How Jerremy Newsome Started Trading With An Apple Investment: 'Since Then, I've Been Hooked'

Jerremy Newsome, the founder and CEO at the trading education platform Real Life Trading, spoke with Benzinga about his company and trading philosophy. 

About Newsome

Newsome trades financial assets and teaches people how to invest. His passion for investing began at a young age; at 6 or 7 years old, Newsome said he watched the movie "Forrest Gump" and was struck by one particular scene.

“Toward the end of the movie, Forrest Gump opens up the mailbox and pulls out a letter. It said Lieutenant Dan invested in a fruit company and he didn’t have to work anymore.”

This particular scene resonated with Newsome, as he said he grew up poor. 

"Not having to worry about money anymore would be a really good thing."

Around 1994, with his father’s help, Newsome invested $2,600 in Apple Inc. AAPL. Later, in 2000, at the height of the tech bubble, Newsome sold his shares of Apple for a $12,000 profit.

“Since then, I've been hooked,” he said.

Real Life Trading Is Born

A trading conference in Miami was a pivotal moment for Newsome, he told Benzinga.

First: the organization hosting the event attempted to sell outrageously expensive lifetime memberships. Second: the speaker talked in a manner that was boring and unenthusiastic.

“I [thought] to myself, 'I can do this so much better,'” Newsome said. 

He developed two YouTube videos, one about covered calls and another about credit spreads.

In the short time that followed, people began reaching out, he said. After seven or eight people told Newsome he should charge for his content, he launched the Real Life Trading website. 

Ins And Outs

Users can view Newsome’s free and paid multilingual content on platforms like TradingView, YouTube and his website.

The free content on the Real Life Trading website includes structured courses in beginner, intermediate and advanced sections. All courses are video-based and last one hour on average. 

The courses cover everything from strategy to risk management and trading plans.

The premium paid content includes the “Trading Room,” which allows users to join in on live trading and Q&A sessions; an options newsletter service; professional trading courses; cryptocurrency courses; backtrading workouts; and more in-depth trading strategies.

Benzinga asked Newsome why he offers content for free.

“Here’s my thought. If you make money with my system, you’ll do something better for the world," he said.

"You’ll tell people about my product, you’ll give more money to charity, you’ll pay off your debts, you’ll contribute to society in some kind of way.”

Newsome advises students to go through his free content first.

For more experienced traders, he recommends joining the trading room.

"If you don’t know anything we are talking about, shoot me an email, and I’ll pause your subscription. Then go on and learn for free." 

Future Plans 

Newsome's next project is a personality-based system of learning, he said. 

The system would use an algorithm to create targeted programs for individual learning styles. 

The programs will “targeted to certain individuals like our military ... and our education system, so that teachers can learn this stuff as well.”

The Takeaway 

“Money grows on trees,” Newsome said. 

The rationale: he told Benzniga he raised funds for his first trade by picking and selling blackberries. 

“My dad said money doesn’t grow on trees," he said. "Remember [that] I picked blackberries and sold them door-to-door; blackberries grow on bushes. Apples grow on trees and people pay money for apples. In fact, most money is made from paper. Where do you get paper? Trees. Trees are money." 

When you think about money this way, “mindsets change,” he said.

In Newsome's view, the reason most people fail at trading is psychology.

“If they can figure out their relationship to money, they can become much better traders." 

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