Off The Charts

When markets and facts change, we have to change with them. We have to stay nimble.

In this episode, I chat about the shifting sands in the markets and how I'm adapting my strategies.

The Paradox of Successful Trading (a phrase I coined) describes the frustrating truth that there are only a handful of ways that most traders lose, while there is a seemingly infinite amount of ways to succeed...yet so many fail. Why?

Don Hensley posits that the issue is rooted in the fact that to succeed, we need to be, act, and behave in the markets in uncommon ways. We need to operate individually -- not only from the herd (the majority of losers), but from the winners as well (we need to have our own unique edge).

Strip the complexity down to its most simple parts. That's where the real hard work begins.

Meet Jason Leavitt, a trader for nearly 20 years who brings a calm demeanor and an athlete's dogged persistence to bear as he tackles the market daily, both from his home in Colorado and abroad while traveling with his family.

We talk about some early inspiration in his career, the challenges of being self taught, how skills learned on the baseball diamond have transferred to his trading, and the mindset of new and experienced traders.

We also get into a hard truth that we can't just rest on our "experience" and hope that it alone with carry us forward with its own inertia. We need to maintain proper awareness of our own limitations, the early warning signs of their appearances, and a gameplan for overcoming. Otherwise, our experience gained will be for naught.

Don't trade your emotions about the news and the latest breaking headline that is designed to scare you out of your pants. Turn off the TV, stop reading the front page of the newspaper, and start sticking to your plan. Your account equity depends on it.

Also, I get into a discussion on some rules of thumb that have served me well as an Options Trader that you too can easily implement and see immediate performance results.

In options trading, risk management starts with defined risk and ends with position sizing. "Stop Losses" -- if used at all -- center around price action of the underlying and give zero weight to the value of the option(s) itself.

As an options trader, nothing makes me cringe more than hearing about people "protecting" their open options positions with Stop Loss orders.

In this episode, I discuss the proper way to manage your risk in new trades and why stop loss orders (and by extension market orders) are a TERRIBLE idea in options trading.

I learned another painful lesson recently on the importance of holding my winners and I discuss ways I'm addressing this weak part of my game. I also discuss tools I use to help me source swing trade ideas and manage my existing positions.

My friend and colleague Jamie Hodge (@quantbot) and I chat about how the public has been disenfranchised from the market after 2002 and 2008 gutted their portfolios, and how just recently we've been starting to notice signs of public participants starting to wade back into markets in a meaningful way -- partly due to the power in their pockets (smartphones).

If we're reading the tea leaves correctly, it spells good news for traders who are honing their craft now, as many more profitable opportunities will soon be coming down the road! We're excited!

In case you missed my interview with JC Parets (@allstarcharts) on the All Star Charts podcast, I've simulcast the interview here for this feed.

JC interviews me, and we talk a little bit about my options trading process, about where we find inspirations, great books we've read, and great stuff we're working on together for the benefit of all listeners.

This is an audio follow up to a recent blog post I published discussing the 20th Anniversary of my career in Trading. I discuss the importance of your WHY and some tips on discovering it yourself.

And it's a pep talk to myself that you call can benefit from.

Having trouble with your trading? Do you need guidance, mentorship, and access to tools and support?

If you're good on the above, then are you struggling with gaining access to capital to size up your game in a meaningful way? If so, then you may enjoy listening to Conor. His firm TopstepTrader solves these problems for aspiring market mavens. And the insight he's gained along the way in working with traders on the rise is incredibly valuable.

In this episode, we get into many of the important things Conor has learned over the years while supporting, working with, and seeing traders succeed (and fail!).