Editor's note: Jim Cramer's book, Real Money: Sane Investing in an Insane World, includes Cramer's "Ten Commandments of Trading", which we've reprinted below. For more about the new book and to order it, click here. To learn his "Twenty-Five Rules of Investing", click here.
Tips Are for Waiters
Commandment 5
It's pithy and the interviewers love it, so whenever I'm asked about my new book, Jim Cramer's Real Money, the fifth of my Ten Commandments of Trading comes up:
Tips are for waiters.
"What does it mean, Jim?" they ask. Actually, it means that human nature and securities are a potent and devastating mix. People can whisper in your ear that Nokia (NOK - news) is going to buy Research In Motion (RIMM - news), and you believe, you genuinely believe, because you want the big score. You know that the best moves are takeovers and you are convinced that if you can catch one, it will make up for all the bum steers and bad bets you have made. Tips are winning lottery tickets in most people's eyes.
That's the reason I've had to default to a simple analogy, tips are for waiters, to remind myself how stupid tips really are. Does it occur to you, on hearing the tip, that if the person telling you that Nokia is going to buy RIM really knows that's going to happen, the person is an insider and is breaking the law, and you could get in trouble, too? Does it occur to you that if the person isn't an insider, he doesn't know? There simply is no way a tip like that can work. Leave it for the waiter.
It gets more sinister. Most rumors start for a reason: Someone's in a bad position. Instead of thinking, "Sure, Cisco (CSCO - news) is going to buy Nortel (NT - news)," after you are given that particular tip, you should be thinking "Man, is this guy wearing a ton of Nortel and what won't he do to get rid of it."
I know that cynicism isn't a particularly positive attribute, but when it comes to tips, it sure is. Leave them for the waiter.
Jim Cramer is a director and co-founder of TheStreet.com. He contributes daily market commentary for TheStreet.com's sites and serves as an adviser to the company's CEO. Outside contributing columnists for TheStreet.com and RealMoney.com, including Cramer, may, from time to time, write about stocks in which they have a position. In such cases, appropriate disclosure is made. To see his personal portfolio and find out what trades Cramer will make before he makes them, sign up for Action Alerts PLUS. Watch Cramer on Mad Money at 6 p.m. & 11p.m. ET weeknights on CNBC. Click here to order any of Jim Cramer’s books including his latest endeavor Stay Mad For Life: Get Rich, Stay Rich (Make Your Kids Even Richer). While he cannot provide personalized investment advice or recommendations, he invites you to send comments on his column by clicking here.
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