Some investors like to use stop-loss orders, which are instructions to brokers to sell a stock at a predetermined price. This might be useful for those who can't watch their stocks closely or for those of us who may be less decisive.

Also, tax considerations and brokers' commissions should rarely enter into your sell decisions. You shouldn't always hold a stock for more than a year just because you'd pay a lower tax rate on the profit. And with lower commissions today, they should not be the most important factor. Your main goal should be to obtain and nail down gains.

Related Resources:

Review IBD's 20 Rules For Stock Market Success.

Go to the Investor's Corner Archives to read IBD's "editor picks" of classic Investor's Corner columns.

Search our archive of Ask Bill O'Neil Q & A's organized by topic.