5 comments about Stimulated!: Habits to Spark Your Creative Genius at Work.

1. Pek and McGlade's book is as promised: an idea-packed, fun, and yes, stimulating book. This book tickles the recesses of your brain to help you mine your creativity, ingenuity and have fun doing so. Recommended for knocking the cobwebs from your mental gearbox.
   
   TK



2. If Holden Caulfield Were in My Classroom: Inspiring Love, Creativity, and Intelligence in Middle School Kids
   
   Thank you Bernie Schein for you refreshing contrast to No Child Left Behind.
   
   Pat Conroy says you are funny. I say you are an inspiration.... and funny.
   
   Through sharing a series of heart felt, sensitive and often funny stories, Bernie demonstrates how personal attention, honesty and love in the classroom can unleash children from the shackles of rote learning and standardized testing so they are finally free to learn, to be creative and prepared to embrace the challenges and opportunities of citizenship.
   
   Once Schein understood how education really can work, he abandoned the contraints of education administration and returned to the classroom where, for over forty years, he shared his gift of teaching and learning with hundreds of young ones as they made their way into adulthood and productive lives.
   
   BERNIE FOR SECRETARY OF EDUCATION. Not really, just go back to the classrom and do your thing. Teaching is an individualized process not something that can be dictated from above.
   
   Billy Keyserling



3. Anyone who has ever taught or had a loved one in middle school knows the job of teaching them takes special talents. Too often we lose children intellectually and emotionally during this period. If Holden Caulfield Were in My Class is a beautiful treatise on the art of teaching and learning with depth and understanding. The grasping of how government works, writing with clear and concise ideas, and working within a school community are skills which Mr. Schein brilliantly teaches his students. But this book is in a greater sense about love and compassion. The author shows this love by listening, allowing freedom of ideas, and searching for the best in each student. In his book he allows the reader to share the respect and awe and often hilarious humor that has come from teaching adolescents. Everyone who wants to improve American education should read this book.



4. I don't have kids in middle school. I'm not a teacher. But this book speaks volumes to me. The writing is so vivid and raw, I can smell the fear that is so much a part of growing up. I recognize every kid I hated and admired in school. If Bernie Schein had been my teacher, I might have learned to love them anyway.



5. As a teacher of middle school children, I've been waiting for a book like this. Yet it's the only one out there! Beyond wise, it's visionary and it inspires hope for educators of children. Here is the workable and beautiful alternative to unworkable educational policies. Here is the methodology for a pedagogy that offers children pathways to their potential. Here is the humanitarian way to finally, finally celebrate school. Every educator really ought to read and implement this book. Mr. Schein is a genius with heart. I wish I'd had him as my teacher during those confusing and alienating years. He's what I most needed. He's what all children need. So read this book. And find a way to make it work in your school. It makes the days positive, and it makes the kids happier.

1 comments about Hold On, You Lost Me! Use Learning Styles to Create Training that Sticks.

1. I have read many of Bernice McCarthy's books and this one is the most concise, concrete, and practical book she's published. The book's central message is simple - when we design training that honors the learning styles of our participants, we are most likely to create a learning experience that is engaging, practical, and applicable to their lives.
   
   Bernice and her co-author, Jeanine, explain the 4MAT learning model, left-brain and right-brain processing, and a simple and powerful process for designing effective training. They talk about the importance of figuring out the learning outcomes, organizing the content, and identifying/defining the concept that underlies the content. Even though they don't talk a lot about auditory, visual, and kinesthetic learning, these three approaches are implicitly captured in the 4MAT model.
   
   I have been using the 4MAT model to design professional training for many years and I am ecstatic to see that Bernice has published this book. Bernice's 4MAT model has been extremely influential in the work I do as a professional instructional designer and a workshop design coach that it's become one of the most valuable models I use to design and facilitate learning. I'm relieved that this book does not contain the flowery, poetic language of most of Bernice's previous books. This one is accessible, readable, and practical. Buy it and transform the way you think about how learning should be designed and experienced.
   
   [...]

No comments about Quantitative Business Analysis (Custom Edition with CD).

5 comments about Worry-free Investing.

1. This book has major flaws. First the "worry free" investment strategy relies on a base of Social Security Income, an unrealistic assumption given the demographics of our country. Second the yields on Ibonds and TIPS are too low and the savings rate required too high to be a realistic plan for most American's to become financially independent. The book relies on unrealistic examples to illustrate that a 3% return could provide for retirment (even if 3% was available today). One example used in the book is "Paul Younger" a 30 year old male planning to retire at age 67. Using a target income at retirement of $21,000 (!!)and social security income of $13,812 per year (worry free?), the calculation for retirement shows Paul must produce only $7,188 per year from his retirement savings.

