You remember the story about the frog that was put into a pot of cold water on the stove. He was not concerned. Someone lit the burner and the water began getting warm, the frog was very comfortable and as the water became warmer he was so relaxed and complacent that he fell asleep never to awaken.

Mr. Frog reminds me of todays stock market investors and that includes all folks with IRAs, 401Ks and the like. Stocks have been slowly rising for the past year and a half (the water is becoming warmer and warmer) and no one is paying any attention to his investment positions. The market is becoming overheated and many investors are about to become boiled. Too many are swimming fat and happy in the increasing warmth with no thought of exit.

Currently the long term market trend is up so complacency reigns supreme. It is doing exactly the same as in 2000. When 2002 ended we had a surplus of boiled frogs. A smart frog will not be lulled to sleep and will have a plan to jump out of the pot. A frog without a plan plans to be frog soup.

There are many ways for the frog to escape and there are many ways for investors to retain their profits or at least not lose their money the next time the market heads down. It will if past performance is any guide to futures results. Any plan to jump out is better than no plan at all.

Whether you own stocks, mutual funds or ETFs (Exchange Traded Funds) you can set a limit as to how much you are willing to lose from this point (thats now, today). Any fool (frog) can buy, but it is the wise man (frog) who knows how to sell (escape the pot).

If you want to have money for retirement you must protect your capital from loss with a risk management strategy. First protect your principle and then protect the profits you have made on the recent stock market advance. It is not difficult to do.

With stocks and ETFs you can place an Open Stop Loss Order with your broker or financial planner. He wont like this, but it is your money not his. Dont let him talk you out of it. For regular mutual funds you must have a mental stop and when that price is hit you call your broker (he wont call you) or the fund directly to tell them to transfer your funds to a Money Market account. Cash is a position.

If you are not familiar with stop loss orders you can find books in your library and there are hundreds of articles on the Internet. See some of my previous articles on my web site.

The water is heating up. Dont fall asleep and become a poor frog.

Al Thomas

Albert W. Thomas has spent most of his life in the field of finance. In 1965 he founded an insurance holding company, Security Dynamics Investment Corporation, after having been an agent and General Agent for several life insurance companies. In 1970 he became cofounder and president of Real Life Estate, Inc., that marketed a unique real estate and life insurance package.

After he became interested in commodities he bought a seat for his personal trading on the Chicago Open Board of Trade, which is now known as the MidAmerica Commodity Exchange. Later he became a full time trader and also acted as a commodity broker for a few select clients. By fellow floor traders Al is considered to be an excellent technical analyst much of which is outlined in his book IF IT DOESN'T GO UP, DON'T BUY IT! It became a best seller on Amazon.

In 1981 he sold his membership on the Exchange and with his wife, Carolyn, lived full time aboard their 41' ketch, the Aumakua (which means guardian angel in Hawaiian). They sailed in Florida and the Bahamas for two years.

He founded World Trading Group in 1984 that grew to the seventh largest introducing commodity brokerage firm in the U.S. with 35 offices from coast to coast, Alaska and Canada. It was sold in 1992.

Al is a graduate of Northwestern University with a B.S. degree in Commerce and is a member of MENSA. He is now president of Williamsburg Investment Company that syndicates his weekly financial column since 1999 to more than 300 newspapers and writes a financial market letter called Over My Shoulder that is quoted in Barron?s and many other publications. A 3-month trial subscription is available on his web site. He is a regular guest on several financial radio talk shows.

His favorite pastime is fishing.

Mr. Thomas is available for speaking engagements. Please call 321-453-5300 for more information.