard McCall if you really want something that will change your mental makeup towards trading.



5. Because it is unquantifiable and generally misunderstood by most traders and investors, psychology is the often overlooked intangible aspect of trading. Unlike the precise mathematical formulas used in technical analysis, we cannot easily reduce human behavior to a mathematical equation that can be plotted on a graph as a trend line or as a series of variables that we can examine in detail throughout history.
   
   That said, much current research in the social sciences is attempting to bring psychology more in line with mathematics for the precision that it gives to experimental methods. Mathematical methods are applied to behavioral science for the purpose of observing and comparing human behavior according to a set of strict numerical criteria - the only stable benchmarks that allow comparison of behavior from person to person and from time to time

1 comments about The Auditor: An Instructional Novella.

1. This is a nice resource for audit students or new auditors. I doubt it would be entertaining for most others. The book was written as an "instructional novella" for students and it offers some good information on public accounting audit careers.
   
   The story follows the career of a fictional auditor in a large, fictional firm in Oakland, California. He goes through various typical experiences to give students insight into what public accounting and auditing is really like. This is the type of information that is hard for students to come by. The story follows the career of a star, and may create an overly optimistic impression of what an audit career might be like. But the author also throws in some of the negatives. The narrator is asked by both managers and clients to makes some questionable moves, and he and others suffer from the grind of being over-worked, and even outside of the expected busy season. He also points out that pay is not quite in balance with the level of work and responsibility.
   
   I think this book would have been better if it didn't focus on a fast-rising star. The narrator made partner at age 32, after nine years, which seems pretty fast to me. The book does offer some good information and helps new auditors know some of what is coming, but I wouldn't expect most careers to follow this path. However, I would still recommend it for anyone who is considering a career in public accounting.

3 comments about Wiley CIA Exam Review (4-Volume Set) (v. 1-4).

1. This is an excellent series for assisting in obtaining my CIA. The number of self exam questions really helps in preparing and understanding the concepts. This is a better product then the GLEIM books



2. I purchased the series to assist in preparation for the upcoming CIA examinations and must admit the books are very confusing. Ideas are presented in a very disjointed manner and I am unable to determine the main trend or ideas shared after having read a couple of pages.
   
   There is also information overload as the ideas do not flow naturally from one to the other, and it takes along time to complete one chapter.
   
   The content is good but the explainations are not very clear as to how they all fit together.



3. This book is well conceived and really help in preparing the exam. It gives an answer to key issues.

4 comments about Keys to Reading an Annual Report.

1. Even thought this book is five years old, the information still applies to the year 2000. As a person who now works iin finance, I know that detail is extremely important. This book certainly does its job by being very detail oriented. I graduated froom a very pretigious business school in which finance is actually the best subject taught, and I have to admit I think this little guide puts many pricey finance/accounting and finance professors to shame. It's also probably a good little guide for kids as well, to give them a headstart in the world of finance.



2. This small manual concisely and succinctly presents the major elements of financial statements in easy to read, line-by-line format. It is not only ideal for the average investor without an accounting background, but also for the accountant who needs to explain financial statement concepts and presentations to others. Its examples are easy to relate to and quite illustrative. I regret this wasn't available when I tried to decipher "Accounting 101".



3. 
   
   
   "Keys To Reading An Annual Report" by George Thomas Friedlob and Ralph E. Welton is a wonderful, little book for all investors. Each of the fifty, three-or-four-page sections covers a key concept that investors should understand when reading a public company's annual report and other financial statements.

   "Keys To Reading An Annual Report" is no substitute for a complete text about financial statement analysis, such as "The Analysis And Use of Financial Statements," but "Keys To Reading An Annual Report" is an excellent first read for new investors who are learning to understand financial statements. And, experienced readers of annual reports will probably find this book a useful review.

