The Option Alpha Podcast
At Option Alpha we are devoted to empowering traders with simple, powerful tools supported by world-class research and education. For far too long the options industry has been fragmented, lagging, and unnecessarily complex. By developing industry-first automation technology, enhancing data and information accessibility, and nurturing our thriving community at every level, Option Alpha is changing the way people trade options forever. We’re more than just a software company; we’re leading a movement of traders at every level who are unlocking more freedom through improved and expanded options.
233: Interview with Adam Cohn: Former Market Maker & VP – TradeStation
232: Tips and Tricks for Navigating Options Expiration
231: The 10 New Trading Psychology Challenges Emerging from Autotrading
230: An Evolutionary Perspective on Why Autotrading Will Dominate
229: 15 Options Trading Questions from ChatGPT
228: Price Recovery Analysis - How Long Does It Take To Get Back To Even?
227: What 20-Years of Moving Average Data Teaches Us About Stock Reversals & Momentum
226: Does Adding a "Trend Filter" Improve Directional Option Selling Strategies?
225: 1-Year Review of $3k Monthly Iron Condor Bot
224: Beginner's Guide to Trading Option Spreads
223: Building a Bot for All Market Conditions: The "Hexabot" Story
222: A Holistic View of Option Strike Prices
221: How to Setup & Trade A Synthetic Covered Call Strategy
220: Four "Wicked-Smart" Ways to Use SmartPricing
219: How to Calculate Break Even Prices for Option Strategies
218: How to Survive Bear Markets Trading Options
217: Shop Talk: Autotrading Expectations, Trading Routine and Consistency, and Market Update
216: Shop Talk: Twitter Bid, Oil Volatility, and Strategy Selection
215: The 15 Trading Psychology Questions to Ask Yourself If You Don't Have a Trading Coach
214: Build A Fully Automated Options Portfolio with $3,000 in 1-Click
213: What I Learned From NOT Trading Last Year
212: How Smart Traders Allocate Capital Efficiently Inside Their Bots
211: Iron Butterfly Strategy - 8 Tips Before Your Next Trade
210: 12 Complex Things That Are Simple To Automate w/ Bots
209: The Doors Are Open to Autotrading & The Next Chapter of Option Alpha
208: The Importance of Deep Work for Traders
207: The Option Alpha "Handbook"
206: Trendy Short Put Spread [Bot Talk]
205: Hedging vs. Diversifying
204: How to Intelligently Use SmartStops
203: Interview w/ Pete Mulmat - Futures And The Small Exchange
202: 8 Popular Decision Recipes for Automated Trading
201: Interview w/ Jason Goepfert of SentimenTrader.com
200: A Case Study on the Volatility of Bid-Ask Spreads
199: Automated Does Not Mean Unattended
198: State of the Union: Same Mission, Better Tools
197: Fully Automated Trend Trading w/ Stocks Or Options
196: Hedging Short Naked Puts
195: Short-Term Performance Of Long-Term Strategies
194: Interview w/ Cameron Skinner
193: An Automated Way To Start VIX Hedging
192: Deep Dive Into Options Assignment & Exercising
191: The 13 Investor Biases That Ruin Your Performance
190: A Zillion Ways You Can Save Money To Invest
189: We're Launching The 1st Automated Trading Platform for Options
188: Options Trading Taxes For All Traders
187: 15 Options Expiration Questions Answered
186: Vacation Checklist for Option Traders
185: How To Execute And Fill Options Trades
184: Adjustments Followed By Assignment [FXI Case Study]
183: The Predictive Power of Investor Sentiment
182: Trading Psychology & Emotional Intelligence for Options Traders
181: Correlation Research Suggests Diversification Fails When You Need It Most
180: The Best Covered Call Management Techniques
179: LEAPS Option Contracts - A Complete Guide For Traders
178: Box Spread Basics for Options Traders
177: The Trader's Guide to Index Options
176: Protective Put Strategy Researching Findings
175: The Impact of Volatility On Options
174: We Stopped Trading Earnings After We Saw This New Research
173: The Misbehavior of Markets - Exclusive Interview w/ Co-Author Richard Hudson
172: Mastering Covered Calls (Free Audiobook)
171: Covered Calls - Top 3 Performance Insights From New Research
170: The 5 Critical Factors for ANY Trading Strategy
169: Interview w/ Kevin Davitt - Former Market Maker & CBOE Senior Instructor
168: The 27 Biggest Options Trading Fears
167: Options Trading Profit Targets - When Should You Break The Rules?
