InvestingWithBrandon

Retail investor: I've got puts sold on 6 different stocks & I check all of them every morning before work.
Me: Why?
Retail investor: ...to see how they're doing?
Me: & what have you ever done with that information at 7am?
Retail investor: Honestly? Panicked a couple times. Closed one I shouldn't have.
Me: So the daily check has cost you money & given you nothing.
Retail investor: When you put it that way...
Me: The trades are a year out on companies below fair value with the strikes 10% under. What exactly is Tuesday morning going to change?
Retail investor: So how often do YOU look?
Me: Few t

THE STOCK MARKET WILL MAKE YOU WANT TO DO THE WRONG THING AT THE WORST TIME.
(this crushes most people)
When stocks are expensive and ripping, you feel like buying everything. (usually more risky)
When stocks are cheap and everyone is scared, you feel like selling everything. (usually a better deal)
When a great stock goes sideways, you feel like replacing it. (a big upside move could be close)
When your plan is finally about to work, you mess it up...
The market is not just testing your research/thesis.
It is testing your patience, discipline, & emotions.
Most people do not lose because they

9/10 times owning a home that you live in is a terrible investment.
Most people will say oh I bought it for 400 and sold for 500.
Yet they don’t add up what they paid in taxes, interest, HOA, insurance, etc over the hold period. Plus RE commissions to sell.
The stock market will VERY likely outperform your RE appreciation for a home you personally live in.
Yes... I know it's unpopular... but it's the facts.

Retail investor: I looked at your strategy. Selling puts without the cash sitting there?? That's uncovered. That's how people blow up.
Me: You have a HELOC on your house?
Retail investor: ...yeah, actually. Never used it though.
Me: So you have access to money, secured by an asset, that costs you NOTHING until you draw it. Reckless?
Retail investor: No... it's just sitting there as a backstop.
Me: That's exactly what this is. My base portfolio is the house. The puts are secured by it. I pay zero margin interest because I'm not borrowing anything... I'm COLLECTING premium.
Retail investor: But

Retail investor: My shares ran up huge & honestly I think it's a bubble. So I'm selling calls against them to protect myself.
Me: If you think it's a bubble... why do you still own the shares?
Retail investor: I mean... I don't want to miss more upside if I'm wrong.
Me: So you're bearish enough to want "protection" but bullish enough to hold? Pick one.
Retail investor: The calls give me SOME cushion at least...
Me: Run the numbers. The call pays you maybe 1%. If your bubble call is right & it drops 50%... you're down 49% holding a bag with a 1% consolation prize.
Retail investor: ...that math

Retail investor: When stocks get cheap I sell 1 month puts. Grab the premium while the fear's hot.
Me: How much you collect on the last one?
Retail investor: About $1,000. Not bad for a month.
Me: Same stock, same fear, same dip... a 12 month put was paying ~$10,000. You took a tenth of the paycheck.
Retail investor: But then I'm stuck in it for a year, right?
Me: no.. I sold 1 year put when it was compelling & closed them 4 months later... at 75% profit. Sentiment flipped, contract collapsed in value, I took the win & redeployed.
Retail investor: Wait... so you collect 10x the premium & STILL

Retail investor: My neighbor's got the boat, the truck, the pool going in. Meanwhile I'm over here investing & driving a 2016 Camry. Feels like I'm losing.
Me: You know what the boat payment is?
Retail investor: ...like $800 a month probably?
Me: & the truck's another $1,100, & the pool's on a loan too. You're not looking at wealth. You're looking at PAYMENTS.
Retail investor: I mean... he might just make good money?
Me: Maybe. But most of the driveway flexes you envy are financed to the eyeballs. Negative net worth with great landscaping...
Retail investor: So the scoreboard I'm losing on...

It's now JULY of 2026.
For 95%+ of retail investors:
- Day trading still doesn't work.
- Swing trading still doesn't work.
- Cash secured puts still suck.
- Covered calls still suck.
- Spreads still suck.
The problem for retail "investors"?
They will continue to do the same thing & expect a different result.
Me?
- I will continue to build my base portfolio
- Sell portfolio secured puts (not cash secured)
- Buy leap calls when it makes sense
- Keep ratios in check
- Do all 1+ year option contracts
- Continue to capitalize in volatility
- Be patient & outperform 95% of all retail investors in th

I make tens of thousands a month selling options.
Here's the part that breaks people's brains:
I'm not predicting anything.
I'm not calling tops.
Not timing bottoms.
Not guessing what Trump tweets out.
Not over leveraged... EVER.
I'm selling portfolio secured puts on elite companies when they're already cheap, 10% below that for the strike , a year out at a minimum for expiration date, & letting time decay pay me to wait.
This is how I beat the market in the last decade+
Its boring, but it makes money.
That's what we are all here for...

VERY UNPOPULAR FACT ABOUT DELTA WITH OPTIONS:
It tells you NOTHING about if a contract is likely to expire ITM or OTM.
It’s a fact.
Stop following other retail investors thinking this.
So what does actually matters for what a stock price is going to do & helps us with options?
EPS growth
Revenue growth
Profit margins
Valuation
Moat
Competition
Interest rates
Economy
Does delta factor in those HUGE needle movers?
Not really… no.
So when you use delta & get smoked, it’s because you are looking at something that really tells you nothing about % chance a contract expires ITM.
Go look it up yoursel

Retail investor: Analysts have a $250 price target on my stock. It's at $180... easy 40% upside.
Me: You know what analysts do when the stock hits $250?
Retail investor: ...celebrate being right?
Me: They raise the target to $300. & when it falls to $120? They cut it to $140... AFTER the drop already happened.
Retail investor: So the targets just chase the price around?
Me: Always have. Price targets are marketing, not real analysis. Nobody's accountable when they're wrong & they're wrong constantly.
Retail investor: Then what do I anchor to instead?
Me: The earnings. A company with great EPS

Retail investor: I bought the dip like you're supposed to... & it just kept dipping. Down another 20%.
Me: What'd you buy?
Retail investor: Some beat down Quantum startup. It was 60% off its high... how much lower could it go?
Me: If a stock falls from $100 to $40 but fair value is at $20... you still paid too much
Retail investor: ...I never thought about fair value. I just saw the dip
Me: A falling stock still way above fair value isn't a dip... it's a recipe for disaster. A falling stock below fair value? That's a dip.
Retail investor: I just always saw all dips as automatic buys...
Me: ...