This Week @MidwayTrades: 2021-2022
Week of December 30, 2022: Wrapping Up a Challenging Year
The last week of the year ended up being relatively calm so there wasn’t much to do this week, however, I did set myself up for a good start in 2023. I also do a summary of December. Also, I show some differences between balanced and unbalanced butterflies in a real market so if you are interested in butterflies, definitely take a look.
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Note: I talk about how I put on one of my trades from an airport. As one who is used to traveling a lot I have found tricks to trading on the road. If you are interested in what I do, take a look at the blog site where I posted an article about it.
Week of December 23, 2022: An Overnight Whipsaw
As we move into the weeks of Christmas and New Years the market can act a bit different as people take some time away. This week is an example of what can happen. It’s a good lesson in whipsaws so take a look and watch me trade one.
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Week of December 16, 2022: Take the Money and Run
This week featured the double whammy of a CPI print and a Fed meeting. So I put on a few small things and followed the advise of that famous financial guru Steve Miller and I took the money and ran. I had a couple of very quick trades for some quick profits. We get these kinds of weeks occasionally so I hope this helps gives some folks ideas on how to navigate them. Take a look and let me know what you think
Quick programming note: I will be visiting family next week so the next video will most likely post next Thursday as I will not be in my office.
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Week of December, 9, 2022: Prepare for Next Week’s Events
So this week was the calm before the possible storm next week so the overall goal was to prepare. I closed out the bad trade from last week, and put on a new trade that closed for a good profit. If nothing else you can see the difference from missing an important event to preparing for upcoming events. In both cases, there are good lessons here.
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Week of December 2, 2022: A Small Mistake
So the month of November overall went very well. In addition to the weekly review I do a quick monthly review as well. However, this week I made a small but substantial mistake that caused me to put something on when I shouldn’t have done so. This is a great lesson and is a big reason why I post these trade reviews. Take a look and learn along with me.
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Week of November 25, 2022: Thankful for Balanced Butterflies
With the Thanksgiving holiday in the US we only had 3.5 trading days but you never know what will happen. Sometimes it’s calm, sometimes not. But I was prepared for either scenario and things turned out very well by using .. you guessed it … balanced butterflies. So take a look and see what I’m doing and let me know what you think or what you’re doing.
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Week of November 18, 2022: Dodging the Waves
These are the weeks that are the most fun for my style of trading. We bounced back and forth all week and so my range bound trades did very well. I made some decent profits and put myself back into profitability for the month after a rough start. If you want to see how to do well in this kind of market, this is definitely the video for you. As always, take a look and tell me what you think.
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Week of November 11, 2022: CPI Fun
So last week it was fun with the Fed, this week it’s the CPI. Even the US elections didn’t really move the market, it was all about the CPI. So watch what I do on a very crazy week. And let me know what you think and what you’re doing.
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Week of November 4, 2022: FOMC Fun
FOMC week is usually interesting and this week was no exception. I had 2 trades, one worked out, the other didn’t but there’s good stuff to learn from each of them. It’s important to have something to do in most environments and that’s one of the things I’m trying to show here. So feel free to take a look and let me know what you think.
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Week Ending October 28, 2022: Early Exits
So it was a big week in the SPX as there were lots of big tech earnings which were poor but the market went up anyway…fun. So lots to see and talk about here. All in all it wasn’t a bad week and I think this shows what it means to be neutral and ready for anything because sometimes the unexpected happens. I also do a monthly review of October.
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Week Ending October 21, 2022: More Wide Files
Since my experimental wide flies worked last week I tried one again. I didn’t get the preferred move I wanted, but it’s still doing well and has been resilient in this high volatility environment. It’s also the beginning of earnings for the big players in the S&P so I’m watching out for that as well.
