As my next guest for the  interview series, I present to you Michael Sincere, an author of several investing related books including the one I’ve reviewed recently.  He certainly gets my vote as an author of quality books offered at an affordable price.  I mean you can buy the books for under 15 bucks.  If you think that’s expensive, I suggest you find interests other than investing.  Or at least go look for other jobs.

I hope you enjoy his interview.  I’m particularly interested to find out about his next endeavors in writing.

“Michael you are known as the author of several investment education books.  How did it all get started? What is your background?”

My entire family was involved in the stock market so I was introduced to investing and trading at an early age. For my first book, I was influenced by Jack Schwager’s book, Market Wizards. But instead of interviewing traders, I interviewed fund managers and successful investors. I then put all of their advice into a book. After that, I wrote a series of books aimed at beginning investors on how to invest or trade in the stock or options market.

“Do you currently invest?”

I am currently 50 percent in cash and 50 percent in the market. I’ve been so involved with various writing projects that I haven’t been as actively involved in investing and trading. I learned a long time ago that successful investors and traders have to be focused on the market. When I’m unable to focus, I tend to pull back.  That’s where I’m at right now.

“If so what is your trading platform/strategy?  Options vs Stocks? Long-term? Short-term?”

When I was actively trading and investing, I’d invest in mutual funds, stocks, and options. I had both long-term and short-term strategies.

“Do you have any personal investing stories you can share? The good and the bad?”

When I first got involved in the stock market, it seemed so easy. I was making money and I hardly had to work very hard at it. It seemed like everything that I traded went up in price. It shouldn’t be surprising that before long I lost almost all of my gains. I wrote my first book to help other investors avoid the kind of mistakes that I made, for example, I listened to tips, invested in companies I didn’t know much about, and I overtraded.

It took many years but I finally found an investing and trading style that fits my lifestyle. I am not interested in making a killing in the market but hope to make strong and steady returns. Eventually I learned to take my own advice!

One recent story: I was interviewing some of the top traders in the country last year for an article I was doing on the stock market. That weekend, they all said market was going to crash. Monday morning, the market opened up 800 points down. What I didn’t anticipate was the market was going to keep dropping nearly every day for a month! As it turned out, no one else did, either.

“What have you been working on recently? Do we get to see a new book coming out?”

I recently finished two novels and am working on getting those published. I am also working with a publisher to write another nonfiction business book. I still do a lot of freelance writing on trading and investing.

“Last but not least, what would your advice be on how to become the next investing expert? What does it take?”

I have learned over the years that very few are experts. To be an expert, like in any field, you need training, experience, dedication, discipline, and knowledge. The experts also have really good instincts about what works and they have the guts to follow their instincts. Few people can reach this level.

On the other hand, it is possible to achieve strong and steady returns in the market, and most important, to not lose money. That should be the goal for most people. My advice, which is the advice given to me from the traders I interview, is to start small. Whether you trade in stocks or options, start with 100 shares or 1 options contract until you have met your goals. The biggest obstacle to success is our own emotions. If you’re able to find a simple but sound strategy, keep your emotions under control, and learn everything you can about investing and trading, nothing should stop you from being successful in the market.