Top Drop Contest Winners

Hey guys so finally the results are ready for the “Stocks On Wall Street / EZGreatLife Drop to the Top Challenge“. We are giving away some great prizes, so stay tuned. I will contact each winner individually to get more information. I want to thank everyone who participated within the concert and to thank John from EZGreatLife for helping out with this whole contest. So now lets release the prizes.

And The Winner is…

Our month long “Stocks On Wall Street / EZGreatLife Drop to the Top” contest came to an end on February 28th. Thanks to all who played along. John and I really appreciate it! We used random.org to pick the following winners:

** Winners please leave a comment in this post and I will contact you with details.

10,000 ec’s
Marg’s Pets

EZGreatLife Blog Review
Redhead Ranting

Stocks On Wall Street Blog Review
Stock Market Today

EZGreatLife 125×125 banner ad
Sparkle Cat

Stocks On Wall Street 125×125 banner ad
Fledgling Blogger

Is It Easy to Obtain Cash Advance Loans?

It is inevitable that you may need cash for emergency purposes; however, you have limited income resources. Fortunately, easy payday loans are available to aid you in fulfilling financial obligations that transpire unexpectedly. Easy payday loans are short-term loans that can be repaid until your next payday. These loans can be availed of quickly because the approval period takes only a short time. The process for both application and approval is quick and simple.

If you avail of easy payday loans, you can obtain a loan amount that ranges from $100 to $1000. Most lenders of these types of loans offer larger loan amount to people who have high monthly income. Thus, the loan amount you can avail will be based on your monthly income.

On the other hand, since easy cash advance loans can be availed in no time, most lenders may charge you with high interest rates. This is because lenders want to earn as much interest as they could in a span of 30 days or as soon as you get your pay check. However, you should not worry too much on the high interest rate since no easier way of getting money is available than obtaining such loans. The high interest rates can also be lowered if you are able to find reputable lenders offering reasonable loan packages.

In addition, these loans do not require collateral. Unlike other types of loans necessitating for collateral, these loans only require borrowers to issue a post-dated check in the amount of loan agreed upon plus any other charges that may be incorporated with the loan. The lender will present the post-dated check to your bank and draw the money you have loaned. More so, borrowers with poor credit rating or bad credit history can also avail of these loans. This is because the lenders are secured as the borrowers need to present a post-dated check.

When applying for easy payday loans, you should make sure that you consider several factors. Do not rush to avail these loans. You need to make sure that the check you will issue has adequate funding so that you may not get into any kind of trouble both with the lender and the bank. More so, it is important that you do not avail of any amount of loan beyond your capacity to repay.

You should also compare the rates of interest offered by various lenders. Choose a lender that offers a reasonable rate of interest and loan package. Make sure the one you choose suits you the best. In addition, when availing of any type of loan, you should ensure you can handle your responsibility. It is important that you comply with the terms and conditions provided by the lender. Thus, you should also make sure to read the terms and conditions of the lender thoroughly so that you would not be committed to anything against your preferences. Check if there are any hidden costs or fees and make sure you comply with the agreed schedule of repayment.

Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps

Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps is planned to come out in 2010. It is a much anticpated sequel to the classic first Wall Street. The film is set 23 years after the first film, in June 2008, and Gordon Gekko has just been released from prison. Despite his initial attempts to warn Wall Street of the forthcoming economic downturn and stock market crash, no one believes him due to his reduced standing in the financial world. Gekko decides to re-focus his attention on rebuilding his relationship with his estranged daughter, Winnie. Due to their time apart, and the fact that Winnie blames Gekko for her brother Rudy’s suicide, she avoids any contact with him. At the same time, the mentor of young Wall Street trader Jacob unexpectedly dies, and Jacob suspects his hedge fund manager of being involved in the death. Jacob, who is Winnie’s fiance, seeks revenge and agrees to Gekko’s offer of help, in return for which Jacob agrees to help Gekko with Winnie. Should be a classic movie and I personally can’t wait to see it. Here is the sneak peak trailer.

Stocks on Wall Street Back Up and Running

Hey Everyone,

Finally my wrist has gotten to a point where I can acceptably type and Stocks on Wall Street will be back up and running Monday. It’s been a hard transition adjusting to life with a broken wrist but finally I am handling the pain and due to physical therapy getting near the end. Look forward to talking with all you soon. Continue to follow me on both my Facebook Fan Page and Twitter as starting to use those more and more. Probalby the easiest way to talk to me, one on one. Remember always avaliable by email jameshartje@gmail.com.

StocksOnWallStreet / EZGreatLife | Drop To The Top Challenge

I am excited to announce the StocksOnWallStreet / EZGreatLife Drop To The Top Challenge. John from EZGreatLife and I will be giving away some great prizes including 10,000 ec’s, blog reviews and a couple of 125×125 ad slots. This is a super simple contest. Just leave me a comment saying that you are participating, drop on our Entrecard widgets and leave a comment when our posts inspire you. That’s it. What have you got to lose? It really is EZ, just stop, drop, comment and win!

We will be picking the winners around the 1st of March.

Basic Requirements:

1. Leave a comment on this post letting me know you are participating.
2. Drop on EZGreatLife Entrecard widget at least 20 times in February.
3. Drop on StocksOnWallStreet Entrecard widget at least 20 times in February.

This gives you 3 entries in the contest.

