Do you want to learn options trading? I have summarized three hard truths you MUST know so that you will NOT be misled by all the rumors out there about option trading.
This is an options trading tutorial for beginner traders.
It is full of honest opinions from a legit options trader who has made over 20,000 trades and has taught over 1,500 students how to trade options.
Beginner investors should learn options trading.
I will teach you the three cold hard truth about trading options that you MUST know.
Learn Options Trading Truths (Key Points)
- Options trading provides predictable revenue, but you need to know what you're doing. You cannot make money trading options if you don't learn the best strategies.
- You will not earn 200% a year with option trading. Don't feel disappointed because virtually everyone who tries to make these large gains will end up losing money.
- Trading naked options is recommended because it's actually less risky than trading vertical credit spreads (although you do need to buy options to reduce portfolio volatility).
- Invest your time and money to learn options trading and remember, "Discipline is Key!"
- Approach more experienced traders and learn from their examples. Read my sample option trading strategies here.
Learn Options Trading: #1 Truth About Option Trading
You will target a return of about 3% a month when option trading
Feel disappointed?
I know how you feel, but it is the truth.
Stop believing those fake gurus who tell you that you can earn 200% or more.
You will target a return of about 3% a month depending upon your options trading strategies.
You can try to make more money than that, but you will likely end up losing money.
Why? Because you are increasing the probability of losing trades and taking too much risk.
There is also a high likelihood that your losses will offset your winners if you take too much risk and trade too many contracts.
The worst case scenario - you may lose money if you are too aggressive!
#2 Truth - Bigger Accounts Earn More Money
The second truth is that if you have a smaller account or account size, it will be difficult for you to earn a lot of money.
You need to manage your capital well with a small options account.
You will be forced to sell vertical credit spreads which will limit your profitability because you have to buy a lower price put (it will also reduce your portfolio volatility though).
I am not a fan of selling vertical credit spreads and I talked more about that in my Robinhood investing post.
I definitely prefer trading and selling naked options because I believe it's LESS risky than trading verticals (although there are times when you need to buy options).
Naked options use more buying power which inhibits you from trading too large.
Also, it's much easier to manage and roll when challenged (which may happen on 5% of your positions).
Even if you have a small account, selling option premium is the best way for retail traders to be consistently profitable.
As a result, it's better to establish good habits and earn ~40% on a small account than it is to adopt a bad strategy and lose money.
Many options trading for beginners strategies encourage traders to use vertical credit spreads. While I primarily trade naked options, I think that trading spreads is a decent options trading strategy, as long as you're disciplined.
Credit spreads permit better capital efficiency. However, I have seen many students trade too many contracts when selling credit spreads.
As a result, it's important to be disciplined.
What happens when trading vertical credit spreads?
Options Trading Strategies and Options Trading Example:
It's hard to roll / manage an option spread because you'll continuously have to buy the lower priced put option.
With spreads, your earnings expectations should be less.
You're maximum annual gains will be around ~25% if you have a small account (below $10,000 and trading mostly spreads).
You will also need to manage your buying power and redeploy your capital more efficiently.
Closing out your winning positions will help you reduce risk and maximize your gains.
Lastly, for smaller accounts, you need to be disciplined to choose your trades correctly.
Options Trading Example:
If you have an account size of less than $10,000, you should trade a maximum of 2-3 stocks at a time.
You can have open positions / trade stocks from Amazon and JP Morgan or any one of the following:
- Facebook / META
- Lockheed Martin
- Goldman Sachs
- Microsoft
- QQQ
Do NOT have open positions in ~10 different securities at one time because it's hard to focus and pay attention with so many open positions.
Plus, if the market experiences an increase in volatility, you are going to get a margin call and you may be forced to close out those positions, and you will LOSE MONEY!
Be a Successful & Profitable Trader
Follow My Trades with Real-Time Trade Alerts
Learn Options Trading #3 Truth: Selling Naked Options are the Best Options to Sell / Trade
There's a lot of misinformation out there telling you that trading naked options is very risky.
The truth is that when learning how to trade options, trading verticals are a lot more risky than trading naked options.
Primarily because people tend to trade too many contracts when selling spreads.
If a position gets challenged, it will be extremely difficult for you to manage and roll a spread compared with rolling a naked option.
Even so, I do recommend buying options during periods of market extremes. You can buy puts when the VIX is trading around 15 and you can buy calls when the VIX is around 35.
Key Points: 3 Hard Truth About Option Trading
- You should target a monthly return of around 3% when trading options. You can try to make more money than that but, you will likely end up losing money.
- If you have a smaller account and account size, it will be difficult for you to earn more money. You will be forced to sell vertical credit spreads.
- Do not have positions ~10 different securities at one time because if market volatility increases, you are going to get a margin call. You will be forced to close out those positions, and you may LOSE MONEY! It's better to focus on 2-3 positions. Plus, it's easy to get overwhelmed if you have ~10 positions. It's best to keep things simple.
- Trading verticals is more capital efficient than trading naked options, but you give up a lot of flexibility when rolling positions.
- Sign up for Trade Alerts – Receive real-time trade alerts so that you maximize your profits and minimize your mistakes; we have a Trial Offer of $19 for 7 days.
Bonus Tip: Learn Options Trading / How to Trade Options
I'm glad that you've read the entire post.
This only proves that you really want to learn options trading.
Because of that, I have a fourth bonus tip for you!
The fourth tip is: You have to be extremely disciplined.
Many trading options for dummies tutorials and options trading tutorials for beginners do not discuss how stressful a losing position is.
They also don't discuss how disciplined and patient you must be to be consistently profitable.
You have to ignore other information that might distract you from option trading and trading options profitably.
People oftentimes promote one system yet they likely are unsuccessful traders.
Do not be deceived by "shiny objects" - just because they say they have made a lot of money trading does not make it true.
Unless they're teaching you to SELL option premium, then their system is likely garbage.
Another important point is that you must focus only on stocks within your watch list.
Do not get distracted if you hear about a stock that's not on your watch list.
I have open positions in just ~4 - 6 securities at all times.
And these 4 -6 securities are always the same stocks, found on my watch list.
My point here is that you can make A LOT OF MONEY with option trading by working just 10 to 15 minutes a day, but you must be disciplined and not get distracted.
If you are WELL-DISCIPLINED and you are willing to invest in yourself with the best way to learn options trading then you should become a student of BestStockStrategy.
Conclusion: Best Way to Learn Options Trading
Options trading can earn you a large monthly income.
You only need to be disciplined and also be willing to learn and practice what you learn.
It is also best to have a mentor who can guide you step-by-step in order to prevent committing the same mistakes others have.
If you want to find out the best way to learn options trading, sign up by using the form below to receive $400 worth of extremely valuable information.
Some members have told me that the information is worth thousands of dollars.
Please leave a comment below if you have more questions. I respond to every comment and I always look forward to sharing more valuable free information with you through this blog.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
How do I learn to trade options?
Visit BestStockStrategy.com to learn everything you need to know about how to trade options.
Can you get rich from options trading?
Yes, you can get rich from trading options, however traders who take too much risk usually end up losing a lot of money. As a result, it's best to target a 3% monthly return.
Which is the best course for option trading?
The options trading education course from BestStockStrategy, available at https://beststockstrategy.com/memberships/
Are options hard to learn?
No, options trading is not hard to learn. It's best to keep it simple. You can receive $400 of free training at https://beststockstrategy.com/
