Options Cafe blog - options trading education and strategies

We like to explore, educate, and share ideas involving options trading. Come along with us on
our journey to demystify the complex yet rewarding world of options trading.

  1. Wheel Strategy vs Buy and Hold: 3 Years of Real Returns
    Wheel Strategy vs Buy and Hold: 3 Years of Real Returns
    I ran my documented wheel trades against SPY’s total return for 2024, 2025, and 2026 so far. The wheel won two of three years, but by less than you would think.
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  2. Options Trading Mistakes: 10 That Cost Me Real Money
    Options Trading Mistakes: 10 That Cost Me Real Money
    The ten costliest options trading mistakes I have made, each with the exact dollar amount it cost me and the rule I changed afterward.
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  3. Wheel Strategy in an IRA: Tax-Free Options Income
    Wheel Strategy in an IRA: Tax-Free Options Income
    How to run the wheel strategy inside a Roth or traditional IRA, why retirement accounts are the best home for options income, and what the tax savings actually look like.
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  4. How to Pick Stocks for the Wheel Strategy (My Checklist)
    How to Pick Stocks for the Wheel Strategy (My Checklist)
    A member who finished my entire course asked how I actually pick stocks for the wheel strategy. Here is my real checklist — the one hard rule, the numbers I screen for, and how to match stocks to your account size.
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  5. Rolling Options Explained: When to Roll vs Take the Loss
    Rolling Options Explained: When to Roll vs Take the Loss
    A practical guide to rolling options—what it means, the three types of rolls, my rules for when to roll versus take the loss, and real trades with documented P&L.
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  6. Options Premium Selling: The Theta Gang Playbook for Income
    Options Premium Selling: The Theta Gang Playbook for Income
    Why I stopped predicting markets and started selling options premium. The complete theta gang playbook—strategies ranked by difficulty, with my real results.
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  7. VIX Backwardation vs Contango: Buy the Relief
    VIX Backwardation vs Contango: Buy the Relief
    VIX backwardation inverts the term structure on just 7.7% of trading days. Across 17 years, buying the panic was a coin flip — but buying the relief won 88% of the time.
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  8. Options Trading for Beginners: Why I Sell Premium First
    Options Trading for Beginners: Why I Sell Premium First
    A beginner’s guide to options trading that teaches selling premium for income instead of buying calls—covering broker setup, your first trade, and realistic income.
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  9. Zero DTE SPX Iron Butterfly: 431% Returns and a Brutal 2025
    Zero DTE SPX Iron Butterfly: 431% Returns and a Brutal 2025
    The zero DTE SPX iron butterfly returned 431% in 2024 — then 2025 gave it all back. Here’s exactly how I trade it, why it failed, and who should run it.
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  10. 3 Options Income Strategies I Use Every Month
    3 Options Income Strategies I Use Every Month
    A complete guide to selling options for monthly income, ranked by difficulty, capital, and real results from three strategies I trade publicly.
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