I recently joined the Trading Challenge being run by Tim Sykes. I introduced you to Timothy Sykes in 2008 when I reviewed his book An American Hedge Fund. He took about $12,000+ that he got for his Bar Mitzvah, and turned it into $1.65 million as a young high school and college student.

And then he did it all over again… Starting with the same amount in 2008, and growing it again just to prove that he can profit from the stock market without a huge capital base to start.

For several years, Tim has been teaching students how to trade using his core strategy. The strategy involves short selling  penny stock pump and dumps. He finds penny stocks (defined as trading at less than $5 per share) that are worthless at the core. The companies are shams, which generally tout some amazing product or service, but have no revenue, no profits, and often no real operations.

Promoters get paid to pump these penny stocks, often receiving shares of stock for their efforts. Thus, they have a vested interest in getting the stock price to rise quickly, as they will dump their shares at a higher price to cash out. If the promoters are good, the stock price rises quickly as gullible investors believe the hype and want to get in early with this new amazing technology or product!!!!

Again, the companies are shams and have no real technicals backing them up. They have little to no revenue and profits, and the stock price rises only in response to the promoters hyping and pumping the company.

Timothy Sykes looks for these hyped worthless stocks, watches the pump, and shorts the dump. Short selling is profiting from a decline in stock price. It involves borrowing shares of the stock to sell first (at a high price) and then buying back the stock (at a lower price) later to replace the shares that were borrowed.

I joined the Trading Challenge, which is really less of a challenge and more a course of study to learn this method. There is a ton of information to learn, but I think that my fraud investigation skills will serve me well in seeking out scam companies that are being pumped and dumped.

Short selling pump and dumps has been Tim’s primary trading strategy, but he also teaches students other methods of profiting in the stock market. I am focusing on shorting pump and dumps because I’m so new and need to get good at this before I worry about using other strategies.

One of my frustrations, however, was figuring out how to get through all the material. There are more than 900 video lessons to watch, along with a slew of DVDs outlining the strategy and the methods Tim uses to find these companies, watch the price action, and make a move that is calculated to give him the best risk/reward. There is simply a ton of material, and the learning path is not exactly linear. You sort of have to dive right in, prepare to understand very little of what you see at first, keep watching, and eventually it starts to fall into place.

I’m writing this article to offer a little bit of advice to new Trading Challenge students. You have to just start watching. But where should you start? If you join the Challenge, you’re going to get 60 emails (one per day) linking to best videos for beginners to watch. But you need to watch much more than that to get your bearings.

Start immediately on the DVDs, beginning with PennyStocking Part Deux and TimFundamentals Part Deux. And watch the videos linked in the posts below. With so many videos online, it’s hard to know which ones to start with. But someone has already done the work for us and linked to some of the best video lessons:

This strategy is not simply about finding crappy companies to short. It is about finding them, watching the price action, and knowing when to short in order to profit. If your timing is wrong, you can lose a whole lot of money very quickly. This article summarizes some of the key things to remember when trading Tim’s strategy.

211 Comments

  1. Faizal 04/19/2013 at 1:37 pm - Reply

    Hey Tracy I’m thinking about signing up as well, what do you think so far? The $5,520 upfront fee seems a bit high, is it worth it?

  2. Tracy Coenen 04/19/2013 at 1:46 pm - Reply

    It has been worth it for me. All of the DVD sets are worth it! And the weekly webinars with Tim and Michael Goode are invaluable. Direct access to them is worth a lot, and I am happy I went this route instead of just the PennyStocking Silver subscription (which gives you access to the online video library).

  3. Chris Hatton 04/22/2013 at 8:44 am - Reply

    Hi Tracy,
    I searched several pages to see if this challenge was reviewed as a scam and could not find any such reviews! Sykes seems to be very legitimate. I have talked to Doug (his colleague) about the challenge and was accepted. I truly believe that they just don’t accept every application. They do want this program to work. Your review made me feel more confident about getting on board and it is great to know that it isn’t a linear study! I would prefer it that way however if it all clicks one day, I can just imagine how well I would do in this market segment!

    • Tracy Coenen 04/22/2013 at 4:03 pm - Reply

      Chris – Tim has been an acquaintance of mine for several years, and I have followed his career during this time. I also have two trusted friends who know him quite well.

      During this time, the only people I have seen call Tim a scammer are:

      1. Those who actually ARE scammers and are upset because Tim exposed them
      2. People in other lines of work who have never participated in his programs or sought to learn any facts about the programs (The woman in this story is a great example of such: http://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelsimmons/2013/04/09/how-to-give-potential-customers-what-they-want-while-still-being-true-to-yourself/)

      Here’s where people get it wrong…

      Because Tim flashes his wealth as a marketing tool, people assume he is pushing a “get rich quick scheme.” Nothing could be further from the truth. I am ultimately learning a low risk trade strategy (but only low risk if I do it right!), but it is taking hours and hours of studying, and will take many hours of watching and waiting before I trade.

      Doing it right can be difficult. So it will take a lot of time to learn and refine but I am willing to make the time commitment. Ignore Tim’s bravado and focus on learning.

  4. David 05/01/2013 at 4:34 pm - Reply

    I just discovered your blog and am at a loss to understand what I am reading here. You expose MLM but think this is legit? Reminds me of a conspiracy theorist who likes to debunk other conspiracy theorists to make their own conspiracy theories seem more legit.

    If he’s developed a system that works so well why isn’t he using it to make himself ridiculously wealthy? Oh wait, it’s because he wants to help other people be successful, people who just happen to be making him wealthier by buying into this nonsense. I have some money waiting for you in Nigeria.

    • Tracy Coenen 05/01/2013 at 4:55 pm - Reply

      Tim has developed a strategy for trading which works, but is not scalable past a certain point. So he has created a business teaching trading to students.

      His core strategy relates to penny stocks, but he does teach how to research, analyze, and trade other stocks.

      It’s easy to dismiss this as a get-rich-quick scheme, but that’s not what it is. It is a course that takes a lot of learning, practicing, and refining in order to be successful with it. So yes, I am spending a lot of time learning about various trading strategies, and hope to implement them successfully.

      MLM, on the other hand, is a complete scam. 99% of people are guaranteed to lose money in MLM. Not so with the stock market, and certainly not so if you are willing to learn how to do it right.

  5. John Thomas 05/06/2013 at 5:12 am - Reply

    The biggest problem with Tim’s system isn’t the system. Yes, short selling scam stocks works, but you won’t be able to find a broker to short most of Tim’s picks. And if you do, you won’t be able to get more to short if the stock happens to go up first, trapping you in at alower price and sometimes being forced to buy in at a higher price. What tim teaches works in theory. Reality is a lot different. This was a very easy way to make money BEFORE 2004 when the NASD changed rule 3370 and the SEC passed Reg SHO, making it nearly impossible to short penny stock pump and dumps. If you find a legitimate broker that will let you short penny stocks without a borrow (referred to as naked shorting), chances are they won’t be doing it legally and sooner or later the gig will be up. For instance, Tim recommends suretrader. Now I have no idea if Suretrader will short sell these stocks for you, but suretrader is not really allowed to operate i the US so if they do, it won’t be long lasting. Research a guy named Amr “Tony” Elgindy. he had a website where traders discussed these type of shorts and traded them, mostly out of Canada before the rule changes in 2004. Most of his income came from the 1.6 mill a year in website subscription fees, not his actual trading, although back then it was possible to sell short the P & D stocks by going to Canada and shorting them naked.

    Good luck with your challenge. Please report your results.

  6. Tracy Coenen 05/06/2013 at 6:48 am - Reply

    Yes, I found out quickky that these stocks are hard to borrow. Tim does teach other strategies within the program, so I am hoping to use those too. I will report back. I will say that so far I have learned a lot about technical analysis.

  7. Christopher 06/18/2013 at 11:26 am - Reply

    Hey Tracy,

    How are doing so far in the program? Have you started trading yet?

    • Tracy Coenen 06/18/2013 at 11:48 am - Reply

      Christopher – I have not started shorting penny stocks yet. I have not been able to spend as much time on the videos as I would have liked so far, and I’m not willing to risk trading so soon. I expect within a few weeks I’ll be shorting.

  8. Ryan Smith 06/20/2013 at 10:49 pm - Reply

    Hey Tracy,
    Did it really cost 5500 to join the millionaire challenge? What was the application process like?

    I have thought about applying. Any info is helpful 🙂

  9. Tracy Coenen 06/20/2013 at 11:23 pm - Reply

    I don’t remember exactly how much it cost, but it was around that amount. I don’t know what the regular application process is like. I have known Tim for a little while, so I just had one phone call and I was in.

  10. Ryan Smith 06/21/2013 at 6:52 pm - Reply

    Does the challenge have weekly seminar calls and webinars or is it all on your own?

    • Tracy Coenen 06/21/2013 at 8:01 pm - Reply

      There are two weekly webinars, about 5 new videos per week, and then all archived videos and DVDs.

  11. Tracy Coenen 06/21/2013 at 8:07 pm - Reply

    Videos = short lessons usually 5-20 minutes, and generally on current stocks that Tim is watching and/or trading

    DVDs = long videos of several hours that Tim sells, but are included in the price of the program (these are more in depth training pieces on the strategy he uses and the mechanics of it)

  12. Ryan Smith 06/21/2013 at 8:10 pm - Reply

    Thank you for your answers 🙂

    I really appreciate it!

    So does his program have you start off picking the same stocks as Tim or are you on your own?

    I’ve also been concerned about using Sure trader since it is not in the U.S.

  13. Tracy Coenen 06/21/2013 at 8:15 pm - Reply

    The stocks you trade are completely up to you. Tim sends out watch lists so you know the stocks he has identified as potential trades. He also sends out alerts to tell you what he has traded.

    You can follow what he’s doing and trade those same stocks, or you can find your own picks to trade. He teaches how to research and evaluate stocks, so you could certainly find your own picks.

    And while Tim has the core strategy that he teaches, he also teaches a lot of technical stuff that you could use to develop other trading strategies.

  14. Tracy Coenen 06/21/2013 at 8:18 pm - Reply

    And you don’t have to use Suretrader. Use whatever broker you like!

  15. Ryan Smith 06/21/2013 at 8:21 pm - Reply

    Thank you 🙂

  16. Ryan Smith 06/21/2013 at 8:22 pm - Reply

    Last question, I promise:

    I heard he only takes around a 100 students per year. Is that true?

    • Tracy Coenen 06/22/2013 at 7:42 am - Reply

      I don’t know. 🙂

  17. William Wise 07/11/2013 at 4:15 pm - Reply

    Hey Tracy,

    Have you started actively trading with Tim’s strategy yet? I was just accepted to the challenge and received all of Tim’s materials today. There seems to be little structure in terms of a starting point and where to turn when you do have questions. Just wondering how you may have been able to navigate those issues. If you could do it over again would you?

    Thanks!

  18. Tracy Coenen 07/11/2013 at 4:38 pm - Reply

    It is a little confusing when you first start! Fear not.

    1. The best DVD to start with (to get an overall idea of the system) is Pennystocking Part Deux.
    2. The next DVD to watch is Tim Fundamentals #2.
    3. Watch ALL of the video lessons. Try to keep up on the daily ones Tim puts out. Also go back and watch all of the old ones. (If you email me, I can also give you links to some guides that lest the most helpful video lessons.)
    4. Get in on the weekly webinars right away. You won’t understand what’s going on at first, and that’s okay. Just listen and you will catch on.

    I will begin looking for shorts next week. So that will be my official entry into Tim’s strategy. I have been buying and selling long positions for the last couple of months using what I’ve learned from Tim. That is going well, and now I finally feel (almost) ready to start shorting. I don’t have big expectations to start. I am going to do very small positions just so I can get a feel for what I’m doing.

    • phil 12/15/2013 at 10:07 am - Reply

      Tracy,
      I just joined Tim challenge, I would appreciate if you could assist me in my venture..
      Ty
      Phil

  19. […] this year I wrote about being a part of the Timothy Sykes Millionaire Trading Challenge. I signed up in March, and have been learning Tim’s core strategy (shorting penny stock pump […]

  20. Ryan McGinn 08/04/2013 at 2:24 pm - Reply

    I have been interested in signing up, i got an email stating what commitment was required but it is hard as I work on a shift pattern basis! Therefore I would miss some of the webinars. I have started researching, Although I am confident I would succeed if I could give my full effort I just couldn’t give up my job! What would be your advice around this issue?

  21. James 08/13/2013 at 1:13 am - Reply

    Hey tracy, Im only 15 and have not been attending school for the past term, i am looking for a way to earn money… stocks have always interested me i actually bought 500 dollars worth when i was 11/12, my grandpa has many many of them and has traded since 1940’s, but i have recently heard about penny stocks… what do you think of trying to earn a living off pennystocks? thanks a lot. hope you can get back to me.

