A Week of Stop Drawdown 6-23-23

 The major indices pulled back this week after several weeks up. The overbought conditions are eased some. SPX is way above its 20 DMA at 4300. RUT is still legging. It may come back to retest the 200 DMA. The seasonality is playing out. We may see the pullback continue into next week. 

IBQ Netliq stabilized at 320K from last week's 309K. This was a holiday-shortened week. The options' value is down 10% from -197.7K to -177.5K. The leverage is down 11% from 98 to 87. The realized P/L is 2.1K, better than -22K last week. The premiums collected are $2,477. I had one BFP worked out. I made 79 trades in 4 work days. That's about 20 trades per day. It's a lot more than I expected. The positions were increased overall. My plan for the week was to use the B/P to speed up the reduction plan. Altogether the drawdown was stopped this week. Adjusting the delta positions after a breakout often takes 1-3 weeks. 

The two small accounts are still underwater. I split each SC into two in an attempt to speed up the unwinding process. It worked better than the old method. Each account only got about $130 for the week. It's a waste of time and opportunity. 

Lessons and Plan:

1. I marked levels each morning from the plan of last week. 

2. I took a quick meditation in the mid of the day. I remind myself to stay calm and focused. 

3. I will continue to work on my patience. Knowing market time helps to ease my anxiety.    

 

The Best Weekly Rally Of The Year 6-16-23

 SPX finally broke above 4410. It's higher than last August's high of 4330. S&P futures touched the weekly value area high. NQ passed that level two weeks ago.  RUT is legging behind. The small caps usually are the leading indicator. RSI points to the market being at the overbought level. The Fear and Greed Index is 82, which is an extreme greed level. The market may need to take a breath or P/B soon. Only the price action will tell next week. 

My IBQ Netliq suffered a big 11% drawdown from 34.8K to 3101K. The options' value jumped 20% from -160K to 198K. I didn't adjust my SCs quick enough when the market was rallying. The leverage also increased by 21% from 77 to 98. The realized P/L is down $22.8K. It's worse than last week's -17.1K. The collected premiums are only $1545. I didn't trade any BF this week. I made 80 trades for the week. It's about 16 trades a day. I reduced SPX SC from 6 to 5, and SP from 5 to 4. RUT added 2 SCs from 3 to 5. It was a poorly traded week. I haven't experienced such a drawdown in recent months. 

The two small accounts are deeper ITM this week. IBP collected $586. TOS had $485. The total is only $1071 for this week. I had to break the DITM SC from 1 to 2. My plan is to bring the strike prices up to exit half of it first.  

Lessons and Plan:

1. I didn't have a clear plan and levels for each day. 

2. I relied on hope and fear of reversal for my trade decisions. 

3. My old habit of waiting to see affected my ability to adjust my delta quickly. 1. Consider breaking down the technical jargon for readers who may not be familiar with the terminology used. This will make the writing more accessible to a wider audience.

4. Focus on developing a clear and structured trading plan with specific levels for each day. This will help you make informed decisions and avoid relying on hope and fear.

5. Make a conscious effort to adjust your delta quickly and avoid waiting to see the market direction. This will help you react to sudden changes and minimize potential losses.

The Break Out Continues 6-9-23

 The breakout continued following the seasonal pattern. All the major indices closed in green this week. SPX made a 52-week closing high. It closed slightly higher than the August high. VIX closed at a low 15s. There are some major news events next week. It may be a volatile week. 

The IB Netliq is up 0.5%, from 342.4K to 343.8K for the week. The options' value is slightly up from 158.7K to 159.5K. The leverage is flat at 77ish. The realized P/L is negative, -17.1K. I have had several SCs DITM with this rally. The collected cash is $3373 with one BFP. I made 82 trades this week. It's an average of 16.4 per day. It's way too many. SPX reduced one SP. RUT is one SC less. Overall it was a flat week. I feel that I lost some of my mental edge. 

The two small accounts didn't get out their DITM SCs with this rally. I only collected some premiums with each rollout. IBP got $391. TOS collected $505. It was a disappointing week for the two accounts. I may add the 0DTE strategy back after FOMC next week. 

Lessons and Plan:

1. I still have the urge to enter trades despite the timing. 

2. I should try to recognize urges. Ride with the urge but do not act on it.  Overtrading is mostly caused by urges. 

3. I need to remember to practice short meditation during the day. It may help me to be patient.  

4. I remember the active periods. I need to have the patience to wait for them. 

   

A Break Out To The Upside 6-2-23

 After the debt ceiling was resolved, the major indices finally broke out to the upside. SPX broke the two-month range of 4070-4200. It looks to retest last August's high of 4325. RUT also broke the range of 1700-1810 from last March. It crossed its 200 SMA for the first time in 3 months. Seasonally the rally may last till the mid of June.  

The IB Netliq booked -8K from 350K to 342K for the week. I couldn't adjust my positions aggressively since I had to obey the -1+1 rule. The options' value had a bad week, up 7.5% from -146K to -158K. The leverage is up from 71 to 76. The realized P/L is 13.4K. The collected cash is $2057 for the 4-day week. The last two items provided a little comfort. I made 61 trades for the week. SPX positions increased one on each side from 5 to 6. RUT reduced one SP from 5 to 4. The SC is still at 3. The account suffered a little setback overall. 

The two personal accounts performed fair for the week. IBP received $2441 while TOS collected $3489. The total cash collected is $5930 for this 4-day week. But both accounts carried an SC DITM into next week. This BF rolling strategy does not work well in any large movement.  

Lessons Learned and The Plan for next week

1. Being disciplined doesn't mean no setbacks. Like I followed the -1+1 rule. I couldn't adjust my positions aggressively during a trending day. Discipline can prevent me from over-trade.  

2. Being patient could come from realizing the time and movement of the day.

3. I need to be more consistent in my morning preparations.  

4. I will stay the course eliminating the long-term positions in IBQ.