I like to think I practice gratitude daily, but a few hours before Thanksgiving dinner is the perfect time to bang out an article formalizing the top-8 things I’m most grateful for in our beloved trading and investing world.
And speaking of gratitude – next week we’re hosting a wealth-management webinar that dives deeper into how we actually put these principles into practice for clients. If you want a behind-the-scenes look at our planning and portfolio process, you can register for the December 4th, 8PM ET session here.
2025 has been a great year for investors with massive opportunities in the ongoing AI revolution powering ahead… but not without a few torpedoes. We saw two significant declines: the February–April drop of 25%, and this recent “November not-to-remember,” the worst November decline since 2008 at –9%. And yet here we are, a few percentage points from all-time highs.
The picture in this article was taken yesterday, Nov 28th, at the Wynwood Art District in Miami. Such a cool place! Anway, here we go…
Gratitude #1 — Gratitude Itself
I’m thankful… for gratitude. The minute you start believing the world—or the stock market—owes you something, you’re doomed. The market owes you nothing. Expect little or no reward (or worse) without taking risk, having faith, and committing to a real process behind your investments, trades, ventures, or any meaningful pursuit.
I’m grateful for the opportunity to participate and grow through this next industrial revolution driven by AI. It’s a privilege, not a right, to participate. And part of that privilege is knowing when your welcome has been overstayed.
Just like the brand of my company, Inside Edge Capital: when you point your skis downhill, there’s always risk. But if you’ve prepared, controlled the variables, and respected the conditions, the ride can be incredibly rewarding.
Gratitude #2 — Our Clients
We’re deeply grateful for our clients — and it’s not simply the management fees. Far more important is the ability to step into our clients’ lives and help guide their financial futures.
This past summer, we finally sunset my research business, TradingAnalysis.com, which launched in 2012. I knew it would be a major transition moving from simply talking about markets and showing people what I do with my own capital… to actually managing families’ life savings.
I’ve traded OPM (other people’s money) before — on the hedge fund desk in the 2008 financial crisis — but that was for institutions and my CEO’s capital. Very different from managing the wealth of retail families… like my Mom and Dad.
Speaking of family, and at the risk of sounding materialistic, I’d argue our job is every bit as important — if not more important — than that of a family physician. It’s hard to maximize your enjoyment of life without optimal health and sufficient wealth. And much of the wealth we manage is meant to live beyond our clients and be passed to future generations. Doctors keep you humming until the final days. Our job is to keep your financial health humming through those final days — and ensure your legacy is maximized.
Back in the TradingAnalysis days, onboarding often came with awkward conversations: clients hesitant to show us their accounts. More often than not, they were sitting on piles of cash, missing tens or hundreds of percent in returns while waiting for the “big crash” that never seemed to come. Others held positions 80% underwater, waiting for a miracle recovery.
Most of our clients are passionate about the markets, and we encourage them to keep 10–20% of their account active. But we’ve seen too many portfolios from “trained” active traders that were, frankly, train wrecks. If you’re embarrassed to show us what you’re holding — trust me — we’ve seen worse.
I’m thankful for the transition from a transactional research business to a deeply personal, intimate, fiduciary relationship with our clients. It’s night and day.
Gratitude #3 — The Inside Edge Capital Team
I truly cannot do this without them — by design.
Kyle Wasson, our COO and Head of Financial Planning, is my right-hand man. He’s a wizard with tax planning, budgeting, estates, trusts, and comprehensive financial planning. He communicates at an elite level with clients. These are not my strengths — and that’s exactly why he’s invaluable.
Only after Kyle conducts a thorough assessment of a client’s needs, goals, risk appetite, temperament, and personality does he create a comprehensive financial plan with an appropriate asset mix. From there, I deploy capital into our various portfolios based on his analysis. That separation between planning and trading is essential for an active management firm like ours. If we were plain-vanilla indexers, this level of planning wouldn’t be nearly as critical.
Nick has been with me about eight years, starting in customer service at TradingAnalysis. He’s evolved into operations, business strategy, marketing, some programming, and keeping me organized and on track. He’s currently prepping for the Series 65 so he can advance to full wealth advisor. Nick, I appreciate you more than you know. And if you find yourself corresponding with Nick, understand he’s one of my key guys and deserves to be treated that way. He’s the hardest-working guy in our business.
Gratitude #4 — I Get Paid to Do What I Love
If I weren’t an investment professional, I’d still trade every day. I’ve loved the markets since I was 16 and know with 100% certainty I’ll be doing this well into my golden years.
Markets are an ever-changing battleground full of some of the brightest, sharpest minds in the world. They challenge me the same way Division I ski racing did: relentless preparation, long-term planning, split-second decisions, and absolute accountability.
I’m also incredibly grateful for my 15-year relationship with CNBC. I just signed my fifth 3-year contract with NBCUniversal. I literally get checks from NBCUniversal in Studio City, CA — like… WHAT? I was back on the NYSE floor two weeks ago for a CNBC hit, attended Delivering Alpha, reconnected with anchors and crew I hadn’t seen in years — and it felt like no time had passed. Mary Duffy, Max Meyers — thank you.