    • Tracy Coenen 08/15/2013 at 8:56 am - Reply

      There are people who do earn a living off trading penny stocks. However, it takes a lot of time and dedication to learn how to do it right. As with any stock trading, it’s risky, especially if you’re not prepared. Be very careful!

      • Fredy 10/31/2013 at 4:48 pm - Reply

        Hi Tracy
        Have you made any money after becoming a Challenge student?
        How much did you open your account with?
        You can email me if you want [email protected]
        I’m currently a Tim alerts subscriber.

  22. Dusty 08/31/2013 at 3:44 pm - Reply

    I’m hoping that someone can review the Timothy Sykes newsletter to see if it’s worth it or not?? ……….I think it’s $50.00 a month or $100 a month depending upon the option you choose, but I am curious to hear about results from others…I mean, have they made real actual money with it?

  23. sherry 10/09/2013 at 10:43 pm - Reply

    Hi Tracy,
    i just signed up for this programme.
    Read thru this whole forum and inspired by you all.
    Howz things looking with what u learned?

    Sherry

  24. Joseph Ngu 10/21/2013 at 9:53 pm - Reply

    I just finished the interview and about to sign up the challenge. Truly deeply madly want this to work for me!
    Appreciate to see more of your sharing, Tracy.

  25. Tracy Coenen 10/31/2013 at 5:13 pm - Reply

    Fredy – I was actually doing quite well and was up about 18% until a couple of weeks ago. I made a really poor decision and violated all the rules I learned, which wiped out my profits. I am happy to say that I have begun to rebuild my profits.

  26. Freddy 11/04/2013 at 4:19 pm - Reply

    Hi Tracy,
    Are you getting paid or compensated in any way or form for your involvement with Timonth Skyes?

    • Tracy Coenen 11/07/2013 at 1:39 pm - Reply

      If you mean am I being paid for posting my comments on the program on this blog… no.

  27. Richard 11/30/2013 at 8:13 pm - Reply

    Hi Tracy,

    Thanks for the information, I am just done with interview for this program.

    How is rebuild going so far? Got back to 18% or more?

  28. Tracy Coenen 12/01/2013 at 7:49 pm - Reply

    Not yet, Richard, but I am working on it! I can’t rebuild 6 months of profits in only 1 month! 🙂

  29. Joel 12/05/2013 at 8:51 pm - Reply

    Do you think $5,000 is enough to start investing with?

    • Tracy Coenen 12/06/2013 at 1:35 am - Reply

      Yes!!!

  30. Jay 12/06/2013 at 11:35 am - Reply

    I tried Tim’s subscription service back in 2009ish.

    It was his alert service where he would update a web page live (he said) every time he entered a trade.

    I wrote a program that would scan that page every 15 seconds and as soon as it saw the trade, it would take it live in my brokerage account.

    The trade entry itself was under 1/2 second which means that the worse case scenario was that I would be late 15.5 seconds from the time the trade was posted on the web site and the position was established.

    Even at that speed, the stock would be already at it’s peak value by the time that the trade got executed. (And remember, this was a real trading account with real money and a small testing position. Not simulation)

    It almost felt like I was the last one to know about it, although clearly, I was not since most subscribers were still waiting for their e-mails/IMs to show up to tell them about the trade.

    So seeing that, I concluded that there is no way for me as a subscriber to make any money off his ‘picks’ and I cancelled my subscription.

    • Tracy Coenen 12/06/2013 at 12:25 pm - Reply

      Jay – What you’re talking about is NOT the trading challenge. As you mention, it is simply his trade alerts. Many times you can’t get in fast enough once you see the alert, but that’s not different than ANY alert service out there. The person alerting does so, and the market keeps moving until you see the alert and make a decision.

  31. Joel 12/07/2013 at 12:11 pm - Reply

    Thanks for the feedback. Also, how much does his challenge cost per month?

  32. Samuel 12/12/2013 at 5:17 pm - Reply

    Hi Tracy Coenen,

    In your experience as fraud investigator, do you have any reference on https://weeklyoptionsprofits.com ?

    They sale material of “weekly options trading system” training course by Jack Carter , but I want to now if it is real or scam.

    Thanks for the comments you can share in that regard.

    • Tracy Coenen 12/12/2013 at 6:07 pm - Reply

      I have never looked at that one. Sorry.

  33. tyler 12/14/2013 at 1:05 pm - Reply

    Hi Tracy, have you mad your money back after signing up to tim’s challenge?

    • Tracy Coenen 12/14/2013 at 4:43 pm - Reply

      What do you mean by “made my money back”?

      • Perno 12/18/2013 at 11:13 am - Reply

        I think he’s asking if you’ve made your $5,500 initial investment back on the program, whether you had to pay it or not. Thank you for your insight.

  34. Bronson Walker 12/17/2013 at 10:32 pm - Reply

    Hi Tracy,
    I just applied for the challenge and have started getting some emails. I’m a 25 year old finance grad working as an English teacher in Ulsan, SK. I want to learn to trade on my own, not work as an invest. banker or something like that. This program seems very intriguing and Tim Sykes obviously knows what’s up if he’s done it himself time and time again. I want to learn but I’m skeptical of buying online subscriptions of this sort. I don’t need the trading alerts and tips. I want to learn the fundamentals of a strategy like this and pick my own. Do you have any advice?

    Best,
    Bronson

    • travis 12/26/2013 at 12:48 pm - Reply

      Bronson,
      I was a finance major, too! I’m thinking about what I’m going to do as well. I have a LTBH mentality, but I do short and use options quite a bit. I get what Tim’s program is. Know this, being a finance grad, probably will not be of much use with Tim’s methods. There is no fundamental analysis. That means intellect-wise, this is easier. In fact, you are only playing off of people’s fear and greed. BUT, in reality I think actually succeeding must be very difficult. Far more difficult than scrutinizing a company from the bottom up, deciding if it has merit and then buying it and holding it. It’s easy to look back at a chart and recognize a pattern. Humans love to find patterns. It’s in our nature. Even back when we were hunter gathers we found patterns in the stars and seasons, the moon, etc. But while you’re in the thick of it, you can only try to guess at the outcome. You don’t have the luxury of hindsight until it’s done. You have to be great at reading people’s emotions and realizing that since everyone knows the same patterns that the human behind the computer will be predictable. Unfortunately, we aren’t very predictable IMO.

      I’m in Ilsan, not very close to Ulsan, but we’re in the same country anyway. Feel free to contact me. I’d really like to pick your brain before I make my decision.

      Cheers,
      Travis
      [email protected]

  35. Tracy 12/28/2013 at 9:00 pm - Reply

    Hi Tracy,

    Can you please provide an update on your thoughts of the trading challenge? Are you happy with the results? What your learning? Would you recommend it’s worth the money for the classes?

    Would love to hear your thoughts first hand!

  36. Mark 01/09/2014 at 8:29 am - Reply

    I joined and soon realized it’s nothing more than him using his member base to pump stocks which he has already taken positions in, then dumping them. The SEC will be on this guy at some point. Sykes also makes it difficult to cancel. They banged my card a few times after i thought i was cancelled.

    • Tracy Coenen 01/09/2014 at 11:06 am - Reply

      No, Mark it is not a tool to pump stocks and then dump them. They don’t even “bang your card” in the trading challenge. It is a one time fee. If you’re talking about one of the subscription services, you’re still wrong.

  37. Andi 01/09/2014 at 11:28 am - Reply

    Hi Tracy,

    I am considering taking the Challenge, what is the difference with Penny Stocking Silver (PSS)? Seems both the Challenge and the PSS have daily chatroom, daily watchlist, trade alerts, weekly video lessons, and the 1300+ video library. If I were just subscribe and try PSS, would that cover significant material/ method Tim is using? I do not want to complicate my technical trading with too much information anyway. I learned that the Challenge includes 2-3 times a week of 90-minute webinar, is this much different than PSS’ daily chatroom? The Challenge also include contact number for Tim and Michael, which is nice to have.

    • Tracy Coenen 01/09/2014 at 7:33 pm - Reply

      Andi – The challenge includes a ton of the DVD sets and the 2 weekly webinars. The webinars are very different from the chatroom. So yes, you get much, much more with the challenge, which is why it costs so much more.

  38. kim chu 01/09/2014 at 5:36 pm - Reply

    Hi Tracy,

    Can I cancel my subscription if I do not like it? I am in pennystocking silver $99.95/mo.

    • Tracy Coenen 01/09/2014 at 7:32 pm - Reply

      Kim – I don’t know. i don’t work for Tim.

  39. DFLO 01/13/2014 at 12:06 pm - Reply

    Nice Blog Tracy. Interesting.

  40. DFLO 01/13/2014 at 12:12 pm - Reply

    BTW – I’m also an Accountant in Indianapolis that never got to practice – LOL. I got shifted into I.T. COnsulting by my Eemployer back in ’92 – have owned my own I.T. company since ’96 here in Indy. Thinking about doing the challenge since I spend som much time at my office in front of multiple monitors anyway.

  41. DFLO 01/13/2014 at 12:16 pm - Reply

    Wow – sorry for the typos – we’re busy today and I am typing way too fast.

  42. Sav 01/19/2014 at 9:17 am - Reply

    Tracy, I’m looking into joining Tim’s millionaire challenge, however i have a 9-5 type job and would not be able to trade during the work day. I’d realistically only be able to set limit orders after-hours. Do you believe Tim’s strategy will work by making trading decisions before and after hours?

    • Tracy Coenen 01/19/2014 at 10:35 am - Reply

      Sav – I don’t think you’d be successful doing that. These low priced stocks tend to move very quickly, and if you’re not in front of your computer when you have an open position, you have a huge chance of losing money. I think you’d need to have some time available during market hours.

      For example, I typically trade for the first 30 to 60 minutes of the day before I stop and do my other work. If I have an open position, I continue to watch the chart throughout the day as I am working.

      Only using limit orders would seem to be very, very difficult. However, I would talk to Doug in Tim’s office. Tell him your situation and see what he thinks you could do.

  43. […] Grittani, a student in the Timothy Sykes Millionaire Trading Challenge, hit the $1 million profit mark a few weeks […]

  44. Timmer 01/20/2014 at 8:46 pm - Reply

    Ahoy Tracy !!

    Nice Blog! Good Advice!

    Thanks for being such a supportive person.

  45. fahim 01/25/2014 at 6:54 pm - Reply

    Hi Tracy

    This is an interesting blog you have set with good advice/points being made. Quick question I am new to investing and considering Tim’s program, however I ma based in London and I’m aware that Tim’s service/alerts are for US based stocks- considering time/location differences etc. how helpful do you think his program can be to me? Thanks for any advice

    • Tracy Coenen 01/26/2014 at 8:10 am - Reply

      Fahim – I have no idea how things work for someone in London. Sorry.

  46. Chris 01/26/2014 at 1:36 am - Reply

    Hi Tracy,

    So what is your bottom line on the challenge? Have you made money since you have been doing this for so many months? What is your PnL? If you have NOT been that successful can you elaborate why? I plan on signing up for the Challenges as i plan to be Tim’s next millionaire(you can tell him i said that). I really feel i have what it takes to pick winners a good majority of the time. By using Tim’s short sell strategy with Interactive Brokers (You’ll need $25k to open acct with them but they are way better than SureTrade). i should be able to short the share i need so that will not be much of a problem. I plan to focus on the pump and not worry about the dump too much(maybe just a little). 😉

    Cheers.

    • Tracy Coenen 01/26/2014 at 8:11 am - Reply

      Chris – I am in the black for trading, but I have not yet recovered all of my costs of the program. I did very well the first 6 months, then ignored all the rules and lost all my profits. I am back to consistent profitability, and I expect to maintain that if I keep following the rules. If I break the rules again, I will lose.

      • Chris 01/26/2014 at 10:48 am - Reply

        Thanks for sharing but i don’t understand why you would stray from his strategy after 6 months. That does not make sense to me at all. Sounds like you still need more education/reinforcement here. Its too bad TS challenge is not more structured because if it was more systematic more people would be more successful. We all learn to add/subtract before we learn to multiply/divide.

        You should try to read everything there is on the internet about trading small and micro caps. See http://www.coolcatreport.com.