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Week Ending October 14, 2022: An Experiment for High Vol
Volatility remains high and an CPI print this week certainly helped keep things up early in the week. So in addition to the long running VIX trade, I did a small SPX experiment to try and make some small profits and the first instance went quite well. Take a look and let me know what you’re doing in this high vol environment
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Week Ending October 7, 2022: Staying in VIX
Vol is still pretty high this week so I took down my SPX trade and stayed in my VIX vertical. I thought I could get back into SPX mid-week, but that was not to be. But this is what it’s like trading in high volatility. Some good lessons here so check it out and tell me what you think!
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Week Ending September 30, 2022: The Return of VIX
So the volatility continues to be high so I bring back my VIX vertical plays since I don’t want to do any new trades in SPX until vol settles down. However, I do have a butterfly on from the previous week so if you like butterfly adjustments, this is the review for you. I think it’s a good demonstration of trading in a high vol environment. Enjoy and, as always, let me know what you think.
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Week Ending September 23, 2022: …Followed by a Fed Crash
So the drop from the CPI print last week continued with another big drop after the Fed meeting. That took out my older flies for a bad loss. I’m going to have to review that one in depth to try and avoid that from happening. Even in this kind of market, losses must be kept under control. I did also start a new butterfly trade as well.
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Week Ending September 16, 2022: A CPI Crash
After a slow melt up early in this month, the markets came crashing down on a high CPI print. So there are lots of good lessons here on managing trades on those few crazy days of the year when things are moving fast. And there’s a good lesson on patience at the end of the week. Lots of good lessons here. Check it out and let me know what you think.
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Week Ending September 9, 2022: September Melt Up
As I ended last week in cash, I only had one trade this week but since we only moved in one direction that one trade kept me busy enough. For my style of trading these are the challenging weeks but I think I handled it well. Take a look and tell me what you think.
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Week Ending September 2, 2022: Three Trades, Three Closes
The month of August was a wild ride and the last week was no exception. But through it all I had a very profitable week which made the month profitable as well. I had 3 trades on at different times that all ended in different ways. This review shows the differences and what I learned from each. I know the market is crazy right now, but if you want to see that it’s possible to make money, follow along and ask questions.
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Week Ending August 26, 2022: Digging Out of the (Jackson) Hole
This week was all about Jackson Hole and started and ended in a wild fashion. But though all of that, I put on and took off a trade for a quick profit and worked another one throughout the week to a very successful result. Good lessons here for positioning around big events. Take a look, enjoy, and reach out with questions or comments!
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Week Ending August 19, 2022: Know When to Fold ‘Em
So we’re getting to the time of year where, traditionally, the market gets choppy and this was the week when it started. I had to decide when to close some trades. One for, essentially, break even since it wasn’t worth adjusting and another where I took a loss because the trade just ran out of time. Not a terrible week, but I had to make some decisions as things get more volatile.
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Week Ending August 12, 2022: Calendars Through the CPI
This week in the market was all about the CPI and it did definitely send the market in one direction and while that challenged one of my trades, I did get a good profit from another one. What I think is interesting this week is the move from negative vega to positive vega as market volatility changes. It’s important to be able adapt as conditions change. Take a look and let me know what you think.
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Week Ending August 5, 2022: The Return of Calendars
The market was quite calm this week, so much so that the low volatility allowed me to put on calendars again. So I talk about why I made the switch from butterflies (at least for now). I think it’s important to be ready for all sort of markets and so this is an example of a calm market and what I do. Take a look and let me know what you think
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Week Ending July 29, 2022: FANGs and the Fed
Big tech earnings and the Fed dominated the markets this week and I traded accordingly. This week is about navigating the big news while still being profitable. I also do a review of July which was a solid month for my trading. Take a look and let’s talk about trading.
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Week Ending July 22, 2022: Working the Grind Up
Earnings season is upon us and the market was mostly moving up this week which can be a challenge for a non-directional trader like myself. However, I managed it well and even made a quick profit. So there are some good lessons here on how to trade this market. Take a look and feel free to ask questions.
