GET RICH ON THE OBVIOUS: How to Turn Your Everyday Observations into Money

by J. Thomas Taylor ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 1, 1981

The thesis is engaging: even moderately attentive individuals can make money in the stock market, Taylor contends, by acting on the implications of their daily impressions. Thus, alert motorists stalled in 1974 gas-station lines would have acquired energy issues; fashion-watchers would have picked up shares in Tony Lama or Stride Rite to cash in on, respectively, the craze for Western wear and the preppie look. Taylor, a Shearson Loeb Rhoades executive, makes no extravagant claims for his so-called open-air system. It's essentially a detection technique, he emphasizes, to be used as a starting point in the search for stocks with appreciation potential. To show his unconventional wisdom in operation, he offers a diary of the year through March 1981--a period that encompassed such untoward events as the Hunt brothers' coming to grief in silver futures, the highest prime rate in history, the Russian invasion of Afghanistan, and an attempt to assassinate President Reagan. (Upon hearing that last piece of news, an open-air practitioner would have gone into security-related equities--ADT, Burns, Pinkerton, Wackenhut, et al.--with favorable results.) Also included are common-sense advisories on dealing with account executives at securities firms: ""the best of buy/sell ideas should be put into market perspective by professional researchers before any cash commitments are made."" At the close, Taylor takes a stab at picking likely candidates for market success in the disinflationary, fuel-wise socioeconomic environment he anticipates by mid-decade. Yes? Food processors, automotive manufacturers, telecommunications concerns, and homebuilders. Whether such selections work out is almost beside the point. On its own, it's a rational approach with a built-in enjoyment potential.

Pub Date: Feb. 1, 1981

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1981

Categories: NONFICTION