FININVE_K31

The Way of the Turtle

The Way of the Turtle is a concept that traces itself back to Richard Dennis. In it, Dennis
debated with a friend on whether or not exceptional traders are born with talent or could be
nurtured through training. Dennis sided with the former, stating that any trader could hatch into a
great one through deliberate training. He proved his point through an experiment known as the
Turtle Experiment. One of the participants is Curtis Faith who has earned over 31 million dollars
in trading income for Richard Dennis despite only being 19 years old. The book heavily revolves
around futures trading which is a highly volatile market. However, Curtis Faith proposed a more
mechanical trading system wherein one has to be disciplined and refrain from being emotional,
especially in a highly bearish or bullish market. On the other hand, the book also mentioned
diversification to combat risk. Lastly, the book teaches you when to enter the market. A method
called the Donchian channels is given to traders as a breakout method to use during trading.
Lastly, a good trader needs to know when to stop, which harks back to being a mechanical
trader.
Curtis Faith is THE legendary student who participated in the Turtle Experiment and
earned 31 million dollars at the mere age of 19. However, not much else is known about him as
the only source of information, which seems rather reliable, is from another article inspired by
the book. In it, Curtis Faith is eventually incarcerated in prison for burglary and theft (Michael
Covel, 2023). He was last seen in a homeless shelter and was subsequently arrested again for
disturbing a Harvard General Store.

Three Useful Things

The three things that I find rather useful are the psychological aspect of the book, trading
in the present, and also thinking in terms of probabilities rather than trying to predict the future. I
found the psychological aspect of the book rather interesting as most people claim to be rational
despite being the furthest of that claim. It showed me that there are times when we make
irrational decisions unconsciously. The next, trading in the present, is something that I haven’t
given a thought about as most people trade for the future. But, indeed, the book claimed that no
one could ever know what the future holds. This also applies in life generally. Most people would
end up so anxious and disturbed by what the future holds that they tend to forget what is
happening in the now. Lastly, thinking in probabilities is probably the best way to trade. Because
risk is what determines whether one wins or loses in life. One just has to accept that luck plays a
big role in life, however, luck favors those who are prepared.

Two Useless Things

One of the blandest things about this book is that, like any other book, it's mostly
anecdotes and some practical advice sprinkled from time to time.
However, one glaring issue that I’ve discovered is that this book is more suited for
long-term traders rather than short-term ones. While that in itself could not be merely discounted
due to the time frame, traders might confuse the method and apply it to short-term trading which
could ultimately fail. I prefer short-term trading due to the excitement that it brings. I do

He, Adel
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recognize the validity of long-term trading. But it is useful for me who aims for a thrilling trading
experience.
Another thing that I do not find much practically about is the point on nature vs nurture. It
is an antediluvian argument that I believe should have no argument to begin with because I
believe in nurture. I find that no natural talent could ever defeat the nurture argument. Hard work
and training have always been the story of humanity and it should remain as such.

The way the author wrote the book is quite similar to other countless other authors. He
gave only the most generally practical advice without ever going to the details, which is not
surprising as this is a consumer-friendly book. This book reads more like a memoir rather than a
manual for trading. Hence, if it were up to me, I’d write another chapter on how I would
personally approach trading step by step and apply it to the Philippine context.

He, Adel