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Week Ending July 15, 2022: Double Dipping
The CPI report made this week a bit crazy but I did ok. I took an older trade off early for a small loss to avoid the CPI risk. I had another trade come off very fast for a profit. And I double-dipped with an extra butterfly this week that I held through the weekend. Lots of good examples here of trading in this crazy market. Take a look!
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Week Ending July 8, 2022: Another Quick Win
So this week went one direction: up. But it wasn’t a fast move so my trades held together well and one came off very quickly for a good profit. If you want to see how it’s possible to make profits in this crazy market, take a look at what I’m doing and feel free to reach out to talk about it. I’m not selling anything, I just like talking options. Enjoy!
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Week Ending July 1, 2022: A Rocky But Profitable Week/Month
June was a crazy month with some crazy moves. And, yet, I think I traded it pretty well and I beat my goal for the month. But there’s always lessons to learn and I do have one troublesome butterfly on that is still hanging on along with a quick win.
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Week Ending June 22, 2022: Back to Normal?
So the market calmed down quite a bit after last week so I was able to close my VIX put vertical for a decent profit as well as open a new SPX butterfly. I also closed out a GLD calendar. So far a pretty good month with some good options lessons so take a look.
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Week Ending June 17, 2022: Back to Spec for Now
This week was all about the Fed announcement. I traded around it and put on some new spec plays on Thursday when the dust settled. I also talk about how I’m tweaking my GLD trade and why. It’s all part of the learning process so come along with me and let me know what you think!
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Week Ending June 10, 2022: The Calm Before the SPX Storm
This week was dominated by the CPI print on Friday. Things were calm until late Thursday, then they went nuts. This episode is how I traded knowing this could happen. Turns out it was a pretty good week. So take a look at one way to trade around a major event.
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Week Ending June 3, 2022: More SPX Butterflies
Volatility is behaving so I moved back to SPX. I closed out the last of my VIX verticals, took a quick profit on an SPX fly and continued with another SPX fly. It’s been great to be back in SPX again and back into non-directional trading.
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Week Ending May 27, 2022: Back in SPX
So this week I get out of a couple of my spec trades and, since volatility is finally lower, I did my first SPX trade in over a month. I also review the month of May.
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Week Ending May 20, 2022: Still Playing in Gold
I thought I was going to be able to get back into SPX this week, but it went crazy again, so I’m still sitting in my VIX and GLD trades. I took off one GLD calendar for a profit and put on another one. Hopefully SPX will get safe again soon, but we’ll see. But I think it’s important to have something to trade in all sorts of markets. So come along with me and let me know what you’re doing.
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Week Ending May 13, 2022: Adjusting GLD Trades
So after trading GLD calendars for a couple of weeks, I finally had one that needed to be adjusted so I show how I do that as I take this one into next week. I also review the 2 VIX Put verticals from previous weeks that have begun to recover well.
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Week Ending May 6, 2022: Playing With Gold
Well, it was a big Fed week again and I thought I might be able to get back into the S&P after the announcement, but that was not to be. So I’m still playing with GLD calendars and shorting the VIX with put verticals. I did make a decent profit in Gold as I’m learning to play GLD as an underlying. Good lessons here. Take a look!
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Week Ending April 29, 2022: High Volatility Means Spec Plays
So VIX is still too high for my style of SPX trades so I did some smaller spec plays while I wait for VIX to get back into a good range. Did a nice short-term GLD calendar and a put vertical on VIX itself. I also review April and show, once again, why win rates don’t really matter. Take a look!
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Week Ending April 22, 2022: Quick Money on the Downside
So this week saw a pretty big drop in the last 2 days and I was positioned to take advantage of and got two quick trades off for nice profits while still not being directional. All in all a good week. Take a look and see if this makes sense for your trading.
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Week Ending April 15, 2022: Starting a Comeback
So after the bad loss last week, the comeback has started on a short market week. I had 2 butterflies that both closed well. I cover them and talk about why I like these unbalanced flies in this market environment. Hopefully, you’ll pick up something interesting by following along.