Ways to earn additional entries:

**NOTE: The Basic Requirements above must be met first.

• Earn 1 entry for every EC drop over 20 on StocksOnWallStreet (28 drops = 9 entries)
• Earn 1 entry for every EC drop over 20 on EZGreatLife (28 drops = 9 entries)
• Follow EZGreatLife on Twitter = 5 entries
• Follow StocksOnWallStreet on Twitter = 5 entries
• Friend EZGreatLife on Facebook = 5 entries
• Friend StocksOnWallStreet on Facebook = 5 entries
• Quality comments on EZGreatLife posts = 5 entries per comment
• Quality comments on StocksOnWallStreet posts = 5 entries per comment

If you do all of the above (assuming 1 comment on each blog) you would have 48 entries in our contest! We will use random.org to pick a number between 1 and the total number of entries we receive. The first number drawn will win the 1st prize and so on. EZ, right? See example below for more details.

What will I win?

1st Prize: 10,000 EC’s!!!

Additional Prizes:

1. Blog review from John @ EZGreatLife
2. Blog review from James @ Stocks On Wall Street
3. One week 125×125 ad on EZGreatLife
4. One week 125×125 ad on Stocks On Wall Street

Example: Mr. X
Drops 28 on EZ = 9
Drops 28 on SWS = 9
Follows EZ on Twitter = 5
Follows SWS on Twitter = 5
Friends EZ on Facebook = 5
Friends SWS on Facebook =5
4 Comments on EZ = 20
4 Comments on SWS = 20
———————————————
TOTAL = 78
So Mr. X has 78 entries

That’s it in a nutshell! It really is EZ, just stop, drop, comment and win! We will take care of figuring out all the entries earned. AND if you are already following one or both of us on Twitter or Facebook, that will count too! So leave me a comment and then keep doing what you’re already doing everyday and you may walk away with a cool 10,000 ec’s or another awesome prize. Good luck!

If you have any questions, please email me: jameshartje@gmail.com

Sharisax.com: How to Handle the Web Like Our SuperKids

After break I got to catch up with my social media expert and neighbor Shari Weiss and she interviewed me which led to an interview and publicized article on her Sharisax.com. Here is her work:

How many of us can truthfully say:

“I like how life’s going”

That’s what my 19-year-old neighbor James Hartje said to me last time he dropped by to swap Internet stories.

I had just posted my article Three “F’s” to Achieve Your 2010 Goalswhich began with the advice to “Follow a Friend, who is also a role model.”

James is definitely a role model: an Arizona State sophomore majoring in Finance, he began a website stocksonwallstreet.net which has proven to be very profitable.

James was 13 when he first stepped onto Wall Street. He’d accumulated some McDonald’s stock over the years and decided to cash out. With the help of his parents,  he opened a brokerage account and purchased Google at $250. It wasn’t long before James scrapped his dream of working in sports for a career in finance.

“I’ve been learning this industry step by step with both successes and failures, but it’s been my losses — not the winning trades — that have made me the trader I am today.”

Arizona State offers a world of opportunities

Along with Finance, James is minoring in Political Science and studying for certificates in Small Business Entrepreneurship and International Business. In spring of 2009, James was selected to participate in the highly competitive Investment Banking Industry Scholars program featured in Business Week.

“My goal is to start my career on Wall Street and later move into both politics and the world of Hedge Funds.”

Advice for young investors [and older ones as well]

• Get interested early: investing is all about a time game. Each year you delay could cost you millions down the road.
• Make sure to read an array of sources, and keep an open mind. Remember investing is a decision in which you have to feel confident. Second guessing yourself only throws up roadblocks.
• Assume risk: you are young and at a prime age where you still have time to make up from losses.
• Invest smartly by diversifying and considering less risky assets as well.

James answers the nine “2010 planning questions”

A – What do I want to finish?

Finalize Stocks On Wall Street LLC — and finish my sophomore year with good grades

B – What do I want to change?

Need to change some habits: get more exercise like playing more football and basketball — and read more financial books for a better grasp of markets

C – What do I want to refine?

Improve the way I study by focusing better and spending more time at the library

D – What do I want to maintain?

Retain and build the success of my website, maintain my social life, keep up good grades, and continue to live life to the fullest

E – What do I want to stop doing?

Stop procrastinating is Number One. Don’t waste time being unproductive. Stop watching junk TV and spending unnecessary time on Facebook

F – What do I want to go back to?

Not really anything to revisit. I like how life’s going

G – What can I throw away?

Not exactly “throw away,” but I can spend time with the people who will support my activities more than others

H – What have I learned in 2009 that will empower me in 2010?

I always learn from my mistakes, especially trying some things and discovering what works and what doesn’t

I – What do I NEED to do?

Stay focused on my ultimate goal to work on Wall Street by graduation

Check out James’ site and let me know what you think. AND if you know any SuperKids who are also doing great things online, please feel free to share their stories.

Exciting Ideas Planned for 2010

Hey Everyone,

Sorry for the delay with posting, have been delayed by both my fractured wrist and the start of school. Stocks on Wall Street will be back to normal up and running next Monday. Get my cast taken off tomorrow so excited to be able to start to type with two hands again. Excited for all I have planned for this year and what I can offer. Be ready for exciting year.

Thanks,

James

New Years Resolutions: Top 10s for 2010

So was reading an article the other day that you should write out all your resolutions, as a result here are mine. Plus below are all the sites I currently read along with books I plan on reading in 2010.

