Max Gunther's father, was one of the original speculators who devised the Axioms and they made huge money using them and so did Max Gunther; he made his first trade at the age of 15 and continued to profit from them and you can too. The axioms are all about taking risk and actually enjoying it! Most traders are so afraid of risk, they actually end up creating it and the book focuses on the obvious – to make money, you need to take calculated risks...

The Axioms are not just applicable to trading, there also applicable to life in general and any business venture; this book is essential reading for every speculator and if you get this book, you will find it's a refreshing change from the so called normal investment wisdom. Always remember that the majority of traders lose money and that's why this book is so good, it puts you on the path to making money.

The book contains a set of principles which gives you a practical philosophy and trading psychology for the realistic management of risk.The common sense principles are available to everyone to use and can be practised by any trader willing to free his or her mind from conventional thinking. Many of the axioms go against the conventional belief and traditional wisdom of the investment advice BUT those who master the meanings and implement the concepts of the Zurich Axioms will have an edge in their quest for investment success – It's as simple as that.

You really need to read the book to get the full picture but here are the Axioms in brief, just to give you a taster of what the book is all about...

Major Axiom 1: On Risk

Worry is not a sickness but a sign of health. If you are not worried, you are not risking enough.

Put your money at risk. Don’t be afraid to get hurt a little. The degree of risk you will usually be dealing with is not hair-raisingly high. By being willing to face it, you give yourself the only realistic chance you have of rising above the great unrich. Worry is the hot and tart sauce of life. Once you get used to it, you enjoy it.

Minor Axiom I

Always play for meaningful stakes.

Minor Axiom II

Resist the allure of diversification.

(Because it forces you to violate precept minor axiom 1.)

(Because it creates situation where gains and losses cancel each other out.)

(Because you end up with too many balls in the air.)

Major Axiom 2: On Greed

Always take your profit too soon.

Sell too soon. Don’t hope for winning streaks to go on and on. Don’t stretch your luck. Expect winning streaks to be short. When you reach a previously decided-upon ending position, cash out and walk away. Do this even when everything looks rosy, when everyone else is saying the boom will keep roaring along.

The ONLY reason for not doing it would be that some new situation has arisen, and this situation makes you all but certain that you can go on winning for a while.

Except in such usual circumstances, get in the habit of selling too soon. And when you’ve sold, don’t torment yourself if the winning continues without you.

Minor Axiom III

Decide in advance what gain you want from a venture, and when you get it, get out.

Major Axiom 3: On Hope

When the ship starts to sink, don’t pray. Jump.

Learning to take losses is an essential speculative technique. MOST never learn it. Take losses at once and move on. Take small losses to protect yourself from the big ones.

Beware the 3 obstacles to jumping ship:

* Fear of regret (that the loser will turn out to be a winner when you’ve bailed-out)

* Unwillingness to abandon part of an investment (become willing to abandon)

* Difficulty of admitting you made a mistake.

Minor Axiom IV

Accept small losses cheerfully as a fact of life. Expect to experience several while awaiting a large gain.

Major Axiom 4: On Forecasts

Human behaviour cannot be predicted. Distrust anyone who claims to know the future, however dimly.

Nobody has the foggiest notion of what will happen in the future. Nobody. Never lose sight of the possibility you have made a bad bet.

Major Axiom 5: On Patterns The Emperor Axiom

Chaos is not dangerous until it begins to look orderly.

Do not look for order where order does not exist. Do not overlook the large role chance takes in any speculation. Study information in whatever speculative medium to improve chances and take your best shot. Stay light on your feet ready to jump this way or that. You are dealing with chaos, as long as you are alert to that fact you can keep yourself from getting hurt.

Internal Monolog goes:

“OK. I’ve done my homework as well as I know how. I think this bet can pay off for me. But since I cannot see or control all the random events that will affect what happens to my money. I know the chance of me being wrong is large. Therefore I will stay light on my feet, ready to jump this way or that when whatever is going to happen happens.”

Minor Axiom V

Beware the historians trap.

