Originally Posted by
marcal
As I read this and see new traders wading in I can’t help but think....
please please do not trade options in your retirements accounts if you are new to it. It’s like flying a 737 bc you want to fly when you’ve never done it. Options if used incorrectly can decimate you financially.
Start very small and outside your retirement accounts. By the way paper trading is the equivalent of using Microsoft Flight Simulator and saying you can actually fly an airplane. It’s a lot different when it’s for real. It’s best for learning the platform.
Like flying its all about risk management, knowing your temperament for risk, and be careful entering orders bc if you enter an order wrong it can really hurt you.
First of all, no one WANTS to fly a 737. (Signed, Happy Airbus Pilot). The rest of your post is very true though. I don’t think Fidelity allows the kinds of options trades that can decimate an account though. Covered calls....I know some use the Snider method with success. I’ve only traded covered calls in my account on stocks I was ready to sell. Instead of flat out selling a stock, I’d sell covered calls against it until the options got exercised and then I’d get a better price for the stock than selling with a limit order, or make some extra premium while I waited. I’m interested to see about cash secured puts. If those are available to trade, I would only use that to buy stock I wanted to own anyway, or make some premium in the mean time while I waited for the stock to pull back.