Personal Goals

1. Land Finance Related Summer 2010 Internship
2. Get a 3.5 GPA both semesters
3. Grow Stocks on Wall Street to over 25,000 visits per month
4. Grow RandomChatter to over 30,000 posts
5. Network with 3 Contacts on Wall Street Per Week
6. Get elected position on Arizona State Student Government
7. Gain annual return of 50% on Brokerage Account
8. Have a less stressful, fun-filled year
9. Heal my wrist back to full-strength
10. Land internship on Wall Street for Summer 2011 (Preferably: Goldman Sachs, Citi, Citadel, J.P. Morgan, or HSBC)

Finance Books

1. Racing Towards Excellence
2. Liars Poker
3. Barbarian’s of the Gate
4. Inside the House of Money
5. When Genius Failed
6. Traders, Guns, and Money
7. The Great Crash of 1929
8. Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds
9. The Market Wizards series
10. An Engine, Not a Camera: How Financial Models Shape Markets

Finance Blogs

1. Infectious Greed http://paul.kedrosky.com/
2. FT Alphaville http://ftalphaville.ft.com/
3. Portfolio http://www.portfolio.com/
4. Macro Man http://macro-man.blogspot.com/
5. Naked Capitalism http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/
6. Seeking Alpha http://seekingalpha.com/
7. Information Arbitrage http://www.informationarbitrage.com/index.html
8. The Big Picture http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/
9. Deal Book  http://dealbook.blogs.nytimes.com/
10. Freakonomics http://freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com/

Social Media, Blogging Tips

1. Online Social Networking http://online-social-networking.com/
2. Quick Sprout http://www.quicksprout.com/
3. Entrepreneurs Journey http://www.entrepreneurs-journey.com/
4. Shoemoney http://www.shoemoney.com/
5. John Chow http://www.johnchow.com/
6. Pro Blogger http://www.problogger.net/
7. Sharisax is Out There http://sharisax.com/
8. Zac Johnson http://zacjohnson.com/
9. Digital Point http://forums.digitalpoint.com/
10. Dosh Dosh http://www.doshdosh.com/

Sports Websites

1. ESPN http://espn.go.com/
2. SF Giants http://sanfrancisco.giants.mlb.com/index.jsp?c_id=sf
3. Bleacher Report http://bleacherreport.com/
4. Rotoworld http://www.rotoworld.com/
5. ProsportsDaily http://www.prosportsdaily.com/
6. Foti Sports http://fotisports.com/
7. Bay Area Sport Blog http://www.bayareasportblog.com/
8. Rivals http://www.rivals.com/
9. Dan Patrick http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/danpatrick/index.html
10. Peter King http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/writers/peter_king/archive/index.html

News Websites

1. Wall Street Journal http://online.wsj.com/home-page
2. Financial Times http://www.ft.com/home/us
3. Bloomberg http://www.bloomberg.com/
4. Yahoo http://m.www.yahoo.com/
5. Google Finance http://www.google.com/finance
6. Huffington Post http://www.huffingtonpost.com/
7. Fox News http://www.foxnews.com/
8. USA Today http://www.usatoday.com/
9. Associated Press http://www.ap.org/
10. Drudge Report http://www.drudgereport.com/

Social Medias

1. Twitter http://twitter.com/iamwallstreet
2. LinkedIn http://www.linkedin.com/in/jameshartje
3. Facebook http://www.facebook.com/JamesHartje
4. Facebook Fan Page http://www.facebook.com/pages/Stocks-on-Wall-Street
5. FriendFeed http://friendfeed.com/jameshartje
6. Digg http://digg.com/users/JHartje
7. StumpleUpon http://www.stumbleupon.com/stumbler/JamesHartje/
8. Diigo http://www.diigo.com/user/jameshartje
9. Reddit http://www.reddit.com/user/jameshartje/
10. Technorati http://technorati.com/blogs/stocksonwallstreet.net

On a personal note, yesterday I did undergo surgery to fix a fractured wrist. My fracture was rare and as a result a metal plate had to be put in my arm that will be permanent, upside is faster recovery, no cast, since it didn’t impact my wrist joint or growth plates.  My Dr. thinks there should be minimal after effects later on.  Have a follow-up 1 week after surgery with a hand ortho in Arizona. No cast needed and should be back to normal in 2-4 weeks. Bear with me posting wise, will try to keep it on a regular pattern the best I can.

Thanks

James

Broken Wrist: Way to Start the New Year!!!

Sorry everyone for the delay and not posting last week. I was snowboarding in Lake Tahoe and unfortunately on my last day there I managed to fracture my wrist\while going down a Black Diamond. Despite the immense amount of pain, I am now limited to one hand which makes typing very awkward and difficult. On monday I am scheduled to go to the Orthopedic to get the hard cast put on. At that time I should know how long it will take to recover and how much use I will have of my left hand. Don’t worry I will not be stopping Stocks on Wall Street, however I will just have to become more creative with how I run it. This could incorporate the use of personal made videos, voice writing software, etc. Who knows? Will keep you updated on my progress.

Why You Should Invest?

Want a resolution to add to this list? Well if you don’t already here is one for you, investing. Trust me, it will pay off in the long-run.

Why You Should Invest?

Why you should Invest? Plain and simple, investing is the easiest way to create wealth. Investing is relatively simple and the rewards are great. By Investing

in the Markets it will open up the world to you offering you more money to do what you want. Money gives you opportunities so investing will allow you to explore your opportunities whether they are retiring in a beach house in Mexico, paying for child’s education, or just for traveling the globe. Realistically, unless youhave a top-notch salary, investing in the Stock Market is the only true way to reach financial independence.

