Learning to Trade Options
Aug 6th, 2009 by Carlos
So this site is mostly about personal finance, even though I’ll sometimes drop some chatter on investing in stocks or index funds. I don’t like to go too advanced into that stuff because it could scare some readers away.
Brace yourselves.
I’m doing something I should’ve done a long time ago, and that’s learn more about options. As you’ll see on the sidebar, I’m currently reading Understanding Options. It’s a beginner-level book and so far it’s explaining things in a clear, concise way that I haven’t had too much trouble following.
I was going to just go out and buy Trading Options for Dummies because I wanted to start from the beginning. But a little Internet sleuthing on Amazon showed me that Understanding Options had better reviews and the first few pages were more my style. After reading it, I’m thinking of also checking out Getting Started in Options.
Why am I telling you all of this when most of you could care less about options trading? Because I also used to think options were way too advanced for me, when I didn’t even know how they worked.
The main reason I’m learning about them is because I just want to know how they work. Plus, learning something new is a fun challenge for me. It doesn’t happen very often, but I’m challenging myself to learn this stuff the same way I did with learning about stocks and investments many years ago.
I figure more education can only help me get better and will give me more to talk about here on this site. As I work my way through the options universe, I’ll be sure to share what I learn here from time to time for those of you that might want to get a little taste of what this is all about and how hard/easy it is to learn.
And for those of you that do have options experience, feel free to send me your favorite resources that worked for you while you were learning.
Image from Perpetualtourist2000
“Because I also used to think options were way too advanced for me, when I didn’t even know how they worked.”
Thanks for proving a point I’ve been making for a number of years. Options need not be nearly as complicated as some folks think they are and others seem to want to make them out to be.
Thanks for your positive comments about my book. I did try to write a book that easily explained how to trade options. I’m glad you felt I succeeded.
Michael Sincere
author, Understanding Options
[...] few months ago I casually mentioned I was reading Understanding Options, a great introduction to the world of options trading. A few [...]