Every so often I like to give a pep talk, and as we enter the last quarter of the year it seems like a good time for one. If you are an option trader, you know how difficult it can be to extract money from the market on a regular basis. Let’s be honest: Most option traders who swing trade will not make money consistently and usually quit at some point. Well, I am here to tell you not to give up and to make sure you are doing the right things to fix your indiscretions. You still have the final three months of 2024 to make an impact, and you can start now.
Change It Up
Doing something the same way repeatedly and expecting a different outcome is the definition of insanity. We have all been there at some point, but the option traders who become successful have figured out what changes they need make to help them become successful. How do you do this? Here is a big hint: Start by not repeating the same pattern over and over. You need to examine your past trades and your trading plan. If you don’t have a trading plan, then that is a big part of your problem.
If you have struggled (and all of us have), you know or you should at least have an idea about what you need to do to get over the hump. Knowing and doing are two very different things, however. As I have said before, something about options trading makes many of us lazy even if we are not usually lazy in other facets of our lives. We must push through and go the extra distance to make some changes.
Discipline
It all boils down to discipline, and you and I both know that. Be more patient. Review those trades and finally start or finish writing that trading plan you have been putting off for quite some time.
These are just a few examples to get you started. Success as an option trader is never handed to anyone. It is earned. That is why most will never extract money from the market on a regular basis. You have to earn that success by going the extra distance, and there is still time left in 2024.