Benefits of Investing and Power of Compounding

Lets put it real simple to show you the benefits of investing. Say you put $2,000 of your savings into the stock market and invest within the S&P 500. Well the S&P’s historical average is 10% and would make your 2,000 worth $34,898.80 after 30 years. Now do you see the gain from investing? On the contrary if you put that same amount of money into a savings account your $2,000 would only be worth $3,622.72 30 years later. Quite a difference huh? This number will shock you even more. If you invest $1,000 a year in the S&P 500 after 45 years it will have grown to over one million dollars. Overall you only added $46,000 over the time but compound interest and solid investments did the job for you. Below is a graph that shows the power of investing and why you should put your money in the Stock Market rather than a CD or Bond. Historically overtime CD’s and Government Bonds have averaged around 5%. The Stock Market has averaged 10% over the same period and if you learned how to trade yourself or followed Stocks on Wall Street you could easily achieve 15%-20%.

Growing At

Shocking what a few percentage points can do and why it pays off to take some risk. Remember you are a long-term investor so you’ll go through the bull markets and bear ones but overall your money stays put and grows exponentially.

Time Value of Money

Lets say your parents start you investing when your 15 years old with a simple $100 dollar bill. Look how that simple bill will grow:

Growing At

The Story of Jack and Jill

Delaying making investments in order to launch your career can cost you dearly later on. Smaller investments made between the ages of 18-25 will yield much greater returns than larger investments made later on over a longer period from ages 26-65. Consider the classic parable taught in many basic economic courses:

Jack decided not to go to college. He got a job at 18 and invested $4,000 each year into an IRA. He stopped after eight years after investing a total of $32,000. His sister, Jill, went to medical school, started her medical practice at age 26, at which point she began contributing $4,000 to her IRA. Jill did this for 40 years from 26 to 65. She invested a total of $160,000 and put her money into the same investment as her brother. Jill started investing the same year Jack stopped, and she saved for 40 years compared to just eight years for her brother.

By age 65, whose IRA account do you thing was worth more money?

Assuming both Jack and Jill earned a 10% annual return, Jill accumulated $1,327,778. But Jack had $1,552,739 – $224,961 more than his sister!

Jack’s account grows to a higher value because he started sooner!

+$224,961

Jack stopped investing at age 26 having invested only $32,000 to Jill’s $160,000. But Jack’s money earned interest for eight years longer than his sister. It wasn’t the money that made him successful – it was the time value of money. Jack didn’t put off investing when he first launched his career. By investing sooner than Jill, his account grew larger.

The moral of this story is not to forego a college education and its promise of higher earning potential. No doubt, Jill earned more disposable income during her career. But Jack’s investment head start was far superior, resulting in substantially greater savings.

What you Should not Do?

Do nothing – Obviously nothing in life is a guarantee. There is no guarantee that you will make money investing in the market in your first month or year. However overtime you will as you can see through the charts above. One thing you can guarantee though is if you do nothing you will not be able to retire comfortably.

Start Late – Besides not investing at all this would be your second worse decision. The numbers don’t lie and the graphs above prove my points.

Invest for the short term – The market is not a guarantee so don’t use it as a short fix to pay off bills or debts. The key to investing is by having a long-term perspective. Traders are different as they manipulate the markets to turn a profit. Beware though it takes only the very skilled as 90% of traders lose money.

Take it Easy - If you’re young, most of your investing dollars should be in the stock market. Over time you will be able to weather the dips in the markets and benefit from the rewards of long-term gains.

Risk it All – Never pour all your money into something that could lose it all. Diversify, Diversify, Diversify!!!

Now What?

Hopefully after reading this you realize the true gains from investing and why it is the best decision you could ever make in your life. Next step is to open up a Brokerage Account so follow my next steps to get started. Get going cause remember the clock is always ticking.

Stocks on Wall Street Year End Word Cloud

So was curious in seeing what terms I used in all 262 articles I wrote for Stocks on Wall Street last year, here they are:

Happy New Year from Stocks on Wall Street

Just want to wish everyone a Happy New Year here from Stocks on Wall Street. Enjoy 2010, remember the most important thing in life is honesty, integrity, hardwork, family and never forgetting where we came from.

Help Out the Improvement of Stocks on Wall Street: Fill Out the Survey

Hey guys I need a little help from you all. As part of my new years resolution I am looking to greatly improve Stocks on Wall Street. The problem is I can’t do thiswithout your help. I want to hear all your thoughts, opinions, concerns, etc about Stocks on Wall Street. As a result, I have created a little survey. Simply click on the blue link in the top right corner and take the brief 3-5 minutes to fill out the survey and help the improvement of Stocks on Wall Street. Let your voice be heard as I will make sure to accommodate everyone’s ideas. Thanks!!!

Laying Out my Internet Ventures

So a couple weeks a go I wrote about Developing My Website Business. Well this process is going quite successful just wanted to update you all on the logisitics of it all. Around two weeks ago I got all the LLC papers filed, so they are now in the mailing process and once that is all done the company will be established. Stocks on Wall Street will still the main focus and I am going to try and improve it significantly. Once a week or so, I plan on making a video on my Stock/Financial Market Ramblings along with being able to answer any questions readers sent in by email, twitter, facebook, RandomChatter, comments, etc.

