Alan Northcott

Joe Taylor
December 16, 2008

(bettertrades) - The office on the 120 acre farm in the Mid-West is unconventional, but then so is Alan Northcott, author of The Complete Guide to Investing in Short Term Trading. The farm boasts a mile of river frontage and a 20 acre private island. His daily routine includes looking after eleven chickens, caring for many cats and dogs, some of which are remnants of an animal rescue he co-founded with his wife in Arizona, and other tasks, in addition to his writing.

Alan grew up in England, where his father worked all his life for a Canadian bank in London as a Foreign Exchange Manager. With his mother working in Internal Revenue before becoming a mother and housewife, having a mathematical inclination was natural to him. In his earlier years, Alan saw his future as following steadfastly in the footsteps of his father, working "in Town" in the financial sector.

Unpredictably, he trained and had an earlier career in the engineering profession, a trait shared with many other successful traders, he has subsequently found out. Today, Alan is still a registered Professional Engineer as well as a financial expert, and he comments "Not having been stuck in the financial world all my life brings me to the task of explaining complex financial matters with a fresh outlook".

Indeed, Alan's passion for life has developed in many alternative directions, including being a volunteer firefighter, an aging karaoke jockey with a penchant for the British Invasion, Chairman of the Planning Commission for a small South Western town, and training in Reiki, spiritual enlightenment and healing, to the second degree. "This is mainly to help the suffering and sick animals", he admits. He also bought a bass guitar in his fifties with the intention of learning "Aqualung", his favorite karaoke song. As an ordained minister, he had the privilege of marrying his son a couple of years ago.

Alan blames his attitude of approaching life as a continuing adventure for this eclectic collection of experiences. "I think that's how I can explain the popularity of my writing" he opines. If the reviews on Barnes and Noble and Amazon are anything to go by, his first book certainly is popular. At this moment, Alan knows of four more of his books that will be released in 2009, two of which are already written and in layout and design, one on candlestick charting and another on asset protection. The other two will deal with mutual funds and hedge funds. He does not expect the list to stop there however, and there are various other projects in the works. He sends out a regular newsletter which will contain details as developed, and there is a free sign-up on his website.