Day trading isn’t as bad as people think it is. Smart day traders actually make big bucks. I know many people making a lot of money either day trading, position trading or swing trading. On the other hand, I also know many people losing quite a big amount of money as well.
Anyway, you always have to study the market quite a bit, and especially the stock that you are buying. Since we are talking about not to day trade, you will have to make sure that the stock you are buying isn’t just something that shot up for the day and sinks like the titanic the next day because you will be holding on to it for some time (days, weeks, whatever you want), some people call this “position trading”.
So, again, study the market. Select a target company; find out who runs it - their history, management philosophy. Evaluate the company’s strengths and competition. Look at their cash to debt ratio, market capitalization, earnings, dividend history. Compare with other companies in the same business segment. Look at market trends and potential future earnings. Don’t invest in buggy whips. When you are comfortable with the company, purchase their stock. Finally, buy good stock on high volume that do not fluctuate as much as small-caps if you are planning to hold for over a day.
Once you master your strategy, repeat. Diversify. If you are diligent and lucky (and don’t make any mistake about it, luck plays a large part in this; the market unfortunately is not rational), you could average big winnings.