Stock Picking Website

Moving on I plan on creating a Stock Picking Website. This website will be very simply laid out and once a week it will recommend a stock to buy, similar to Stocks on Wall Street just without all the extras. Just down to the basics, STOCK PICKS, hence the name. Moving on, I planned on opening my own Personal Stock Website which would post my trades by the minute, portfolio gains, etc. You might ask how would this be different from Stocks on Wall Street as don’t I post all my picks. No I don’t. Sorry but some of my trades are risky to a point I don’t want to but them out there and risk that you might lose money. I am fine losing my own money, lol it rarely happens, but thats because I know my investing capabilities can make back those returns in the long-run. However for you, there will be no losses. If you want picks check out the Stock Picks section which has been quite a success. Since February 2009 I have made 19 stock picks on this website, 16 of which have made money. Cumulating the total gains made by all the picks (including the losers) the number soars to 578%, with IVN being the top stock pick of the year up over 240% since February. Stocks on Wall Street has only started to begin catching steam with high traffic numbers so I hope more of the new readers can look at these numbers and trust my picks and my theory that I know what I am talking about. Some might say that I am too young to be giving any sort of financial advice and tips on the stock market though I disagree. If the E*Trade Baby can do it, I surely can. Yes I am 19 years young, however whats that have to do with my knowledge of the markets. I follow them extensively on a day-by-day basic, read numerous books, and study every aspect of a company to make myself the most amount of money. Yes I might have a few typos on the site but don’t allow that to sway your opinion. I am not a English major, part of the reason my writing skills are average plus my ADHD makes it harder for me to double check. As for stocks that what I know and live for. Anyone who disagrees with that, so be it there are thousands of other folks who can hopefully trust my judgement as I feel now I have shown the results over the past 9 months that I am capable of this.

Personal Stock Website

Moving back to the Personal Stock Website, I have shut this idea down. Why? Because there is already a product out there I cannot beat, CoVestor. Don’t know what it is, read my earlier blog post CoVestor: The Best Way to Prove a Stock Blogger’s Credibility. In a snapshot, it links to your brokerage account and posts all your gains, legitimately as it tracks them day-by-day. To the side, I have posted all my annual numbers since August 1st when I signed up for CoVestor. Since then I am up 38.39%, which equals out to roughly 8.85% a month and 122.82% a year. Compare that to the S&P 500, big difference. Finally back to my last two ventures, both which are semi-established. First besides stocks one of my other passions in life has always been Sports. Yes I am a diehard sports fan, most notably the Oakland Raiders, San Francisco Giants, Golden State Warriors, and of course my favorite player, Lebron James. And no I don’t just like him because of his last name. Anyways, to share my passion of sports I have re-started up my spots blog, Bay Area Sports Blog. Every Sunday, I will post an article about anything within the sporting world. Most likely it will relate to my favorite teams, however its not limited to that at all. Finally my last venture to talk about was also my first ever internet venture, my General Forum: RandomChatter, I have been running this site for close to a year now and its finally picking up steam. I plan on growing the forum extensively to accomodate anyone out there on the internet. The Sports Section and Financial Sections are extensive however discussions can be about anything to everything. Stop by, sign-up, and begin posting. Trust me you will enjoy it. Sorry to bore you but had to do it to keep you updated on everything. Hope everyone had a peaceful holiday weekend.

Damn It Feels Good to be Banker: A Wall Street Musical

Funny YouTube Clip all you Finance folks should watch. Classic battle of Bankers vs Consultants. You know who I will side with.

The Night Before Christmas: Wall Street Version

The Committee was meeting and all through the Fed
Danced visions of Lehman and Fannie and Fred
Their failures created a huge credit crisis
Infecting all bonds with a terminal virus

Investors sold everything, markets went bust;
Bondholders did, too; no one knew who to trust.
Most business slashed payrolls, production and spending;
They couldn’t get credit, no bankers were lending.

The Fed offered loans of unlimited size
To keep lenders solvent, avert their demise.
That action, untested; some thought it too bold;
But ’twas done to prevent a depression of old.

Obama was chosen to stitch up the hole
That markets had rented in the capitalist soul.
But new plans from Geithner created more fears
And stocks plunged anew to their lowest in years.

Economies soured and trade all but vanished,
And confidence plunged as new taxes were brandished.
New layoffs exploded, expansion forsaken.
Gold, dollars and T-bonds were bought as safe havens.

But right in the midst of that ominous terror,
The stock market troughed, then it rose more than ever
Bond issuance grew and demand for debt rose
As investors returned to that market in droves.

Economy’s growing, job losses are ending.
Most business expanding, consumers are spending.
Production was slashed, inventories grew spare.
Like Old Mother Hubbard, sales cupboards are bare.

The crisis was so bad, some still fear the worst
May still lie ahead in a double-dip burst;
Stock prices have risen, now some dread a bubble;
Fed watchers are worried rate hikes will bring trouble

We think the economy, stronger than feared,
Will overcome whichever problem is reared.
The crisis has lifted, for that we can send
Some thanks to the Fed and the good Doctor Ben.

Oh-8 was the worst year in many a mem’ry;
Oh-9 did improve but we’re still glad it’s hist’ry.
We trust that Oh-10 will bring much less to fear.
Merry Christmas to all and to all a good year!

The verse is by Bob Baur, chief global economist at Principal Global Investors

Merry Christmas from Stocks on Wall Street

Merry Christmas to all of you from Stocks on Wall Street. So far, 2009 has been all than perfect. We have seen the ups and downs in both financial markets and personal lives, at least I have. It has been chaotic to say the least but all in all a great year. Today however forget about all your problems and cherish the times you have. Christmas should be an unforgettable day for everyone. Enjoy a day full of happiness with family and friends. Christmas is a colorful day for all people. Wish you the best times during the holidays. Have fun and enjoy the time off.

MicroPlace.com: The Real Solution to Alleviating Global Poverty

With the holiday season coming around many people are making their new years resolutions. Well one should be to give back to the world, this is a number one priority on my list. You might say how? By helping eliminate worldwide poverty within developing countries. So next questions, how is this even possible? Well actually its not that hard. Thanks to an innovative idea, MicroPlace we can now microfinance the third world. Let me describe.

MicroPlace.com

What is MicroPlace?

MicroPlace was founded in 2006. It is a broker-dealer registered with the SEC and it specializes in microfinance for retail investors. Started by Tracey Pettengill Turner it was bough by eBay in 2006.

