who is your hero?

[eidolon]

having spent some time reading through the various boards, i have an idea as to why one decides to choose trading as a career, wither for oneself or for a firm.

eager to always learn from the lessons (and successes) of others, i am curious to know who inspires you (they don't need to be other traders, nor even confined to the realm of business).

i would also gratefully appreciate any recommendations for biographies and other books relating to your hero, as i'm currently trying to get a copy of the duke of marlborough biography by winston churchill (both heros of mine), and would be eager to order other good reads at the same time.

cheers in advance.

 

[Mr. Charts]

I don't have one.
"Hero" to me is someone who does the right thing in face of extreme danger whilst knowing the risk and being afraid. Now that is heroic.
Sadly most such people are dead, but that guy from Grenada who got the VC y'day is my idea of a hero.
He knew what he was doing and the risk, but still went ahead. Respect.
As for politicians, I have nothing positive to say about any of them, so I'll be quiet.
Sportspeople? No, success does not equal heroism.
Richard

 

[eidolon]

thanks for the reply. certainly have to agree with you on Private Johnson Beharry.

 

[Mr. Charts]

Bill Clinton's autobiography is an interesting read, though some would find it heavy going.
I could relate some unpublished anecdotes about him, but since they are all positive and he is currently viewed negatively, there's no point.
I'm currently reading Bob Dylan's which is much lighter and very enjoyable.
Richard

 

[sulong]

Odysseus, of the nimble wits, as he is called by homer, seems to be an admiral character.
His search for Penelope is inspiring

 

[Racer]

I agree with Mr Charts, I don't have one, you should follow your own ideas.Yes listen and if you think that opinion is worthwhile take note of it. Do not be rigidly fixed in your opinions or think you are always right because that is the way you will go wrong!

 

[donaldduke]

I looked up the definition of Hero:

1.In mythology and legend, a man, often of divine ancestry, who is endowed with great courage and strength, celebrated for his bold exploits, and favored by the gods.
2.A person noted for feats of courage or nobility of purpose, especially one who has risked or sacrificed his or her life: soldiers and nurses who were heroes in an unpopular war.
3.A person noted for special achievement in a particular field: the heroes of medicine.
4.The principal male character in a novel, poem, or dramatic presentation.


If we take 3. Then the heros of trading would be traders like Ed Seykota, you could do alot worse than
find out everything you can find out about him, his insights into human psychology, if you dig deep enough you can find models of his beliefs (not just trading beliefs) and the mental stratagies he uses in his
trading and the rest of his life.

 

[DaveJB]

Hero is easy to define,
if you think 'S**t I wish I was that guy' and it's because he did something stunningly noble (rather than just envying Hugh Hefner for having decorative ladies to hand at an advanced age) then that's a hero.
Many get that status due to good editing, some have acheived it through blind terror and luck. To me it's an atheist who goes into a hideously dangerous situation to make life safer for those who need it but don't have the clout to obtain it...

Many aid workers, bomb disposal officers, etc. Sportsmen? Sorry, that's a laugh, right?

Dave

 

[Bigbusiness]

What about Lance Armstrong. He had testicular cancer and secondaries in his lungs and brain, was given less than a 50:50 chance of survival, he overcame that and went on to win 6 Tour de France, probably the toughest sporting event going.

 

[DaveJB]

Okay,
I wouldn't want to make it seem like the guy didn't overcome significant problems to achieve something - I just think that achieving something that has some tangible benefit to mankind has greater inherent worth than a sporting record of any sort.

I'm a great Nigel Mansell fan, he gave me a great deal of enjoyment a decade plus ago, including almost disolving in a cockpit full of fuel, collapsing whilst pushing the car towards the line, and truly memorable moments like racing Senna wheel to wheel and overtaking moves on Picquet and Berger... but then there were people who grew up in the great democracies, spent long years training to provide medical assistance for which they could charge extortionate prices, and then they went into places like Rwanda to carry out basic medical care with none of the hype while the local sport was 'hacking your head off with a blunt machete'. More importantly they stayed there day after day, and sometimes they became the person whose head got hacked off. I don't think the two are comparable, frankly, I ADMIRE Nigel's commitment and ability, but to be truthful my heroes are not only largely unsung, but I've no idea who they are (their names) myself!

I simply do not accept that anything on the sports field is one tenth as courageous as some of the simple acts of humanity that are repeated day after day.... how much courage does it take to be fit and healthy and to go work with the diseased, to be advantaged and to head off into places like the Yemen? Sorry, pedalling a bicycle doesn't compare in my somewhat biased opinion, although I don't doubt fore a second it was a personal triumph and I am glad for Mr Armstrong, Matthew Pinsett, and all the other sports personalities out there. I'm one of those curmudgeonly types who remembers Danny Blanchflower, when only sissies insisted on having a sub because a man had gone off with concussion (Bert Trautmann, anyone? <g>) and balls were made out of specially hardened leather, filled with concrete and soaked for a fortnight to make 'em heavier.... and refs carried truncheons and only counted it as a goal if you headed it in and suffered at least minor concussion as a result.

(Okay, I flowered that last bit up a tad).

Dave

 

[Fader]

Hero is just a manifestation of one of the archetypes buried in the psyche, cut out the middle man, stop projecting that part of yourself onto another and look within!

 

[DaveJB]

Right,
glad that's sorted then <g>

 

[Simon Gordon]

George Soros inspired me to enter the trading arena.

He started with $250K.

He is generous with his money.

Has a passion for politics.

Is a public figure who demonstrates that there is a fortune to be made in the markets.

Thanx George!

 

[FetteredChinos]

B.A Baracus..

anyone who can wear that much jewelry deserves my resect.

 

[Salty Gibbon]

Rufus Roughcut

 

[commanderco]

Who is my hero?

Well, since I make more money on the short side than the long side, it has to be George Bush.

 

[trendie]

B.A Baracus..

anyone who can wear that much jewelry deserves my resect.

By inference, you have a high regard for....
now-then, now-then, hows-about, hows-about, now-then, now-then,
Jimmy Saville ?

 

[Salty Gibbon]

Horace Greensmith