The Tradeoffs Road Trip Give-Back Partnership

HELP! I need a non-profit/charity partner on this summer’s Tradeoffs Road Trip.

I’ll be going coast to coast interviewing financial traders for the book I’m co-writing with Matt Davio, “Tradeoffs: Leveraging the Longs & Shorts of Life.”

I want to raise funds for an organization that helps those who find themselves at the other side of the financial spectrum from the traders. Here’s what comes to mind:

• Low-wage earners (Habitat for Humanity)
• Millions at risk of foreclosure (Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America)
• Billions who need better financial literacy (Institute for Financial Literacy)
• An organization whose programs include credit counseling along with other essential human services (United Family Services)

I haven’t fully defined the means by which I’ll raise money for the worthy partner, as I’m sure they’ll have great ideas of their own. That said, the corporate sponsors of the trip should be happy to kick in something for a worthy cause in addition to some of the grassroots efforts I can put into play, including:

• Motorcycle riders/clubs sponsoring a leg of the 8000 mile journey
• Sponsored Tweetups
• Side “wagers” on road incidents like flat tires, number of rattlesnakes encountered, whether it snows in SD while I’m at Mt. Rushmore, etc

Please weigh in with a cause or organization that fits the theme of the Tradeoffs Road Trip.

Announcing Tradeoffs: The Road Trip

Those who subscribe to my newsletter got the worldwide announcement first: I’m writing a book and promoting it with an 8000-mile, 19-state road trip!

Tradeoffs: Leveraging the Longs & Shorts of Life

Financial trader Matt Davio and I will use the language and practices of those who trade for a living to frame life’s tradeoffs: time for money, freedom for convention, risk for reward, and money for goods and services. Matt’s been interviewing subjects on his website for about six months now, and I’ll do my part from the road (mostly).

Every week I’ll be video blogging about where I’ve been, who I met and what I’ve learned.

In a post-meltdown world where so many people feel the stakes are higher and the margin for error more narrow than ever before, Tradeoffs will introduce a general interest reader to how traders view “scalp,” “swing,” “directional,” “fade” or “breakout” trading setups, how they mitigate risk, and how they live with the outcomes of their trades to do everything from choosing a career, mate and preschool, to helping a parent deal with end-of-life decisions.

Traveling America’s most storied highways

From NC I’ll travel through TN and AR to pick up what’s left of the old Route 66 beginning in OK. I’ll travel through TX, NM then veer north in Kingman, AZ to take in the Hoover Dam en route to Las Vegas for a layover with my parents and sister.

From Vegas, I’ll head west-northwest via the legendary Pacific Coast Highway to Eugene OR. After a layover with my co-author and his family in Bend, OR, I’ll head to Denver, CO to visit friends before heading east.

On the way back I’ll visit Mt Rushmore and Crazy Horse monuments, interview executives at the CME Group in Chicago, then head south to a suburb of Columbus, OH where I’ll visit with my brother (who rides BMWs) and his family.

The final leg of my journey will carry me through the West VirginiaTurnpike (Blue Ridge Mountains) and western VA before landing home in Charlotte.

That’s at least nineteen states, three time zones and a good 8000 miles.

Along the way I’ll frequent Diners, Dives and Drive-Ins and other famous Roadfood joints and occasionally couch surf with the community of financial traders who follow me on Twitter and my blog. I’ll include videos in my blog a couple of times a week and tweet daily. Most people will never take a trip like this, so I’ll do my best to bring you along (in the virtual sense).

Want to be interviewed, host an event or suggest a layover?

Want to sponsor part of this great adventure or know a company that might? Here’s what we’ve come up with so far:

• Motorcycle and gear sponsors
• Hospitality sponsors (food, hotels)
• Petrol products sponsors (fuel, oil)
• Related products: brokerage, mobile trading platforms, financial newsletters

And clients, I’ll be able to work from the road. I’ve got your back — even from two time zones away.