2025 is done. +82.82% total return.
But let me be honest about how it felt in the moment.
The first half of the year? Slow. Frustrating. I was underperforming the S&P and questioning everything.
But I didn't blow up my strategy. I didn't chase. I just kept rolling, kept waiting, kept trusting the process.
Rolling options out weeks and months isn't fun. But that's the job. I signed up for this.
Eventually, patience paid off. Positions expired. New premiums came in. The second half took off.
What I'm most grateful for isn't the 82%.
It's what options income gave me this year:
- Down payment for real estate investment
- A vacation with my family
- Peace of mind when layoffs hit my company
That's the real return. Freedom from stress. Income I control.
Every day I thank God for showing me this path.
On to 2026. Let's keep building.
Solid reference for anyone selling puts.
The hardest part of selling puts is picking the right strike price.
This gives you a starting point on most of the names on here.
Get paid to wait for your price.
Mostly weeklies. Sometimes two weeks if I know I'll be busy or on vacation and don't want to deal with expirations that week.
The only time I go long term is when I'm rolling a deep in the money position. In that case I aim for a credit and a lower strike, even if it means going months out.
Stocks don't always go up. Here's how I manage when they don't.
$AXTI dropped from $120 to $85. Few weeks ago I sold a put at $105. The stock kept dropping.
So instead of panicking, I rolled it twice.
May 27: Sold the put. Collected $1,270.
May 29: Rolled to a lower strike. Collected $2,540.
June 5: Rolled again to a lower strike. Collected $1,120.
Total in my pocket so far: $4,930.
The stock dropped 30%. I collected $4,930.
Patience does the work. And if it keeps falling, I can keep rolling.
Expiration Friday.
Not a green one this week. Most positions are deep in the money.
Already rolled $AVGO yesterday. Rolling most of the others today.
This is what real options selling looks like.
Some weeks you collect. Some weeks you adjust.
Both are part of the same strategy.
It gives me more time and I'm not locked into buying at the higher price. The trade off is time. So instead of paying $115 today, I wait a few more weeks and pay $100 for the same stock.
I don't always roll. Sometimes I take the shares and sell covered calls instead.
One thing to watch though. If the stock dropped a lot, calls at the price you bought won't pay much. You might be tempted to sell calls below your cost basis. That's where the trouble starts.
Rolled my AVGO puts yesterday.
Earnings were great but expectations were too high.
This might need some more time for reality to reset.
Will wait for now.
Google announced an $80B raise yesterday for AI infrastructure.
Who benefits when that money gets deployed?
$AVGO. Designs Google's custom TPUs. Long term deal through 2031.
$CIFR. Google has existing ties through last year's hosting deal. Not as direct as $AVGO but worth a consideration.
Sold puts on both today. $5,784 in premium collected.