   Some of the fifty key topics covered include:

   --SEC Forms 10-K, 10-Q, and the 8-K
   --Current Assets
   --Cash and Receivables
   --Cost of Goods Sold and Inventories
   --Property, Plant, and Equipment
   --Depreciation
   --Intangibles and Other Assets
   --Depletion and Amortization
   --Current Liabilities
   --Bonds and Amortization
   --Owner's Equity
   --Classes of Stock
   --Treasury Stock
   --Discontinued Operations
   --Ratio Analysis
   --Taxes and Tax Deferrals

   Many of the topics "Red Flag" things to which investors should pay special attention. For example, the chapter about Depreciation Red Flags: "The basis for long-lived asset valuation is historical cost. Because depreciation does not measure actual decline in value, the net book value of a long-lived asset (historical cost - accumulated depreciation) is not a good measure of the cost of replacing the asset. Neither is net book value a good measure of what the asset would bring if sold." (i.e., depreciation expense is a way of expensing the long-lived asset. And, the balance sheet only lists the so-called "unexpired cost.")

   The red flag also discusses the difficulty in comparing depreciation across different companies because of the different ways depreciation may be computed.

   The section about Treasury Stock tells us: "Stock Issued by a company may later be reacquired by the company. In some cases, the company may retire or cancel this stock. When reacquired stock is not retired or canceled, it is referred to as treasury stock." (there is a nice glossary at the end of the book.).

   Friedlob and Welton point out that treasury stock is not an asset. "A company cannot create an asset by holding stock in itself."

   However, because the reacquired stock may have been reacquired at a different price than it was originally issued, the wealth within the company can change in such a treasury stock transaction. For example, suppose stock is issued for $20 per share, but reacquired for $2 per share (it's an internet company!), then, somehow, the company has taken in $18 per share on the transaction. How is this accounted for in the financial statements?

   Friedlob and Welton explain: "Just as treasury stock is not an asset, a loss or gain cannot result from treasury stock transactions. 'Things' happen that you and I would call a 'loss' (reacquiring treasury stock for $20 per share and later reissuing it for $12) or a 'gain' (reacquiring treasury stock for $30 per share and later reissuing it for $40). But it is illegal for a company to produce a gain or loss transacting in its own stock. When total stockholder's equity is decreased by treasury stock transactions (a loss), the decrease is generally taken directly from retained earnings. No loss is taken... When total stockholder's equity is increased by treasury stock transactions (a gain), the increase is recorded as a separate source of capital called Paid-In Capital from Treasury Stock Transactions."

   So, by reading a little, two-page section about treasury stock in Keys To Reading An Annual Report, you probably now know more than 99% of all investors know about treasury stock!

   "...If you are new to investing, you might also want to pick up a copy of Barron's "Keys To Investing In Common Stocks," which is an excellent first read for investors.

   Peter Hupalo, Author of "Becoming An Investor"




4. This book is very succinct and the explanations for each accounting concepts are very easy to understand and easy to remember. The "Red Flags" after each concept are very useful in pointing out all the possible problems that may arise. While the strengths of this book is his conciseness, it does require you to have some basic accounting background. Otherwise, some of the explanations may seem confusing. Having said that, if i am reading an annual report, I would definitely want to have this book beside me. Happy reading!

5 comments about Technical Traders Guide to Computer Analysis of the Futures Markets.

1. This book is nothing special. I really disagree with the author's interpretation of the ADX indicator. Absolute level is far more important than slope. The day trading systems shown will lead you to the poor house in no time. Presents some novel ideas though.



2. I know Charles Lebeau. He does occasional system seminars with my father Dr. Van K. Tharp one of the "Market Wizards" and author of Trade Your Way to Financial Freedom. Charles Lebeau is a great trader. When anyone ask me about a technical indicators book this is the one. Charles is very through. He noticed the best traders in the industry are usually right 30% to 40% of the time. They just cut their losses short and have these huge winners. Charles tested most of the major indicators against random entry i.e. (Flipping a coin) most of them don't do any better. Your exits, psychology, and money management determine if you are making money or not. Don't pay too much attention to your entry. This book explains his results and how to use each indicator. Almost any indicator will work with proper money management. I done well even with flipping a coin and the right stop. The indicator best for you is one you feel comfortable with and will stick with. BUY THIS BOOK and hopefully what I wrote may make some sence to you.



