While media coverage may be reflective, Cramer said Friday, investors need to be predictive. Instead of simply reading today’s headlines, they need to figure out what the headlines will be six months from now. That’s the strategy he employed as a hedge fund manager, and he tries to teach viewers how it’s done on Mad Money.

First, foreclosures should peak, housing should bottom, and the biggest winners will be the banks. When the credit crisis was at its worse and homeowners were defaulting on their loans, their foreclosed homes weighed heavily on banks’ balance sheets. But as prices stabilize, and possibly even rise, those homes can be sold, fetching a decent market rate. That puts financials like Wells Fargo , which Cramer told viewers to consider buying, in great position for a rebound.

California, Florida, Nevada and Arizona comprise 50% of the US housing market, and they were the hardest-hit areas during the downturn. But over the past three months, prices in all four states have stabilized, and sales picked up significantly. That, too, is another reason to like certain banks, though Cramer thinks it also bodes well for NVR . This real-estate firm operates in the Washington, D.C. area, and it’s a play on increased hiring by the federal government. Cramer expects “huge upside surprises” from NVR, though he cautioned viewers to use limit orders when buying – NVR sells for $500 a share.

The news out of trucking these days shows manufacturing near an all-time low, which is why the Street has shunned stocks like Paccar. But Cramer said that’s all the more reason to like it. PCAR holds $4.65 in cash, has paid out $3.5 billion in dividends over the past 10 years, and he thinks the stock is “about to roar.” He predicted this $31 name would reach $40 in a month.

Other themes worth watching in the second half of 2009: smartphones, which will benefit Apple and its iPhone component makers; health care, now that President Obama’s proposed legislation looks less damaging than expected to the companies involved; and natural gas, because it’s so cheap.

Now, if you read today’s headlines, none of these picks would seem to make sense. But Cramer’s more concerned with the future. And while that poses some risks, those risks are an inherent part of investing. It’s just a question of how you manage them.

“If you want to make money,” Cramer said, “you need to take a chance. Sometimes you will be wrong, but if you never try…you'll never be right.”

Cramer's charitable trust owns Wells Fargo.

Call Cramer: 1-800-743-CNBC

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