Hello everyone! I have been following for a month or so now. Good to find others that trade the same way I do (tasytrade, don fishback style). Anyway, I have been trading options seriously since 2004. I have almost exclusively graduated to selling options as over the years most of my trades that worked out involved selling an option first and not picking a direction. However, I have found taking a slight directional bias can increase returns.

Lately I have traded mostly individual names (better premiums with the low vol.). I tend to start by selling a put 1-4 weeks out. Delta 30 or lower and try to collect at least 1.00 or very close. If I get assigned convert to covered calls. I will also roll options until I can close it, make some money on it, or scratch it and start over. I have found about 16 names that trade well like this with good premiums that cycle with a range. I am currently in a TSO position that was assigned at 87.5 but because of rolling have my cost basis down to 82. 1 more point I am back to profit, today helped! Or 1 more week of rolling and will be break even.

I will also sell /es or /cl or /gc futures strangles but will always keep enough of a cash reserve to cover those positions if there is an extended move. Burned big time Aug. 2015 when I was short 50 /es contracts but only had enough cash to cover half of them. A painful lesson but a rule I will never break again. With those I will usually start 30-45 days out with a delta of 4-16 depending on directional bias. They decay to delta 4-8 in about 2-4 weeks and can take 50% off the table as tastytrade recommends. In case of an extended move will go long or short some contracts as a hedge and to get some hard deltas. Once the move is over close at a profit and keep the options decaying or let the options assign and close the future. Those are the trades that supercharge the equity curve but they don’t happen that often.

Thanks for the ideas. Look forward to working with everyone and hope I can add some ideas to the pile. I will usually not be long winded, this will be my longest post. As I see how you post trades I will start adding some. Usually trade on Thurs. (day off) and Fri. with rare mid week adjustment if needed.

Cheers, Chris Davis