   Even in the chapter on finding a financial advisor, the Author offers the designation "RIA" as a way of determining the competence of an advisor. The qualifications for an "RIA"- filling in the paperwork to register with the state or SEC and paying a fee.




2. Everyone interested in investment should read this book



3. Remember this name -- Zvi Bodie. Bodie is a professor of finance and economics at Boston University School of Management and like many academics has an idea that is theoretically sound but impractical to implement in the real world. Bodie's idea is that the Federal Government should mandate 401(k) plan vendors to offer government issued inflation indexed bonds (TIPs) to 401(k) plan participants. Such a law would protect their retirements he argues, and should be part of 401(k) reform.

   "It seems somewhat ridiculous that the government is not recommending these," Bodie told the 401kWire.com. "The simplest way would be for the government to mandate that one of the core options under 404(c) to be TIPs."

   So far he reports that his recommendations have fallen on deaf ears in Washington (no members of Congress have contacted him and he has not contacted the Department of Labor). That should reassure industry insiders. What should catch your attention though is that Bodie's ideas have a small chance of catching on inside the US Treasury.

   "There was a call by the Treasury department for ideas on how to stimulate the demand for TIPs," explained Bodie. In response he shared his ideas with Peter Fisher who manages the national debt issued by the Treasury. He also landed an opinion piece on the topic in the Financial Times of London.

   Bodie first started working on the concept for JP Morgan. The New York City based firm engaged Bodie to explore ways to add the instruments to the 401(k) plan that it offers to its own employees. Bodie told the 401kWire.com that his understanding was that the product would eventually have been rolled out to other JP Morgan defined contribution clients. The engagement ended when JP Morgan merged with Chase.

   Undeterred, Bodie is still pursuing the concept even without government fiat. He is now forming a new company in partnership with Harvard's Nobel Prize Winner Bob Merton and an unnamed but "senior level and experienced Wall Street executive" to pursue the concept of offering TIPs to 401(k) investors. "There will be a press release in the next couple of weeks" detailing the effort, he said.

   "Everyone who we have mentioned this to responds quite enthusiastically," said Bodie.

   Bodie's idea is theoretically simple. "Participants in 401k plans are not made aware of the risks of investing in their own employers stock. And they are not made aware of the risk of even investing in diversified equity funds," explained Bodie. "People say that if you invest in equities for the long-term that you do not have risk -- that is wrong."

   That idea is buttressed by the fact that the price for options rises as the maturity of the instrument lengthens. If the risk of equities decreased over longer holding periods that price should be falling instead of rising. He adds that none of the investments in 401(k) plans, including stable value funds, are guaranteed to beat inflation.

   "Most plans do not have an investment that allows them to make a long-run hedge against the inflation risk," he added. "Suppose the rate of inflation from now on is 3 percent per year. You want something to guarantee that the dollar would be worth a dollar in 30 years."

   It was this fact that led him to idea to add TIPs to plans. With those instruments participants could lock in a real, and known, return for their retirement.

   The concept faces at least to major hurdles, either of which could sink a product build around the concept. The first is that to lock in the return participants must buy TIPs in their raw form and not as a part of a mutual fund. For the industry that would likely add a recordkeeping headache that few providers would want to take on for so unsexy a product.

   The second is that small market for TIPs. That market is estimated to be less than $150 billion in total assets currently. Meanwhile, nearly $2 trillion is now invested in 401(k) plans. Moving even a small proportion of those assets to TIPs would swamp the market.

   Of course, it would also juice demand for the bonds and please the Treasury. Let's not give the Feds any ideas.

   -Sean Hanna




4. Investors still numb from their stock market losses in recent years will find some solace in the message of Worry-Free Investing by Zvi Bodie and Michael J. Clowes. They argue that stocks are "not safe in the long run" - a dismissal of Wharton School Professor Jeremy Siegel's extensively documented work on the subject. It is the nature of equity prices to be uncertain. The unpredictable risk of future stock market returns stems from the unexpected, 'random', flow of information that changes investor's perceptions of a company's value. Their argument is a bit heavy-handed. Equity prices may move unexpectedly in the intermediate term, but over the long run they appear to be positively linked with advances in our economy as measured by our GDP and mirrored in our standard of living. That should give some reassurance to long term investors, but the connection gets no mention here.

   The authors make the case for investing in inflation adjusted, government protected I Bonds and TIPS (Treasury Inflation-Indexed Securities also called Treasury Inflation Protected Securities). Focusing on the major goals of saving for retirement and providing for college education costs, Bodie and Clowes show how much an investor needs to save today. If the calculations seem a bit heady, readers are referred to the book's companion web site 'calculator'. At the heart of worry-free investing as defined by the authors is the defense of an individual's future buying power rather than the building of incremental wealth.