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Week Ending April 8, 2022: Pets vs Cattle
This week it was time to revisit my Pets vs Cattle lesson, i.e. over-adjusting vs taking a trade off. I did a blog post about it, feel free to [check it out] (https://writefreely.midwaytrades.com/pets-vs-cattle-my-biggest-trading-lesson). But I do review a trade that I should have taken off earlier. This is a great lesson for any trader to remember. I also put on another trade that did very well.
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Week Ending April 1, 2022: Grinding Pays Off
Lots of work this week adjusting trades as the market moved, but I did have one come off easy and I wrapped up my best month of this year so far. If you like to see what it takes to navigate this crazy market, this is the episode for you. I also do a review of March and Q1.
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Week Ending March 25, 2022: Rising Market, Falling Vol
So this week the market let out a big exhale when the Fed did what was expected. That allowed my VIX trade to close and also allowed me to get back into SPX again. Will this continue? No one knows but I show how I’m trading this ever-changing market.
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Week Ending March 18, 2022: Calming Down?
So this week the market let out a big exhale when the Fed did what was expected. That allowed my VIX trade to close and also allowed me to get back into SPX again. Will this continue? No one knows but I show how I’m trading this ever-changing market.
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Week Ending March 11, 2022: Waiting Out the Storm
With volatility still on the high side I didn’t add any new positions this week. I do have my one trade on that is waiting for VIX to come down and it still has some time left. But this week is a good lesson in what it’s like to trade VIX so I hope folks find that interesting.
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Week Ending March 4, 2022: More Volatility
Another crazy week of world events moved the market. I put on a couple of small plays to see if I make a bit off of it. One came off for break-even, the other is still on. Take a look and let me know what you’re doing.
And I started a new venue to talk about trading…take a look and join the fun.
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Week Ending February 25, 2022: A Rare Day Trade for Rare Times
World events dominated the markets the week and that caused me to trade differently than usual. I’m not a day trader but sometimes, as the famous investment advisor Steve Miller said you have to “Take the Money and Run”. So take a look at how I stayed profitable in this crazy week and this crazy month.
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[Week Ending February 18, 2022: A Cautious Approach] This was an unusual week with Fed minutes and geopolitical strife affecting the markets. So while I almost didn’t trade this week I did put on a small cautious trade to try and get something out of this market. Take a look and let me know what you did.
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Week Ending Feburary 11, 2022: A Wild Week
World events and the CPI number turned a mild week into a wild one. This leads to an interesting week for trading. So take a look at how I did. It was a mixed bag, some good, some bad, nothing really ugly though and that’s important for the long term
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Week Ending February 4, 2022: Big Tech Earnings
Big tech earnings moved the market this week and in this episode I show how I traded around them and made a profit. The spec trade from last week closed and I have a new trade on for next week as well. Take a look and let me know what you think and what you’re doing!
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Week Ending January 28, 2022: A Little Speculation
So the market was quite volatile this week. So much so that my normal income style trades are not appropriate. So what’s a trader to do? Well, I used this time for a small spec play which is not my usual game. But I talk about the theory behind it and the structure that I used to make it a reasonable risk. I also do a quick review of January.
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Week Ending January 21, 2022: Taking Shelter
This week started out normal but ended in a big slide that has continued into a possible significant correction. Time will tell. But for this week, I took some profits and then happily sat out the end of the week. But there are good lessons here with respect to trading as the market is changing underneath us.
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Week Ending January 14, 2022: Big Swings
So this was a week of big swings in the market and my trade held up pretty well. Price swings are big as is volatility swings. This is a tougher market to trade but it’s a great market for learning.
