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    Lessons of a Lifetime: My 33 Years as an Option Trader
    Lessons of a Lifetime: My 33 Years as an Option Trader
    Lessons of a Lifetime: My 33 Years as an Option Trader
    Ebook111 pages1 hour

    Lessons of a Lifetime: My 33 Years as an Option Trader

    By Mark D. Wolfinger

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    About this ebook

    I'm sharing some of my experiences as a trader, Including my trading philosophy. I also offer advice/guidance for risk management. This is not a "how to trade" manual. Instead it is a collection of my thoughts on a variety of topics. The book's purpose is to provide some insight on the important lessons that I've learned over the years..

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherMark D. Wolfinger
    Release dateMay 21, 2014
    ISBN9781310770326
    Lessons of a Lifetime: My 33 Years as an Option Trader
    Author

    Mark D. Wolfinger

    I first began trading options in 1975; just two years after the CBOE (Chicago Board Options Exchange) opened its trading floor. My strategy of choice was writing covered calls.In late 1976, I was employed by Monsanto Company as a research chemist when a friend bought a seat on the CBOE. We had lengthy discussions about his new venture. Long story short, he gave me an opportunity to come to Chicago and trade as a market maker as the nominee for someone who owned a seat on the exchange, but who did not want to trade himself. I accepted, quit my job and drove to Chicago. That was December 20, 1976 and my life changed forever.I'm still in the options business, 37 years later. I left the CBOE trading floor in the year 2000. Since that time I've been trading my own account — just as you do — as a retail customer. But, I added something new when I began writing and teaching others how to trade options with a conservative bias. My first book was published in 2002 (The Short Book on Options) and others followed.Update. I am now retired from trading.I published a blog for several years, and the contents are still available. My current projects include a) developing this blog at about.com and would love to hear from you with comments, questions, requests for topics to discuss, etc., and b) writing a series of eBooks on individual option strategies.My books:• The Rookies Guide to Options, 2nd Edition (2013)• Create your own Hedge Fund (2005)• The Short Book on Options (2002)My eBooks:• Introduction to Options: The Basics (2014)• Writing Naked Puts (2014)• The Short Book on Options (2002, 2014)• The Option Trader’s Mindset: Think Like a Winner (2012)• Lessons of a Lifetime: My 33 years as an Option Trader (2010)

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      Book preview

      Lessons of a Lifetime - Mark D. Wolfinger

      Lessons of a Lifetime:

      My 33 Years as an Option Trader

      Mark D Wolfinger

      Options for Rookies Books, 2010

      Lessons of a Lifetime: My 33 Years as an Option Trader

      Copyright 2010 by Mark D. Wolfinger

      All rights reserved.

      Mark D Wolfinger

      Published by Mark D Wolfinger at Smashwords

      ISBN: 9781310770326

      No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the author.

      This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment and may not be re-sold or given away to other people. To share this book, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, please return to your favorite eBook retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

      Disclaimer

      The information presented in this book is for educational purposes only. I neither make nor suggest any specific recommendations for investment. Examples are for illustrative purposes only, and serve to show what may happen in a particular situation. The possible rewards are stated, as are the possible risks. Covered call writing is a sound, conservative investment strategy, but losses can still occur.

      Table of Contents

      Introduction

      Chapter One Reality

      Chapter Two Don’t Ignore Risk.

      Chapter Three The Importance of Being Comfortable with your Trade

      Chapter Four Money Management

      Chapter Five Who Wants the Last Nickel?

      Chapter Six Profits are in the Future, not in the Past

      Chapter Seven Exiting a Trade

      Chapter Eight Holding Positions into Expiration

      Chapter Nine Strategy Selection vs. Risk Management

      Chapter Ten Trading Plan and Record Keeping

      Chapter Eleven The Best Decision

      Chapter Twelve You Have a Loss?

      Chapter Thirteen Getting Even

      Chapter Fourteen More on Comfort Zones

      Chapter Fifteen Odds and Ends

      Afterword

      About the Author

      Author’s Other Books

      Dedication

      To Penny who taught me the truly important lessons of a lifetime

      Introduction

      This book contains a series of commentaries on a variety of topics related to trading options. It’s my attempt to share lessons that were learned along the way. Some lessons came easily, while others had to be repeated before I even considered altering my way of doing things. I’ve also developed some ideas about trading that are not in accordance with mainstream thinking. Those ideas are included in the book.

      I began trading options as a professional in 1977. I’m not so egotistical to believe that these ideas are gospel and that if you fail to follow them you are doomed to failure.

      Rather, this is my method for sharing important lesson’s that I’ve learned. This book is clearly not comprehensive. It was written with the hope that you can spare yourself some of the anguish that I experienced when learning these truths. Okay; I shouldn’t exaggerate. They are truths to me, and not every lesson will be suitable for you, your investing style, your risk tolerance, comfort zone boundaries, etc. But, they are helpful to me and I hope they will be helpful to you.

      Some topics are mentioned more than once. That’s the result of the way this book was compiled. It was not written as a separate book. Instead, it’s a collection of ideas. Most chapters are 100% new. A small number were previously published or discussed in my books or blog. But each was rewritten, updated, or modified in some way. The writing is fresh.

      This book is not filled with trading lessons. It is filled with my philosophical ideas, or my way of looking at options related situations that I encounter. I believe this way of looking at the world will help you make those difficult decisions when you are faced with them. I know they guide me through both normal and difficult times. If you gain confidence in your ability to think through a problem, or recognize that something you always thought to be true may be worth further consideration, then this book will have served its purpose.

      There are always life lessons to be learned. This book does not contain the definitive way to view the world. Indeed, some readers will strongly disagree with at least one of my tenets. But that’s a good thing. If this book achieves no other purpose than having you reconsider the way you approach decision-making or view the world, then something positive has been accomplished. It’s not necessary that you change your mind. The fact that you take the time to reconsider – regardless of whether you change your way of seeing a specific situation, or continue as before - is valuable all by itself. It gives you increased confidence in your ability to be successful in your trading career. And confidence is an important quality for a trader. Confidence, not overconfidence.

      To that end, I wish you good trading.

      Evanston, IL

      March 2010

      Chapter One

      Reality

      The only function of economic forecasting is to make astrology look respectable. - John Kenneth Galbraith

      There’s always more than one way in which each of us perceives certain events. Part of the time there is room for interpretation because the ‘facts’ can be considered from different points of view. Sometimes, there is only a single ‘truth.’ Yet that truth can be elusive.

      Consider what happens when the police debrief eyewitnesses to a crime. I don’t believe anyone thinks there is more than one version of the truth. It’s possible that people standing in different places may have a view not visible to everyone, but only one event took place. There is one complete and accurate description. The getaway car cannot be blue, green and black at the same time. Some witnesses swearing to those colors do not recall events with accuracy.

      Yet, each witness is positive that he/she is accurately describing the truth and accurately reporting a complete and correct description of reality. When those reports are compared, it’s obvious that most witnesses reported details that are inaccurate.

      It’s not easy for those of us who were not present at the scene to understand why this happens. This is especially true when each witness is certain

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