How to make money in the stock market?

From left to right: P L Lakshmanan, Founder, Finmarts Consultancy, Soma Valliappan, Self-help Author, Management Consultant, K Suresh, Director, India Cements Investment Services, Regional Chairman for ANMI, at Business Standard Smart Business in Chennai on 13th June 2014, in association with Association of National Exchanges Members of India.

"This time around, in stock markets, play it like test matches, not like Twenty20 cricket", said Soma Valliappan, a self-help author & management consultant, who has authored 45 books including six on stock markets. Speaking at the Business Standard's Smart Business Event, in association with Association of National Exchanges Members of India (ANMI) on 'How to make money in the stock market?', he said, "Market has moved up in anticipation of reforms, policy decisions, stable cost of inputs, reduced cost or credit and credit availability". He further added " For the next five years with the visibility increasing and FIIs bringing in liquidity, it appears that India is heading for a fairly long bull market".

P L Lakshmanan, Founder, Finmarts Consultancy, in his address said, "A trading plan with equal emphasis on strategy, money management, attitude and discipline is essential for a trader". Spread trading is a low risk, tension-free way to stock market profits. This innovative strategy makes a trader immune to market fluctuations, thereby helping him to overcome the two dreaded emotional states – fear and hope, which cause losses while trading, and is ideal for risk averse traders.

K Suresh, Director, India Cements Investment Services, and Regional Chairman for ANMI, in his welcome address said, "Share market is a very complex place and lack of knowledge makes the things difficult to handle in such a market. There are two ways of analyzing a stock, one is Fundamental Analysis and another one is Technical Analysis. Depending on the need, one can use these two methods to help the decision-making process in the share market".

In India, the retail participation is very low compared to any other country. Further the market is totally dependent upon institutions like FIIs and DIIs. But the presence of these institutions itself is an indication to the fact that money can be made in the share market. To make money in the share market one needs a better understanding of the market.