Date: 2/24/2023
Author: Chris Hood
You have to say calm when volatility kicks up.
I talk to traders daily who get scared and exit perfectly good trades just because of their unrealized P/L dips.
This is just part of options trading.
For shares of stock, these fluctuations can be annoying. No one likes to see red on their screens.
But with options, the swings are infinitely more dramatic, especially in the first and last hours of the day, or during events like FOMC meetings.
I struggled with this for years.
Finally, it didn’t bother me anymore. I’d figured out some key techniques to keep me calm and sane.
Trading can be frustrating at first, and the goal is to manage your stress level and, thus your emotions.
I assume you don’t want to spend years meditating on some remote mountaintop to make some money.
So try this instead.
Yesterday, Corey Synder went live with Emmy Award-winning journalist Seth Allen for American Oil Fortunes to demonstrate precisely how this one surprising stock could hand you a 1,000% return – or greater – over the next 12 months…
All you have to do is click this link to watch the replay of American Oil Fortunes.
If you constantly watch your P/L and agonize over every tick, turn it off.
You heard me correctly.
Find the feature on your computer, phone, or whatever you use, and manage your positions without seeing their monetary value.
Why would you do this?
Aren’t you supposed to be concerned with how much money you win and lose?
We’re all in this to profit, but brokers make money every time you place trades. Whether by commissions and fees or with by selling order flow.
Win or lose, the more orders you place, the happier they are.
That’s the reason most of these platforms look like video games. It’s the “gamification of trading.”
There’s something about turning off your P/L and just focusing on the charts, your stops, and the trade structure that takes emotional triggers away.
Sure, this won’t fix all of your problems,
It will keep your attention on what matters – how the trade is progressing.
Usually, when you decide to take profits too early, it’s because of greed. That big green number is enticing, and you don’t want to see it drop.
However, if you aren’t staring at your unrealized profits, you won’t be tempted to get out of your trades too early.
What might have been a $500.00 gain could turn into $1000.00 with a bit more patience.
The same is true of holding onto losers.
No one likes to take losses. I know I don’t. But they’re an unavoidable part of trading.
When the trade goes against you, and the option hits your alerted stop, you’ll be less hesitant to exit if you aren’t staring at your loss in bright red.
I’ve never been a shooter or marksman, but one of my friends explained that when you focus on the process, the hits will come.
Don’t worry so much about the outcome.
Just trade properly, and you’ll make money – it’s as simple as that.
This technique helped me, and a number of my students, so give it a try and see how much calmer you are.
Cheers,
Chris Hood
PS – Yesterday, my colleague Corey Snyder went live to talk about the future of oil and revealed over a DOZEN critical stock plays to make right now if you want the best possible chance of harnessing the $15 Trillion market shift…
Including the one stock that’s perfectly positioned to deliver a potential return of 1,000% or more over the next year.
This broadcast will only be available for replay for a limited time, so watch now.