        Its the real deal. Its almost always the #1 newsletter as ranked by Hulbert Finanical Digest (part of MarketWatch) who ranks all newsletters every single year based on % annual returns. His small cap screening strategy really helped me a lot when i casually started a year ago but i need to diversify my strategy a bit by learning to short stocks so that’s where i think TS can help me the most. I run weekly screens and focus on stocks building a lot of momentum that week and prepare for the uptrend by planning my entry/exits as early as possible based on recent price action and how the stock historically trades. Follow all the news on these too for possible breakouts, etc. Momentum is a big part of the game so you have to master how to asses it. This is huge.

        http://www.coolcatreport.com/index.jsp

        I run screens then I make sure I create tons of folders on companies that i have a high degree of interest in. I do a lot of homework all the time. This is what it takes if you want to win at first, in addition to getting lucky some times.

        Once you get really good you won’t really need to do as much research as it will be second nature almost. This will take upwards of a year if you are at it all days, every day. If you want o move up the learning curve ASAP like everyone else then do your homework and do it well.

        Trust me if you do your homework you will be rewarded in due time, and don’t stray from your rules, its imperative not to be emotional. You should approach every trade with the intention that you will have another 1000 trades to do after your current ones so that way you don’t bet too high.

        A good rule to follow is based on your %win trades minus %loss trades. If you win 60% of trades and lose 40% then you should not be betting more then 20% of your current profits. You need conservative strategies at first until you master the art of trading. Trading is a lot like practicing medicine, its part science and partly art, and you need to master both to be good. The people who are most determined to win will usually prevail in this game.

        I am sure TS is a nice guy regardless of what people say. He is just trying to run a business and make money like everyone else in this world so who really cares if he’s become a little flamboyant. Look at all the crappy little companies that are lying to investors to get them to invest in them. Their losses will be our gains. The reverse of what you here from Wall St. CNBC, etc.

        His rebel attitude toward Wall St. is so entertaining because there are so many truths in what he says. And of course nobody on Wall St. would say those things.

        Can’t wait to get started!

        Sorry if i rambled….

        • Tracy Coenen 01/27/2014 at 5:25 pm - Reply

          Everyone breaks the rules sometimes. I took too big a position in a stock that was too volatile, and I paid for it! But that is not uncommon, and it could have been worse.

  47. DFLO 01/26/2014 at 6:00 pm - Reply

    Tracy – Instead of doing the full-blown Trading Challenge, I am thinking about doing the silver plan that includes:

    Daily Chatroom Access

    Daily 5-10 Stock Watchlist

    Realtime Email/SMS Trade Alerts

    Realtime ProfiDing Trade Alerts

    1400+ Video Lesson Library

    Weekly Video Lessons

    Start by watchng the videos you recommended, and learning the system. Then just follow the rules closely as you recommended.

    I have traded stocks and options for years with accounts at Schwab and Scottrade, but have not shorted stocks – although I understand how it works.

    Do you think this will be succesful instead of doing the full Trader Challenge?

    Thanks

  48. Robert 01/27/2014 at 12:56 pm - Reply

    Thank you Tracy for the time put into this blog. I will be signing up today for the challenge. Yes the 5500 for the 1year training is steep but not as bad As losing 4k in two weeks trying to do it on my own. So many mistakes I could’ve avoided had I done the challenge. Today I’m up 200 following one of Tims watchlist its hard to think that after paying for the 1yr I’ll be down almost 10k but positive about what’s to come. Thank you for the information.

  49. El 02/10/2014 at 2:48 pm - Reply

    Hi Tracy,
    I guess the reason I’m confused is that I’ve been reading MULTIPLE instances of experts sayings it’s almost impossible to short penny stocks. So, has Tim figured out a way around this, or what?
    Thanks!
    El

    • Tracy Coenen 02/10/2014 at 9:24 pm - Reply

      No, it’s not impossible. You just have to have an account with a broker who allows it.

  50. El 02/11/2014 at 1:22 pm - Reply

    Thanks for your response!

  51. John 02/19/2014 at 8:55 pm - Reply

    Tracy, good information and opinion you have provided here! I’m intrigued to give this a try.

    One question I have before jumping in: that Suretrade brokerage makes me nervous for several reasons. Can you recommmend some examples of brokerages Tim’s students have been using to short penny stocks with success? If it matters, I would be starting with a $4000-5000 account balance.

    Thanks!

  52. John 02/20/2014 at 4:19 pm - Reply

    I would stay clear of shorting penny stocks. It is VERY difficult to borrow these shares even from sure trade. I called them and asked them and they said it all depends on the stock you want to short. If you get caught not being able to borrow the stock you will get screwed. It is incredibly difficult to short penny stocks and the regulations have changed a lot since TS claimed he made all his money. There are plenty of websites that explain how to buy and short penny stocks. I would suggest you see them before you lose all your $$.

    • Tracy Coenen 02/21/2014 at 2:30 pm - Reply

      John – You’re confused and therefore spreading misinformation. Yes, penny stocks can be hard to borrow. But if you can’t borrow them, you’re not “caught.” You are simply unable to open a position and therefore have no trade. You don’t lose any money. You simply have done nothing.

  53. Kat 02/21/2014 at 9:35 am - Reply

    Hi Tracy,
    Thanks for constructing this site, the info here is helping with my decision on the challenge. I just completed the challenge phone interview and am still on the fence at this point.
    Besides the $5500.00 enrollment fee, could you share if you also purchased Tim’s software “stocks to trade platform” $1000.00 and “data quotes” $120.00 per month? If so, is it neccessary to purchase in the beginning of the challenge, or can you wait?
    Thanks for your time,
    Kat

    • Tracy Coenen 02/21/2014 at 2:31 pm - Reply

      Kat – It is not necessary to get Stocks to Trade if you have some other platform that gives you Level 2 quotes. I use Thinkorswim, which I get for free.

  54. Gman 02/22/2014 at 6:58 pm - Reply

    Tracey – Im wondering which online brokerage you use. I heard Suretrader is good and they let you short stocks under $2 which is rare for a brokerage firm. But any advise would be helpful?

    • Tracy Coenen 02/23/2014 at 2:42 pm - Reply

      I don’t have a recommendation, but a lot of people recommend Interactive Brokers.

  55. dave 02/23/2014 at 8:01 pm - Reply

    Tracy, im sorry you got scammed. its coming up on a year and you indeed are not yielding any gains. I suggest you stop throwing away your money and time(which I feel is more valuable) and get a job.

    • Tracy Coenen 02/24/2014 at 7:07 pm - Reply

      Dave – You’re confused. I did not get scammed, and I indeed have profited. I am a full-time forensic accountant and a part-time trader. I have learned a lot over the last 10 months. When I have followed the rules, I have profited. When I have broken the rules, I have lost. I am very happy with the program so far, and therefore am re-upping for another year.

  56. Tony 02/26/2014 at 2:54 pm - Reply

    Tracy,

    What trading platform do you use?

    • Tracy Coenen 02/26/2014 at 8:26 pm - Reply

      I use thinkorswim.

  57. JT 02/28/2014 at 5:28 pm - Reply

    When did you actually start trading and what hours do you usually trade?
    Do you go on profit.ly and provide your profit and loss details?
    How much have you profited minus tims program?

    • Tracy Coenen 03/03/2014 at 2:47 pm - Reply

      JT – I started trading in April, and usually trade between 7:30 and 9:30 am. Yes I’m on profitly, and I am just slightly in the black. I would love to have greater profits, but I have had losses when I broke the rules. Totally my fault.

  58. B Darcy 03/01/2014 at 1:18 am - Reply

    Hi Tracy. I have been on the fence regarding to maybe try the challenge. Honestly, I don’t want to short stocks at the moment. So my main question is… is the challenge and Tim’s strategy only involve shorting penny stocks? Is there any education to spot and trade going long in his system?

    I been following his profit.ly site under a free account and I notice he makes both long and short trades but every forum or website, the system is described as somewhat of a only shorting stocks.

    Could you clarify?

    • Tracy Coenen 03/03/2014 at 2:47 pm - Reply

      B Darcy – No, it is not only shorting. Tim also buys earnings winners and contracts winners, and that is how I have been trading since I started in the program.

  59. dflo 03/13/2014 at 11:00 am - Reply

    thanks

  60. Ufu 03/16/2014 at 1:46 am - Reply

    Tracy, Thanks for all the info and time you put into answering the same questions over and over. I read through the whole blog and found the answers I was looking for. Very much appreciated. Thanks again. Cheers and success….

  61. Sam 04/10/2014 at 11:47 pm - Reply

    Tracy, thanks for sharing your experience…and for answering to all the questions!! so, would you say that is it possible for someone with a full time job (but flexible hours) to take part to Tim’s challenge? and if so…how long is the challenge for?!…until i make a million?
    thanks 🙂

  62. Tracy Coenen 04/11/2014 at 10:19 am - Reply

    Yes, you can do it part time as long as you have some time that you can dedicate to watching the market. You need to be able to take a position, watch the chart, and then get out. So for example, I trade for about an hour in the morning before I start my other work.

  63. Angel 04/12/2014 at 11:58 am - Reply

    Hi Tracy, Do you have to pay the fee or tuition ($5,500) Every year you are on the challenge or is it a one time fee?

    • Tracy Coenen 04/12/2014 at 4:43 pm - Reply

      Angel – That is the fee for your first year. After that, you can renew for an additional year at a time at a far reduced cost (since they are not providing you with the DVDs and presumably you’ve already gotten the benefit of the old videos). So the fee for years 2 and beyond are primarily for the new content, even though you still have access to the old content.

      • Angel 04/12/2014 at 9:43 pm - Reply

        Thank you Tracy, One last question. So you get Penny Stocking part Deux with the Millionaire Challenge as well as a bunch of other DVDs? Thanks again for replying…

        • Tracy Coenen 04/14/2014 at 1:47 pm - Reply

          Angel – You get a bunch of DVDs with the challenge, but I don’t know which ones they are currently sending.

  64. Tay Drader 04/16/2014 at 10:03 pm - Reply

    I just don’t understand why he doesn’t just have a hedge fund. Did you get a discount on your first year because you know him? I just can’t see spending so much money upfront and he constantly jacks up the price to “weed people out”

    • Tracy Coenen 04/17/2014 at 5:28 pm - Reply

      Tay Drader (LOL) – Tim doesn’t have a hedge fund because his strategy is not scalable to the hedge fund level. It is really a strategy only to be used by individual traders. I don’t know whether the fee I paid was the same as others or not. Honestly, the fee is worth it when you look at how many DVDs you get plus the entire library of video lessons. If you’re serious about trading, it definitely is worthwhile.

  65. Tay Drader 04/18/2014 at 8:04 pm - Reply

    Thanks. What is most intriguing to me is that money can be made on both long and short positions. I would love to learn how to short, especially as stocks sitting at all time highs, but I know it is risky. To have a coach would be helpful to not get too emotional.

  66. James 04/22/2014 at 7:54 pm - Reply

    Hi Tracy,
    Your feedback and experience has been very helpful and enlightening. I don’t have the money to do the challenge, but would like to learn the process. I’m thinking of doing the Silver Plan, signing on to Suretrader. Then just learn.
    Your thoughts, truly appreciate your time.

  67. John 04/26/2014 at 4:31 pm - Reply

    James, that’s what I did. After much consideration I felt the mentoring plan was overpriced considering the Silver subscription provided me all the media I needed to learn the strategy.

    After nearly a month, I think I made the right choice. I paid $100 for the alerts, the chat and the video lessons. I took four of Tim’s trades so far and three have been winners – more than paying for the price of the sub.

    In fact, I may just drop down to the $50 base plan this coming month. I don’t care much for daytrading so expect to move to the Tim Longterm plan later on. It’s more than the monthly sub for a year but much less than the mentoring – and it fits my trading style better.

    So far, I have to admit – this Tim Sykes guy is the real deal.

  68. Vic 05/11/2014 at 7:59 pm - Reply

    Tracy,

    John says:
    “After much consideration I felt the mentoring plan was overpriced considering the Silver subscription provided me all the media I needed to learn the strategy.

    After nearly a month, I think I made the right choice. I paid $100 for the alerts, the chat and the video lessons. I took four of Tim’s trades so far and three have been winners – more than paying for the price of the sub.”

    Tracy what’s your opinion on this? Do you think this plan of attack is on point? Knowing what you now know would you go this route?

    John / James I’m also wondering if either of you would mind posting a follow up comment.

    Thanks in advance.

    • Tracy Coenen 05/12/2014 at 4:27 pm - Reply

      Vic – I can’t argue with John’s choice for himself. I needed the trading challenge because I needed to learn how to read the charts and learn the strategy. The alerts and the video lessons would not have been enough for me.

      • Vic 05/12/2014 at 5:44 pm - Reply

        Tracy – Thanks that answers my question. I don’t know the strategy or how to read charts so when I’m ready to go I’ll be taking the challenge.

