“J.R.” specializes in trading both currencies and commodities, and is currently the editor of Weiss Research’s Master Trader, where he recommends strategic Exchange-Traded Fund option plays to take advantage of pops and drops in global trends right here on the U.S exchanges. He is also the co-editor of Weiss Research’s World Currency Trader.
In addition to managing real-world investment portfolios, J.R. has spent most of the last decade analyzing and writing about global macroeconomic events.
Before joining his father, Jack Crooks, at Black Swan Capital LLC, J.R. was editor of The Sovereign Society’s daily currency publication, My Two Cents. Previously, he was also a contributing editor to Larry Edelson’s Gold Trader Hotline.
On top of his systematic approach to trading (fundamental and technical analysis), J.R. has come to learn the importance of market psychology. “You get a lot of guys who are very right about how things are going to shape up in the markets,” said J.R. “But these guys are often very wrong about when such events will materialize. One can’t make money with bad timing. Appreciation of the psychological side of the market is an excellent and underrated tool for more precisely timing your trades.”
He calls himself “unexciting” but credits his success in the markets to his even-keeled nature. “A bad trading mentality can ruin an account in no time. If you start letting your emotions control your trading decisions, you won’t be making too many more trading decisions!”
Even though J.R. is focused on monitoring the markets; writing newsletters; picking timely, low-risk and high-profit-potential trades; and raising a family, he says he’s “too busy to be interesting.”
J.R. holds a B.S. in finance from Florida State University.