166: Understanding The Put Call Ratio The Right Way
165: Trading Options? Here Are The 11 "Golden Rules" To Follow
164: The 2 Major Problems With Buying Options During Low IV Markets
163: The 5 Month "Grind" Following XLE Short Put Option Assignment
162: The Top 8 Investor Biases That Cloud Our Judgement When Trading
161: Interview w/ Kevin Smith & Tavi Costa of Crescat Capital
160: Option Alpha's New Auto-Trading Platform Updates
159: How To Build An Options Portfolio With Just $3,000
158: What Should We Do About This Losing Option Trade? First, Trust The Process
157: The Untold Story Of The 3 Little Pigs That Traded Options
156: The 4 Market Situations You Should Avoid Aggressively Trading
155: Ask Yourself These 7 Questions Before You Put On An Options Trade
154: The 17 Most Asked Questions By Option Alpha Members w/ Answers
153: TLT Iron Butterfly & Covered Call Walk-Thru
152: Short Straddle Or Short Iron Butterfly?
151: Adjusting Short Straddles For $540 Profit (EWZ Case Study)
150: How To Manage Your Money & Generate Wealth The Right Way
149: Assigned Option Contract Case Study In Gold ETF GLD
148: The 5x2 Trading Psychology Matrix
147: Interview w/ Former CBOE Options Market Maker David Lincoln
146: Are You Making These 11 Common Options Strategy Mistakes?
145: Backtesting Results Trading Monthly vs. Bi-Monthly Options For 10 Years
144: Interview w/ Larry Connors - Buy the Fear, Sell the Greed Book Review
143: What's The Rationale Behind Entering New Option Trades?
142: EWZ Short Put Option Assignment Case Study
141: Ultimate Guide To Contango And Backwardation Option Pricing
140: Why Some Option Trades "Explode" In Your Face & What To Do About It
139: The 4 "Not-So-Obvious" Ways To Avoid Blowing Up Your Trading Account
138: The "Expected Probability Paradox" For Options Traders
137: The Ultimate Guide To Option Skew & Volatility Smile
136: How To Calculate Break Even Prices On Iron Condors & Iron Butterflies
135: You Don't Need A Degree In Financial Engineering To Understand How Implied Volatility Works
134: How to Learn From Trading Mistakes & Transitioning Into New Habits
133: Weekly Bull Call Spread Backtesting Results For DIA
132: Can't Trade Unlimited Risk Option Strategies? [Here's 4 Great Alternative Trades]
131: Rolling Options Forward - Multi-Month Case Studies In TLT & IWM
130: Five Quick Tips For Smoother Option Order Execution
129: Do You Recognize These 4 Early Warning Signs Of A Non-Diversified Options Portfolio?
128: Stock Market Direction Becomes Irrelevant When You Average Down
127: What Contract Month & Option Strike Price Should I Buy Or Sell?
126: Manage Multiple Option Positions Without Having To Be In Front Of The Screen All Day
125: Learn How To Trade Options By Eating An Elephant In 90 Days
124: The Ugly Truth About Selling Cheap Options
123: Stop Focusing On ROI Options Trading Possibilities Until You Cross This Trading Bridge
122: The "Big Rocks" That Should Be A Priority For All Options Traders
121: Small Tweaks When Managing Larger Trading Accounts
120: Option Trader Success - Why Some Traders Are Frankly Always More Profitable
119: Don't Use A $6,000 Trade To "Practice" Trading Options
118: Top 5 Options Trading Psychology Lessons I Learned Over The Last 18 Months
117: Let's Talk About "Deltas" For Options Trading
116: Debit Spreads Vs Credit Spreads - When To Use Each
115: How To Avoid The Big Mistakes Executing An Options Order
114: Managing Inverted Option Positions - Once Difficult, Now Easy
Free Options Trading From Robinhood: Our Exclusive Interview With Co-Founder Baiju Bhatt About The Future Of Online Trading
113: Long Straddle Earnings Option Strategy Backtest Results
112: Does Trading Every Day Really Make You A Day Trader?
111: Should I Buy Back My Penny Options Or Let Them Expire Worthless?
