Many websites and e-books on investment training strategies promise you incredible things. Writing Covered call options on stock is one of the most popular trading strategies taught today. These websites promise that you can earn up to 10% monthly returns using that very strategy. Sound good? Read on.

Under the right circumstances, impressive monthly returns can be achieved by selling out-of-the-money covered call options. This strategy has been successfully used by me. However, it is not without its disadvantages. The public has not been properly educated by the website and e-book marketers. This strategy is marketed as having low risk and being conservative. They leave you holding the bag when it all goes wrong.

When the stock market is rising in value selling out of the money covered calls works well. Additionally, when the stock market is neutral (not going up or down …

by Marc Abrams

Incredible things have been promised by many websites and e-books regarding investment training strategies. One of the more common stock market trading strategies taught is to sell covered call options on stocks. These websites promise that you can earn up to 10% monthly returns using that very strategy. Sound good? Read on.

Under the right circumstances, impressive monthly returns can be achieved by selling out-of-the-money covered call options. This strategy has been successfully used by me. However, it is not without its disadvantages. The public has not been properly educated by the website and e-book marketers. This strategy is marketed as having low risk and being conservative. They leave you holding the bag when it all goes wrong.

Selling out-of-the-money covered calls works when the stock market is going up in value. Additionally, when the stock market is neutral …

by Marc Abrams

One step forward, five steps back. This seems to be the motto lately, especially when it comes to investing. Many people thought that 8% to 10% annual returns were just something to be expected. After all, how many of you used those returns in your retirement projections? Well, we have reluctantly entered a new age with new questions to be asked. What are you going to do?

You need to take control of your investments. You can no longer rely solely on the advise of your broker or financial advisor. After all, didn’t they allow you to get into this position in the first place?

Are you waiting for those losing stocks to recover, you know, the ones that you have an emotional tie to? You as an investor must teach yourself to think differently. …

The UpTurn, Inc., under the leadership of founder and CEO Jeffrey Eckman, is combining real estate needs with lifestyle interests to create what some are calling the world’s first Web 2.0 real estate site. As a startup venture, the company is being capitalized with investments from private funding and capital markets, and is also receiving resources and support from another young company founded by Eckman, BGV (Blue Green Ventures).

BGV provides business development strategy and tactical services for early stage companies, with the goal of creating and expanding markets through innovative business models. The UpTurn is BGV’s primary focus, but the quality of BGV team members suggests a bright and diverse future for the company. Besides Jeff Eckman, who has over 15 years of Fortune 500 and business development experience, BGV management includes the following:

• Bernard DeCunha, Executive VP and General Manager,

The UpTurn Inc. is developing an innovative online real estate matchmaking exchange where residential real estate market participants are matched with each other based on their individual profiles and intended roles in the market. The UpTurn intends to serve all participants in the residential real estate industry.

The company is led by a very strong management team with a broad range of experience. The UpTurn’s management team includes:

Jeffrey M. Eckman, CEO – Mr. Eckman founded Blue Green Ventures in 2008 and has over 15 years of leadership experience in the technology, media, and healthcare industries. His background includes a mix of operational, business development, and consulting practice from his work with various firms.

Mr. Eckman holds an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management. Prior to starting Blue Green Ventures, he worked for several Fortune 500 companies including Viacom and Wyeth, as well

The Working Capital Model (WCM) looks at investment performance differently, less emotionally, and without a whole lot of concern for short-term market value movements. Market value performance evaluation techniques are only used to analyze peak-to-peak market cycle movements over significant time periods.

Security market values are used for buy and sell decision-making. Working capital figures are used for asset allocation and diversification calculations. Portfolio working capital growth numbers are used to evaluate goal directed management decisions over shorter periods of time.

WCM tracking techniques help investors focus on long term growth producers like capital gains, dividends, and interest— the things that can keep the working capital line (see Part One) moving ever upward. The base income and cumulative realized capital gains lines are the most important WCM growth engines.

Please refer to the chart in Chapter 7 of The Brainwashing of the …

It matters not what lines, numbers, indices, or gurus you worship, you just can’t know for certain where the stock market is going or when it will change direction. Too much investor time and analytical effort is wasted trying to predict course corrections— even more is squandered comparing portfolio market values with a handful of unrelated indices and averages.

Annually, quarterly, even monthly, investors scrutinize their performance, formulate coulda’s and shoulda’s, and determine what new gimmick to try during the next evaluation period. My short-term performance vision is different. I see a bunch of Wall Street fat cats, ROTF-LOL, while investors beat themselves senseless over what to change, sell, buy, re-allocate, or adjust to make their portfolios behave better.

Why has performance evaluation become so important short-term? What happened to long-term planning toward specific personal goals? When did it become …

Every fall, especially in opportunity rich markets like this, I encourage investors to think about some year-end strategies that make the final calendar quarter a special time in all markets. Several forces are at work, all of which have links to conventional Wall Street wisdom; none of which promote good long-term investment decision-making.

This year, we have the added excitement of anticipating a new, perhaps economically too liberal, administration taking over with an already implanted, and demonstatably inept, congress. The markets are in a truly unprecedented state of “uncertainty overload”. What’s an investor to do— or not to do?

Typically, the November syndrome has features that impact in both directions. It causes weak prices to fall even further and strong prices to climb higher. This year, the strong category requires a microscope for candidate viewing, while the weak seem to …

Simtrol Inc. has been making their mark in the ever-changing world of technology by developing products that bring technologies together. Simtrol addresses connected devices on the “messy edge” of the network such as medical devices, interactive whiteboards, security cameras, digital signage and DVR’s. While this is a complex field, the leadership at Simtrol has the company poised to make its mark in the future and a large part of their recent and future success has to be attributed to their Board of Directors.

Leading the way on the Simtrol Board of Directors is Dallas S. Clement. Clement has served as a Director of Simtrol since April 2001 and as Chairman of the Board of Directors since June 2007. Clement has served as Senior Vice President, Strategy and Development for Cox Communications, Inc. since August 2000 and has had a long and successful career