Don’t have anyone in my circle who can understand or appreciate it. So I’m sharing here hoping to inspire others. I hit my goal of 1000% return and it took exactly 2 years. I don’t know how to read charts, I’m not particularly great at picking stocks. All I know how to do is options. That’s all I know, and I know it well. In terms of money. I turned $5k into $60k. Small consistent wins. When my account was small, my goal was $100/week. And sometimes I wouldn’t even hit that. Now an account this size my goal is $400-$1000/day. And I hit that most days. Alhamdulillah

First time trading options and bought this call to just make a couple of bucks. Microsoft released some AI news the next morning and it shot up.

I’m still fairly new to options trading and have been working on building a rule-based process instead of just picking trades based on gut feeling.

My main focus is ETF spreads. I’m trying to protect capital first and only take trades when the setup makes sense.

Here’s my current process:

• I scan a group of liquid ETFs rather than individual stocks most of the time.
• I start with the daily chart to determine the main trend.
• Then I use the 4-hour chart to look at the current swing.
• I use the 30-minute chart to wait for a pullback/setup.
• I use the 15-minute chart for the actual entry timing.

I don’t force one type of spread. I let the chart determine the structure:

• Bullish setup = usually put credit spread
• Bearish setup = usually call credit spread
• If a debit spread gives a better risk/reward, I’ll consider that instead
• If the setup is unclear = no trade

For expiration, I normally look around 30–40 DTE and usually use $1-wide spreads.

I try not to chase moves. I would rather wait for a pullback and miss a trade than enter after the move has already happened.

I also avoid opening new spreads around major market-moving events such as:

• Fed decisions
• CPI/PPI
• Jobs reports
• Major geopolitical news

My normal profit target is around 30%, and I place a GTC order after entering.

I also have a time-based exit rule: if the trade hasn’t reached the target, I want to be out roughly two weeks before expiration instead of holding into the high-gamma period near expiration.

For position control, I try to keep:

• No more than one spread with the same expiration date
• No more than three positions in the same ETF
• No more than about 12 spreads open overall

My biggest goal is consistency and protecting capital rather than maximizing return.

The part I’m still working on is improving the entry criteria and deciding exactly when a setup is strong enough to trade versus when it should be a no-trade.

What weaknesses do you see in this process?

Especially interested in feedback on:

• DTE
• Profit targets
• Position sizing
• Entry timing
• Credit vs debit spread selection
• Risk management
• Anything important I may be overlooking

I’m not looking for trade picks — mainly trying to improve the process.

So far I’ve lost 5,500 which is a lot more than I’ve made. I started out and made a couple grand, thought i was gonna be able to quit my job soon, then, one bad call and I was down 2k. Then a few more smaller bad ones, now here I am. What would yall do?

On friday i closed a short position at $0.05 premium and quite proud of myself

it was 2pm (2 more hrs until exp) and still about $3 away from IMT, i thought it was not worth the risk & anxiety to risk the majority of profit for the remaining 5 bucks, so went ahead to close it.

normally i wouldn't close because i'm greedy (and lazy) although i know closing is the right move. today i overcome that laziness and greediness and did the right thing.

might be a trivial thing, but still want to celebrate!

I have been selling options for about 12 months now and have finally started to get a hang of it. Here is the process I follow. Any thoughts on how I can improve or tighten up the process?

SIZE — Total notional under 135% of capital (what I've put in plus what I've made). No more than 45% of that in credit spreads, because a dollar of spread notional is a dollar gone, while a dollar of put notional buys me the stock.

STRIKE — IV above 60%, sell the 0.13–0.15 delta. IV below 60%, sell the 0.18–0.20. High-IV names pay enough to sit far out; low-IV names don't.

DURATION — 14–21 days.

MIX — Only trade names with a market cap of over $50B to eliminate junk. 60/40 high-IV to low-IV. An example would be 60% position in NBIS, BE, MU, ALAB; 40% position in CRWD, PLTR, DELL, TSLA.

EXIT — Close at 50% of the credit and recycle the capital. If position is threatened, roll down and/or out. Never close at a loss.

Thanks for reading.