And as many of you know, Jimmy Buffett was a massive influence on my life. He sang about beach escapism, appreciating life, and not taking yourself too seriously. Honestly, he was maybe a C+ musician — but he lived a life millions dream of, built a fortune, and reportedly approached a billion before he passed. Behind the easygoing vibe, Jimmy worked his ass off. That’s how I try to live, and what I teach my kids:
Work hard, play hard, enjoy the journey, stay grateful.
Gratitude #5 — Access to World-Class Research Tools
Technology has leveled the playing field in a massive way. Institutional-quality research is now accessible at a tiny fraction of the old cost.
Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) in 2002 forced transparency after the Enron and WorldCom frauds. CEOs and CFOs now personally certify the accuracy of financials. Internal controls tightened. Audits strengthened. Information became more honest, consistent, and comparable — empowering independent investors in a way that didn’t exist before.
Then came the explosion of software, cloud computing, and democratized market data. Suddenly, alternatives to the ultra-expensive Bloomberg/Reuters/FactSet world were everywhere. And it’s awesome.
Tools we use daily:
- DeepVue (fundamental + technical dashboards)
- TIKR (global fundamentals — for $35/month!)
- Schwab ThinkPipes (routing + pro trading tools)
- Advisor Engine (CRM + rebalancing)
- SavvyTrader + Earnings Hub (community & insights)
- YCharts (macro + charting)
- Koyfin (soon joining the stack)
- Nitrogen – formerly Riskalyze (investor risk tolerance questionnaire)
- eMoney (personal financial planning)
- TaxStatus (tax information retrieval, ongoing IRS account monitoring)
These tools let me instantly scan thousands of companies for the best technical and fundamental setups. Everything is cloud-based — so if I pop open the MacBook at a pool in Pompano Beach, I have access to the same firepower as my Mac Studio trading system at home.
For active investors and entrepreneurs, this era is incredible.
Gratitude #6 — The Power of Blending Fundamentals & Technicals
I was first exposed to William O’Neil’s style in 2003 while working for a trading education and CTA/hedge fund group. Back then, I leaned more heavily toward the hard technicals — Fibonacci, Elliott Wave, Gann — and didn’t fully appreciate the IBD blend.
From 2003–2010, I focused on global macro and technicals. But after the GFC, as the tech revolution accelerated, companies with enormous growth trajectories started appearing. Remember: until 2011, ExxonMobil was still the largest stock in the S&P 500. After 2011, the top 10 shifted dramatically toward technology. This video illustrates it beautifully!
As tech exploded, it became clear:
Real alpha comes from owning the right companies.
I was building a significant personal portfolio and wanted above-average returns — not what “the averages” deliver. Time to revisit the O’Neil/IBD approach.
Combining powerful scanning tools (DeepVue, TIKR, Koyfin, YCharts) with strong fundamentals and elite technicals has been a game-changer. It allows me to quickly sift through thousands of names and select the companies best positioned to ride the fastest wealth-creation opportunity in history: artificial intelligence.
Gratitude #7 — The Technological Age We’re Living In
American ingenuity continues to widen the gap between U.S. market value and the rest of the world. A histogram of total market cap vs. China, Europe, South America, and South Korea is breathtaking.
AI is revolutionizing every sector: semiconductors, biotech, energy, industrials, software, finance, consumer, and more. The world is participating — but the U.S. is driving the train.
And the opportunities in front of us are everywhere. In this market, the “opportunity of a lifetime” seems to show up every couple of weeks.
Gratitude #8 — The Community We’ve Built
The community we’re building goes far beyond the transactional nature of a research business.
Our tribe is growing — largely former TradingAnalysis clients who’ve watched me trade live accounts for 15 years, plus new clients discovering us for the first time. In year four, the bonds we’re forming are hard to describe.
The trust clients put in us means everything. I watch the markets every day like I’m a young hedge-fund trader, scanning for torpedoes, determined to continually earn that trust.
Inside Edge would not exist without clients willing to choose an edgy, high-touch startup run by a 40-something… instead of a massive wirehouse they see on TV.
For that alone, I am eternally grateful.
Looking Ahead to 2026
Next year is huge.
It’s our country’s 250th birthday.
We have the Winter Olympics in Italy (go Mikaela Shiffrin and Lindsey Vonn!).
And Inside Edge Capital turns five.
We have so much to look forward to in the markets and the economy — but we will always remain vigilant, avoiding the icy patches, ruts, holes, and drop-offs… and finding the smoothest path to the finish line so we can all ENJOY THE RIDE TO FINANCIAL FREEDOM.
And if you want to see how we’re preparing client portfolios for that next stretch of the ride, don’t miss our December 4th wealth-management webinar at 8PM ET. You can register here!
Thanks for reading, and I wish you and your family a wonderful holiday season.
Todd
