Say you have $20,000 to $100,000 to invest. You can put it in stocks, hope to make a 10% return over time, and if the market moves up, you could walk away with an extra $2,000 to $10,000 before taxes. Or, you could take that same investment, and put it into something that could generate far greater returns.

James Altucher, Managing Director of Formula Capital, says that a better way to reap big returns is to exploit your employer. (See video.)

Continue reading Exploit Your Employer for Big Returns (with Video)

Exploit Your Employer for Big Returns (with Video) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 18 Oct 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Here's One Way to Generate 100% Gains -- and It's Not in Stocks

Here's One Way to Generate 100% Gains -- and It's Not in Stocks originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 07 Oct 2010 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

I didn't find this recap of Jim Cramer's CNBC show interesting because of his recommendations. I found it interesting because he talks of an overall "bearishness of the market." Cramer noted that this bearishness began in the tech sector, spread to retail, and is now creeping into the food sector.

He notes that it is "remarkable to see how little enthusiasm there is ... even for companies that are doing well." An example of this lack of enthusiasm for good performers is that analysts will cut price targets on a stock, but will raise the company's earnings estimate at the same time.

Continue reading Jim Cramer Sees a 'Very Negative' Trend

Jim Cramer Sees a 'Very Negative' Trend originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 24 Aug 2010 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading JockStocks: Is Under Armour on the Road to Recovery?

JockStocks: Is Under Armour on the Road to Recovery? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 23 Jul 2010 15:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

A couple of days ago, my colleague Jeff Reeves took a look at 7-Eleven's decision to enter into the beer game. Yes, 7-Eleven -- the sultan of Slurpees, the high priest of week-old hot dogs, the convenience king -- is going to throw its proverbial hat in the ring, looking for your beer bucks.

I did not know this, but 7-Eleven is the third-largest beer retailer in the United States. Perhaps my ignorance is born from the fact that there are no 7-Elevens in my hometown.

Continue reading 7-Eleven's Brewing Ambitions No Threat to Budweiser, Coors or Miller

7-Eleven's Brewing Ambitions No Threat to Budweiser, Coors or Miller originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 23 Apr 2010 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading JockStocks: The Big Winner in Tonight's NFL Draft? ESPN and the NFL Network

JockStocks: The Big Winner in Tonight's NFL Draft? ESPN and the NFL Network originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 22 Apr 2010 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Rumor has it that Tiger Woods has started to brush up on his game a bit and some of golf's greats believe that he will be playing in the Masters. If, and when, he returns, Tiger will be a little lighter in the sponsorship arena, what with AT&T (T), Accenture (ACN), and PepsiCo's (PEP) Gatorade all having ended their sponsorship deals with Tiger.

Fear not though, Tiger is making enough money that he can actually turn down sponsors. Reportedly, an Irish bookie -- Paddy Power (awesome name) -- has made a $75 million offer to sponsor Tiger over the next five years.

Continue reading JockStocks: Tiger Has a New Sponsorship Offer, Should He Accept?

JockStocks: Tiger Has a New Sponsorship Offer, Should He Accept? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 05 Mar 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This is a true story sent to me by a reader of my books. His family gave me permission to publish this sad tale, but requested I protect their anonymity.

Bill Hacknett (not his real name) had planned well for retirement. He was a senior executive with a major, publicly traded company. He had spent his entire working career in corporate America. When his company downsized, it was not a problem for him. Over his 30-year employment history, he had accumulated significant assets in his 401(k) plan and, in his late fifties, was ready for early retirement.

Then disaster struck.

Continue reading Little-Known Victims of Nigerian Internet Scams

Little-Known Victims of Nigerian Internet Scams originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 21 Feb 2010 14:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Is NBC's Coverage Ruining the Olympics Through Tape Delay?

Is NBC's Coverage Ruining the Olympics Through Tape Delay? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 17 Feb 2010 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

So, this sounds like a great idea, right? The people of our city are unemployed, leading to less cash and less spending -- so let's print our own money! As those gentlemen in the now-defunct Guinness ads shrieked: Brilliant! In Detroit, a group of businesses are now accepting what is called Detroit Cheer. With this local currency you can buy a pizza, receive some electrical services, and day care for your pooch. The Cheer can also be exchanged for cash at local bars. Sounds like it would be illegal, right? Well, the article notes that it isn't -- as long as the printed currency doesn't look too much like the dollar it is perfectly legal. I don't think anyone is going to confuse the Detroit Cheer with the American Dollar.

Continue reading Is It Time to Print Your Own Money?

Is It Time to Print Your Own Money? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 16 Feb 2010 17:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Has Elkhart, Indiana Come to Symbolize Federal Housing Failure?

Has Elkhart, Indiana Come to Symbolize Federal Housing Failure? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 15 Feb 2010 15:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

So, on Friday I took a look at the potential of some Super Bowl advertisements, which leaves today to digest the commercials and say who we thought had the best commercial.

First things first, congratulations New Orleans -- what a win. Second of all, I need to make an editorial comment before I reveal my thoughts on the best commercial: what's up with all the guys in their underwear? I saw enough tighty whities in the span of two minutes during the first half to last the rest of my life. I know one thing, I am not going to go to CareerBuilder.com or wear Dockers thanks to the visage of pasty white men in their underwear standing at the water cooler or singing about pants.

Continue reading Which Super Bowl Ad Won the Night?

Which Super Bowl Ad Won the Night? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 08 Feb 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

I was checking out one of my favorite blogs yesterday (UniWatchBlog.com - operated by the obsessive Paul Lukas) and I found myself with a subject for this week's JockStocks. Is the NFL a monopoly? Should the league be exempt from the Sherman Antitrust Act?

