Many beginners see options mainly as a way to speculate on short-term price moves. But buying calls or puts involves more than getting the direction right: time decay and changes in volatility can also affect returns. Selling options offers another approach. Some investors use it alongside stock holdings to collect premiums and plan potential share purchases or sales. It can complement a long-term portfolio, provided the obligations and risks are understood. The “Insurance Business” Analogy An insurer collects premiums in exchange for accepting risk. Option sellers make a similar trade-off: they receive a premium upfront and take on an obligation to buy or sell the underlying asset if assigned. Time decay can work in the seller’s favour. If an option expires worthless, the seller keeps the

Strike prices. Implied volatility. The Greeks. New to options? The terminology can feel overwhelming, yet the core idea is intuitive: pay a cost today to lock‑in a choice for tomorrow. Think of paying extra for a flight ticket that lets you cancel before a specified date. You are paying for flexibility — even if you never end up using that option. An option works on the same logic. The buyer pays a premium to obtain the right to buy or sell an asset at an agreed strike price within a set timeframe. If assigned, the seller must fulfil the corresponding obligation. This concept is far from new. The Greek philosopher Thales famously secured rights to olive presses ahead of an expected bumper harvest and profited when demand surged. Centuries later, the introduction of standardised stock optio

After selling a few Puts, you may start running into the same dilemma. At first, you may be worried about getting assigned, so you choose a strike price further away from the current share price. After doing this a few times, however, you may start thinking: “I’ve set aside so much capital, but I’m only collecting this amount of premium each month. Is it too little?” So you move the strike price closer. The premium goes up, but another concern appears: “What if the share price really drops?” This is exactly what advanced Short Put management is about: how much additional risk are you taking on for the extra premium you collect? For the same stock, where should you set the strike price? When IV is high, is it worth opening a position? If you have already earned most of the premium, should y

Chang Pengyao (Oliver) @Oliver 的期权旅途 is a seasoned investor with years of hands-on options trading experience. Starting with a five-figure portfolio and gradually building it to an eight-figure level, he has gone through multiple market cycles, mistakes and drawdowns along the way. Over time, he developed a trading framework centred on probability, pricing, position sizing and risk management. “Victorious warriors win first and then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war first and then seek to win.” Oliver quoted this line from The Art of War as the central idea behind his sharing. He used the Chu–Han Contention as an example. Liu Bang lost repeatedly to Xiang Yu in direct battles, yet Xiang Yu was ultimately the

$Micron Technology(MU)$ $SK hynix(SKHY)$ recently rebounded alongside the broader memory and semiconductor sectors after pulling back sharply from their recent highs. Both stocks surged around 18% on July 30, quickly recovering part of their earlier losses. The rally was mainly supported by improving market expectations for the memory supply outlook, as well as continued investment in AI infrastructure by major technology companies. From a fundamentals perspective, Micron’s latest results showed record revenue and earnings for the third quarter of fiscal year 2026. Management also provided a stronger outlook for the fourth quarter. However, a sharp one-day rebound does not ne

$IBM(IBM)$ - Underlying: IBM - View: Cautiously optimistic for a short-term oversold bounce, but with significant downside risk. The strategy aims to capitalize on the high IV to collect premium while defining risk. - Strategy Type: Credit Spread / Defined Risk - Option Contract Portfolio: - Sell 1 IBM Put, Strike $210, Expiry 2026-07-24 - Buy 1 IBM Put, Strike $205, Expiry 2026-07-24 - Max Gain & Loss: - Max Gain: Net Credit Received = ~$1.34 - Max Loss: (Strike Difference - Net Credit) = ($5 - $1.34) = ~$3.66 - Initial Cost/Credit: Net Credit of ~$1.34 per share.