It’s no secret … I’ve been trading less this week. 

I like to play the opposite side of extreme moves. For example, when a stock is ripping higher, I’m scheming up ideas on how to short it. 

However, this market is choppy right now. We’ve seen so many red-to-green moves and green-to-red moves… I’d rather wait for the dust to settle. 

And while this might not be “my season” I know someone whose it is…

It’s tax season.

And if you didn’t know … I was a general accountant before I mastered the game of trading. 

Handling tax returns was a huge part of my former day job. 

I’d be the guy staying at the office until midnight making sure you filled out all your forms correctly … yawn.

If I was still an accountant, this would be one of the busiest times of the year for me.

Instead, I’m casually sitting at my computer … writing to you without a single financial worry in the world.

I feel a tremendous amount of gratitude when I reflect on my journey from a miserable accountant to a millionaire day trader.

For anyone unfamiliar with my story, let’s break down ‘how it started’ vs. ‘how it’s going’…

Miserable Accountant to Millionaire Trader

I’ve been interested in money and finance since I was a teenager. And I’ve always been pretty good with numbers.

So when it came time to pick a career path, I took a job as a general accountant.

But I hated it. It was a decent, steady job … but it wasn’t exciting to me.

Deep down, I thought I had the guts to take risks that others didn’t. I just needed to find an outlet for my risk tolerance…

Then, one fateful day, I discovered one of Tim Sykes’ videos online. I had no idea that my entire life was about to change…

I was immediately hooked on Tim’s approach to trading. Then I did the following:

• Became a devoted student, watching every single video in Tim’s library — THREE times! 
• Transcribed every webinar Tim posted, analyzing them over and over (even weeks after they’d been posted)…
• Immersed myself in studying to master market dynamics — (this is when I started to “get it”)…
• Began trading full time around 2010 with a starting account of $50K…
• Found my niche by following a slow-and-steady trading mindset — no gunslinging!
• Focused on my best opportunities in a very consistent, conservative way…

Tim identified my talent and I was lucky enough to be taken under his wing as his protege. 

After countless hours of hard work and studying with Tim, something clicked. And I was making the kind of money most people can only dream of…

Check out this video of me and Tim in New York City almost 10 years ago. (It’s crazy to see how PSYCHED I was to make $100K — considering that now I’m sitting on millions!) 

Discovering Options Trading

I had a serious ‘aha’ moment when I first discovered options trading. I couldn’t believe the gains that were possible using the leverage provided with options. 

So naturally, I started studying HARD…

As I got more comfortable with weekly options, I started implementing them into my momentum trading strategy (based on breakouts in overextended stocks).

Let’s break down the three main reasons why I love trading options…

• Defined risk. I have a negative bias, but I don’t like the risk associated with shorting common shares. Put options allow me to bet against stocks without risking more than I’m willing to lose.
• Massive upside. The percent moves in momentum stocks can be parabolic, which makes the gains on my options trades even juicier.
• Trade variety. If you trade stocks, you have two choices: long or short. But with options, the trade possibilities are endless. I can design any kind of bet I want based on the specific options contracts I include in a position.

Once I discovered the options market, my gains started piling up. There was no stopping me.

But it took a long time to get to where I am. Here’s another video from nine years ago where I’m drunkenly celebrating a big win.

And I didn’t know it at the time, but my pivot to options led to a major career breakthrough…

To Be Continued…

We’ve covered ‘how it started’ … but how exactly did I make millions of dollars? 

What specific strategies and techniques helped me to rise above the 95% of traders that FAIL?!

Check your inbox tomorrow. I’ll fill in all of these gaps and catch you up on ‘how it’s going’…