  69. John 05/12/2014 at 4:43 pm - Reply

    Vic, Tracy is correct. If you need to learn price action then it might be best to pay for more. However, I have to say Tim’s instructional style does leave a lot to be desired. He’s a classic “show-and-tell” type of teacher. He shows you everything but tells you very little. (Sidenote: I’ve only been trading stocks for the past 6 months but this seems to be a real issue with most equity and options gurus.)

    Tim will drown you with screenshots and bragging about how well he did but he very rarely provides real instructional lessons. You can easily watch 6 hours of videos in order to get the core teachings that honestly could be distilled into one hour long lesson or 5-page PDF! Fortunately, the system itself is very simple and anyone who has traded price action in the past will already know it. I spent over four years trading Forex and know price action as well as anyone could. It’s not rocket surgery.

    I can’t speak to the efficacy of the coaching, but I would expect much more hands-on from Tim himself in those programs. For that price it ought to be!

    • Vic 05/12/2014 at 5:47 pm - Reply

      John – like I replied to Tracy I don’t know the strategy or how to read charts so when I’m ready to go I’ll be taking the challenge.

      Thanks for your reply.

    • Tracy Coenen 05/13/2014 at 8:24 am - Reply

      John – Therein lies the difference… The video lessons are a show and tell of the trades Tim did, what he was looking for, how they turned out. The DVD sets and the weekly webinars are geared more toward teaching the actual strategy.

  70. Carl Ames 05/20/2014 at 6:14 am - Reply

    Hi, Tracy–

    I’ve been reading up a lot on Tim Sykes the last few days in the course of doing some research, and I’m glad I came across your article here.

    There’s an old saying, “Don’t knock it if you haven’t tried it.” I’ve noticed that the people who are knocking Sykes or accusing him of being a scammer are people who haven’t actually tried his program.

    I don’t know if you’ve seen this article by Michael Goode, but it’s interesting because Good was a former critic of Sykes who advised against trying Sykes’s system– but then tried it himself and found that it works:

    https://www.goodetrades.com/2009/08/the-truth-about-tim-sykes-from-a-former-critic/

    • Tracy Coenen 05/20/2014 at 8:27 am - Reply

      Carl – Tim and Michael actually met through me. And Michael has been teaching in Tim’s program for a few years now. All’s well that ends well! Thanks for commenting!

  71. Terminator 05/21/2014 at 6:55 am - Reply

    I am surprised you would sign up for Tim’s challenge. He didn’t become a millionaire from trading. He became a millionaire from marketing his products which is why he flaunts his wealth. He is an excellent marketer but not a trader. Proof is here:
    http://www.elitetrader.com/vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid

    His income is comprised of 6% trading profits and 94 % in sales of his products.

    • Tracy Coenen 05/21/2014 at 8:49 am - Reply

      Terminator – Your link is broken, and a post on a message board is not proof of anything anyway. YES, Tim has made millions of dollars trading stock. Yes, he now makes much more money from teaching than from trading. But who cares? Either way his strategy works when you follow the rules.

      Yes, I agree that Tim is masterful at marketing. Congratulations to him for figuring out a way to make a lot of money. Enjoy your sour grapes!

      • Terminator 05/28/2014 at 9:29 am - Reply

        I don’t understand why someone is beyond suspicion if that person is successful, especially in an industry full of snake-oil salesman. First we need to to get this out of the way: I don’t care if he made a lot of money and I know I am not as successful or rich as him whereas I am wasting time on forums and threads.

        But I am considering buying his course so I thought I would do some due diligence. I’ll just go through a list of facts for you. Please avoid considering me some kind ‘sour grape’ or someone who is just negative/critical/jealous of someone else’s success. I am not that sort of person.

        1. He doesn’t share any audited track record, He claims this to be one: http://tinyurl.com/ljzgna7
        As an accountant, I am sure you will see that this is not an audited report whatsoever. Even on profit.ly,

        2. Another fact is: his hedge fund blew up. Proof: http://tinyurl.com/os2afdm
        (this shows he doesn’t know how to manage his risk and position size properly…an extremely important trait for a trader)

        He earns 6% trading profits and 94 % in sales of his products.
        Do the calculations from this link: http://tinyurl.com/ycxkvp8

        3. On profit.ly, he ranks second on the “Most Madoffed Traders” which basically means he got the second most votes for being a trader who is believed to be not as good as s/he claims.: http://tinyurl.com/n8hftg6

        4. One counter-argument is that he does seem to show some kind of edge by CXO Advisory: http://tinyurl.com/l285fp6
        But then again, it is also mentioned “The above analyses assume that the trade data on TimothySykes.com is accurate and complete as presented.” so we make a full circle to back where we started…

        I am more than willing to accept I am wrong and that he is a trader first and marketer second. And that he did make millions from trading only initially but maybe not now….ONLY if sufficient evidence is provided. Heck, I might even buy his products and add to his millions.

        • Tracy Coenen 05/28/2014 at 5:42 pm - Reply

          Terminator – I have no problems with skeptics, but I do have a problem with people lying, as you did in your first comment here. My responses to your points:

          1. No, the trades have not been audited. Audits are worthless. But I agree that the trades are not audited. (Although Tim told me personally that he is in the process of having his trades audited, so that may change.)
          2. Tim is completely open and honest about what happened with his hedge fund.
          3. That’s a silly feature on the site, and completely meaningless.
          4. Yep, circular argument.

          Since when was there a debate over whether Tim was a trader first and marketer second, or vice versa? You claimed he is not a trader. He indeed is a very successful trader. You have a right to doubt that, but you don’t have a right to post lies on my site.

          Good luck with your search. I’m confident you won’t become a student or consumer of Tim’s products, and I’m equally as confident that Tim won’t care.

  72. Carl Ames 05/28/2014 at 2:10 am - Reply

    Hi again, Tracy–

    I just finished watching (or rather, listening to) the seven free videos Tim Sykes offers. I’ve traded in both stocks and commodities, using the system I learned from Ken Roberts, and everything Tim says in the videos makes perfect sense to me.

    I’ll be watching your blog here because I’m very interested in seeing how well you do. I’m sure you’ll do very well– maybe you’ll be Tim’s next millionaire!

  73. Terminator 05/28/2014 at 6:04 pm - Reply

    I have shown you evidence of why I believe he is not a trader as he doesn’t even have basic risk management skills. If anything the evidence is incumbent on you to prove me a liar. Without providing a shred of evidence or any sort of logical arguments, you call me a liar. It says more about you than me…

    • Tracy Coenen 05/28/2014 at 7:23 pm - Reply

      Terminator – You have not shown ANY evidence that Tim is not a trader. Tim is a trader, and whether or not he has “basic risk management skills” has no bearing on whether he is a trader. You are delusional as well as a liar.

  74. […] Coenen wrote this and […]

  75. Andrew 07/03/2014 at 7:55 am - Reply

    Lol. I’m so sorry that you wasted $5,500 to learn basics on price action from someone who has no idea how to teach. You could have opened an account on stockfetcher.com for $5, ran your own backtests and made your own strategy, using the $5,500 to trade with.

    It’s also funny to me how he used to brag about all of his trades being verified through profit.ly. What happened to that?

    • Tracy Coenen 07/04/2014 at 10:13 am - Reply

      Andrew – There would obviously be a cost in trying to develop my own trading strategy. Time is money, and the failure during the development process could mean I lose money trading too. So yes, it was worth it to me to pay someone to teach me a strategy. And I like how Tim teaches. It works well for me.

      All of Tim’s trades are here: http://profit.ly/user/timothysykes/trades

  76. Connor 07/09/2014 at 3:24 pm - Reply

    Tracy,

    I read through a lot of these questions from various people and would just like to say you’ve done a terrific job providing truthful responses. I’ve been subscribed to Pennystocking Silver for a couple months and just recently became a challenge student and i haven’t seen one response of yours i don’t agree with. There’s definitely a lot of confused individuals out there! Keep up the good work I’m sure Tim is more than appreciative!

  77. Gary 07/12/2014 at 6:25 pm - Reply

    Tracy,

    Thanks for the responses to the comments; I’ve been researching Tim on the weekends and truly believe he knows what he’s doing; People, read his book, it’s on the internet for free, and it will explain a lot. He markets himself flagrantly to attract bad press; his trading strategy is not scale-able to hedge fund size because he trades pennystocks or microcaps; but that does not mean it doesn’t work for what a client of his would want; His strategy is legit for small accounts long and short; but there are problems with shorting penny stocks at the peak; he has 5 high net worth accounts and my chat moderator has 2; and these are at 50k minimum brokers, which offer better locates than Suretrader; but not to worry, penny stocks can also be shorted several days after the climax, and shares are easier to locate, and timeframe is like a week plus to hold instead of intraday, which is easier for beginners. That would be like Interactive Brokers or Suretrader for 10k and 2k start up accounts.
    I’m an Investor’s Underground Member and have been trading for 5 years. For those of you that don’t know, they are semi-affiliated with Tim, but more into day trading, while there is a penny stock and swing trader chat room, the moderator, Nathan Michaud, is Very Technical and Very Accurate. The chatlogs are posted after hours so they can be re-checked, because it’s too fast to follow in the daytime everything that’s brought up. From all my experience, the chat rooms and their teachings re-inforce what I’ve learned in the past, the hard way, over the years, and give a sense of community to a lonely operation which very few people understand. There are top traders in the chat rooms that respond to questions on PM’s that cannot be posted on the live chat. In a nutshell, all trades boil down to

    -Price Breakout or Down from a horizontal line
    -A Catalyst; Fake Hype, Real Hype, Fundamentally Sound, Fundamentally Garbage
    -Timeframe; intraday, weekly or monthly.

    Either mentor will grind those principles into your heads, and Nathan responds directly to posts, PMs and emails; he may be more attractive to people who want a teacher without hype.

    The thing that really helps me though is setting price alerts, so my computer beeps when the stock starts moving, after I figured out my price targets, so price is confirming my catalyst.

    For newbies, you should paper trade for like a month, because both services tend to lean towards day trading, and without a special broker, commissions will eat up a $2000 account with the learning curve, while you are getting to learn the patterns. Longer timeframes, like a week are also easier, and the patterns are the same across all timeframes. And you have to learn to read the patterns yourself; trading off the alerts will get you in and out too slow. So to make life simple, just enter into your calendar the price, shares and commissions a trade you would take and forward it to your exit time, and see if you were right.

    With all that being said, I hope I’ve helped someone better understand what they are getting into. The services are very valuable, but there is also a lot of learning to be done by the purchaser. I’m still going to sign up for a Tim product after my current membership expires, to refresh, be entertained and hopefully catch a trading detail that helps.

    Gary

  78. marc 08/01/2014 at 1:31 pm - Reply

    First off it’s for sure just a money ploy. These people don’t care about you. Its all about getting that 5,500. LET ME TELL YOU WHY.

    I purchased all the dvds before i applied to become one of time challenge students…close to 4000. I tell the people i have been communicating with this and they don’t care. The only thing I don’t have is penny stocking silver and the weekly webinars. They still want you to pay the 5500. Not only were they rude, i was talking to one of the people the message you when you are on the site and he asked me “how can I help me” i told him my story and he closed the chat. These people don’t care and they don’t want to help. they want money…which i can’t blame them. but honestly….use your head, you can get the videos for much cheaper…dont be a sucker like me and waste money….even though i have learned a lot from the dvds.

    • Tracy Coenen 08/02/2014 at 10:42 am - Reply

      Yes, Marc, it is a business and Tim’s people run it like a business. Nowhere on any of Tim’s sites does it say that if you buy the videos and later want to be in the Challenge, that they will apply what you have paid for the videos to the Challenge fee. I’m sorry that you bought all the videos and later decided to do the Challenge. That is your fault, not theirs.

  79. NST 08/07/2014 at 8:38 am - Reply

    The debate on Tim’s ‘ethics’ are a moot point – he’s running a business. Whether you involve yourself in penny stock (in whatever capacity) is a very simple question of risk versus benefit.

    If you can afford to drop $5k on his mentorship, have plenty of hours away from the tedious daily grind that is your paying day job to sit and watch countless hours of video, THEN have the capital to actually trade with….well then there isn’t much to question, you can probably afford to take the risk.

    The ‘no guarantee of success’ probably doesn’t smack home quite as much as the financially poor person gambling everything on this bringing them personal fortune – or even just financial stability.

    Penny stock trading is just like all stock trading – a gamble. Where penny stock ‘mentorship’ enters murky waters though, is knowing that in order for penny stock trading to exist there needs to be hype and ready cash to feed the animal. Its a game of poker, and the more money in the pot means more money at stake. More money at stake enables those who can afford it to take more lucrative risks and increase their wealth at a faster rate.

    Its all quite obvious, and not to be critical of Tim or others, on top of adding to the trade frenzy that is penny stock, they simply understand that ultimately the casino always wins – hence the mentor focus on teaching through paid subscription. How much of this can actually be taught as a system is open to debate.

