The Rule: How I Beat the Odds in the Markets and in Life―and How You Can Too
$12.20
In The Rule, legendary trader and hedge fund pioneer Larry Hite recounts his working-class upbringing in Brooklyn as a dyslexic, partially blind kid who was anything but a model student―and how he went on to found and run Mint Investment Management Company, one of the most profitable and largest quantitative hedge funds in the world. Hite’s wild success is based on his deep understanding that markets are flawed―just like people. Through his early-life struggles and failures, Hite came to know himself well―his fears, his frustrations, his self-doubt, and his tolerance for all of the above. This motivational book reveals that by accepting the facts of his life and of himself, he was able to accept markets as they are. And that was the key to his success.
Introduction:
Part I tells the story of my childhood and teen years and how as a dyslexic blind kid who did poorly in school, I eventually found my way into a calling. I share my four foundational principles and how to apply them to the game of money and the game of life: (1) Get in the game, (2) don’t lose all your chips, because then you can’t bet, (3) know the odds, and (4) cut your losers and run with your winners. First, you need to understand who I am, why I chose the life I did, how I think, and how these principles can help you.
In Part II, I tell the story of these principles applied to the larger world. This includes the story of how my partners and I founded Mint, which became the largest hedge fund company in the world and the first to trade a billion dollars. The trading I did was based on sophisticated research and computing, but I have tried to demystify our process and show how you can use it to build wealth even if you go a different direction than me. I also share specific mechanics for the novice and principles for the advanced trader to consider as well. What’s most important to me, however, are not the exact mechanics but the overall philosophy I have developed, which I believe is valuable for everyone from young to old, regardless of your country.
As I share my experiences, you will see how my early failures forced me to adjust to failure. More important, all major fortunes are built on a lot of small losses, which pave the way to big wins and success. When I deliver talks to university students, I often discuss the seven questions they should ask themselves:
- Who are you?
- What is your goal?
- What game do you want to play?
- Where are you playing the game?
- What is your time and opportunity horizon?
- What’s the worst possible thing that can happen?
- What will happen if you get what you want?
This book is called The Rule because one of my chief goals is to share how the same trading philosophy I used to achieve success with money can also be effective in other aspects of life—from love and marriage to career decisions to how you cross the street. I hope my words inspire you to consider the odds that underlie all of those major decisions in your life—the ones you might not be thinking critically enough about right now. Because I am a trend follower, I ask you to look carefully at the trends and numbers you are following in your life. No one can know the future, but what are those trends and numbers telling you?
Contents:
- Know Who You Are: How I Learned from Failure
- Find the Game You Love: My Education as a Trader
- Working the Odds: Your Time and Opportunity Horizon
- Trend Following: Cut Your Losses and Let Your Winners Run
- How to Lose Money, Including How I Lost Millions
- Making Mint: Know Where You Are Playing the Game
- How My Philosophy Can Work for You: Applications of the Rule
- And the Philosophy Continues to Work: The Next Generation
- Conversations with a Young Trader—with Kolade Oluwole
- You Have Choices: Persistence Pays Dividends
The Rule: How I Beat the Odds in the Markets and in Life―and How You Can Too By Larry Hite pdf
| Author(s) | |
|---|---|
| Format | |
| Pages | 243 |
| Publication Year | 2020 |
10 reviews for The Rule: How I Beat the Odds in the Markets and in Life―and How You Can Too
Only logged in customers who have purchased this product may leave a review.
Related products
Desmond Coleman (verified owner) –
Great book.
Marcelo Wilcox (verified owner) –
This book might be a game changer as far as the perspective of risk management. Not only does Larry Hite gives a perspective of risk management from an equities standpoint. He gives a risk management perspective from a lifestyle standpoint as well.
Turner Fowler (verified owner) –
I love this book. Mr. Hite has the ability to make the readers think about possibilities that pertain to trading and life. What a champion for those who need a mentor in his brilliant book. Thank you Mr.Hite!
Leon Wiley (verified owner) –
An underrated book on the principles of trend following. A must read for swing and position traders.
Derek Quintana (verified owner) –
Larry Hite’s autobiography tells the story of a true market wizard who, as young man, most wrote off due to his poor eyesight, dyslexia, and clumsiness. It’s a story of optimism and grit by one who ingeniously used his natural limitations as sources of strength. Hite became so accustomed to failure in his youth that rejection as an adult in the world of business did not faze him or slow him down. Combined with his natural intelligence, mental math ability, and extroversion, that thick skin helped him build the largest systematic hedge fund of its day, Mint Investment Management Company.
At first glance “The Rule” reads as an entertaining autobiography with personal stories from Hite’s life and words of encouragement for newer traders. But, on a deeper level, Hite builds a case that his success is not a fluke. On the contrary, he argues that anyone who seriously seeks to make a living as a trader/investor needs to set clear and specific goals, maintain unwavering persistence in the face of failure, and overcome personal shortcomings by involving others with complimentary skills. The latter forms a big part of Hite’s success. He generously shared his firm’s profits with people who brought important skills to the table such as statistical analysis and information technology.
This is not a “how-to” investment book in any sense. Hite’s “Rule” and other savvy tips will not be news to most investors or speculators. Hearing them again from one of Hite’s accomplishments does, however, reinforce one’s belief in their value. Most important in my mind is his admonition to stick to a system or, better yet, a mix of strategies, without variance. That is the only way to measure your edge with confidence to enable tweaks and improvements over time.
You have to read between the lines to pick up nuggets of wisdom that you can use for further research on your own. Hite mentions game theory, Bayesian analysis, and systematic trend following as important elements of his success. But he does not probe or even explain these things at more than a very basic level, if that. The failure to explain a bit more about those technologies short-changes readers to some degree, many of whom buy a book like this to help them open new avenues for their own research. The book includes no reference section or footnotes to point readers towards helpful books, articles, or websites to learn more.
Perhaps the key lesson to take away from this book is summarized in Hite’s now-famous basic rules about trading and life (first published 32 years ago): (1) “If you don’t bet you can’t win,” and (2) “If you lose all your chips, you can’t bet.”
Larry Hite’s “The Rule” is a worthwhile read for any serious market participant. Investment success is as much a matter of psychology, attitude, introspection, and grit as compared to method, strategy, or luck. Reading the biographies of great traders can help you learn stuff they do not teach in school.
Lauryn Daugherty (verified owner) –
I bought this book thinking to improve my trading abilities. It is almost 300 pages. What was said could have been said in a few pages and add another 20-50 for Larry’s life issues that are inspiring.
Briana Douglas (verified owner) –
Larry Hite is an icon in investing. This book is a classic – a must read if you’re serious about investing.
Lennon Benson (verified owner) –
interesting story for sure, and some decent life-coaching inspiration, so if you are buying it for that then you’ll be happy – but I don’t think that’s what most people buy it for. A lot of bluster, a treatise on how to lie and b/s people, nonsense repetition and inconsequential flim flam, all written at a level intended for an elementary school audience, over-simplified and incomplete. Don’t buy this book
Julia Roy (verified owner) –
A great perspective on the markets and trading in general. My take aways .. 1) Don’t take a position that could cost you so much that you can’t get back in the game 2) Run profitable positions until they turn around, the point at which, as we all know, is very hard to determine. 3) Don’t jump on a trade because you think it’s completed its run, ie don’t catch the falling knife or sell the highs. It’s a fun read from someone who has enormous confidence, determination and sense of fun.
Marcel Jensen (verified owner) –
My son is looking for ways to help save money and build his informative categories as an engineer with the stock markets!. This book talk about the authors experiences and is meant for setting good examples for your own. Must have!!