The Historian’s trap is a particular kind of orderly illusion. It is based on the age-old but entirely unwarranted belief that history repeats itself. People who hold this belief – which is to say perhaps ninety-nine out of every hundred people on earth – believe as a corollary proposition that the orderly repetition of history allows for accurate forecasting in certain situations…. Don’t fall into this trap. It is true that history repeats itself sometimes, but most often it doesn’t, and in any case it never does so in a reliable enough way that you can prudently bet money on it.

Minor Axiom VI

Beware the Chartist’s illusion.

Minor Axiom VII

Beware the correlation and causality delusions.

Minor Axiom VIII

Beware the Gambler’s Fallacy. (This is my lucky day.)

Major Axiom 6: On Mobility

Avoid putting down roots. They impede motion.

Be ready to jump away from trouble or seize opportunity. You do not have to bounce from one speculation to another like a ping-pong ball. All your moves should be made only after a careful assessment of the odds for and against, and no move should be made for trivial reasons. But when a venture is clearly souring, or when something clearly more promising comes into view, then you must sever those roots and go. Don’t let the roots get too thick to cut.

Minor Axiom IX

Do not become trapped in a souring venture because of sentiments like loyalty and nostalgia.

Minor Axiom X

Never hesitate to abandon a venture of something more attractive comes into view.

Major Axiom 7: On Intuition

A hunch can be trusted if it can be explained.

Though intuition is not infallible, it can be a useful speculative tool, if handled with care and scepticism.

If you are hit by strong hunch – put it to the test. Trust it only if you can explained it. That is only if you can identify within your mind a stored body of information out of which that hunch must reasonably be supposed to have arisen.

Be wary of any intuition that seems to promise some outcome you want badly.

Minor Axiom XI

Never confuse a hunch with a hope.

Major Axiom 8: On Religion and the Occult

It is unlikely that god’s plan for the universe includes making you rich.

Assume you are on your own. Rely on nothing but your own wits.

Minor Axiom XII

If astrology worked, all astrologers would be rich.

Minor Axiom XIII

A superstition need not be exorcised. It can be enjoyed, provided it is kept in its place.

Major Axiom 9: On Optimism & Pessimism

Optimism means expecting the best, but confidence means knowing how you will handle the worst. Never make a move if you are merely optimistic.

Optimism can be a speculator’s enemy. It feels good and is dangerous for that reason. It produces a clouding of judgement. It can lead you into a venture with no exits. Even when there is an exit, optimism can persuade you not to use it.

You should never make a move if you are merely optimistic. Before committing your money to a venture, ask how you will save yourself if things go wrong. Once you have that worked out, you’ve got something better than optimism. You’ve got confidence.

Major Axiom 10: On Consensus

Disregard the majority opinion. It is probably wrong.

Probably wrong. Figure everything out for yourself.

Minor Axiom XIV

Never follow speculative fads. Often, the best time to buy something is when no-one else wants it.

Major Axiom 11: On Stubbornness

If it doesn’t pay off the first time forget it.

Perseverance is a good idea for spiders and kings, but not always for speculators. Don’t fall into the trap of trying to squeeze a gain out of any single speculative entity.

Don’t chase any investment in a spirit of stubbornness. Reject any thought that an investment “owes you” something. And don’t buy the alluring, but fallacious idea that you can improve a bad situation by averaging down.

Minor Axiom XV

Never try to save a bad investment by averaging down.

Major Axiom 12: On Planning

Long-range plans engender the dangerous belief that the future is under control. It is important never to take your own long-range plans, or other people’s, too seriously.

React to events as they occur in the present. Put your money into ventures as they present themselves and withdraw it from hazards as they loom up. Value the freedom that will allow you to do this. Don’t ever sign that freedom away.

There is only one long-range financial plan you need: the intention to grow rich. The how is not knowable or plan-able. All you need to know is that you will do it somehow.

Minor Axiom XVI

Shun long-term investments.

Summary

This book doesn't give any indicators or technical analysis or a specific trading strategy but what it does give you – is the ability to set a framework of principles which will serve you well in trading for big profits in currencies, stocks commodities or any other investment for that matter.

For me, the best part of the Axiom's is the way they embrace risk and make you feel good about it and under the headings above, you will find the book is written in a simple amusing, entertaining style which anyone can understand and the best compliment I can give it is simply - it makes you want to start speculating!

If you read the Zurich Axiom's, you will see speculating and investment from a different and better perspective – so now go buy the book and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.