What is the Goal of MicroPlace?

MicroPlace was founded when Tracey Turner realized that the microfinance industry needed over $250 billion to get capital to the entire world’s working poor who need it to fund their business ventures. The problem was at the time; roughly only $25 billion has been raised. The key distinction he noticed was that Americans give roughly around $300 billion to charity a year, however very little actually goes to microfinance. He believed that there were not enough charities to address all the worldwide poverty problems. As a result he founded MicroPlace to direct socially responsible investment capital to microfinance investments. Since 2006, American’s have loaned over $2.4 trillion to microfinance third world investments.

Why MicroPlace is Special?

MicroPlace allows the everyday investor the ability to make investments in the microfinance industry. You can give as little as $25 yet every dollar counts. Before MicroPlace it was very hard for ordinary investors to microfinance unless they had significant capital.

What is Micro Financing?

Microfinance tries to alleviate global poverty by offering small loans to entrepreneurs in developing countries who would otherwise not have access to credit.

Why I Support Micro financing?

I believe that Microfinance has been proven to be a highly effective poverty reduction tool in developing countries. I support it because instead of giving a handout to people such as charities it give people a hand-up and gives them the opportunity to get their career started and a new life. In developing nations around the world, many people have innovative ideas and the hard work ethic/determination to end their life of poverty. Problem is they have no foreseeable way out of this life. They have the lack of money to grow a business and do not have the ability to access banks/financial services to obtain the capital necessary to start off their venture. Fewer than 10 million of the 100 million people obtaining microfinance are able to obtain loans from a bank. As a result, they are stuck in a rut. Now with MicroPlace it gives them a feasible option to grow their business by receiving small loans, most of which are under $100. MicroPlace invites people in developed countries to invest in their company that in turn takes the money to local lending organizations. You can find an individual venture to loan the money by searching through geographical region. Then the entrepreneur is liable to pay back the loan and the interest, usually somewhere between 2%-6%. 97% of all loans are paid back.

What is my Goal?

Within the New Year, I will be creating my own MicroPlace account with the goal of helping to alleviate global poverty. The best part is you can wire your account easily via paypal/credit card and you are paid quarterly with both interest and part of the loan. It’s a win, win situation for both parities.

What attracted me to MicroPlace?

Last Christmas, my family and I made a trip to South Africa touring the countryside and visiting the fabulous sites. One of which was the shantytowns outside of Johannesburg. This is where I was first exposed to true poverty that exists within the world. These people lived in mud huts with no possessions or assets. They were all stuck in these situations and barely supported by the government. Problem was many had the work ethic, innovative ideas to make it in the business world yet lacked the access to the financial resources that we take for granted in the U.S. As a result, I looked into Micro Financing and found out about MicroPlace and the opportunities it give to these people. In addition, I love the fact that it incentives these people to work hard. The problem I have with charity is its only short-time fix; micro financing creates a long-time opportunity to allow these people to sufficiently support themselves. Like the famous quote:

“Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today.  Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime.”

As a result, this year instead of donating to charities, sign-up for a MicroPlace account and truly help out these people and help alleviate global poverty.

Recap of 2009: How My Stock Picks Faired

As 2009 comes to an end, I wanted to inform everyone on how my stock picks have faired so far throughout. 2009 has been an interesting year within the markets, we have truly seen the ups and the downs dealing with the struggles from the credit crunch/global recession. It will be a year for the ages and one that I hope we can look back at in the future as a turning point for the markets. Luckily I have been  quite successful these past 10 months within choosing my investments wisely. So far my best pick of the year has been, Ivanhoe Mines (IVN) which is up a little over 218% since late February when I initially launched this website. My worst pick has been GigaMedia (GIGM) which is down around 12% so far, however I have optimistic views about the company and feel it still has the potential to be a strong long-term investment. Still calculating my annualized return for 2009 as the numbers are mixed over since I switched brokerage accounts mid-year from Scottrade to Interactive Brokers. Though newly opened Interactive Brokers account is up over 50% since July so I am speculating that my total annualized return for 2009 is between 70-90% if not more. Due to these impressive gains, starting in 2010 I will launch my own personal trading website which will post the exact trades I make minute by minute to keep readers updated on my moves within the markets and help caculate my gains/losses in an easy format. I am hoping to target an aggressive return of 50% for 2010 so lets hope all goes well. Moving on I am planning on one more pick to come out Monday and then we will be set for 2009 and will head into 2010 with optimistic views of the market and plan to be just as successful in 2010 as I was in 2009. Enjoy the weekend and below are the picks for 2009.

Past Stock Picks

Under Armour (UA) 12/9/2009 ↑1%

The Buckle (BKE) – 11/19/2009 ↑1%

Fluor (FLR) – 11/6/2009 ↓2%

GigaMedia (GIGM) – 10/8/2009 ↓12%

EOG Resources (EOG) – 9/29/2009 ↑21%

Altria Group, Inc (MO) – 9/3/2009 ↑16%

Gamestop (GME) – 8/4/2009 ↓1%

SHORT: Baidu (BIDU) – 7/30/2009 ↓9% Sold 9/15/2009

U.S. Corporation (USG) – 7/23/2009 ↑20%

Foster Wheeler (FWLT) – 7/16/2009 ↑45%

C.R. Bard (BCR) – 7/10/2009 ↑7% SOLD

Coach (COH) – 6/29/2009 ↑45%

AT&T (T) – 6/22/2009 ↑14%

Noble (NE) – 6/16/2009 ↑23%

Under Armor (UA) – 5/25/2009 ↑57% SOLD 10/7/2009

Petroleo Brasileiro SA (PBR) – 4/13/2009 ↑32%

China Life Insurance (LFC) – 4/4/2009 ↑25% SOLD

Oracle (ORCL) – 4/2/2009 ↑26%

Ivanhoe Mines (IVN) – 2/20/2009 ↑218%

Officially Starting Christmas Break: Done with Fall Semester

Officially now done with finals for the fall semester at ASU!!! Yes this is partly the reason there has been no new financial articles the past two days on Stocks on Wall Street as I have gotten a little less than 8 hours of sleep in the past 48+ hours. However, two tests later and a powerpoint presentation on Bernie Madoff and I am enjoying my christmas break. It will be a nice break from school these next few weeks and give me time to work on some projects of mine. Talk to you all later.

