researcher59:
You had the opportunities of 10 lifetimes, being a techie AND an investor in technology stocks in the 1990's. I have heard those DELL stories. One guy where I worked told me about another guy (an IT person, of course), who made $7M in DELL.
I hope you realize that luck had a big role in your success pre 2002. You were in the right place, at the right time, with the right knowledge. If you were born, say 15 years earlier, you probably wouldn't have been a techie and would not have known or cared about DELL.
By the way, you might be crazy. You do know this? I was crazy, but there is a cure. You start by selling maybe 20 stocks, followed by two more purges, over a period of say 18 months. I got down to about 50 positions, and am hovering around 60, which is 30 more than I want. Investing in VM's is a disease. What I do to control myself is buy maybe 100-300 shares, just to be a participant. That is what I did with SOLF, and with AYSI, to name two.
My IRA has gone from maybe 60 stocks to just 12. Having so few stocks in a portfolio gives me a feeling of control, of empowerment. And, you can really get to "know" your companies.
100-bagger on DELL. WOW!
bbotcs