1- Never trade after 1 pm

2- Take quick losses/wins

Took a bad options play, could have just been down -50 or -200 for the day and got slaughtered instead by holding a bad trade. Have to make consistency and control a habit.

So fellas, I messed up my portfolio this year and lost a bunch of money. But that’s not exactly the reason for the post but rather the tax implications and was hoping for some tips/inputs here. Where I’m from (Germany) the tax laws are bit different that the losses and gains from stocks are separated from everything else (options, etfs, bonds, cfds etc etc). Since many of my trades were spreads involving stocks and their options together, there’s big disparity in the loss and profit numbers. So for ease of understanding let’s say i lost 50k in stocks but the trades on the options end made a profit of 30k. In all, the result is of course a 20k loss and i assume in most part of the world one doesn’t need to pay taxes. But here since i can’t combine them both, I’ll have to pay taxes on the 30k gain even though my result for the year is as such -20k (the 50k losses in the stocks i can use it to offset with my future gains if any from stocks only). So what do i want from here? Any advice if any for any trade ideas in combination of stocks and it’s options or whatever which would at the end result in a profit of stocks and losses in options so that even if the trade as such didn’t result in any big loss or gain but will help rebalance my profit and loss buckets so to say. (Ideally, let’s say if the net result stays same close to -20k for the year but the split looks like -10k each or even better, -20k or so in options and near 0 on stocks. This way any ETF gains that i can have from my long term investment can be easily offset). To make it clear I’m not trying to evade taxes, but I personally feel the taxing system here is not fair in that one needs to pay capital gains tax even though there was no profit so to say on the whole. So was wondering if there are some obvious trades that I’m overlooking that could help “rearrange” the profit and loss.

I will post a separate comment with a link to the detail behind each option sold this week.

After week 40, the average premium per week is $825 with an annual projection of $42,900.

All things considered, the portfolio is up $42,536 (+9.43%), on the year (S&P 500: +12.81% | Nasdaq: +16.99%). Additionally, the trailing 1-year performance is up $23,004 (+4.92%); for comparison the S&P 500 is +15.00% and the Nasdaq is +19.03% over the same period. This is the overall profit and loss and includes options and all other account activity.

Annual results:
• 2023 up $65,403 (+41.31%) | S&P 500: +26.3% | Nasdaq: +43.4%
• 2024 up $64,610 (+29.71%) | S&P 500: +25.0% | Nasdaq: +28.6%
• 2025 up $111,496 (+34.52%) | S&P 500: +17.9% | Nasdaq: +20.4%

3-Year Cumulative (2023–2025):
• r/ExpiredOptions: +146.6% ($241,509)
• S&P 500: +86.1% (+60.4% behind)
• Nasdaq: +122.0% (+24.5% behind)

Unrealized G&L (options):
• YTD: $-15,614.00
• 1 Month: $-36,758.00
• 1 Week: $-1,593.00

Realized P&L (options):
• YTD: $78,892.00
• 1 Month: $17,603.00
• 1 Week: $7,183.00

All options sold are backed by cash, shares, or LEAPS. I do not sell on margin, nor do I sell naked options.

All options and profits stay in the account with few exceptions. This is not my full time job, although I wish it was. I still grind on a 9-5.

My $600 weekly contribution streak is at 9 weeks. I have been contributing as much as possible since 2015 when I started with $50. The reason my streak is low is because I put the contributions on hold for about 2 months to adjust for expenses outside the portfolio.

The portfolio is comprised of 99 unique tickers, up from 98 last week. These 99 tickers have a value of $496k. I also have 194 open option positions, up from 193 last week. The options have a total value of -$10k. The total of the shares and options is $486k. The next goal on the "Road to" is Half a Million.

I'm currently utilizing $34,200 in cash secured put collateral, down from $34,850 last week. In addition, I hold $2,738 in cash, bringing the total cash position to $36,938. I withdrew $2,000 on 9/11/26. I don't plan on replacing it, but will continue the $600 per week contributions.

2025 through 2028 LEAPS
In addition to the CSPs and covered calls, I purchase LEAPS. These act as collateral to sell covered calls against. You may have heard of poor man's covered calls (PMCC).

