Trade Structures
Posts about choosing between flies, risk reversals, condors, calendars, and other multi-leg structures.
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The 30-second symmetry check
Here's a check I run on any structure someone shows me. It takes about thirty seconds.
The collar that pays you instead of charging you
The collar trade behaves differently in different asset classes. Find out why...
The call ratio trap: bullish view, short-vol trade
Here's a trap that catches people all the time.
This earnings season was different
The multidimensional trap in options
Options are multidimensional. That's the part that trips most people up.
The earnings calendar trap on retail platforms
The single biggest mistake I see on earnings calendar spreads makes a good trade look twice as good as it actually is.
How I teach options
Quick note on how I teach options.
Trading options for a living looks different from what people picture
My actual day is much closer to a series of check-ins spaced an hour or two apart.
Alpha book up 5.22% on a strong theta week
Weekly update on the Alpha Gen book. Strong week. Alpha Gen up 5.22%, driven almost entirely by the Theta sleeve.
Alpha book up 3.71%: Delta did the work
Decent week. Alpha Gen book up 3.71%, almost all of it from the Delta sleeve. Long-only also recovered nicely.
SpaceX options launch Tuesday. Here's the mechanic.
SpaceX options launch on Tuesday. The setup is worth understanding before the chains open.
70x on a 3-month option I didn't buy
The semis ETF rallied about 80% off the lows over a few months. Most people remember that move.
How I pick a short-theta structure by regime
How I think about picking a short-theta structure depending on the regime.
A diagnostic for spotting bad IV on your platform
A quick diagnostic anyone can run on an options chain to spot when the model is lying to you.
How I restructured a losing trade
Let me show you what I did with a trade that was going against me.
Cheap vol that still bleeds you
Natural gas vol is at the lows. But it's not carrying. Cheap on the screen, expensive in the seat.
You don't need to nail the top to win the trade
You think the move is overcooked. You want short exposure. You're tempted to buy a put or short the underlying.
Why I'm short SMH despite NVDA ripping
NVDA ripped 4% yesterday. SMH didn't move. When the leader carries the tape and the breadth doesn't follow, you pay attention.
How to defend a long without selling it
For long-term holders sitting on real gains, this is one of the cleanest ways to ride out an event without giving up your seat.
Blowout earnings are getting sold. That's a tell.
The NASDAQ rally has at least four tailwinds behind it. Most commentary only names one. Yes, the AI story is real. But look at what else is driving the flow.