Timing the market using technical analysis can be the fastest way to grow your money. Despite this many people assume that getting into strong stocks without timing it can be just as profitable.
It is helpful to have some sort of knowledge of how stocks move. If a company comes under an investigation by the government it can signal the stock will drop. But knowing information like that is not enough.
You need to know how far it will drop. If you heard very good news about a company and the stock just jumped 20% last week you need to be able to determine if the stock has already made its big move or if it is giving off a signal that it is about to make another move to the upside.
Most investors will overlook this fact. They hear about a stock that is making huge gains and nothing can stop it. Rather than waiting for a signal to get into the trade at the best possible time they just enter it and feel the pain when they buy at the wrong point and this unstoppable stock crashes.
It is not enough just to know how much money a company is making or how well the stock is doing. You must be able to time the market and get in and out only when the stock is giving off signals if you want to make big money trading.
Without technical indicators such as chart patterns and trend you can end up getting in too late or out too early which will give you a headache.
Most people do not like the idea of timing the market because it takes more effort than just buying a random stock. It takes more time and effort, but the effort you put into developing a skill like timing the market can pay you in having much higher returns than those who did not take the time to learn.