1 The Story
The decade of losing, then winning
Martin 'Buzzy' Schwartz (born 1945) spent roughly a decade losing money as a fundamental analyst before reinventing himself as a disciplined technical trader and winning the U.S. Investing Championship in 1984. He told his story in Pit Bull.1
His lessons centre on the inner game: cut losses without ego, reduce size after a loss to protect capital and confidence, and treat trading as a discipline rather than a display of brilliance.1
2 The Big Idea
Discipline beats brilliance
Protect your capital and your confidence — especially after a loss.
Schwartz's turnaround proved that analysis wasn't his problem; ego and risk control were. He learned to take losses fast, cut his size after a losing streak to steady himself, and let discipline — not cleverness — carry the results.1
3 The Method
The inner game
Take losses fast
Cut a loser without arguing with the market. Being wrong is cheap; staying wrong is ruinous.
Reduce size after a loss
After a losing streak, trade smaller to protect both capital and confidence — then build back as you stabilise.
Trade the discipline, not the ego
Treat trading as a craft of repeatable habits, not a stage for being the smartest in the room.
4 Try It Today
Test the idea for yourself
A no-risk exercise
Look back at any losing streak (yours or a hypothetical). Ask: would trading half-size during it have protected your capital — and your nerve — enough to recover faster? That instinct to shrink, not press, is Schwartz's hardest-won lesson.
5 The Books & Their Big Ideas
What they wrote — and what to take from it
6 Watch & Read
Go deeper
- CONCEPTRisk & Position Sizing
- BOOKPit Bull (1998) · Market Wizards
- READ"Martin S. Schwartz" — Wikipedia.1
§ Sources
- "Martin S. Schwartz," Wikipedia — en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_S._Schwartz