Wealth, Freedom & Options With Joshua Belanger

This morning I was reading an email from my friend Tom Sosnoff over at tastytrade. In his daily email to readers, he wrote a little blurb about why people hire professionals to manage their money, rather learning to do it themselves. While our mission is the same as teaching active investors how to creates success with trading options, I don't entirely agree with what he wrote. He believes people do it because it's cheaper to buy their way out of the responsibility for learning than to do it. What he means is that people rather pay someone else to blame if things don't work out rather than take on the responsibility themselves. While some of this is true, I think there's more to it than that. Some people are lazy and they want to blame others no matter what, that's life and it's their choice. That has no bearing on what we are after and you should be thankful for people like that because it makes it easier for us to get what we are after. Thankfully, we live an a world where full of freedom and choice

I was sitting at my computer yesterday morning reviewing my positions. It was about 8:50 CST when all of a sudden, I got a ping from… Mr Prop. Who's Mr Prop? He's one of my institutional connections who works on a trading desk in New York. I have something very special to announce about Mr Prop, which I will share with you in a few seconds, but he told me about this unusual options trade, which hit the tape seconds before. He said, a buyer of 516 TLRD May 2016 14 strike puts bought at 80 cents. For most, they would have no idea what this means or why it's meaningful, however, I know what he's telling me, there's some sizzle. So I quickly typed in the ticker symbol to check it out. I quickly looked at the order flow and noticed that there's been a buyer of puts right at the start of the open. For this stock, this is unusual because on a good day it only trades a few hundred contracts and already 30 minutes into the trading session; the volume has started to exceed the average daily volume. The stock

I was telling Nicole earlier that it seems like people's desperation are taking an extreme these days. Blame it on Obama? Calm down; I'm just Joshing you but, there was a wedding crasher known as the 'bridal bandit' who posed as a guest not to enjoy the free food, drink and maybe a selfie, but to steal gifts and money from the bride and groom. She'd show up at weddings, and steal valuables from rooms and offices when people weren't looking. Then, to take it a step further… The charming lady would use stolen credit cards to make thousands of dollars of purchases from various stores. Sometimes within minutes of vows being taken. But eventually, she got too greedy and was caught and was recently sentenced to prison. Good riddance! It's a typical example of a low life that doesn't know how to make an honest living and has no shame in ripping off others. In some ways, this woman is just like a typical fund manager or financial advisor. Now, I know not all fund managers or financial advisor are like this

Earlier today, I nearly spit out my La Croix all over my computer. I don't know if you saw this, but If not, you're going to get a kick out of this. One of the most recent technological advances is the creation of a virtual reality sex suit. Yeah, now if you're into that kind of thing (No judgement) here's how it works. The kit uses a special headset and a bodysuit with sensors attached. And the whole point of it is to give men the notion they're having intercourse. It even comes with a moving machine designed to simulate breasts. For just $430 you can send impulses all over your body to make it feel like a woman is touching you. Oh yeah, baby! Then the article finishes off with saying (No pun intended): "The suit is revolutionizing sexual pleasure, and bringing sexuality to the forefront for all to enjoy." Just think about how that conversation with the wife would go if she walks in on you all suited up. It got me thinking, not about the suit, but how this VR sex suit idea reminds me of simulated

While drinking my morning coffee today, I was reading through a few emails from readers, and I thought this was interesting to share. Read this email and my thoughts will follow. === Josh, thanks for your e-mails - I enjoy reading them! I'm always amazed at how much people rely on the "experts" such as doctors, lawyers, etc. You're right in today's world; the little guy has a better chance than ever before. I still have a full-time job / will be winding down over the next few years - and want to learn gradually the skills needed for options trading. I have approx $50k in "risk capital." I'm hoping to generate 10k in income off of this mainly selling premium through spreads / naked puts / some covered calls. Do you think that this is reasonable? Thank you again === Thanks for the kind words and glad you enjoy what I have to provide. I don't want you or anyone else to misunderstand my belief on professionals. We all need to be a professional at something to create value in the economy and to others

Last Thursday, I was looking at my trading platform trying to find an opportunity. This market has been so dull and uneventful. It feels like you're sitting in a government office waiting to be called filled with 30 other people and counting them down. Then all of a sudden out of the corner of my eye I start to see Apple drop like a rock, again. That's a little interesting since earnings were out a few days before that saw prices decline. So I clicked on the symbol and started to watch it drop from 98 to 97 to 96 and then bounce off 94 and hold into the close. As it began to fall, I quickly knew like the rest what may have spooked more investors. Mr. Carl Icahn was on CNBC and said they had exited all of their Apple position. Slow clap, it was a great trade, but I don't agree with his tactics of using social media or T.V. to talk his position, but if people are that uninformed to put stock into what he says, it's their money. I find it funny how many people and even professional trash CNBC, but still