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Week Ending January 7, 2022: An Itchy Trigger Finger
As we move into the new year we had our first big move with the FOMC minutes on Weds. That hurt one of my trades but I did ok with it. I also got a quick profit at the end of the week. However, with some further analysis, I could have done better had I waited a bit before taking it off. Hindsight is 20/20 of course, but it’s still a good chance to learn.
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Week Ending December 31, 2021: A Calm End to a Crazy Year
So 2021 ended pretty quietly which was just fine for the one trade I had on that needed some stable time to make money. I also do a review of a very volatile December.
Thanks to everyone who watched these videos this year. Looking forward to 2022!
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Week Ending December 24, 2021: The Last Trade of 2021
A short video this week as I started the week in cash and put on one trade in a short trading week. This will be my last trade of 2021 as I don’t typically put on new trades during the last week of the year. But this trade went into next week so I’ll still have a video showing how this trade worked out. Enjoy!
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Week Ending December 17, 2021: More Volatility Testing
Another interesting week with respect to volatility. I had one trade come off for full profit and another that I took off early as things got rocky. But I think it’s good to be able to trade in different types of markets so that’s what I’m trying to show in this video. I hope you enjoy it.
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Week Ending December 10, 2021: That’s More Like It
Another short video as I take another dip into the SPX market to see if things have calmed down. It was definitely better than last week. But there’s still some good things to discuss with respect to setup, planning, and the rationale for getting back to normal.
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Week Ending December 3, 2021: Testing the Waters
With very high volatility, I was mostly on the sidelines this week but I did one quick trade to see how things were moving…putting a toe in the water so to speak. Things started moving fast again so I got out for a small profit. So in this episode I talk about the way I set up the trade to be a (relatively) safe test to see if the market is ready for my style of trading again. I hope you find it useful.
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Week Ending November 26, 2021: Staying Thin Over Thanksgiving
This one is pretty short. This week is traditionally known as a thin trading week with a lot of folks away for the Thanksgiving holiday so I only managed the trade I put on last week. But I talk about thin markets and why they aren’t the best environments. I also review a very good November.
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Week Ending November 19, 2021: The Challenge of a Hybrid Complex
So November has been pretty good to me so far and this week is no exception. But even in good times, there are lessons to learn. This week I show in the real world a trade-off with a hybrid complex with lots of legs. The trade still turned out well, but every strategy has a challenge and it’s good to understand where your strategy has weaknesses.
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Week Ending November 12, 2021: Inflation Boomerang
So this week was all about the CPI number released on Wednesday and the S&P did a bit of a boomerang as a result. But I think I traded through it pretty well. This week is another chance to see how I like to trade as volatility changes. I think volatility is overlooked by a lot of options traders. So come along and see how the week looked.
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Week Ending November 5, 2021: A Small Miscalculation
This week continued the grind up in the market, but it wasn’t too fast so my trades did well. We did have a Fed meeting this week so there’s a good example of how the Greeks react during these types of events. I also made a small miscalculation that wasn’t tragic, but it’s also a good lesson to learn as you trade. So take a look at how I did and tell me what you think!
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Week Ending October 29, 2021: Patience
This was an interesting week and one that required a lot of patience to get gains including a partial sale at the end of the day that took an entire day to fully close. There are definitely some good lessons here so come along and let me know what you think!
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Week Ending October 22, 2021: No Longer Narrow
So as the market rallied this week, I had to work on the 2 trades from last week. I exited one and kept adjusting another. I think this will make for an interesting comparison. I also entered a type of calendar that I haven’t used in over a year. Take a look and see how the week went.
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Week Ending October 15, 2021: Butterfly Transformation
So it was a crazy week that started down then went up pretty quickly. And this movement had me convert my butterflies into calendars. Definitely some interesting examples here on how to try and manage a quick up move while trying to stay non-directional.
Also a big thank you for 200 subs on BitChute!
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Week Ending October 8, 2021: Down and Up
A short video this week as I only had one trade but as it’s been a sustained week of higher volatility I think there are still some good lessons here. So come on in, see what I’m doing and, of course, leave feedback. I love to hear from viewers.
