For the true long-term investor, it's all just so much noise. I'm employed at an investment banking firm, but have not passed the Series 7. I'm thinking of leaving and day trading. No one else need apply. Stuffy or not, it's fair to assume that if the winners were on their way to riches, the auditor would have considered the risk justified.
Day trading sounds soooooo seductive.
Wait for a stock to get a positive comment on CNBC, buy it quick, wait for the inevitable run-up over the next 20 minutes, and get out. Follow the charts, anticipate the market, stay on top of the news, and be ready to click at a second's notice. You'll make out like a bandit. Unfortunately, the only bandits who are making out are the ones selling day-trading software and services. Read that study.