Bite the Ass Off a Bear: Getting In and Standing Out On a Hedge Fund Trading Floor

Contrary to Hollywood mythologizing, there are no wolves on Wall Street. Ruthless, greedy, and power-hungry individualists actually make terrible hedge-fund traders. If you’re going to succeed in this business, you need to understand not only how America’s financial markets work, but how being a team player makes you the most valuable asset to your company and clients. In Bite the Ass Off a Bear, investment professional Garth Friesen reveals how hedge-fund traders thrive by developing the interpersonal skills necessary to act and react in a high-stakes field with integrity, reliability, and stress control. For aspiring and experienced traders, having a strong work ethic, persistent attitude, and likeable personality are just as essential as mathematical and computer acumen and will take your career further than fabled lone-wolf tactics. With indispensable information from a Wall Street insider, this book will prepare you for a challenging industry that’s as full of risks as it is of rewards. Garth Friesen, a principal since 1998 at a well-known hedge-fund manager at III Capital Management, has served in multiple capacities at the firm, including Co-Chief Investment Officer. Garth has specific investment expertise in numerous markets, including fixed income, equities, and credit and interest-rate derivatives. He has been featured in various media, including CNBC, Bloomberg, and The Wall Street Journal, among others. He served as a member for five years on the esteemed New York Fed's Investor Advisory Committee on Financial Markets. Prior to joining III Capital Management, he was an interest-rate swaps market-maker for two Wall Street banks. Reader Review: "Enjoyable stories from trading desks as well as insight on what it takes for longevity in the trading profession. The author details important, and often overlooked, soft skills such as control of emotions and willingness to learn from mistakes. He also jumps into practical applications, including stop-loss triggers and operating with lower levels of confidence. For example, “Placing a stop-loss too far from the entry point, skew(s) the upside versus downside of a trade.” He shows great appreciation for the impact of psychological influences on trading and investing, with thorough discussion of behavioral biases like risk aversion and overconfidence. Rather than simply list such attributes, he demonstrates personal application: “When I first started, I viewed the game as me against the market. Now, I consider the game as me against other people. Identifying the consensus view and how other participants are positioned in various trades has become one of my most important (potential trade) evaluation criteria.” Overall, I enjoyed the book as an educational tool and confirmation that “moving from the theoretical academic world to the practical world of finance is hard.” “The long hours, pressure to continually perform, and the stress of losing substantial amounts of money make trading an extremely demanding occupation.” Some folks cannot handle the constant feedback. Compare this to most industries where performance reviews happen on an annual basis.” Trading by way of quantitative algorithms gets so much press these days. This book is a refreshing look at the creative and dynamic human trader, continuing to thrive despite the computer advances in artificial intelligence and deep learning."