    Tim has clearly been fortunate in trading – he’s shown it can be achieved (twice) but then he also had the initial funds to make a real success of it. In short, he could afford it. Just as those success story students of his were likely in a position to afford the risk, however small their initial investments (not forgetting their mentorship subscriptions).

    Virtually everyone I know who has ever considered this form of trading, is either up to the neck in debt, out of work, or so desperate that they will cling on to any proposition that claims repeatable ‘eventual’ success.

    Tim doesn’t claim this is easy, there is a lot of work involved and a lot of learning – thats where your $5k goes right? But what I find disheartening when I look at successful mentors like Tim, is that rather than truly help those people in need of change, financial stability etc…those truly desperate, their teachings come at a price that is more often than not way beyond the affordability of most people.

    Tim certainly doesn’t owe people a living, he is a businessman after all, but I can’t help think that his legacy in life (along with all mentors) would be so much more enriching, and without question, if they offered their gifted knowledge & expertise without personal gain.

    That would be true teaching in the spirit of all things.

    I admire Tim and other mentors for their success, and I admire those people for whom their systems have worked and made people gain financial freedom, but for people out there who are struggling financially, with virtually everything riding on penny stock trading as being a potential way forward…..I’d sincerely encourage you to invest that $5k in far less risky ventures.

    Put that $5k into re-educating yourself in a way that ultimately might not bring you huge financial gain, but will enrich you as a person. Helping other people, truly helping them, is a guaranteed way to make your life a better one.

    Good luck everyone

    • Tracy Coenen 08/07/2014 at 10:56 am - Reply

      I disagree when you say that Tim hasn’t tried to help those truly in need. He has affordable videos and has had affordable subscription plans. It’s just that those “truly in need” often don’t have the dedication to do the learning necessary to make this work. Of course, I am not saying that is everyone. But it is often the case.

      Besides… Tim is running a business. In order to be in business, you have to figure out how to make a profit. He has done that well.

      • NST 08/07/2014 at 1:04 pm - Reply

        Define affordability and define dedication.

        It is a business, I quite agree – there are literally hundred’s out there doing the same as Tim. Who do you believe, who do you trust?

        Tim and other mentors know where the real ‘guaranteed’ money is to be made and that is through working the belief system.

        IF their system was so incredibly excellent, so perfectly repeatable and predictable, then why on earth would you tell people about it and charge for your advice? If you yourself have made a killing out of it, and you know it works, why charge for passing on this information to people who could dramatically change their lives? More people in the trading pot, more money for everyone to make correct?

        Ask yourself that very simple question. Either Tim knows penny stock trading has a finite existence (which obviously it does, eventually the regulators will be all over it and it wont exist any more) OR, Tim knows perfectly well that his methodology only works at a very small percentage – i.e those genuinely only able to absorb the risk. Or – the cynical view, that mentors know how to exploit those who are vulnerable (I’m just throwing that out there as quite clearly this whole debate on mentorship ethics wouldn’t exist if people didn’t assume this point of view).

        So, he charges a fee which on the surface might not appear much when such a profitable opportunity is presented, BUT people….always question exactly WHY mentors gave up their lucrative trading careers in order to sell their incredibly profitable ‘systems’.

        Their drive is not the will to teach, their drive is to make money and the way to make money is create a perception that ‘you cant afford not to do this’ and ‘anyone can do this with the right amount of dedication’. It’s marketing, thats all – Oh, and I’ve worked in marketing for 15 years, how these guys promote themselves kind of makes me wince and shudder frankly.

        What feeds penny stock trading, is gullibility. Thats how it works, and I’m sure Tim would not disagree with that.

        Don’t be fooled into thinking anyone can do this, you probably can. But then are you the sort of person who would put a thousand dollars on a racehorse to win, simply because you had an insider tip based on probability? I’m guessing not. Your’e not that wealthy right?

        Penny stock mentorship is the same equivalent, its teaching you merely to ‘trust your gut’. All the patterns and charts in the world are clear for everyone to see, AFTER the fact. And despite the success rates of some students, show us these successes in relation to failures of ALL your subscribers…show us the statistical data that presents just how repeatable these successes are across the ENTIRE studentship?

        Whenever I watch ‘chat room’ videos, I only ever see about 7 people present all claiming a mixture of high and low success, yet Tim will always narrates that he has thousands of successful students doing exactly the same.

        Fine, then show us the full overview history of all your students to date, then we can make an impartial decision based on statistical (externally verified) data as to just how successful mentorship and your system is. I don’t care about the odd millionaire success story, I want to see how many people who subscribe to you actually turn a profit and what sort of profit, over how much time, and with what investment. You claim thousands do, so show us the figures.

        Do yourself a favour and trust your gut that this is a bad idea.

  80. max 08/12/2014 at 8:04 pm - Reply

    Cool to hear it written earlier that Mike Goode and Tim Sykes met via Tracy! I don’t know if I heard that right, but it is So cool to just hear more of the story as it unfolds. I am only in my 22nd day of even finding out about Tim Sykes and the whole buzz around day trading on penny stocks….

    To NST’s point (s) and Tracy’s point (s) regarding the sometimes, but not always, tendency that those who are ‘truly in need’ are often incapable of the dedication to the learning curve….and to help define what is ‘affordability & dedication’…and as I perhaps might add of my own thought: that some people may be unable to actually ‘stomach’ the inevitable risks that come with the territory of having one’s money/capital exposed to market swings. Meaning that the “emotional wear & tear” on an individual maybe too much.

    In regards to what is affordability and dedication, I can see your points NST- what exactly becomes ‘value’ leaves a lot to be perceived, per se, to the recipient and on-looker. I can see how such perspectives could be opposed as well. AS I’ve heard Tracy’s points via this blog post, I can also see how her and others have derived value from the lessons of MC and Tim’s proposed curricula. I can also see & hear the common theme that those people who ‘fail’ or do not make profits, or go ‘bust – have resounded the common theme of ‘going against’ the rules they had learned… That is just what I hear, and that doesn’t mean that everybody else who reads the exact same blog post, will ‘hear what I hear’ ,per se… I CAN see the fact that going for a millionaire challenge does have an echo to lend itself to ‘swing for the fence’ and I can see how that tendency CAN lead one to take larger percentages of their capital forward into positions they may not otherwise do. To me, that is something I would have to be on the look out for – almost on a daily basis- if I were to go forward with engaging the MC.

    I, personally, do think that after reading this blog to its current date, that the elements of free choice being exercised is, in itself, great for genuine growth toward gaining clear & conscious minded aspects for adhering to what goes into making more true self-responsible decisions. I read the above link to a blog post of Mike Goode and found value in that. I heard, in the example I read, that it truly is best for one, and I would offer even incumbent upon a such individual person, to learn as rapidly as possible as much about the current trending manners that contribute toward making an independent decision for oneself, rather that Tim’s Alerts, picks, or etc. That is just what I hear, and doesn’t mean there is any validity, truth, or value in any of it whatsoever.

    If I were to assert an opinion about the upwardly mobile capability of an individual person to fully grasp the information that it sounds like one is going to get inundated with , if they do undertake the MC, I would say: One would best be served by being preliminarily ready to study their tail off, have already pre-worked out their scheduling and lifestyle arrangements and already ‘dealt with ‘ such concessions and sacrifices, understand the potential loss of time and ‘sweat equity’ that may be necessary, insure one’s bills are in order for hi speed internet and other basics like health insurance, rent, water, etc, be ready to have and incur losses, be ready to not blame anybody–Tim, Mike, MC, or most importantly- themselves – for any mistakes or inordinate losses, be very scientific in one’s approach and ardent to not only learn the lesson’s in MC, but develop one’s own unique approach and strategies, not lose track of ‘working disciplines’ that are thematic to all success stories.

    As I look at undertaking this MC, I had saved up my money driving a cab, not even knowing there was a fee to take the challenge! Then in my first interview (yesterday), I got told it was 5k. That was all I had saved to invest! So I was caught off guard, and realized I will have to be driving my cab more, if I want to get enough principal saved up to really go at this, and I have no idea when of if I will be able to work back up to that. So, per se, sure, I am almost saying to myself ‘why don’t I just try another way?” : like subscribing to the silver stocking newsletter, using think of swim and only go long – and do not shorting? And maybe trying to just get Tim’s alerts, and then use what lessons I can glean from youtube, and see if I can do what I am going to set out to do anyway if I drop the 5K on the MC: Which is to find my own way, anyway? *(i.e. ALFT, technicals, fundamentals, volatility, liquidity, price action, level II, break outs, break downs -for when I develop understanding of how to short, use Think or Swim, etc.)

    I mean isn’t that what this is about? Sure I do need coaching, teaching, and mentoring, and how I can achieve that is , I guess, really sorta up to me – even as much as I have full total entire respect for TIm and all who I have the pleasure of intersecting with in his organization for sure.

    Afterall, suretrade, the suggested brokerage for shorting when one doesn’t have 25K in capital (as then one might be able to go to interactive brokers) had a 300K wire fraud episode published Jan 2014 regarding funds wired to a Singapore bank.. the only leftover fully secret bank, next to Hong Kong… ( http://www.thenassauguardian.com/bahamas-business/40-bahamas-business/44853-police-investigate-wire-fraud-against-intl-investor) Afterall, what better way to do a “pump and dump” to a bunch of excited and eager industry goers than have their coin tied up in an offshore account ran by swiss americas – with funding deposits made to scotia bank first – and drum up a ‘fraud’ to move money to Singapore fraudulently – where no government can follow who did it, where it goes, and who takes it out? To note, I have no idea if the Nassau Guaridan is even a recognized, valid, or real press agency at all either. I don’t claim to know anything other than what is on the internet, nor am I in any place to do diligence, except for the fact to pursue making as wise and as informed investment decisions as I can. I look forward to hear the feedback any blog readers might have on Sure Trader’s CEO Guy Gentile (also founder of US bases Speed Trader), the impact of risk that funds are under in the Bahamanian Government, the potential loss of funds, any depository insurance in that country,and any other ideas or tertiary risk impacts of accruing successful investing results . (i.e. understanding the consequences of taxable declaration Form 8938 for assets above 50K$ at SureTrader or any offshore holdings account) and the pros/cons of the Pattern Day Trader Rule domestically and abroad, and the Sure Trader 6:1 wide margin for leverage, and the launch of flexi-leverage, etc.) Thanks, I’m glad for this blog and look forward to learning opportunities here and input or suggestions about what might be purported or suggested better ways forward… To note, I really appreciate all you are doing here Tracy…

  81. NST 08/15/2014 at 7:38 am - Reply

    Max,

    That was a really great post! Insightful, reflective, rational and to end with some really great information exposing very real risk in dealing with particular brokers.

    When I started looking into SureTrader and found that they are based in the Bahamas, HUGE alarm bells started ringing.

    Anyway, good luck with it all.

  82. Max 08/20/2014 at 1:26 pm - Reply

    Thank you Tracy! I am very glad and grateful for this blog. As I may choose to embark and mature and come to recognize what my own style and manner of trading will become, I find this blog to be incisive, to-the-gut- point- of view. As I see the merit, in not only Tim Sykes, but Mike Goode, Tom McCarthy, Nathan Michaude, Paul- Superman. Anywho, I just wanted to say that. I am glad to hear your input too, and your new thoughts you may have as market behavior trends/changes, and people do as well… that is a real treasure.

  83. Danny 10/28/2014 at 11:30 pm - Reply

    Here are 5 components of what you need to trade successfully- Brain, balls, bucks, passion, and emotional discipline. One of the biggest regret that I have when I first started trading is not having a mentor.

    Don’t listen to the nay sayer, Tracey. Waste of time. My family and friends was against me spending tons of money on trading education but over the years trading paid for itself. Now, I trade while traveling. Who is laughing now? LOL

    (Sorry for the shorthand, I am using a phone to write this)

  84. karl_liam 11/14/2014 at 9:10 am - Reply

    Any news? How is it going Tracy, I would like to hear from you since I follow this discussion for a while. Are you banking withi Tim´s trading tips?

  85. Tracy Coenen 11/14/2014 at 10:39 pm - Reply

    I haven’t been trading the last several months due to work and other commitments. i will be back to trading soon!

  86. karl_liam 11/15/2014 at 10:50 am - Reply

    okay, I really want to know more about it. Did you have more personal contact to Tim or only once?

  87. sergio 11/22/2014 at 6:50 pm - Reply

    whats ur id on profit.ly i wanan follow yo utracy :),bte nice word out there got me inspired to keep learning on Tim’s knowledge

  88. ALLin 11/26/2014 at 5:57 pm - Reply

    “What I find disheartening when I look at successful mentors, is rather than truly helping those people in need of financial stability…their teachings come at a PRICE that is usually way beyond the AFFORDABILITY of MOST people.”