He's not the first or last person to think or ask that. I received an interesting question from a reader a few days ago. I wanted to share it with you because you might relate to it: "Which is easier? Making money from trading or selling stuff to a novice like me?" As I said, I think it's a fair question. And to be honest, I'd have to say they're both hard. Let's face it... there's no easy way to make money. Obviously, if there were EVERYBODY would be doing it. Now, It sounds like this guy is suggesting I make more money from selling information about trading, than from trading itself. But in my particular case, I'm fortunate to be in a situation to combine the two, as they both work hand in hand with each other. And it's a classic example of what Options can do for you. I guess the real question, though… is if I am qualified to be teaching about trading. Let me explain… I started trading at 21 and initially cut my teeth on the floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange two years before that. I had

I read an article recently that revealed the population of human beings who are 65 and older will surpass those under 5 for the first time. It predicts this will happen before 2020, and the two age groups will continue in opposite directions. Reason being, people, are living longer with more advanced research, medicine, and technology. While low fertility rates and couples are wanting to save money are the reasons for fewer births. Now, if we put two and two together, this will naturally result in more people needing care and medical attention, but fewer individuals in the workforce. Economically it's going to be a disaster and will result in pensions becoming history sooner rather than later. So, what's the answer to not living in poverty in retirement? Well, in my opinion, it's to learn how to invest in the financial market strategically with trading options safely and sensibly. If you learn how to minimize risk and follow a rock-solid approach that's solely based on putting the edge in your corner;

Quick question. .... What do options trading and the game show "Wheel of Fortune" have in common? Can you guess? The answer is if you study the probabilities and predetermined outcomes of both it is possible to create predictable results. For example, Robert Santoli recently took home $76,000 from "Wheel of Fortune". Later he revealed he'd methodically studied 13 years of clues from websites that archived the puzzles, and created spreadsheets to document his findings. So let's compare him to the majority of the other contestants. You know, the ones who come on with minimal preparation and try to "wing it" on the night. I guess it is possible on some occasions the stars will align, and they might win without any preparation or real understanding of how the game works… But if you're playing against someone like Robert, you're going to get beaten like a red haired stepchild. You see, Robert has an in-depth understanding of what has worked in the past. He knows the strategies required to win. Any you k

You have to wonder what direction our country is heading in when you hear things like this… Because in an age when crime and terrorism are running rampant in America and we fear for our safety… we have a senator in Washington who wants to change the names of certain places that offend people. Now to put this into context… Apparently there are nearly 1,500 federally recognized places in the United States that contain racial slurs. So the question is… how far are they going to take it? And how much time and taxpayers money will be wasted in this obsession about being politically correct? You see, changing a place name is a complicated process. Each request gets passed from department to department with ridiculous amounts of red tape involved. But here's the point… The government should be focusing their resources on improving the economy and the safety of our people; not on nonsense like this. So what has this got to do with trading options? Well, the average person wastes their time and money in a s

So here's an extreme example of what can happen if you upset your wife… Recently a 60-year-old woman from Florida demanded her husband sit on the sofa during an argument where she accused him of being unfaithful. She pulled out a gun and told him she wanted to maim him to give him post-traumatic stress disorder. She'd been suffering from it herself and wanted him to feel what it was like. So she pulled out a gun and shot him in the left knee… but the bullet ricocheted up his thigh and lodged in his testicles. OUCH! I can only image the pain the poor guy went through. But what's this got to do with trading you ask? Well, over the years I've heard many horror stories about traders having unhappy wives. Obviously, nothing as extreme as this but, many wives don't approve of their husbands stock market investing or trading… or believe they're wasting their families time and money on it. Let's face it; it's easy to lose money investing or trading, especially if you don't know what you're doing, and you're

Likely you've had a large loss that may have either blew out your account or saw your life savings slashed more than half. For some, they become shell shocked after that experience. In no way am I comparing the trauma World War 1 soldiers endured to the loss of money in the financial markets. War is the ultimate extreme, but this was the only example I could think of on how significant losses affect those who have endured them. What usually happens is that most, when they start out, want to generate instant profits now! So they don't take the time understand how to manage risk or know how they will react when a position does go against them. They take on too much risk, and the odds played against them, which forced a massive loss. Those who go big, lose big. It makes us feel like the unluckiest person ever, but it's just odds. If you sit at the table long enough, it will always turn against you. I had this happen to me in 2010 with enduring the largest loss I've ever had with a position in the stock

It's a dirty word to almost everyone. … But most are wrong about globalization. The left sees the exploitation of the world's poor. The right sees the exploitation of First World workers. The powers that be state their version of globalization involves political centralization and regulatory harmonization. There's probably some former Ron Paul supporters who think globalization is a bad thing that causes suffering, and I understand why they think so. I don't agree, and this way of thinking is just misguided. The Crab Mentality is when you put two crabs in a bucket, but when one of them tries to get out of the bucket, the other will pull it back even though the other crab could easily get out as well. It's a perfect example of "if I can't have it, neither can you." A prime example of this is when someone invents something that betters our life; some people think it only benefits the inventor because he earns the money from their invention. Because we have to pay for it, we don't benefit. Of course n