Top 10 Most Outrageous CEO’s

So to go against yesterdays articles I was researching the Top 10 Most Outrageous CEO’s in the World and found this list on Business.com. Let me here your thoughts.

1. Lloyd Blankfein, CEO of Goldman Sachs – Blankfein and his fellow executives continue rewarding themselves for their bad behavior — setting aside $16.7 billion in compensation and bonuses in the first nine months of 2009.

2. John Alexander Thain, CEO of Merrill Lynch – Bank of America CEO Ken Lewis reportedly forced Thain to resign after losses at Merrill Lynch proved to be far larger than BoA’s estimation.

3. Raj Rajaratnam, Founder of the Gallon Group – Rajaratnam and five others were charged with crimes, including securities fraud and conspiracy-involving insider trading that generated more than $20 million in profits.

4. B Ramalinga Raju, Founder of Satyam Computer Services – Confessed to overstating its profits over several years and creating a fictitious cash balance of more than $1 billion. He confessed to inventing more than 10,000 fictional employees to help him steal money from the company, and using his mother’s name to buy land with the proceeds.

5. Thomas Petters, CEO and chairman of Petters Group Worldwide – The FBI put Petters under investigation for his alleged role in a fraud scheme involving more than $100 million in investments, with estimates ranging up to $3.5 billion. Documents released by federal agencies noted that they were seeking evidence of a scheme to lure investors into funding a company based on millions of dollars in purchases and sales that never occurred

6. Edward M Liddy, CEO of AIG – Defended a controversial $440,000 AIG retreat for top-performing insurance salesmen at the luxury St. Regis Resort in Monarch Beach, California shortly after the US government rescued AIG from insolvency with $84 billion in loans. In his testimony before the US House Oversight Committee, Liddy stated such retreats ‘are standard practice in our industry.’

7.Danny Pang, Manager of Private Equity Management Group, Inc. and Private Equity Management, LLC. – Pang was accused by US securities regulators of perpetrating a massive Ponzi scheme as also for misreporting his background to investors. The FBI arrested him on April 28 for structuring cash transactions to avoid a $10,000 reporting threshold, which has a maximum 10-year prison sentence.

8. R Allen Stanford, Chairman of Stanford Financial Group – Billionaire accused of a $7-billion fraud. In fact, he is indicted on 21 criminal charges.

9. David Rubin, Founder and Chief Executive of Municipal Bond brokerage firm CDR Financial Products – Accused of a nine-count indictment, issued by a federal grand jury and filed in US District Court in Manhattan, accused CDR Financial Products Inc. in October of steering business to investment firms that paid it kickbacks.

10. Robert Moran, UBS private banking client and founder and CEO Moran Yacht & Ship – Moran was sentenced for tax frauds. Moran had pleaded guilty in April to filing a false tax return and admitted to concealing more than $3 million in a secret UBS account.

Top 25 Most Powerful CEOs

Interesting collection that was recently posted by Forbes Magazine. Let me here your thoughts and opinions on the list.

1. Steve Jobs: Chairman and CEO, Apple

2. Rupert Murdoch: Chairman and CEO, News Corp.

3. Lloyd Blankfein: Chairman and CEO, Goldman Sachs

4. Eric Schmidt, Larry Page, and Sergei Brin: CEO; President, Products; President, Technology; Google

5. Warren Buffett: Chairman and CEO, Berkshire Hathaway

6. Rex Tillerson: Chairman and CEO, Exxon Mobil

7. Bill Gates: Founder, chairman of Microsoft; founder and co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

8. Jeff Immelt: Chairman and CEO, GE

9. Katsuaki Watanabe: President, Toyota

10. A.G. Lafley: Chairman and CEO, Procter & Gamble

11. John Chambers: Chairman and CEO, Cisco

12. Li Ka-shing: Chairman, Cheung Kong Holdings and Hutchison Whampoa

13. Lee Scott: CEO, Wal-Mart

14. Lakshmi Mittal

15. Jamie Dimon: Chairman and CEO, JP Morgan Chase

16. Mark Hurd: Chairman and CEO, Hewlett-Packard

17. James McNerney: Chairman and CEO, Boeing

18. Marius Kloppers: CEO, BHP Billiton

19. Steve Schwarzman: CEO, Blackstone

20. Carlos Slim: Chair, TelMex and Carso Foundation

21. Steve Feinberg: CEO, Cerberus

22. Indra Nooyi: Chairman and CEO, PepsiCo

23. Ratan Tata: Chairman, Tata Group

24. Bob Iger: CEO, Walt Disney

25. Bernard Arnault: Chairman and CEO, LVMH

Developing My Website Business: Stretching Out Further

So guys sad to say this will be the last month of StocksonWallStreet.net Why? Well don’t worry I’m not going to stop running the site but I plan on kicking off the new year by switching it to StocksonWallStreet.com. Yes big upgrade in my opinion .com will look better for the overall image of the website. Moving on new changes will be coming within the site, I be launching several new websites.