   Stocks have been widely touted as the only reliable hedge to inflation. However, during the 1970's sustained inflation ravaged stock market returns on an (inflation) adjusted basis. Had TIPS and I Bonds existed, they would have outperformed a diversified basket of stocks. Indeed, most investors today should use TIPS and I Bonds alone, we are boldly told. And all investors should invest at least some of their retirement assets in these two investment tools. Unfortunately for those inclined to follow this last advice, it is not clear if many (or any) company sponsored retirement plans (401(K)'s etc.) offer these products.

   The author's focus on inflation at a time when it is barely detectable may seem problematic, but a recovering economy, growing budget deficits, and a weakening dollar carry their own consequences. In the end, Bodie and Clowes overplay their case for I Bonds and TIPS. Not all products and services in the economy adjust in lockstep as do these bonds with Bureau of Labor Statistics measures of inflation. As a consequence a near exclusive reliance on these bonds may prove comforting but ultimately ineffective to reach a desired goal. Still, the understanding and use of these investment tools could prove important in a balanced portfolio in the years ahead. Now is the time to look at the issue.




5. This was the single worst book I have EVER read about investing. It is amazing to me that a professor could publish a piece of crap like this. PLEASE do NOT buy this book if you are considering doing so, you will only regret it.

2 comments about Classics: An Investor's Anthology.

1. This book is currently out of print, so you will need to find it at a used book retailer or in your favorite library, perhaps. Regardless of how you get it, it is well worth the effort. It consists of 80 or so original short articles by the best investors and financial authors of all time--people like Paul Cabot, Benjamin Graham and David Dodd, Jesse Livermore, T. Rowe Price, John Burr Williams, David Babson, Peter Bernstein, Phil Fisher, G.M. Loeb, Harry Markowitz, Warren Buffett, Edward C. Johnson, William Sharpe, Arthur Zeikel, Barton Biggs, David Dreman, Charlie Ellis, Bennett Goodspeed, Roy Neuberger, John Train, Richard Brealey, John Templeton and Byron Wein. If there's a better collection of important investment writings, I don't know what it is. (There is a Classics II, however, which is a follow-on book to this one.) As they say on those television infomercials, it would take you forever and cost a small fortune to duplicate this collection of the most memorable writings of the finest minds in investing. In terms of what you'll get for what you pay, this book is simply a steal.



2. As the authors claim, this is a collection of the most enduring writings on investment theory and practice, and offers you invaluable insights from the industry's leading thinkers. I would have to agree that the 82 selected articles, chapters from books, and career observations by some of the best investors and financial authors, round out a mini-education in itself. Some of just a few of the authors selected are heavy weights like Benjamin Graham, Phil Fisher, Warren Buffett, Jesse Livermore, John Burr Williams, David Dreman, John Templeton and many many others. Topics as diverse from Buffett's 1965 letter to the partnership, to Jesse Livermore's "How to trade stocks" are spread throughout. The book is segregated into five (5) sections starting with the Pre-WW II section, then the 50's, 60's, 70's, and finishes with the 80's. (The book was originally published in 1989)
   
   I am somewhat partial to Roy Neuberger's Almanac, Ben Graham's Chapter 20, and Phil Fisher's 15 Points, but there many others to comment on but let's just say this should be in everyone's collection that is a serious student of the market as the 700 plus pages are well worth the time invested. Of note: Since this is no longer published, one of the used book services will be needed.

5 comments about The Compleat Day Trader: Trading Systems, Strategies, Timing Indicators and Analytical Methods.

1. One of the most difficult things involving the markets, regardless of what you trade is timing.With this book, Jake not only gives you suggestions for timing indicators, but he also gives you some strategies to follow and shows real time examples which are clear and very detailed. In this book, Jake share his extensive knowledge about systems, strategies, technical indicators, and trading systems. I have purchased many trading books and this one is CRITICAL for your success as a trader. One more point that I wish for potential traders to consider is the source. Jake Bernstein has been involved in commodities and futures trading for 25 years. He brings real trading experience to the table. He does not promise you guaranteed results are a "pot of gold" under the rainbow. What he does give you is the information that you will need to be successful, REGARDLESS of the time frame you are trading. Also, he is available for you. I recently e-mailed him with a question from the book and I received a detailed explanation from him the very next day! I challenge you to find any author who will do that! Good luck and good trading!



2. Most books for "day traders" are so general that their techniques and advice can be successfully used by swing-traders (those who keep stocks for several days), and even by longer-term investors. This one is different. The author, Jake Bernstein, strongly advocates real day trading, when no securities ever kept overnight. Therefore, his techniques are usable for very short term trading only.