    “If you yourself have made a KILLING…know it works, why charge…” what is beyond affordability for most.

    —-

    Well said NST!

    The MAJORITY of Penny Stock traders have an annual income of $25k and under.

    The MAJORITY of $0.25 casino slot machine players – same as above.

    The MAJORITY of Infomercial watchers/buyers and “Get Rich Like I Did” books/seminars/webinars…are in the same bracket.

    In the end, the casino/mentors/writers/preachers win 99.4% of the time.
    And they know this.

    If you are in the $25k and under bracket…

    Sit back and imagine…eyes closed….that you just took $5k out of the bank and someone ran by and grabbed it. It’s gone.
    Will you have to make sacrifices in other ares of your life to make up for that loss?
    Write down those sacrifices and focus on that vs what money you think you might make because so-and-so did.

    Sit and imagine…eyes still closed…that you’ve been efficiently dedicated to the program for 10 months. You’ve made back $1,800 of your investment so far with another $3,200 to go until you’re in the positive zone. Is your world OK?

    Sit and imagine….you’ve found yourself not having the time anymore or you’re burnt out on the learning process and/or the focus required.
    Will you get angry at yourself for investing?

    Your focus shouldn’t be how good the mentor is…what other people are making…because in the end it’s about your choices and your bank account.

    Just make sure YOUR sacrifices are worth YOUR risks.

  89. Mike 12/04/2014 at 5:02 pm - Reply

    Signing up for the challenge and waiting for Timothy Sykes’s team to contact you and assigning homework seems like a really good marketing strategy for a money sink to me. He makes people think that there is some sort of exclusivity to the challenge and even says, in some of his videos, that not everyone is going to be able to work with him and that he doesn’t want to work with everyone. The real question is….has anyone been denied to be in the challenge? If the answer is no, then clearly Timothy Sykes is a liar (but a marketing genius) because he says that the product is exclusive when after the ~week of emails, the challenge is offered to everyone who is willing to pay the ~$5500 fee. This dawned upon me because I, like many other people, have been doing a lot of research on Timothy Sykes and his challenge and have noticed a pattern among the forums and posts that I’ve read; the people are either 1) currently in the challenge and content 2) currently in the challenge and disappointed, or 3) skeptical about the challenge/Timothy Sykes or think the whole thing is a scam all together. I have yet to see anyone write anything about being turned away by Timothy Sykes and his team. Maybe this is irony or pure cynicism on my part but all I want to know is there anyone out there that wanted to be in the challenge, but wasn’t “allowed” in? Does anyone else follow my thought process on this or am I blabbering on this keyboard?

  90. Tracy Coenen 12/04/2014 at 8:26 pm - Reply

    Not everyone gets in.

  91. Mike 12/04/2014 at 9:03 pm - Reply

    Thanks for the input Tracey but that is coming from a person that got accepted. I’d love to hear from someone who got denied first-hand because I’m convinced that scenario doesn’t exsist. I’d be nice if you could provide some proof to that statement as I’m curious how you say that with such certainty. Your statement is what Timothy Sykes and his team want everyone to think. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not denying the possibility of them not letting everyone in, but given my current research I have yet to find a case of a person being denied into the program.

  92. Tracy Coenen 12/05/2014 at 8:31 am - Reply

    I have talked to people who did not get in. I’m not sure how I would provide you proof of that.

  93. buckifan4life 12/14/2014 at 10:42 am - Reply

    It appears that Tracy is caught in a “pump and dump” of sorts. We haven’t heard about any amazing gains for awhile. Last I read, Tracy wasn’t trading as actively for whatever reason. Buyer beware may be prudent here.

  94. Tracy Coenen 12/14/2014 at 5:30 pm - Reply

    No, I haven’t been caught in a pump and dump. I never said anything about any amazing gains. Whether I’m trading or not has nothing to do with the program, and everything to do with other professional commitments. The great thing about trading is that you get to choose when you trade and when you don’t.

  95. buckifan4life 12/22/2014 at 12:11 pm - Reply

    Gotcha. Traders usually quit trading when the losses start to mount, but your situation is different because of your professional commitments that were so important to begin with that you started trading. Got it.

  96. Tracy Coenen 12/22/2014 at 12:30 pm - Reply

    buckifan4life – Correct… I was in the red when I stopped trading, but not by much, and not because there is something wrong with the system. I went in the red because I didn’t follow the rules. I also learned that trading part time is extremely difficult. You need dedicated, consistent time in front of the computer screen watching every tick. I still think I can figure out a way to do it and still be a full-time forensic accountant, but I just haven’t been able to come up with a workable plan yet. I will write again about the challenge when I start actively trading again. (Maybe within the next month?)

  97. Martin 01/14/2015 at 12:12 pm - Reply

    Hi Tracy, do you have any idea why the price of the course keeps going up? It is now at 5725 dollars…
    Second question – how do you stand with your trading now? starting to make profits?

  98. Tracy Coenen 01/14/2015 at 8:05 pm - Reply

    That’s only an increase of a couple hundred dollars in two years, which doesn’t seem like much to me. Just a function of time? I actually would have expected it to go up more since there has been a huge influx of applications… supply and demand!

    I have started trading again and am about even. I am doing lower risk trades and doing very few trades. I simply don’t have enough time to spend with my eyeballs on the screen to do a lot of trading or do riskier trades. This is what works for now in light of my work commitments.

  99. Lethu 01/17/2015 at 8:24 am - Reply

    Hi Tracy

    If I’m determined to joining the challenge but don’t have the 5.75K yet, can they reserve your place for a later stage?

  100. Tracy Coenen 01/17/2015 at 11:34 am - Reply

    I don’t think they reserve spots for anyone. But i don’t think you will miss out…. I don’t anticipate them closing the program to new students.

  101. Lethu 01/17/2015 at 11:47 am - Reply

    Okay Thank You Very Much

  102. IF Classics 01/31/2015 at 4:53 am - Reply

    This morning, I received the following email:

    “Dear xxxx:

    I’ve been approached this afternoon by Tim’s team of minions trying to groom me for their next
    round of stars! All they wanted was the small sum of $5500 to get started.

    In my subsequent research I found you commenting on both Gawker and TheInsideMarket and wondered if you could share with me your experience.

    Thanks in advance,
    Morgan
    ________________________________________
    Morgan H. Bye, PhD, MRSC
    e [email protected]
    w morganbye.net
    t +1 604-500-7965 ”

    Interestingly enough, I’ve never commented on Gawker and TheInsideMarket.

  103. Sonny lee 02/20/2015 at 10:23 am - Reply

    How much money do I need to start out?

  104. J Q 03/29/2015 at 12:16 am - Reply

    Tim’s program itself is not a scam. But given its price of $5,000+, I would personally deem it as a scam.

  105. Ken Q 04/08/2015 at 5:59 pm - Reply

    Hi Tracy,

    I’m surprised, you’ve kept up with the replies to all the comments for as long as you have. What a great public service you are providing here for the public!

    Have you made any money (say within a month period) where your net was about 2-3x the cost of the program (~18k)?

    I just heard about this guy and was wondering how much time and effort is involved to ramp up to anything worthwhile (i.e., net ~18k in 4wks).

    If not, how much would you say you net on average for 4wks worth of time assuming putting in about ~10hrs on average per wk?

    Thanks for your feedback!

  106. Samuel 05/10/2015 at 3:02 am - Reply

    Does anyone know the process of being accepeted to the challenge?
    Videos, interview, after the interview etc ?

  107. Ceasar Roman 06/25/2015 at 11:48 pm - Reply

    Hey Tracy, You mentioned that you are on profit.ly. May you please provide me with your username? I would like to see your perfomance. Thanks.

  108. Tracy Coenen 06/26/2015 at 7:07 am - Reply

    I am not on profit.ly at this time.

  109. JIB 07/29/2015 at 3:37 pm - Reply

    Hi Tracy.

    I do just had my interview and was accepted. Now the fee for the challenge is 5700 + a minimum of 2k to start my account. I have never trade before actually the videos that Tim’s crew send me as homeworks while I was waiting to my interview was te first contact I have had with the trading market. I can say that I am a fast learner and I do obssesed with every educational program I’ve involved during my whole life, so, I search for more information and videos and have learned by now a couple of things about the trading market. I’m from Venezuela and for me this oportunity to have the posibility to learn from a succesful trader as Tim represent to me an oportunity of life. Due to the political and econmical situations my country is going trough, invest $7.7k represents to much money for me and if I do that is not looking for a side income or a hobby, it would be for a new way to earn money for a living and for take care of my family. Now my point or the one whole reason that brought me to your blog. Is I’m wondering if this program does really is life changing and can represent a huge oportunity to a person like me who right now is like trapped in a tough reality. Do you can say that this program has represent a change in your financial life and thanks that you enrole into it you can say your life is totaly diferent for good?. I would appreciate your answer. Thank you.

  110. Jason 08/04/2015 at 6:25 am - Reply

    Hello all,

    I have read all the comments that people have posted since April the 19th 2013. It’s been well over two years and I would like to know how are all the people going with their trading through Tim Sykes mentoring program, including Tracey as I am strongly thinking about joining. I have read the negative and positives responses and would like to get as many testimonies from people, whether they were successful or not. Thank you!

  111. hotelpds 08/25/2015 at 1:53 pm - Reply

    You guys and girls can’t be that stupid to even think of giving this guy money. It is just penny stocks which is a losing battle yea once in a while you will get a hit. Don’t throw your money away you can do better just by reading some books and study the company that you want to invest in. It’s not that hard due your homework. stay away from this want a bee

  112. Tracy Coenen 08/25/2015 at 3:20 pm - Reply

    No one is “giving” him money. They are purchasing an education. No, most people can’t do better reading some books and studying a company. Tim teaches useful and effective strategies, and that’s why he sells the education. He does not only teach penny stocks. It is a valuable course that is worth more than he charges for it.

  113. Tay Drader 09/05/2015 at 9:50 pm - Reply

    I actually applied and was contacted for the system, but the cost of joining would have left very little money for me to actually trade…

    One common practice among MLM “mentors” is to blame the “student” when they are failing. Just thought about that as you blamed yourself for not making much. You also cited being too busy, but I thought the beauty of the system was being able to make a lot of money in a few short trades per week. While I don’t know your situation, I’m not convinced that this is not a scam. Also, I think your personal ties to Tim would make it hard for you to give an unbiased investigation.

  114. Tracy Coenen 09/08/2015 at 2:17 pm - Reply

    Yes, you can make money with a few trades a week. But in order to do that well, you need to spend a lot of time researching and watching price action. Yes, my review of the program is unbiased. (i.e. It is not influenced by the fact that Tim is a friend.) If it was a scam, I’d say it’s a scam. To trade well using Tim’s system, you have to devote more time to it than I have available. That’s definitely my fault, not his.

  115. Kyle 09/16/2015 at 11:22 pm - Reply

    I like the review you did on Tim’s challenge, but i am in a network marketing business/mlm/direct sales and the stats of people who drop out or no worse than the stats of those who lose money in stocks. The same way people lose money in stocks (not knowing/not having the right info and knowledge) is the same reason why so many people do not make money in mlm, they were given false promises and or never actually gave it a chance to properly network. A lot of mlm companies do suck and are not in it for the right reasons and doing things the proper way but some are just as legitimate as any other business out there just using word of mouth marketing rather than the traditional methods which are not working anymore.

  116. Tracy Coenen 09/17/2015 at 12:35 am - Reply

    Kyle – All MLMs suck. They are elaborate scams in which 99% of people are guaranteed to lose money. There is no relationship between MLM and Tim’s program, so please don’t compare the two.

  117. Kyle 09/17/2015 at 10:30 pm - Reply

    Im not comparing the two. Tim has a great program that i believe in. I am saying that without any experience or knowledge of stocks such as Tim’s program or other programs your success rate with stocks and losing money is going to be just as bad as any MLM. The statistic of 99% is wrong anyway but there is a 70-95% drop out rate within 8 years of starting a business, but it goes along with the fact that i know for a fact 80% or more of those drop outs never gave it a fair chance, were given false promises and expectations or were never given proper training on how to properly build a business. Im just comparing stats is all, you talk bad about MLM but people are doing just as bad in stocks and that’s not even counting the fact that in stocks you are losing way more money.

  118. Tracy Coenen 09/18/2015 at 7:47 am - Reply

    Kyle – You can’t compare an 8 year failure rate in real businesses to the failure rate in MLM. First, MLM isn’t actually a business. It’s a scheme. More importantly, most fail in the first year, and by the second year, almost everyone is out. An 8 year failure rate can’t be compared to a 2 year failure rate. (And again, you’re comparing real businesses to fake businesses, which shouldn’t be done.