1. Stock Picking Website – Once a week this website will post a hot stock pick of mine with Analysis, etc

2. My Stock Website - This website will post every trade I make how much % of my portfolio etc to give people real live updates about my trades.

3. Top Brokerage Website - This website will be set-up with tons of information to help you get a brokerage account started by answering basic questions, ranking the top brokerage accounts, and giving you bonuses on how to get started.

4. Stocks on Wall Street Fantasy Stock Contest - This website will be dedicated to the annual Stocks on Wall Street Fantasy Stock Contest giving updates to all the contestants and sponsors.

5. Automated Stock Market Website – This website will be updated by the hour with an array of financial/stock market related articles from an array of different sources.

6. General Website - I will also have a general website linking all the sites and explaining the launch of my new company “Stocks on Wall Street”

All these websites will be registered under the Stocks on Wall Street LLC and be fully operated. Domain names have yet to be released as only part of them are actually owned so far but once I have them all under management and up and running I will be promoting them and hoping you guys will check them out. Don’t worry StocksonWallStreet.com will still be my same focus as some of these websites are just huge time commitments up-front and then they are sustainable. Adding to this I will also be including RandomChatter.org under the company which will be going under renovation as well to improve its overall image and selling ability as a General Forum. This might all be lots of information now but in January I hope to have all these sites up and running. So big news in my mind and hopefully the transition all runs smoothly.

Why Everyone Should be Just Like Ari Gold?

Want to be a successful business man and get the job done? Then mimic everything Ari Gold does. This is what I love about Ari Gold and why he has the tools to succeed:

1.   His swag, his style. His quick twitch, ADD behavior which is a wrecking ball to anyone who gets in his way. He never takes NO as an answer.

2.   Ari Gold may be considered an a**hole to many but results don’t lie and that’s something you need to learn in life. The key in life is to get the job done. If your boss asks you to do something, do anything to get it done. Of course follow some form of moral/ethical code as we don’t want to create another Bernie Madoff but beside the point get the job done.

3.   Ari Gold knows how to work the system. Never cheat the system, use it to your advantage. Its not lying if you don’t tell them the full extent of the details, find out the information you want to know first then let them in. find flaws in a system and take advantage of them.

4.   Ari Gold is scared of no one, no opportunity. Take on any challenge any opportunity in life as worst comes to worse you fail but once in a while you will succeed and reap the riches and be glad you made the jump. Remember, you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.

5.   Ari Gold knows how to convince anyone in any situation. Learning to convince people to side with you, take a shot in you, believe in you is the key in life. If you can convince one person you can convince the world.

6.   Ari Gold has a compassionate side and knows the importance of friendship/relationships. Throughout the series you will see the bond grow between Vince and Ari. Never burn bridges that hold you up. There is no satisfaction in success if there is no one to share it with.

My Favorite Quotes: Hopefully Inspirational to All

Nothing special today guys but a list of some of my favorite quotes. Enjoy!

“I don’t think anybody’s too big to fail. If a business fails, what happens is, there are still assets, and those assets get reorganized. Either new management comes in or it’s sold off to another business or it’s bid on and the good assets are retained and the bad assets are eliminated. I believe in the dynamic creativity of capitalism, and it’s self-correcting, if you just allow it to self-correct.” – John Mackey

“People who say money is the root of all evil don’t have any. You think money can’t buy happiness? Look at the smile on my face then, ear to ear baby.” – Ben Affleck

“Greed is Good” – Gordon Gecko, Wall Street

“If you think you can do a thing or think you can’t do a thing, you’re right.” – Henry Ford

“In character, in manners, in style, in all things, the supreme excellence is simplicity.” – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

“The key to making money in stocks is not to get scared out of them.” – Peter Lynch

“Good order is the foundation of all things.” – Edmund Burke

“If you want to make enemies, try to change something.” – Woodrow Wilson

“Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.” – Sun-Tzu

“Character is destiny.” – Heraclitus

“I have never been in a situation where having money made it worse.” – Clinton Jones

“I always knew I was going to be rich. I don’t think I ever doubted it for a minute.” – Warren Buffett

“Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome.” - Booker T. Washington

“I’m convinced that about half of what separates the successful entrepreneurs from the non-successful ones is pure perseverance.” – Steve Jobs

“The best way to escape from a problem is to solve it.” – Alan Saporta

“Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, the mind can achieve.” – Dr. Napoleon Hill

“Intellectuals solve problems; geniuses prevent them.” – Albert Einstein

“Being right half the time beats being half-right all the time.” – Malcom Forbes

“Every morning I get up and look through the Forbes list of the richest people in America. If I’m not there, I go to work.” – Jay Z

“The first step to getting the things you want out of life is this: Decide what you want.” – Ben Stein

“Government is not the solution, Government is the problem.” – Ronald Reagan

“The wise man once said invest young” – Warren Buffet

“Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed is more important than any other.” – Abraham Lincoln

“If a business does well, the stock eventually follows.” – Warren Buffett

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.” – Nelson Mandela

“Never let your schooling interfere with your education.” – Mark Twain

“In evaluating people, you look for three qualities: integrity, intelligence, and energy. If you don’t have the first, the other two will kill you.” – Warren Buffett

“It’s not a question of enough, pal. It’s a zero sum game, somebody wins, somebody loses. Money itself isn’t lost or made, it’s simply transferred from one perception to another.” – Gordon Gecko

“It is better to be approximately right than precisely wrong” -Warren Buffett

“Paradoxically, when ‘dumb’ money acknowledges its limitations, it ceases to be dumb.” – Warren Buffett