This all stems from a suit by a company known as American Needle, which sued the NFL in 2000 when the league selected Reebok to be the exclusive provider of licensed NFL apparel. American Needle sued the NFL, stating that the Reebok deal violated antitrust statutes becasue the league and Reebok "conspired to stifle competition and inflate prices."

Continue reading JockStocks: Should the NFL Receive Antitrust Exemption?

JockStocks: Should the NFL Receive Antitrust Exemption? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 15 Jan 2010 16:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Kiplinger's published a rather interesting article last week, looking at the possibility that playing poker can make you a better investor.

The article looks at the psychological issues that are present in both investing and gambling decisions. Kiplinger's interviewed Andrew Lo, the director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Laboratory for Financial Engineering (wow), who is considered "one of the leaders in the field of behavioral finance." Lo goes farther than saying that the psychological issues driving investing and gambling decisions are similar; he contends that these issues are "identical."

Continue reading Can Playing Poker Make You a Better Investor?

Can Playing Poker Make You a Better Investor? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 13 Jan 2010 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Rough few days for NBC, right? First, you have the whole Jay Leno prime-time disaster (which many experts and nonexperts saw coming); now you have yesterday's revelation from Dick Ebersol (chairman of NBC's sports division) that the Winter Olympics from Vancouver will actually lose money for NBC.

Ebersol noted that the cost of the broadcast rights for the games will exceed the company's advertising sales. Advertising sales slumped in the middle of 2009 and, although sales have picked up in the past four months, NBC is going to lose money thanks to the economic slowdown.

Continue reading Winter Olympics Will Lose Money for NBC

Winter Olympics Will Lose Money for NBC originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 11 Jan 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

While official ratings numbers from Thursday's national championship game between the Texas Longhorn and Alabama Crimson Tide football teams have yet to be released, I have a bad feeling that they will not be as good as ESPN hopes. Raise your hand if you tuned out after the Crimson Tide rolled to a 24-6 first-half lead and Texas was struggling with a freshman back-up quarterback at the helm. I would have my hand up right now, but it is awfully tough to type with one hand.

While the game promised to be good at the start, and actually had a relatively decent ending (from what I hear, unless you think this was the highlight of the night), I have a feeling that we will find out that the ratings for this game were lower than past couple of years. I know that I checked in on the game first thing this morning, only to find out that the finish was a bit closer than I expected, but I went to bed last night not worried that I was missing the last half of the BCS (or is it BS?) championship game.

Continue reading JockStocks: The Real Loser in the BCS National Championship Game May Be the Networks

JockStocks: The Real Loser in the BCS National Championship Game May Be the Networks originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 08 Jan 2010 15:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Big Ben Bernanke is letting his opinions be known early in 2010, and he is pointing the finger of blame for the economic crisis right at weak regulation. Bernanke is waiting for confirmation of his second term as Fed chair and he is looking for greater regulatory authority from Congress.

Bernanke told the American Economic Association that "Stronger regulation and supervision aimed at problems with underwriting practices and lenders' risk management would have been a more effective and surgical approach to constraining the housing bubble than a general increase in interest rates." This statement was part of Bernanke's response to accusations that the Fed was a major contributor to the financial crisis. The Fed head believes that the interest rates set by the Federal Reserve from 2002 to 2006 were appropriate.

Continue reading Ben Bernanke: Weak Regulation Caused Economic Crisis

Ben Bernanke: Weak Regulation Caused Economic Crisis originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 04 Jan 2010 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

According to the latest American Express (AXP) OPEN Small Business Monitor report, there are signs of improvement. Yet, the fact remains that cash flow continues to be a problem for many business owners. In fact, they have had to take some tough measures, such as cut costs, renegotiate contracts, sell personal assets and even get a second job.

But there is another way to help deal with cash flow problems -- that is, get better at invoicing and collections. While this can be uncomfortable, it is a necessity for any successful business.

Continue reading Entrepreneur's Journal: Getting Your Customers to Pay Up ... and On Time

Entrepreneur's Journal: Getting Your Customers to Pay Up ... and On Time originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 03 Jan 2010 18:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

There's a baseball play-by-play announcer with a pretty good team, whose made a small fortune uttering phrases like, "I tell you what you can do with that prediction: You can take that prediction and throw it in the East River. That's how much that prediction is worth."

In general, the same can be said about economic/budget projections. A little advice regarding economic and budget projections: don't work yourself up in to a lather over them.

Continue reading Investors: Avoid Fretting over 10-Year Projections

Investors: Avoid Fretting over 10-Year Projections originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 27 Dec 2009 13:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

James Altucher is a financial journalist for The Wall Street Journal and founder of Stockpickr.com. His articles cover every angle of the market; he also stars in feature videos with other financial luminaries. He is the author of Trade Like a Hedge Fund, Trade Like Warren Buffett, SuperCa$h, and The Forever Portfolio.

He has taken a controversial path lately with numerous articles in the New York Post and Huffington Post. Some articles include: "Global Warming Is a Myth," "Should Insider Trading Be Made Legal?" "School of Hard Cash," "The Internet Is Dead (as an Investment)," and "5 Myths the Recession Taught Us."

Rumors of a new addition to the James Altucher library have entered the blogosphere, so I met with James to discuss a possible new book and the response from his recent aggressive views on finance and the stock market.

Continue reading You can profit from James Altucher's insanity

You can profit from James Altucher's insanity originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 12 Dec 2009 16:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.