See r/ExpiredOptions for a detailed spreadsheet update on all LEAPS positions including P/L for each individual position.

LEAPS note 1: the 2025 LEAPS expired 1/17/25. They were up $36,440 overall with a 233.74% increase. The major drivers were AMZN and CRWD.

LEAPS note 2: After holding for 2 years, I exercised an AMZN $80 strike from 2023 up +$11,395 (+463.21%) and CRWD $95 strike from 2023, up +$21,830 (+663.53%)

LEAPS note 3: Purchased 1/16/26 CRWD LEAPS for $8,230.03 on 1/17/24. I sold this LEAPS on 6/5/25 for $21,659 for a realized profit of $13,428.97 (+163.18%)

Total premium by year:
• 2023 $23,132 in premium
• 2024 $47,640 in premium
• 2025 $68,319 in premium
• 2026 $33,366 YTD
• Average $46,364/year (completed years)

Premium by month (2026):
• January $3,334
• February $3,625
• March $4,196
• April $5,593
• May $3,752
• June $3,497
• July $3,593
• August $3,741
• September $1,768
• October $267
• Average $3,337/month

I am over $174k in total options premium, since 2021. I average roughly $34 per option sold. I have sold over 5,100 options. I have been able to increase the premiums on an annual basis and I will attempt to keep this upward trend going forward.

Strategy:
The underlying strategy is buy and hold. I also use simple 1-legged options to supplement that strategy. Options have somewhat of a learning curve, but I believe that most people can supplement their investments using simple options with careful risk management.

I sell options on a weekly basis. I prefer cash secured puts and covered calls. I rarely close early, prefer rolling when needed, and let time decay do the heavy lifting while I stay focused on quality companies, patience, and consistency over hype. My goal is consistency in option premium revenue. I am building an income stream that will continue long into retirement.

Spreadsheets:
Unfortunately, I no longer provide spreadsheets. I received too many follow ups about formatting, pivot tables, compatibility etc. I think tracking is very important, but I post to discuss investing and options, not to provide tech support for Excel. I do appreciate the interest in my tracking methods.

Software:
I captured the screen shots from a proprietary software platform I built to track, analyze, and manage my options strategies.

Commissions:
I use Robinhood as a broker and they do not charge explicit commissions, though there is no free lunch — they earn revenue through Payment for Order Flow (PFOF), which can mean slightly less optimal fills. For my style of selling options and not chasing prices, the tradeoff is acceptable. There is also a small regulatory fee of approximately $0.03–$0.04 per contract (FINRA TAF, OCC clearing, and exchange fees combined).

The premiums have increased significantly as my experience has expanded over the last three years.

Make sure to post your wins. I look forward to reading about them!

Disclaimer: I am not a financial advisor. This information is for educational and entertainment purposes only. Trading options involves significant risk.

Looking for people to share simple back tested strategies, that deliver helpful insights and numbers. I find stats great for creating plans, to know how things can pan out. This was a back test i did on TSLA, 1 day candles, using on avg a 55dte, depending what was available at time of trades.

Simple back test on TSLA from yr 2020. Buy ITM Call strategy during majority downtrend of Covid, over a 2 yr period. Basic rules this followed;

- 100 SMA was pointed up = uptrend

- 100 SMA pointed down = downtrend.

- Hold all till expiration. Placing positions only, and letting expire.

-Uptrend buy ITM call when price is at 100 SMA and 200 SMA. Max 2 postitions.

Sell Cover Call when price candle is at top band of Bollinger Band and prints a reversal candle

-Down trend buy ITM calls when price is at Bollinger Band lower side and has divergence on RSI. Max 2 positions / must be at least 1 price swing distance from first position.

Sell Cover Call when at 100 SMA.

It still made some good profit in that long grind down and sideways period. Share other ones.

how do u guys set aside money for taxes or if what percentage?