110: Become A Better Options Trader By NOT Watching The Market
109: Say Good-Bye to Unlimited Risk Option Strategies Forever
108: Rolling Up Strike Prices vs. Closing Out Trade - What Should I Do?
107: Interview w/ Option Alpha Member MACDDaddy & The "Wheel Selling" Options Strategy
106: TLT Short Stock Assignment Case Study - From Loser To $426 Profit
105: How To Protect Your Portfolio In A Down Market
104: How To Use Pairs Trading With Options To Create Smooth Portfolio Growth
103: How to Pick the Right Stock Options Strategy For Wealth Building
102: Are You Selling Options That Are Way Too Cheap?
101: The Ultimate Guide To Profitably Trading Options Full-Time
100: The Profit Matrix - The Game-Changing Report On The Best Option Strategies For Any Market
99: Why Automated Trading Will Dominate The Investing World & What You Can Do Now To Prepare
98: The End Of Uncertainty & How "Risk" Can Be Managed With Expectancy
97: Expected vs. Actual Win Rates When Selling Options [SPY Short Strangle Backtest]
96: Does Higher Implied Volatility Generate Higher Credits? [DIA Put Credit Spread Backtest]
95: Option Alpha's NEW "Toolbox" For Backtesting Option Strategies
94: Which Option Strike Price Should I Select? [AAPL Call Bull Spread Backtest]
93: Options Trading Timelines & Duration [EEM Straddle Backtest]
92: Position Sizing Impact On Returns [TLT Iron Condor Backtest]
91: Options Backtesting, Investment Research & The Future of Option Alpha
90: The Art & Options Strategy Behind Quick "Earnings Trades"
89: Are Your Current Technical Analysis Indicators Slowly Destroying Your Portfolio?
88: Is High Probability Option Trading The Holy Grail Of Investing?
87: The 3 Option Adjustment Principles You Must Know Now
86: Changing Options Strategies When Trading Inverse ETFs
85: Legging Into Spread Trades And Out Of Trades - Is It Ever Worth It?
84: Why We Ladder Or Stack Option Trades Over Time & Price
83: The Casinos Edge & Why They Spent $45 Every Hour To Keep You In Your Seat
82: [Case Study] How We Cut The Loss On This Bear Call Credit Spread By 37%
81: Why More Fundamental Investors Should Trade Options & The Netflix Effect
80: The 3 Big Reasons Why Your Option Strategy Payoff Diagram Is Different Today Than At Expiration
79: How To Trade Calendar Spreads – The Complete Guide
78: Is Your Investment Portfolio Unbalanced? 4 Ways To Fix It & Get Back To Neutral
77: Scared Of Being Assigned During Options Expiration Week? Here's The #1 Reason To Stop Worrying
76: Options Trading Education - The Importance Of Setting Deadlines & Goals
75: Portfolio Drawdown Stats From 44,801 Backtested Option Strategies
74: How To Trade Straddles & Strangles In Small Brokerage Accounts
73: We Examined 8 Short Strangles For Returns & Margin Requirements
72: Options Trade Adjustment - How To Unemotionally Adjust Trades That Don't Go Your Way
71: The 2 Major Misconceptions About Exiting Option Trades Early
70: How To Manage Trades During Options Expiration Week - Close Or Roll?
69: Is Your Options Strategy Scalable? 3 Tips for Growing A 6-Figure Trading Account
68: VIX Index - How To Trade Volatility w/ Mark Sebastian from OptionPit.com
67: The Stop Loss Myth - 10 Backtested Option Strategies Prove They Create More Losing Trades
66: The Drawbacks Of Paper Trading - Why You've Got To Have Skin In The Game
65: Interview w/ Todd Tresidder From FinancialMentor.com
64: The 15 1/2 "Avoidable” Options Trading Mistakes You're Making Right Now
63: Track Option Strategy Performance With These 27 Indexes From The CBOE
62: Dividend Stocks - Can You Buy Stock Just For The Dividend?
61: Interview w/ Cameron Skinner - How He Earns 22% Annually Selling Options Every Day
60: Warren Buffett's $5 Billion Dollar Options Trading Strategy That Everyone Ignores
59: Short Strangle Case Study - Adjustment Strategy That Slashed Our Loss By 87%
58: Find The Best Stocks For Options Trading With 4 Clicks
57: Learn How To Trade Options w/ Option Alpha's NEW Course Tracks
56: Top 7 Tips When Trading Options In An IRA Account
55: Hedging Strategies - Balancing Your Stock or Options Portfolio
54: Can Using Portfolio Margin Enhance Your Returns?
