38 B eating the i ndexes instinct to cut winners short and let losers ride. But it's basically a style of mutual agreement to stay in the game as long as the com- pany "beats" its numbers, announcing regularly better-than-expected results. So a company that cleverly keeps expectations low can get its stock price substantially higher, thanks to the momentum crowd, than one that puts its cards on the table. The simple dichotomy, buy more on "beats" and sell everything on "misses," is the core of the buyers' pact. Buyers' pacts are, indeed, one of the main reasons why the savvy individual investor should strongly consider managing at least some of his or her own money. Explicit, coordinated collusion--while not unimaginable--is not necessary for a buyers' pact to work. It only takes the participation of the players I described. The Myth of the Natural Other Side