   The advantage of this book is that it has very little general rhetoric and comes straight to the point, that is to the techniques which the author finds profitable. Basically, 90% of the book is about the use of technical indicators (such as various moving averages and oscillators) to determine potentially profitable entry and exit points. The topics discussed in particular detailed manner are the use of moving averages, stochastic indicator, moving average channel (MAC), relative strength index (RSI), momentum, and techniques for trading of opening gaps. The author also suggests several oscillators of his own. However, despite the simplicity of these indicators, one has to own software such as Omega Research Trade Station to calculate and plot these home-made oscillators in real time, or write a program yourself. There are also several chapters applicable to futures only (actually, the whole book is about trading in the futures market, but 95% of techniques are equally applicable to stocks).

   The great advantage of the book is that it is very specific, clearly illustrated, and gives plenty of detailed technical advice and a number of potentially profitable trading techniques. Be advised, however, that those who are interested in trading but do not have enough capital to take profits from half-a-tick changes (and I, too, belong to this group) cannot really take advantage of this book. No trend and no trade longer than a few hours is discussed there! Therefore, this book is for the serious day traders, and only for them. If you are a day trader, this book is a must; if you are not, do not bother buying it but rather consider other options, e.g., the excellent book "How to get started in electronic day trading" by D.S.Nassar which is good for traders on any time frame.




3. Trading especially short term trading need great concentration and a full-time commitment. Professional traders write few or no book.

   Mr. Bernstein's books and articles are everywhere. Sometimes I came across his publications, I scanned through a few pages to see what he had to say about trading. Mr. Bernstein makes statements which are generally safe and easy to say. For example, I read his article the other day. He tells the readers "Do your homework.", "The trend is your friend." etc. Of course, these are the common rules for traders. But what are the concrete steps to implement these rules in the real-life situation? Well, I could hardly find any. On the other hand, he stated in that article: "...I maintain that a good trader can make any system works." I found this statement unprofessional and phony. The reasons:

   1. Many systems on the market are just trash and can not be used at all.

   2. Good traders wouldn't pick up any system and risk their money with it. Good traders are very selective and only trade a few systems that have proven record and are suitable for their individual styles.

   I found similar problems in other works by Mr. Bernstein. Should I bother to buy this book? No, thanks.

   I have read books from many different writers and have more than 10 year active trading experience. So I know something.

   A few tips(IMO) for choosing good books on trading:

   1. Only a small percentage of books on the market are good or great.

   2. Popular books are not necessary good books. If you automatically think so, you've probably fallen into "Herd mentality" thinking.

   3. Trading is a bottom line business. Find books written by traders who had proven long-term(5 year or more) successful trading records. They are the ones "know how".

   4. Be wary of the authors who write many trading books.

   Good luck.




4. Take my word for it and save your money, the techniques in this book simply do not work!



5. The book is good if you want to depend on technical strategies to make money day trading.
   
   The stock market is always presenting us with trading opportunities that don't neccesarily have to do anything with technical analisys.
   
   As a day trader your homework is all about studying and testing different market strategies that will help you take advantage of stocks and at the same time protect your investments. Just always keep in mind that a good strategy is simple and practical. Complicated technical systems will always make you slow in your decision making process or confuse you right from the start.
   
   There are very good sites on the web where you can access practical trading strategies that are easy to implement. One of those sites is Stress Free Traders ( StressFreeTraders com)
   
   They focus on short term day trading strategies that can help you pick and approach momentum stocks while reducing your trading risk.
   
   All in all, day trading is all about picking the best stock opportunities and deciding when to buy and when to sell with ease and simplicity. Once you learn to master your trading decisions, you can aspire to obtain consistent profitable results.

3 comments about Intra-Day Trading Tactics Course Book With DVD (Trade Secrets Course Books).

1. The text has not been edited well, some statement are rather confusing.
   
   Typos add to the confusion.



2. The contents of the book are good. There is lot to be desired in the DVD.
   The videographer is terrible. When the author is talking of a particular bar with his Laser pointed on it, the camera is on a wide angle showing a little chart and the auther. He should have shown a larger image of the chart so that we know what bar the author is talking about.



3. It was supposed to be in my home on 22 March and I haven't received yet.

5 comments about The Winner's Circle: How 30 Financial Advisors Became the Best in the Business (The Winner's Circle series).

1. This book was well researched and offers some great ideas. I'd recommend this book for anyone in the business.



2. This book sets new standards in the industry. The best advisors in the business share their best practices--something every individual in the business should learn.



3. Probably the best book on the subject. You can glean insights here from the real masters in the business.



4. The brokers who produce the most in commissions, by CHARGING THE HIGHEST RATES, are considered to be the most successful.
   What are their customers returns? Are there any returns?
   For all of the changes in the financial industry, the one tenet that remains is the importance of separating the customer from his money, and that is what this book is all about.



5. No new thing in this book. It only show ordinary concepts.

No comments about Beyond Training Aint Performance Fieldbook.

No comments about Practical Guide to Research and Development Tax Incentives: Federal, State, and Foreign (2nd Edition).