Hi friend!
The 3 of us got our starts in option trading at SIG in the late 90s on the American Stock Exchange in lower Manhattan. We would all credit an incredible training program and culture for fostering long careers in the hyper-competitive world of derivatives trading.
Our training focused not just on the details of financial instruments and their associated math, but more broadly applicable -- decision-making and game theory. SIG used games, most notably poker, as well as mock trading to impart transferrable lessons to our day-to-day responsibilities.
Tina and I stood on the shoulders of great teachers. Mike Steiner was one of the most important. A market-maker by day, he also designed and executed the curriculum that incoming traders to the NYC office would onboard.
A full-time educator today, Mike teaches honors math and physics in HS. However, his love for trading has never waned. When we recently reconnected, he showed us a game he developed called StockSlam.
StockSlam distills the the essence of trading by allowing players to make markets and trade stocks. Stripped of the option component (that version is already in the works!), StockSlam doesn't require you to understand company fundamentals or any esoteric finance stuff. It's a fast game requiring players to think quantitatively while building intuition and understanding investor psychology. And yes, you will be trading derivatives.
Games take 15-20 minutes to play. Each game leads to deeper understanding, richer language, and intuitions that only profit / loss feedback can provide.
Skills that will immediately develop from the very first game:
- market making in an open outcry market
- tracking multiple quotes of competitors
- managing a rudimentary portfolio
- the mechanics of short-selling
- reacting to new information
This is not just fun and games. Tina, Mike, and I will highlight the deep concepts embedded in StockSlam that won't be obvious.
- arbitrage pricing, inter-dependent pricing
- expected value, how to evaluate any financial decision
- stochastic processes, and probability
- making trading decisions under uncertainty
- how StockSlam can expand to option pricing / trading
- how StockSlam can onboard ANY financial neophyte (go from 0 to 60 quickly in understanding how markets work)
Why are we doing this?
1. It's fun, really fun.
When I saw StockSlam, I was mad at myself for not creating it.
2. Education
The 3 of us have all love teaching about trading and derivatives. There are many useful mental models you can import from trading into decision-making so anyone can benefit. The trading theme of the game is a skin hiding evergreen principles. We will connect many of these dots for you.
3. Research
This is like a focus group. As teachers, we are always trying to find better ways to communicate concepts and more importantly have them stick. Games are an effective delivery mechanism. We are workshopping educational ideas and these sessions are an experiment. The experience and your feedback will inform possible avenues for further learning.
Event Details
When
The sessions will be held on:
- Tuesday Oct 4th, 2022
- Wednesday Oct 5th, 2022
- Friday Oct 7th, 2022
The sessions will run from 6-8pm.
Where
Midtown Manhattan. We will release the exact location to attendees as the event approaches. If accepted you will be assigned to 1 session.
What To Expect
You will play games and partake in an active discussion. This is a friendly, 100% inclusive environment, where respect and kindness are the highest values. As teachers, we fully expect to meet people where they are. There is no prior experience required.
Everyone checks their ego at the door.
Extra
Part of the fun is meeting new people. We encourage mingling and would love to go out to a bar afterwards (even if a couple of us don't drink!) and have more time with those who are interested in hanging out longer.
Tina and Mike live in the NY metro area, I'm coming from CA so I got nowhere else to be. We look forward to meeting everyone who wants to participate.
We expect many new faces, but old friends as well. As a guest, you never know who might be there!
To Apply
Simply fill out the survey below. The event is 100% free.
We cannot guarantee a spot because space and time is limited, but anyone who applies but doesn't have the chance to attend will get preference if we do these sessions again.
We will use email to notify you of acceptance and to keep you up-to-date.