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Week Ending October 1, 2021: Butterfly Season
If you’ve seen the show for last year and a half, you’ve seen me do a lot of calendars. Well, the market conditions were such this past week that butterflies are back on the menu. I will discuss what those conditions are and how I put on and adjust butterflies since it’s been a while. I also do a monthly review of September. So come along and see what’s happening in the market with me.
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Week Ending September 24, 2021: A Big Drop on Monday
So the week started out with a big drop but ultimately came back up over the week. But I did have 2 trades on to start the week and in this episode I talk about how I handled them and how this will affect my trading plan for big drops going forward. Good lessons here so take a look and let me know what you think.
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Week Ending September 17, 2021: The Calm Before the…
Even with a new CPI number, it was a pretty calm week in the market…for now. So while I did make an adjustment, the week was somewhat uneventful. But as the title suggests…stay tuned for next week because that all changes..
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Week Ending September 10, 2021: Volatility to the Rescue
A short week in the market that didn’t so much until right at the end of the week when volatility spiked. Overall a good week, but there’s a good lesson in volatility and how it affects different types of trades. I hope you find it interesting and helpful.
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Week Ending September 3, 2021: Sometimes I Don’t Adjust
We had a very calm market week which is good for my style of trading but I still had to make a call on one of my trades: To adjust or not. As you can guess by the title I didn’t but there are some good lessons here about adjustments vs taking profits. I hope you find it interesting.
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Week Ending August 27, 2021: The Power of Volatility (Part 2)
Last week showed what a vol pop can do for a calendar. This week shows what a vol crush can do to a calendar. Both are good lessons in volatility. I also put on a new trade and do a review of August.
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Week Ending August 20, 2021: The Power of Volatility
This week shows a good lesson in volatility and how it can work for a trade that is set up to take advantage of a move. I had a trade come off about as quickly as I’ve ever had for a nice profit. I then entered a new trade for the rest of the week. As usual, there are good trading lessons even though the video is on the shorter side. Take a look!
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Week Ending August 13, 2021: Taking Some Profits
So on a generally up trending week, I took off a messed up trade from last week that should have been taken off last Friday. However, I had 2 other trades that did well and made up for the loss i took on the first one. Lots of good lessons here about trade management.
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Week Ending August 6, 2021: Trading Around Life
While it wasn’t the busiest week in the market, it was a busy week in my life and there are some good lessons here on how to trade when life gets busy. I had one trade from last week come off for a good profit. This week I had one trade that went well and one that struggled. So lots to learn here. Come and learn along with me!
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Week Ending July 30, 2021: Trading Around Events
Another short video this week as I only had 2 trades on for a brief period of time due to the combination of the Fed meeting plus some huge tech earnings that happened this week. In retrospect I was probably a bit over cautious but I’m ok with that. I also do the monthly review for July.
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Week Ending July 23, 2021: An Unforced Error
So it was a bit of a crazy week in SPX with a big drop on Monday and climbing back to all-time highs by the end of the week. And while I mostly handled it correctly, I did make one mistake that cost me a bit..a mistake I don’t think I’ve made before. But that’s why I always say these reviews are for learning. Come learn along with me.
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Week Ending July 16, 2021: A Light Week
n what is one of my shortest episodes I did one trade this week. In retrospect, I may have been overly cautious but that’s 20/20 hindsight. But I do go over the one trade I put on for the week and talk about my decision on whether to adjust at the end of the week. Sometimes, these can be tough calls. But take a look and, as always, I’d love to hear your thoughts and ideas.
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Week Ending July 9, 2021: Patience
This was a busier week and it was multiple tests of patience. Not every trade worked but there are good lessons here on how to try and avoid whipsaws that can kill trades. Hopefully you find some good lessons here.