Here's the perfect example that illustrates why the playing field is even in the financial markets… You see, the big boys don't necessarily have an unfair advantage. Take Donald Trump for example… 18 out of the 21 Wall Street funds he has invested in are down so far this year. And they have also underperformed industry benchmarks in the last 15 months too. Now, Trump has defended himself by suggesting the funds have done well over time. And he pointed out they were only worth around $121 million… a small fraction of his net worth of $10 billion. But even so, that's still a poor record… Especially for a man who prides himself on his business acumen. I mean, think about it… Trump has the money and contacts to surround himself with the world's best talent. However, the results he's been receiving are dismal. So the point is… even if you can afford to have the "best" managers, you can't RELY on them to deliver, which is why the playing field is even. So here's the fantastic news… You can beat the big

I often hear story after story of people who've gotten burned in the markets. Some even get jaded and nasty. Losses can change a person and their future. That is why this is serious business; it's no hobby. Sadly, people have taken their lives because they blew out their account or have been crippled mentally with too many losing trades that has convinced them they don't deserve to live. It's tough; I went through a rough patch during the financial crises myself, which was a wake-up call. In many cases, people get burned because they followed some cowboy trader they found on the inter webs. They got scooped up into their reckless approach because of greed after seeing their returns made on the big winners. They may have even shown you a large account value they supposedly trade with saying they are transparent as an indirect way to brag and provide you hope it's possible. Some of you likely have been burned by them in the past by following their advice and into oversized positions that blow up your a

Calm down Bernie supporters. … I'm talking about Theta burn AKA time decay with options. Here's how it can work for or against you. For those that buy option premium betting on direction, this is like having a nail in your tire. Hopefully, you can get to your destination before the tire loses all its air. For those that sell option premium, this is one of the components that works in their favor. It's similar to having the wind in your sail. In the markets, you have to pick your spot and go. 99.9% of the time, you're going to have the trade you placed go against you. Think about it like this, a boxer going into a fight is confident he will win against his opponent, but knows he's going to get punched in the face. That's respecting you opponent and being realistic. When selling option premium, you will usually see the position go against you, but the thing most forgot about is that they still have the time decay of those options working in their favor. So while you're feeling the burn on a short opt

I saw this ridiculous post today from a day trading and options trading group on Facebook. The trader and fearless leader of this group has 4,313 subscribed and looking for guidance on how to trade their money. I'm not here to pick on anyone or call them out because that's not what's important to me. However, I want to share with you that taking and keeping money in the market is tough, but it's not impossible especially when most are… (I'll be nice here)... clueless. Most think the enemy is the person on the other side of the trade, but it's yourself. It's you because success is having the right knowledge, risk and discipline to keep consistent and on the path during adversity. Many approach the market in many different ways. As you know, few succeed and most lose. I think this will provide insight on why most lose money. I wanted to share with you what this guy advised his group they could do, and you can do to if you choose. "Did you know that if you start with just $6,500 and wait for the right

Here's an odd news story that caught my eye last week. 14 years ago a guy in North Carolina rented the Tom Green movie, "Freddie Got Fingered". Last week, he was got arrested — 14 years later — because he never returned it. The guy was pulled over because the car had a defective taillight. The cop went back to his squad car and ran the guys information. The officer returned to the car and told the man to step outside the vehicle and that he was under arrest because there was a warrant out. Can you imagine the shock he felt at that moment? How scared he must have been wondering why? Turns out, the store he rented it from filed a complaint about him not returning the video. So he got charged with "failing to return rental property". Wow, right? A small thing like not returning a 15 dollar VHS tape could compound and end up costing you more lost time and money down the road. I imagine if he knew the future, he would have taken action back then and returned that video or just pay the store for losing

With my open door policy to emails, there are times I have knuckleheads who aren't respectful and will find every way to handicap their success. For you to accomplish your goal, you need to be entertained and engaged, so you don't get distracted. Here's what happened. Earlier in the week, I wrote an email about Donald Trump. I wanted to share with you the unedited version this guy named Robert replied to that email with: "If I had read your ignorant defense of the man who is bringing out the worst in America, I would not have purchased anything from you. There is a difference between being politically incorrect and just being a boorish and dangerous bufoon. It baffles me how seemingly intelligent and educated people can see this fascist as good for America. Please unsubscribe me." Now, for some people like Robert saying or reading his name will instantly stir up their emotions. Here's the unfortunate situation Robert got himself into even though he did show that he does have something in common with Tr