3. I only discoverd this pretty old book recently. I am suprised to find there are quite a lot of trading tips. What make this book stands out of the crowd is the tips were very concrete and practical. The discussions about exit and stop loss are parcticular good. Many other books just said cut the loses quick. How quick? When? This book gives you some hints. The authors also give some tricks in using indicators which I hope I could know earlier.



4. This book gets a 4 stars rating because of its expensive price (the book is only 220 pages and full of empty spaces). But, price is always subjective. You may treat it as the cost of your education.

   Anyway, what makes this book so very valuable is the fact that it is easy to read, clear, definitive, and yes it has so many valuable information on what parameters to use for each indicator. How many of you left confused on what parameters should be used? This book will definitely clear away the clouds in your mind.

   LeBeau has done extensive research on indicators such as ADX and his insights on other popular indicators are extremely valuable.

   The title may be slightly misleading because bulk of the contents is explaining each technical indicator (120 pages), while only 45 pages on explaining how to build a trading system. Yet, it is clear and concise.

   The final Chapter is also valuable. It deals with 12 Day Trading systems that the author has selectively chosen out of all day trading ideas he has or has received from other great traders.




5. This book is a must read for Trading System Developers. The concepts can be applied to many markets. The section on testing alone is worth the price of the book.
   
   www.iExpertAdvisor.com

No comments about Investing in an Uncertain Economy For Dummies (For Dummies (Business & Personal Finance)).

5 comments about Schwager on Futures: Technical Analysis.

1. I first read his book in paperback "Getting Started in Tech Analysis." Both books cover the same info, except the above reviewed book has more details on trading systems and has a lot more graphs and examples, which I felt I did not need. I would recommend the less costly paperback version - it is EXCELLENT!



2. I read this book ... I was thoroughly impressed.

   I had read Schwager Market Wizards books after I had read this Technical books on trading. And although I liked it, I found many of the charts and graphs quite tedious. On the other hand was thoroughly impressed at level of information that was being presented. This book is a permanent part of my collection solely because it reads more like a college text book than a commercial investment book. He really delves deep and makes you think about what futures really are and what it takes to decipher their movements. I am looking forward to his comments on single stock futures.




3. Schwager's book is great - it covers technical analysis, price risk management and even a bit on system development.



4. I found other books on TA to be more useful for reading straight through and overcoming the learning curve on TA (e.g. Technical Analysis Explained, Martin Pring *****).
   
   Although, because this book contains so much information, it is a great reference to have in your library. You will find yourself looking for more information on topics that other books don't cover in a lot of depth, so it is important to have a few good reference books.
   
   It also contains sections on developing strategies which some may find useful, although, "THE" single best resource on developing a strategy is Schwager's Market Wizards series (5x*).



5. For anyone interested in a technical rather than fundamental approach to trading (like we are), this book has to be considered the definitive text. Although oriented around futures trading, all the information presented is equally relevant to any instrument type with a little thought and adaptation.
   
   This is more of a reference text, and contains too much information to simply read it once and put it back on the shelf. If you study this book, by the time you get to the end you will know as much about technical analysis as you ever needed to know, and will probably have thought of a significant number of ideas for new trading systems as well.

5 comments about Best Practices in Planning and Performance Management: From Data to Decisions (Wiley Best Practices).

1. An entertaining, insightful book - I found it useful in describing how benchmarking can be used to good effect in practise - in real situations - from someone who has definitely been there and done it. Our organization can certainly use the advice here - big time - and save ourselves a bunch of consultancy fees into the bargain!



2. 
   According to David Axson, traditional planning and management reporting processes "are simply too slow, too detailed, and too disconnected for today's competitive world. Managers are seeking new decision-making processes and tools that enable them to shorten the cycle time to make and implement a decision." This book offers processes and tools to meet that need, what Axson characterizes as "the current "state of the art" practices, based on the benchmarks and client experiences of The Hackett Group of which Axson was a co-founder. As with so many other business books, this one responds to an important question, in fact to two:
   
   What is the best level of performance to be achieved?
   How is it to be accomplished?
   