53: The 1 Hour Per Month Options Strategy That Beat The S&P 500 by 24%
52: Robo Advisors - Why Automated Investing Is NOT The Wave of The Future
51: Single Positions vs. Overall Portfolio Management - Which Is More Important?
50: Is The Stock Market Random Or Predictable? The Final Debate On Efficient Markets
49: How To Profit From The Next Stock Market Crash - 15 Backtested Put Option Strategies
48: Options Approval Levels Tips - How to Quickly Work Your Way Up The 4 Different Levels
47: Options Trading Risk Management & The Indisputable Math Behind Optimal Position Sizing
46: Insider's Guide to Options Trading Taxes Part 2
45: Pattern Day Trading Rules - What Are They & What Can Go Wrong?
44: Do You Know Which Options Greeks Are The Most Important?
43: What I Discovered About Options Trading After Reading 1,378 Surveys Responses And Interviewing 68 Members
42: This Stochastics Tweak Was The Difference Between Making Or Losing Money
41: How Changing Just 1 Setting Increased This Indicator’s Win Rate From 31% to 68%
40: Option Alpha Launches "SIGNALS" The 20-Year Technical Analysis Backtesting Report
39: Does Technical Analysis Really Work? The 3 Big Game-Changing Questions It Took Us 12 Months To Answer
38: Insider's Guide to Options Trading Taxes Part 1
37: Real-Time Option Alpha Performance Stats & Options Trading Strategy Metrics Now Live
36: Lessons After 2 Years of Re-Igniting A Passion for Options Trading w/ Aram Basmadjian
35: LIVE From FinCon w/ The Options PlayBook Author Brian Overby of TradeKing
34: The Shocking Truth About Becoming A Consistently Profitable Options Trader
33: Interview w/ Sarah Potter - Trading Weekly Options With Simple Strategies & Multiple Timeframes
32: How to Set Financial Goals - Top 10 Mistakes People Make
31: What Michael Jordan Can Teach Us About Options Trading
30: The Zero Cost Way To Protect Stock Gains With Options
29: Top 3 Excuses That Cripple The Average Investor Returns When Trading Options
28: 10 Great Option Trades Under $100 You Can Make Right Now
27: How Inverse And Leveraged ETFs Actually Work
26: Wide Bid/Ask Spreads & Slippage Are Costing You $3,840 Each Year
25: Interview w/ John Carter: Balancing Trades & Financing Strategies for More Consistent Winners
24: Why Peer-to-Peer Lending Is Comparable To Options Trading
23: Overcoming The 3 Biggest Fears When Starting To Trade Options
22: Interview w/ Kim Klaiman - Strategies for Buying Options Ahead of Earnings
21: 7 Smart Tips To Help Save You Time Trading Options While Working Your Day Job
20: How I Negotiated A 17% Reduction In My Trading Commissions
19: Interview with Joshua Belanger - Profiting From Unusual Options Activity And Volume
18: Why You Shouldn't Be Afraid Of Getting Assigned Stock
17: The Worst Advice We've Ever Heard About Debit Spreads
16: Interview with Henrick Santander - Full-Time Job & Creating A Trading System That Fits Your Lifestyle
15: How Often Does The Stock Market "Crash"?
14: Why "Stop-Loss" Orders Could Actually Be Creating More Losing Trades
13: Mastering Stock Beta And Underlying Asset Correlations
12: Covered Calls - Limit Your Upside Gain, Increase Your Chance of Success
11: Picking The Best Option Strategy Is A Process Of Elimination NOT Selection
10: Are You Checking These 7 Things Before Each Trade You Enter?
9: Mastering The 14 Emotional Stages All Investors Go Through
8: Breaking The "Zero-Sum" Probability Trading Cycle In Your Favor
7: Why Implied Volatility Is The Key To Your "Edge" Trading Options
6: If Every New Trader Did This 1 Thing They'd Make More Money
5: Why Technical Studies Are Dying And Charts Should Be Obsolete
4: How To Hack The Options Trading Learning Curve In 3 Months
3: Learning How Options Work With Simulated Real Estate Deals
2: The Hard Truth About Your "Small" Account Size