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Week Ending July 2, 2021: Vacations Are Good
I managed to take a few days off this week so only one trade. As much as I love trading, taking some time to unplug every once in a while is a good idea. But even with this one trade, there are a few good lessons here so take a look. I also do a quick monthly review of June and talk about how I managed in a month that wasn’t super friendly to my style of trading, however I still made money.
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Week Ending June 25, 2021: Treading Water
As the market trends upward, I’m basically breaking even on my trades in my attempt to avoid bad losses. I exited two trades early this week, one was probably too early the other was the right thing to do. But this is what I do as a non-directional trader in a directional market. Take a look and see if it makes sense to you. As usual, I always like to hear what you’re doing.
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Week Ending June 18, 2021: A New Adjustment
Having fun navigating a big Fed announcement brings lots of good lessons. One trade I decide to exit early while another I try a new adjustment that I think may be interesting in this environment. Lots of new stuff this week so definitely take a look and, as always, let me know what you think. I love chatting with other traders out there.
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Week Ending June 11, 2021: A Lesson in Theta
Overall, a good week. But I used the CPI announcement on Thursday as a lesson in how Theta works in the real world. I hope it helps some of my fellow traders out there to understand that time decay plays before big events don’t usually work and why. I also introduce a new segment to the show that I hope will help folks as well.
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Week Ending June 4, 2021: A Good Week For a Change
While last week wasn’t actually bad, I actually bagged some profits this week which is nice. The market mostly behaved and even the one bigger move didn’t hurt the trade I had on at the time. While it wasn’t an eventful week, it’s good to get a break to make some easy profits.
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Week Ending May 28, 2022: Two Years!
A short video this week as I only put on one trade. But I also realized that as of a couple weeks ago I’ve been doing this weekly program for 2 years. Time has certainly flown. So a sincere thank you to all my viewers. I also do quick review of May.
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Week Ending May 21, 2021: Brutal
May continues to be a rough month for me but that means more good lessons. I had a trade that I should have exited last week come off and a new one that got whipsawed and max lossed out as well. Not the best for the account, but very good for learning which is what this series is all about.
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Week Ending May 14, 2021: A Tale of Two Puts
May continues to be a rough month for my trading but that means there’s lots of good lessons. With the crazy moves we had you’ll see where I used a long put on 2 different trades and see how they produced different results. Also was quickly stopped out of small trade early in the week. Not a good month for the account, but a good month of learning and that’s why I do this so enjoy!
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Week Ending May 7, 2021: A Rough Start to May
While April was a solid month, May is starting out a bit rough. One trade was quickly stopped out and I made an unforced error on another one. Not my best week but these are the times we learn. So come along and learn with me.
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Week Ending April 30, 2021: One Trade
A shorter video this week as I only put on one trade. But I think the more interesting part of the video is not that I only put on one trade but why I did that. There were some events this week that made me a bit more cautious, perhaps a bit too cautious in hindsight. But that’s the crux of the review this week. Take a look and tell me what you think!
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Week Ending April 23, 2021: A Nice Range-Bound Week
The trend of moving only up finally broke for at least this week and the market moved in a range which is very conducive to my style of trading. I had 3 winners this week but they each had interesting lessons associated with them. Take a look and see how they did. And let me know what you’re doing!
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Week Ending April 16, 2021: Moving On Up
The market continued its climb this week but did so at a slow pace so my non-directional trades are still working well. Overall a calm week but there are always good things to learn when trading so take a look and tell me what you’re doing as well!
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Week Ending April 9, 2021: Taking Profits Early
This week presented a good opportunity to show one instance where I think it makes sense to take profits early. It also shows that non-directional trades can work when the market is moving one direction as long as it’s not moving fast in that direction. Lots of good lessons here so I hope you enjoy it. Also, I’d love to hear what you think of the moves I made given the conditions. As always feel free to reach out!
