TIPS for Life from a wise stock broker

Yesterday I met Mr. Jagmohan a 70+ year young man. A stock broker by profession, Mr. Jagmohan is anything but a typical stock broker.

My Dad met Mr. Jagmohan and they became friends at MILT, a couple of decades ago. Those were the days when the stock exchange was manual and the only person who really knew what was going on, was the broker. My dad used to dabble in stocks and ever broker he used was a cheat. Conveniently when you wanted to buy, the price they claimed was always the highest as reported in the Economic Times. On several occasions, it was even higher than that. And the price at which you sold, no prizes for getting this right. The lowest reported by the ET and sometimes even lower.

Mr. Jagmohan changed all that. My Dad suddenly realized that you could get a reasonable deal from a stockbroker. And more importantly good advise. Not intended to make only him money. But also based on what he perceived as the client's risk appetite.Mr. Jagmohan advised Dad to buy HDFC when it was around Rs. 40. Today its a 50 bagger. This is just 1 of several examples.

And 2 decades later, little has changes. He had lots of advise. All meaningful and extremely refreshing when coming from a successful business person in today's times.

3 principles to follow in life

1. Don't become greedy

2. Don't advice incorrectly

3. Don't betray


3 principles to follow in the stock market

1. Draw the line. And then don't cross it. Exit as per plan. Whether profit or loss.

2. Don't worry about what price you had once upon a time bought or sold a stock. Today is a new day. Evaluate afresh whether the stock is worth buying at current levels. Or worth selling ?

3. Don't overtrade. And definitely, don't overextend.

And finally his sign off advise.
"Most importantly, trading is as much of a science as an art. It requires time, effort and dedication. If you work very, very hard, and smart at the same time, you could make a very good living."