    And yes, the 99% figure is accurate. In fact, MORE than 99% lose money in MLM. MLM is designed for failure, period. No matter how much effort you put into MLM, you’re almost guaranteed to fail.

    But yes, you’re right. If you’re stupid and don’t know how to trade stocks, and then you try to trade stocks, you’re almost guaranteed to lose money.

  119. Dodge 10/08/2015 at 1:46 pm - Reply

    Hi, I’ve been looking through your blog and I can say this, the information I’m reading is extremely helpful in making my decision. I’ve been accepted but I’ve not done any interviews. Now that I’m seeing the tuition and everything it gives me a clearer picture. Once I get enough I’ll join because I have plenty of time on my hands..

  120. Michael 10/20/2015 at 9:40 am - Reply

    There has been zero evidence in this entire thread that this works. Matter of fact, there has been zero evidence on the internet aside two people who currently work for Tim’s team this works. Tracy, you seem to defend this at all lengths, even shouldering all the blame for your failure in the “program”. You say you lacked the time, then why did you buy the program? A program that initially promises easy gains in a matter of weeks off a couple trades, then once purchased, says to watch 1000 dvds and articles and study study study? Lol. Where is the logic?

    This is a great marketing program. It preys, as we have already seen, on college students and foriegners who are desperate. 4 out of 5 of your own commentors who are interested all prefice thier interest by saying how after spending the 5500 dollars on the program theyd barely have enough to trade and you are telling them to go for it? Then also claim your friendship represents no bias? You are a sick person with zero results. Yet, your advice is gold and everyone else are sour grapes? I have yet to see any success stories. Just failures who blame themselves or dissapear without giving any update. This is typical when people fail.

    For the record, just for investigative purposes, I wanted to enroll. I received the sales pitch of all sales pitches. It reminded me of The Wolf of Wall Street. I was told to take from my retirement account, pull out any savings, do whatever it takes to enroll. Finally I lied and said sorry I am broke and the guy literally hung up on me. Any person who suggests to pull money from a 401k to play with penny stocks should be jailed.

    Shame on you for plugging this trash. I give major credit to Tim for preying on the desperate nature of people and making himself a success off of it.

  121. Tracy Coenen 10/20/2015 at 10:22 pm - Reply

    The program is not trash. It is a very, very good educational program for those who want to learn a niche strategy for trading stocks. No one promises that you will make easy gains in a few days. And no, I haven’t told anyone with very little money to “go for it.”

  122. Michael 12/11/2015 at 1:12 am - Reply

    Hi Tracey. Can you please confirm your profits you have made in the 2+ year period of trading using tims advise ?

  123. Tracy Coenen 12/11/2015 at 10:10 am - Reply

    I haven’t been actively trading for a while.

  124. Michael 12/13/2015 at 6:17 am - Reply

    Is that because you weren’t profiting enough to continue, rather than go to work?

  125. Tracy Coenen 12/13/2015 at 8:41 am - Reply

    I do not have enough time to devote to trading.

  126. james 02/23/2016 at 6:08 am - Reply

    I been accepted into the challenge i live in Australia and I have concerns, firstly I speak with someone in salt lake city and then asked to transfer $6725.00 US. with very little support I felt. alarm bells are ringing for me !!

  127. Tracy Coenen 02/23/2016 at 11:47 am - Reply

    James – What are you concerned about?

  128. Tracy I just started looking into Timothy Sykes for my subscribers and I wanted to get some feedback from you on what I found. Timothy claims that all of his trades are tracked on his website profitly. He even offers secondary proof that by showing his trading accounts and tax forms. The only problem is none of the numbers provided by him match. For example, The total trading profit from 1/1/07 to 12/31/07 on profitly is $1,877.52. On his proof page he provides http://smallcapmillionaire.com/proof/ it clearly shows that his trading balance is up over $6,867 at the end of 2007. I checked his tax returns he provides and they also do not match the numbers provided at profitly. Something is wrong here. As a forensic accountant what are your thoughts on these discrepancies?

  129. Tracy Coenen 06/14/2016 at 6:50 am - Reply

    Ethan – I think that you are not comparing the same periods of time. The profitly trades are not for the whole year. There simply aren’t enough trades. The data from smallcapmillionaire might also include other accounts.

  130. The periods of time are correct. You can see in the proof page he provides the date when he first opens his trading account and the total at the end of 2007. You can also see the full amount he claims to start with deposited into the account. He claims that he reports all of his trades on profitly. If he put money in another account, the total should be even lower than it is.

  131. Tracy Coenen 06/14/2016 at 11:45 am - Reply

    Ethan – The numbers you are comparing are not from the same periods. The profitly numbers are from when he started on 11/1/07, while the TOS numbers are for the whole year of 2007. You also have to factor in whether he had open positions, because what you’re seeing on profitly is only the closed trades.

  132. If you take a look at the Think or Swim statement he provides as proof you can see that the account begins with zero dollars and is funded for $12,415 on 11/1//2007. Profitly covers from 11/1/2007 to the end of the year. If he had additional open positions, this would not increase the amount of money in his account because he can only increase the amount of money he has when he sells a short position.

  133. Tracy Coenen 06/14/2016 at 2:15 pm - Reply

    Ethan – Yes, and there is still more to the story. If you compare the net liquid value, it is not that far off from what profitly shows. The bottom line is that you don’t have all the information, and that’s why the numbers don’t seem to make sense.

  134. That is what I am going to look into. Thank you for your time.

  135. John 07/26/2016 at 3:45 pm - Reply

    It’s been 3 years. How much have you profited since you started?

  136. Tracy Coenen 07/26/2016 at 9:39 pm - Reply

    John – I haven’t been actively trading for quite some time.

  137. Trent 10/03/2016 at 12:01 am - Reply

    Tracy I have never come across so unprofessional a forensic investor who was supposed to investigate this scam but is now promoting it in nearly all responses. Even some of teh feedback here are staged. Either you;re having an affair with Tim or you’ve been corrupted. Or perhaps you ARE Tim!

  138. Tracy Coenen 10/03/2016 at 1:05 pm - Reply

    Trent – How did you get the idea that I was “supposed to investigate” Tim’s program? And who was making me investigate it?

  139. Simon 10/11/2016 at 11:00 am - Reply

    When I watched his DVD, I don’t feel DVDs are scams. The way he researched fundamental is quite legit. I believe stocks promoter don’t like him to teach people to make money. Don’t go for challenge if don’t have money. Just grab anything free first to study and master

  140. Bao 10/20/2016 at 10:52 am - Reply

    I joined few months ago and notice Tim pump low float stocks, he post entry, sheep follow, he sells, sheep follow, first in and out make money, the rest are screwed. He blocked trades from suretrader, so people with small accounts cannot post and verify their trades, as most people with small accounts are losing money all the time, it was full with people with negative balance. So, now that suretrader is blocked, you cannot see them anymore. He also read private messages between traders and check if someone is talking against him. If someone expose him, Tim blocks him. I send profit.ly email with proofs Tim is a scammer and got a refund. He also post lots of articles with the words fraud or scam, so anyone checking google if Tim Sykes is scammer he will go to the fake articles first. He is a marketing genius, not a trader.

  141. Sam 12/08/2016 at 6:41 pm - Reply

    Hi Tracy,
    I would like to know if a person who doesn’t currently have the $5700 to invest in the challenge has the possibility to enter it and pay after he or she starts making profit?

  142. Cathy 01/27/2017 at 5:27 pm - Reply

    Hi Sam, Uh , Noooo you can’t start trading as a Challenge Student, then use your profits to pay the $5,700 fee.

    Sykes requires your tuition UPFRONT. Think of it like any other college or university: They charge tuition.

    Now, if you want to go out and get a $5,700 loan from some bank/credit card, that’s your business. But that would be a terrible idea!! Do NOT go into debt as a beginner trader. That debt hole will just get deeper.

    Watch his FREE videos on You Tube FIRST, then decide if you understand enough of it to really start investing big money into tuition, DVD’s, etc. Recently (Oct/Nov 2016), he had a fantastic 11-hour video series called “Trader Checklist” that was absolutely FREE. I took two-hundred pages of notes and learned a ton. I do not know if it is still available on the web or not.

    Just a suggestion. Good luck with your endeavors!

  143. Robert Carriere 02/01/2017 at 8:28 pm - Reply

    Sykes You are on the scam alert list

  144. Jean 02/10/2017 at 2:27 am - Reply

    I’ve learned a lot about trading and not trading from Sykes. He gives out so much free content that anyone with a mind to study hard will know the basic ins and outs of day trading penny stocks. I respect that Tim admits he is not a great trader as his losses attest to but he teaches you to cut loss quickly.

    I purchased How to Make Millions at about half price during a holiday sale. I’ve watched most of his free you tube content and other freebies. I think Tim is a good teacher. He has made millions teaching, more than trading by his own admission, and hey nothing wrong with that.

    But what irks me is when people pump him up for profit through their affiliate status without informing people upfront that they stand to profit if you click their link to him. Such as the link on this site:
    http://profit.ly/guru/timothysykes?aff=1985
    Because then your real support is questionable as to if you really believe it is a good program, or just a good program to line your pocket with.
    Like Tim sez it’s all about transparency and if you won’t admit you are earning to pump it up UPFRONT why should you be trusted?

  145. Tracy Coenen 02/10/2017 at 10:17 am - Reply

    Yes, I run ads on this site for Tim’s program that include my affiliate link. While I probably have not discussed the affiliate program explicitly, I also don’t hide the fact that I’ve got an affiliate link here. Yes I think it’s a good program, which is why I recommend it, and I openly use an affiliate link when making the recommendation.

  146. Carlos 02/26/2017 at 3:19 pm - Reply

    Intereting article. What type of results have you experienced so far using what you learned from Tim Sykes? and do you have a profitly account?

  147. Cathy. 04/29/2017 at 10:36 am - Reply

    So glad I stumbled upon this blog. You don’t need to tell us the program is a waste of money and time for the majority of challenge students, your consistent twisting of the truth just did it for you. Tears of a clown.
    Tim is not a fraud, and his challenge is not a fraud, but his claims that I could do it as well with hours of studying is fraudulent. The short selling penny stock trading ship has sailed and he is still claiming we can do it. Please. Not to the extent he did because new regulations make that very difficult. And yet he still uses charts from that time. His flaunting of his millions is shameful.
    Go cash your tiny little check for your affiliate link and keep on hiding your shame.

  148. Cathy. 04/29/2017 at 10:41 am - Reply

    And I love how he has everyone believing the losses are purely their own fault. I sometimes think I’m watching The Stepford wives, except it’s the Tim Sykes Losers.

  149. Tracy Coenen 04/29/2017 at 10:51 pm - Reply

    Cathy – I’m curious to know what truth you think has been twisted? Indeed, the shorting of pump and dumps is definitely not what it used to be. But there are still plenty of short selling opportunities. Yes, anyone who loses money trading has to take responsibility for their own trades. It’s pretty simple to start trading very small and see how you do. If you can’t make good trades, then you certainly don’t make larger bets. Tim teaches very sound trading strategies, but he can’t make people apply them correctly.