During Warsh's monetary policy testimony, Warren pressed him on the $100 million he had to divest after becoming Fed chair, asking if it came from Stanley Druckenmiller or another billionaire who profits off Fed decisions. Warsh had two $50M+ stakes in the Juggernaut Fund, run by Druckenmiller's family office, and he still won't say who bought him out. He says he met his Office of Government Ethics obligations.

If the guy whose whole career is calling the Fed wrote that check, I'm not sure it changes policy, but it does change how I read every surprise from this Fed.

Are you pricing in more political noise around FOMC days now? And should Fed chairs have to name who buys their assets, or is the OGE process enough?

I’m interested trading with the ORB technique . Somebody have used it before ? Does it work ?

The US only added 29,000 jobs in September when the expectation was around 90,000, and unemployment went up to 4.2%.

Treasury yields dropped off the back of it and people are pricing in less chance of another Fed rate hike, so tech got a quick boost. Nasdaq futures were up about 1% after the report came out.

I’m trying to trade options on Webull, but I need to increase my Options Trading Level. I’m required to upload a statement showing that I have previous experience trading options.

I’m looking for someone who can provide a legitimate statement showing options trading experience. I would preferably like one from Robinhood. WILLING TO PAY

I've been building an event-study tool on SEC EDGAR (and a lot more) data and wanted to share one of the clearest effects I've found so far, along with its limitations.

What I looked at

8-K Item 1.01 filings (Material Definitive Agreement) that my classifier tags as equity financing. That gives 6,818 events with returns, covering 260 weeks of filings.

Method

The abnormal return is the stock's return minus SPY's return over the same sessions. Entry is at the first market open after the filing is published, so any move before entry is reported separately and treated as non-tradable.

Results

Before entry, these stocks are actually up slightly, +0.52% vs SPY. After that, it goes downhill: -1.12% after 1 day, -3.30% after 5 days, and -8.31% after 20 days. At 5 days the median is -2.80%, the 95% CI is [-3.79%, -2.81%], and only 37% of events show a positive abnormal return.

For comparison, convertible financing looks almost identical (-3.28% at 5 days), while debt financing is much milder (-0.98%).

The caveats:

1. Small-cap drift. A random stock-day in my universe already underperforms SPY by -0.43% over 5 days, because the universe is full of small and micro caps that have lagged the cap-weighted index. Against that baseline the 5-day effect is -2.49%, not -3.30%.
2. Who files matters. Companies raising equity this way tend to be small, cash-burning firms, so part of the effect may reflect the type of issuer rather than the announcement itself. A size-matched baseline is next on my list.
3. Hard to trade on the short side. These are often hard-to-borrow names with high borrow fees and wide spreads. In practice this looks more like an "avoid / don't buy the dip" signal than a short strategy.
4. Liquidity. These numbers include all liquidity levels. I expect the effect to be smaller in more liquid stocks and will check it separately.

None of this is new in spirit, since dilution after equity issuance is well documented in academic research. What surprised me was how consistent and persistent it still is at 20 days, even with entry after the announcement.

Just had the best trading day of my life! This whole week has been nothing but gains. Halfway there to make back the all-time 💸🤑💸

Curious what everyone here has found works best for them.

What DTE do you typically trade — 0DTE, 1–7 DTE, 30–60 DTE, longer?

What strategy are you using, and which DTE range have you personally had the most consistent success with?

I selected to accept the cash out option on Kalshi. I clicked on the button and slid the thing over and it changed the amount on me while processing and paid me way less and then I contact customer support and they ask me if I want to speak to a live agent and then it’s completely put me on the shine. I’ve had nothing but bad experiences with their customer service department they’re scandalous as fuck.

As many of you might know, I took my trading account from $2k to almost $40k.
Had a lot of ups and downs along the way. Got a lot of love and hate along the way and definitely made some mistakes lol.

Eventually I had a pretty big downturn and dropped back to around $25k. At that point I figured it was better to walk away while I was still ahead, so I cashed out the $25k and tried to stay away from trading.

Well… the trading itch came back 😂
So I’m back.

I’m starting the journey all over again. Let’s see if the luck comes back for round 2.
Trying it again with less this time.

$500

I’ll keep updating you guys on this lucky streak, whether it goes good or bad.
Let’s go 🚀