   Axson organizes his material with three Parts. First he explains why best practices can be "a vehicle for performance improvement," then describes the best practices for "each element of the planning and management reporting process - strategic planning, operational and financial planning, management reporting, and forecasting." Finally, in Part III, he provides insights into "the steps required to design a benchmark, build a best practices process, understand the critical success factors for implementation, and the importance of effective leadership. As I read Axson's book, I felt as if I were examining the contents of a "tool kit," with the book serving as an instructions manual.
   
   Over recent years when retained by corporate clients to help them reduce cycle time while improving first-pass yield, I was frequently aware of the fact that the cycle time and first-pass yield of those initiatives were themselves "too slow, too detailed, and too disconnected for today's competitive world." I mention this because the same may be true of initiatives to identify and then implement best practices. Quite properly, Axson does not suggest which best practices to select but he offers invaluable advice as to how to ensure that their implementation is both effective and (key word) efficient.
   
   He asserts that best practices must effect a measurable improvement of performance, be applicable across a broad spectrum of comparable organizations, be proven in practice, take full advantage of proven technologies, ensure an acceptable level of control and risk management, and get the skills and capabilities of the given organization in proper alignment. It is important to note that (a) his observations and recommendations are anchored in an abundance of real-world experiences and (b) are best viewed within a continuous and integrated process rather than as separate, autonomous initiatives.
   
   On pages 19-20, Axson identifies the basic steps of best practice marketing: identify an opportunity for improvement, determine whether or not it justifies taking action, investigate the reasons for a "shortfall" in performance, identify the best practices which can be applied, and then focus on implementing the change(s) to achieve substantial improvement of the given organization's operations. To me, some of the most valuable material in this book is provided in Chapter 6, "Operational and Financial Planning: Translating Ideas into Action." He guides his reader through the step-by-step process.
   
   In this context, I am reminded of what Peter Drucker once said in an article written for the Harvard Business Review in 1963: "There is surely nothing quite so useless as doing with great efficiency what should not be done at all." Hence the importance of determining, first, which "shortfall" in performance is in greatest need of reduction, if not elimination. However, when making that determination, beware of responding to symptoms rather than to root causes. It is often helpful to use the "fishboning" technique: When discussing with associates a specific question or problem, ask "Why?" and in response to the answer, ask "Why?" again and continue to do so in this manner to each of least five subsequent responses to it. This admittedly an irritating but frequently productive process.
   
   Decision-makers in any organization (regardless of its size or nature) will benefit substantially from the information, insights, and suggestions which Axson provides in this volume. To repeat, he does not suggest which benchmarks to select but does correctly emphasize that benchmarks must meet four primary requirements. They must be objective, quantifiable, credible, and actionable. Implicit, presumably, is another requirement: that a benchmark is relevant. One final point: What is a best practice today can soon become the norm and then the "shortfall" in need of attention. In that event, Axson's book will have provided an excellent preparation to respond to it effectively.



3. What Axson does is define what a best practice is. How it does not apply only to one company or industry. How anyone can adapt an existing one or, in fact, invent a new one for the benefit of other companies and industries.
   
   Plenty of examples what companies do right and wrong and how to find the "low-hanging fruit" of common mistakes and right those mistakes using best practices.



4. Author David Axson provides practical best practices for the company interested in solving one its most crucial bottlenecks in creating value. It provides a clear roadmap for the "integration" of strategic planning, budgeting, forecasting and reporting. In most companies today these are fragmented or disparate processes that lack synchronization.
   This book is an excellent reference guide with clear, concise examples. A real interesting read.



5. This is a very practical book that quickly gets to to best practices. I like the case study of how American Express eliminated budgets.

1 comments about Taxation for Decision Makers, 2008 Edition.

1. The seller is definitely not from the U.S. I wanted to return the book and she said no because i got a good price and i could sell it. Beware!!!