  150. Cathy. 04/30/2017 at 11:40 am - Reply

    Tracy,
    Let’s start with the twisting of the truth about your investment performance, not your excuses but your actual performance since taking the challenge. I think Carlos ask you the same question. What are your results. The money for his course is expensive, you didn’t take it just to let his training go to waste. Unless you took the training for free because you are his friend.
    And the twisting of the truth about your motives for all your positive talk about the program. Yes, you never hid the link in your blog, but you never explicitly stated it.
    And how about twisting the truth that Tim never tells people in the beginning that they won’t get the opportunities he had because the SEC cracked down on that type trading, and they won’t be able to find the brokers to do that and if they do, the companies may not have the stocks to short or worse yet, to unload. Things were different when Tim got in.
    I am amazed at how Tim has convinced people that it is purely their laziness and lack of preparation for their losses. No, that’s not the truth in many cases. The market for OTC’s is highly unpredictable and it appears you have less than five minutes to turn some of the shorts around on these OTC stocks. You don’t have time to look for graphs and patterns and see what kind of trend the trading is following. And I’ve heard it dozens of times in the videos about how a certain trading didn’t exactly follow the classic number five graph or whatever situation. And of course Tim says it’s sloppiness or laziness, but the truth is, gambling is unpredictable, and Tim’s students have a 50/50 chance of making money on the trade. If they win, well they worked hard, if they lose, well they didn’t study enough or were sloppy. Hindsight is 20/20 and when he’s talking about a stock performance after the fact it’s all classic but when you’re looking at it half of the times, the trading doesn’t fall into the classic number 5 or number 10 or number 8 curve in the beginning and waiting just a minute can turn a tiny gain into a huge loss.
    I want to be a trader and will pursue it, but I think I like the trading whereas no one has to suffer loses for people to profit.
    Are there losses on Wall street? You bet. I loss a ton of money in the tech bubble fiasco and my 401 took a beating. But it came back. Not as glamorous as Tim’s million dollar gains, but it came back and gained BIG these past 10 years.
    The purpose of Wall Street is to provide growing companies with the capital necessary to expand, the theory is that the company wins, the investors win, and the common population wins with jobs and more investment opportunities. There are scammers in every dark corner of Wall Street. Heck, forget the dark corners, right in main CEO and CEO positions. But the majority of Wall Street works off the theory we all stay honest and everyone wins. The pump and dump people are scum, so maybe you can say Tim beat them out of their scam money. But someone looses. Was it the honest hard working cab driver trying to partake in the American dream and believing in a tip from some robocall? Some OTC promoters really are trying to help a dying entreupuer. However, it seems to me that actively trading something that you know there will be big losers makes me feel less than proud. It’s not illegal, but…
    Those “stupid” investors that the promoters are scamming are hard working people just trying to save some money. There was a reason the SEC cracked down on it.
    I found out about Tim maybe two weeks ago while researching trader training courses and signed up for his challenge last week. The more I research it and watch the free videos, the more I feel his motives aren’t really to help the masses learn his techniques. Our system allows for people to gain BIG with a really good product, the old everyone wins. I think less than 10% of his students win. He knows that and he also knows if he stays pompous and blames the student for being lazy and sloppy, he remains gallant and minimizes liability.
    I won’t take his challenge as I really want to trade on the system as it was intended to work. Maybe not as glamorous and get rich fast, but…
    Maybe I’m missing the big picture.
    Am I reading the day trading of OTC’s incorrectly and what he says his students should zero in on?

  151. Tracy Coenen 04/30/2017 at 3:33 pm - Reply

    Oh Cathy. I haven’t been an active day trader for over two years. I ended with relatively small losses, and that was due to my choices in trading, not a failure of the program. I took the training because I had always wanted to try day trading. I believed that I could effectively trade part time while I still worked my primary business full-time. That didn’t end up working out for me. I know some people can make part-time trading work, but I wasn’t able to do that.

    There is no “twisting of the truth about [my] motives for all [my] positive talk about the program.” My motive was to simply report on my experience, and that’s what I have done. I have known Tim for a long time and have had a good opinion of his training from a distance. Then I decided to take the training myself, and I reported on my personal experience of it. There are no real motives other than I wanted to tell people what I experienced.

    You’re upset because shorting pump and dumps isn’t as prevalent as it used to be. Tim doesn’t hide that fact. He teaches strategies that work with lots of stocks, and it is not focused on pump and dumps. Yes, there are brokers that allow you to short. Sometimes there are shares to short, sometimes there aren’t. You’re right that OTC stocks move quickly. That’s why it is important to do the research on a stock ahead of time. Create watch lists, do the research, be ready to make a move when the price action looks right. It takes time, though, to study, learn the patterns, find stocks that fit the patterns, know how to execute, etc. If it was easy, no one would need a course and everyone could do it.

    You say you signed up for the program, then you say you won’t take the challenge. So did you sign up for the program or not? You should not be in the program. You don’t want to take personal responsibility for learning and executing your own trades. You want to pay someone money in exchange for guaranteed stock market gains. Tim isn’t selling that.

  152. Cathy. 04/30/2017 at 10:09 pm - Reply

    I must have missed where you said you haven’t been active for two years. You never actually admitted that until people pushed you to provide results.
    I’m not upset that the old pump and dump isn’t as lucrative as it once was…quite the contrary. Once I understood what Tim’s program entailed I took my name off his mailing list. I signed up for his challenge and was waiting for the call, but then took my name off his mailing lists. However, I’m still getting emails so maybe it takes a few weeks. I’m not about what his trading involves. If becoming wealthy means we make sure there are losers, then I’m out. It’s not something I would be proud to say I do.
    I think that Tim Gruinni (sp) may trade differently. It’s difficult to tell.
    You twist my words, like you twist a lot of truths. I never said I don’t want to do the research and work hard or want someone do my trading for me. Or that I’m upset. Where do you read that? No where. Hopefully you make a better number cruncher than a reader.
    Had I not worked hard and done my homework and really researched what type of trading most of Tim’s challenge students do, I would have still had my name on the list and would probably be getting the call from Tim’s training people. I hear they tell people to put the money on a credit card or even pull from their 401k’s. Ha, what a piece of work.
    Lately I read that some of his students don’t have the means to quickly execute the trades as he and his few million dollar students do because they don’t have the contacts and extra money to pay high brokerage fees. That’s what I’m reading. Dont know how much truth is in those stories.
    Tracy, you make a good sponsor for Tim’s Million Dollar Challenge program. That must be a bigger check than I originally thought for keeping the link on your blog.

  153. Tracy Coenen 05/01/2017 at 9:39 am - Reply

    Cathy – You must not understand stock trading. It’s usually a zero sum game. In order for someone to make money, someone loses money. The goal is to learn how to trade so you can be on the winning side more often than the losing side. Tim’s program teaches you how to do that. One of the core teachings is cutting losses early. If a trade isn’t going your way. you get out early to limit your losses. The whole program is geared toward identifying the right stocks with the right price action, and then waiting for the right time to trade. By doing so, you increase your chances of being on the winning side of trades.

    I’m curious how you know “what type of trading most of Tim’s challenge students do”? It’s interesting that you got a list of his students and then were able to see their trades. (I’m being sarcastic here. I realize you’ve seen nothing of the sort, so your blanket statement can’t possibly be true.)

    You’re right that if you have a larger account, you may be able to work with certain brokers and those brokers may have access to more shares to short. There is nothing scammy about that.

    I don’t fault you for deciding you don’t want to be in the program. It’s not for everyone. I DO fault you for saying it’s a scam and saying that I’m promoting the scam. Tim sells legitimate training and his strategies work. Not for everyone, obviously. Tim can’t make people follow the trading rules.

    I’m not getting paid for this honest review of this program. I did make a little bit of money from the affiliate link in the past, but this post is 4 years old. It doesn’t get much activity anymore. However, I did partner with Tim to create a couple of training programs for him, so watch out for those. Coming soon! 🙂

  154. Cathy. 05/01/2017 at 12:09 pm - Reply

    I see a lot, a lot more than you realize. The information is out there. It’s sad to see the small gains followed by losses. Anyone can see it.
    I also know a lot more about trading than you may think, I know there doesn’t have to be a loser in legitimate trading, you know that as well. I also think Tim may be on to something with his watch list. His minions follow and guess what happens to the price of the stock, he is already in and out before his students can position themselves. He may not be intentionally doing that, and he does ask his students to not just blindly follow his or his other top students’ leads, however, a man that claims to know how the market moves surely knows what happens when his students follow his leads.
    Also, hundreds of people have taken his course, but he can only find a few to showcase. Seems to me he should be able to find at least 10%.
    Also, please don’t put words in my mouth. Your twisting the truth again. Please point out where I called Tim a scam. I didn’t. And you don’t properly address all my points, so you twist the truth and make up new talking points. That’s a sure fire way to know someone can’t back up their claims.
    I’ll leave you with congrats on finding work with Tim, hope it doesn’t involve reading.

  155. Tracy Coenen 05/01/2017 at 12:34 pm - Reply

    What truth am I twisting? What points didn’t I address? What claims can I not back up?

    Yes, on low float stocks, Tim certainly has the ability to move the price because he has so many people following his trades. He doesn’t make any secret of that, so I’m not sure what’s improper about that.

    I am curious as to how you came up with the idea that 10% of Tim’s students should have made substantial money and want to be showcased by him. Do you happen to know how many students he has had, how long they each studied, what trading strategy they each used, whether they followed his rules or not, etc? You seem to not want traders to be responsible for their own trades and whether or not they make money.

    Tim is very up front about the fact that it is very, very difficult to make big money trading. I know that the strategies he teaches work. When I followed his strategies, I did pretty well. When I did not, I did poorly.

    I would also be curious to know what trading course/program out there is approved by you?

  156. Cathy. 05/01/2017 at 1:03 pm - Reply

    And one more comment and then I’m out. Yawn.
    Congrats, but I think you have always been an employee of Tim’s for some time. If you look at many articles and advertising for Tim’s program, they contain lead words in the title or subtitles of, fraud, scam, investigation, etc. The person investigating the program goes straight to his ads. Interesting and humorous.

  157. Cathy. 05/01/2017 at 1:09 pm - Reply

    Just read your comment.
    Well it stands to reason if he says 10% make it in penny stock trading,carry that to his training, he should have a success rate of 10%. He also should not have to flaunt his wealth. His program should sell its self.
    It’s not illegal, just show some class. Ha, at least change from out of his robe.
    Have a good career.

  158. Tracy Coenen 05/01/2017 at 1:53 pm - Reply

    Cathy – What is success in trading? I assume that means someone turns a profit. So you’re saying everyone who turns a profit in Tim’s program should be profiled by him? Of course not. And it’s not necessarily true that 10% of his students have success. It could be more or it could be less. His students are not a random sample of all traders.

    I have never been an employee of Tim’s and I am currently not an employee of his. I have contracted with him to create and deliver some training, and that happened this year.

    I’m sorry that you’re bothered by the way Tim markets. I know that some people think it’s distasteful to flash the money. However, that is a successful marketing tactic, and I see no reason why he shouldn’t use it. Frankly, it sounds like sour grapes from you that Tim is a successful trader AND marketer. NOTHING “sells itself.” Every product or service out there has to be marketed in some way.

    Again, I’ll ask… What truth am I twisting? What points didn’t I address? What claims can I not back up? What trading course/program out there is approved by you?

  159. speedsta 05/31/2017 at 12:51 pm - Reply

    Tracy, after a year you said you were slightly in the black.

    Folks, if you want to be “slightly in the black” (like +2 – 8%), read some good introduction (Fabozzi: Foundations of Financial Markets and Institutions) or John J. Murphy’s “Technical Analysis”. Costs you like $120 if you purchase both books and you can trade profitably. Don’t waste $5000 for a subscription program. 😉

    Just my humble opinion.

    I’m out. 😉

  160. fred 10/10/2019 at 5:59 am - Reply

    Tracy I want you to know that you have been entered into the system as a co-conspirator of Tim Sykes scams.

  161. Rotherhilde 02/15/2020 at 11:29 am - Reply

    I have just had a dialogue with Emmett Moore, who wrote a scathing review of Tim. Tim’s people contacted him and offered to buy advertising on his site – make him an affiliate. Tracy is a fraud investigator. I wonder if she started with a bad review of Tim and had a similar experience.

    For those who are financially challenged, most of Tim’s DVDs and that of one of his students are available for free via P2P. I won’t go into detail but you can Google it. It’s a steep learning curve, but rewarding. Tim is aware of this and has tried to stop it, but if he were a true philanthropist he would look the other way.

    Tim declares that 90% of stock traders lose money, but he doesn’t say whether or not that applies to his own students. I suspect that they do even worse due to the difficulties of trading penny stocks. A few millionaire students don’t prove a point. On the basis of Tracy’s remarks I would have to consider her a failed student for lack of sufficient time. According to https://pennystocks.com/ these stocks can outrun a trader’s trading platform.

    Tim has inspired me to try a few penny stock trades but most have been unprofitable. I do much better with dollar stocks and my record is comparable to the average of the major hedge funds. In 2019 I beat Ray Dalio’s Bridgewater Fund by 20%.

    • Tracy Coenen 02/16/2020 at 2:04 pm - Reply

      No, I did not do a bad review of Tim. I “met” him when I read his book An American Hedge Fund and did a review. I liked the book, stayed in contact with Tim, did the Trading Challenge for a year, and more recently have done a video for Tim and his company that is being marketed to traders.

      I do think it is shitty to promote the theft of Tim’s DVDs. Whether you like him or not, it is still intellectual property that belongs to him, and illegal downloads of it are wrong.

      I suppose calling me a failed trader is right. I believe in the program. Tim teaches solid principles that work if you have the discipline to keep following them. I do not believe that you can make substantial money trading part time, but I’m happy that I tried. Also, it’s not Tim’s fault that we now dub me failed. Nor is it his fault when ANY of his students lose money. He doesn’t control their trades, and he doesn’t force them to study. But if they learn the trading rules and stick to them, they have a high likelihood of making money over the long term.

      I’m sorry you lost money on your shorting. I would venture a guess that you didn’t follow the rules and/or commit enough time to learning and trading.

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