The dilemma, which Howard still seems to struggle with wordy sophistication, if markets are predictable or not, has been sufficiently solved by science for many years already. It is mainly a matter of probability and time periods. The economic Nobel prize 2013 was awarded for these "surprising and contradictory findings" of Fama, Hansen, and Shiller: "There is no way to predict the price of stocks and bonds over the next few days or weeks. But it is quite possible to foresee the broad course of these prices over longer periods, such as the next three to five years."

Howard's approach to beating the market without taking on more risk by "Getting the Odds on Your Side", is certainly consistent with scientific findings. The simple psychological reason for that is the innate irrational herding behavior of most market players. This causes market inefficiencies of mispricings and trends. Emotions make matters worse and cause the irrational masses huge losses.

Applying these findings correctly, you can be mostly right in the medium- and long-term. But that makes you also "look wrong" in the short-term most of the time. Because you have to deviate from the irrational herd in order to exploit its losses by more rational investment approaches.

However, suggesting to "increase or decrease our aggressiveness or defensiveness in a timely fashion” according to an "idea when the market is at an extreme position", is not suitable for a broad and mixed audience in my opinion. Because ideas for such unsystematic market timing can have any odd kinds of creative origins, mainly influenced by emotions, which are definitely not helpful here.

Thus, the main question, how to continuously get the right ideas in the medium-term most of the time, is still unanswered even with your emotions in check. I recommend applying sound statistics and probability theory for a cool calculation and optimization of your odds for selecting your investments and for constructing and managing your portfolio. To my experience, this may help most if you are willing and able to learn and apply it correctly.

Although a humble attitude always helps with existing customers. But a convincing explanation of a more reliable systematic source of good investment ideas may attract even more new ones. It may help you, even more, to get rid of your dysfunctional emotions altogether and to keep customer emotions in check.