Not quite! But in the early 80's, stock trading guru Richard Dennis reportedly said to his long-time friend William Eckhardt;
“We're going to raise traders just like they raise turtles in Singapore.”
What started as a bet about whether great traders were born or made, became a legendary trading experiment.
Of the thousands of people who who applied, 23 turtles were accepted. Their trading made $100 million for Dennis, leading some to become highly successful traders in their own right.
One of the original Turtle Trader's, Curtis Faith, spells out the Turtle stock trading system in detail. His book Way Of The Turtle: The Secret Methods That Turned Ordinary People Into Legendary Traders, provides a template for trend-trading, or trend following.
Most helpful is the way he breaks down the method into different components.
I don't think it's necessary that one be a dedicated trend trader, or rather a trend follower to greatly benefit from this book. Besides being a fun and interesting read, it is an excellent introduction to the various components of trading methods and how they impact outcomes.
It is also a first-rate integration of the psychology and techniques of trading. Perhaps most important of all, Way Of The Turtle is an illuminating presentation of risk management and consistency, two major contributors to stock market success.