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Week Ending April 2, 2021: Slowly Building Back
On this short week of trading, I continue my slow build back after a couple of bad losses taken earlier in the month. But this was a good week for non-directional trades and that process is well underway. Even though we ended up at all-time highs this week, my non-directional trades fared quite well.
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Week Ending March 26, 2021: Whipsaws Suck
So one of my trades was stopped out due to a whipsaw. And that sucks. But I had another trade that was on at the same time which closed out for a quick profit. This episode is a great case study of 2 trades and how they react to the same market environment. Take a look and let me know what you think.
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Week Ending March 19, 2021: Calendars and a Fed Week
Only 2 trades this week. I took off one trade from last week and I put on a new one after the Fed announcement which has done well even when Thursday was a bit wild. All in all a good week but I think there are always things to learn from reviewing trades so come along with me and let me know what you think.
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Week Ending March 12, 2021: Getting Back On Track
In this episode, I finish off the last of the ugly trades and start with a new trade that is doing well. Here’s to sticking to my trading rules, winning consistently, and limiting losses.
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Week Ending March 6, 2021: Cleaning Up My Messes
I said when I started this series almost 2 years ago that I would show the good, the bad, and the ugly. This week is the ugly. I’m honestly not sure I could have done worse on these couple of trades. But the point of this series is learning and there are lots of hard lessons here that I hope to take into the future and I hope it helps folks out there too.
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Week Ending February 26, 2021: I Need To Take My Own Advice
This is one of those weeks that teaches harsh lessons. It’s probably the worst week I’ve had in a while and it will most likely bleed into next week. But this is how lessons are taught. I go over the mistakes I made this week and how I intend to trade better going forward. I hope you can learn from my mistakes as well as that is one reason why I do this. I hope it helps folks out there become better traders.
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Week Ending February 19, 2021: Measure Twice, Cut Once
Overall a pretty calm week for my trades but I did discover an error I made when entering an adjustment that ended up costing me money and making the trade more difficult. While that sucks, the purpose of this series is learning so you get to learn along with me, mistakes and all.
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Week Ending February 12, 2021: A Long Awaited Pullback
Patience finally paid off this week as the grind up finally pulled back. This allowed me to get out of trade for a tiny win that would have been a significant loss and it caused another trade to close for a nice win in 2 days! Lots of good lessons this week so take a look and let me know what you think.
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Week Ending February 5, 2021: Grinding Up
As a non-directional trader, weeks like this can be a challenge as the market was quite directional. But even while one of my trades needed a bunch of work, another worked exited for a quick profit. It’s a nice contrast which shows that even in adverse conditions, it’s possible to get some quick profits.
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Week Ending January 29, 2021: Keeping it Small
So this was a volatile week in the market for various reasons and specifically for SPX due to some big earnings as well as a Fed meeting so I practiced risk management by keeping my exposure small. I think this worked out well and I discuss ways I did this from the positions I put on to the adjustment I made. I think risk management is very important for consistent results. Hopefully you will pick up some ideas in this video. As usual, I’d love to get feedback on what you think about what I’m doing and what you are doing.
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Week Ending January 22, 2021: Not All Losses Are Bad
Some interesting trades this week along with some great lessons, all around risk management. The first is that sometimes it’s best to take a small loss before it gets big. Another is that it’s ok to take a slightly smaller profit early rather than keeping risk on overnight or over a weekend. As the great financial mind Steve Miller once said “Take the money and run”. Anyway, I hope you find these lessons helpful in your trading.
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Week Ending January 15, 2021: Back on Track
Catching up as the new year rolls along. This was a mostly uneventful week in the market which is good for my style of trading. This week I start to dig out the mess of last week. But even in calm weeks there are good things to learn so come along and see how my trades went.
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Week Ending January 8, 2021: Out With the Old…
As we cross into the new year, I had some success but had to close out a bad loss from an old trade from last year. I talk about how I decided to exit it and how I will need to do a full postmortem on it. Losses are a part of the game and I expect to take some, but I could have managed this trade better.