Everything you write makes perfect sense to me. And what I like the most about you is that you don't pretend to have a custom made crystal ball...
Several hundred folks watched me give a presentation this week in Las Vegas...
I opened up my "Think Skeptically" speech with a magic trick (that fooled no one)... And I told the audience that I hoped they would be skeptical of me as well.
Today, we're talking options.
Even for experienced traders, the term "options" is scary.
There's a long-standing belief among investors that options are risky. They can be, if you do it wrong...
But when you trade options the right way, they reduce your risk – giving you huge amounts of downside protection on blue-chip stocks. That's why I've written about the safety of trading options several times in Retirement Millionaire Daily.
Lately, lots of readers have e-mailed asking more about my option-trading strategy.
So today, I'm answering some of the most recent questions I've received...
Q: Doc... I am interested in how you "work" the weak or bear markets with this service. Do you recommend more puts? What is [the] range of the number of trades that you recommend each month? And how long are they in play? – M.T.
A: It doesn't change much whether we're in a bull market or a bear market...
If you can tell me exactly when bull and bear markets start and stop, please come over and we'll let you take over my newsletters. I can't – and don't – invest for catastrophic losses. It doesn't work... and it never will.
Instead, I recommend you keep plugging away, saving and investing your money, and diversifying your risk across many asset classes. Your wealth is nearly guaranteed to grow, and you can sleep well at night.
I've stuck to my strategy of selling puts and calls for more than six years. And it continues to work, trade after trade...
In fact, just this week we closed out a trade for a 10% return in less than a month. If you like to annualize figures to compare between track records, that's a triple-digit annualized gain... something that even the most volatile and risky trading strategies have a tough time finding. And we only trade the best and safest blue chips.
In Retirement Trader, I give recommendations for selling uncovered puts, and I also provide what I call "IRA Alternatives." These are covered-call trades for subscribers who can't, or don't feel comfortable, selling puts. Some months, I might recommend one trade, other months, I might recommend a half-dozen trades. It just depends on the opportunities I see that work for subscribers.
Typically, I recommend options that are about two months away from expiration. This is when you typically see options with the most value.
The ability to trade options for consistent income in retirement is a skill set that I sincerely believe every single investor should understand... In fact, I save every thankful e-mail from a reader who discovered how to successfully and safely trade options. It's a huge reason why I continue to write my research services.
About 32 years ago, my dad gave me my first newsletter subscription – one I still receive today.
It started a passion for newsletter reading that eventually led to me writing Retirement Millionaire. More than that, I was able to share this passion with my dad. We could talk for hours over the phone discussing the different topics in the newsletters we read, even though we lived in different cities.
I don't know you.
So that means I can't tell you precisely which credit card, stock recommendation, or diet is best for you.
After our issue on the dangers of fish-oil supplements, we got dozens of variations on the same question. Here's just one...
Wondering what your opinion of krill oil is compared with fish oil as a supplement. I've been taking 100% krill oil capsules for a few years now. Krill are lower in the food chain so theoretically don't have as many toxins in them. – B.B.
About 15 years ago, while I was researching genetic eye diseases at Duke, I met a publisher named Porter Stansberry.
He convinced me to write to his readers about what I learned during my careers in finance and medicine. Our initial conversations turned into a much bigger idea...
A subscriber wrote in yesterday morning with a couple of great points...
New subscriber from January 2016 and loving the option concept. Thank you for your tutelage.
No one teaches much truth about what's healthy in your diet.
Exercise gurus claim to be a source on what's natural... but they're usually selling diet books and pills.
Even mainstream organizations like the American Diabetes Association regularly get confused about the science. When I was in medical school, they still recommended things like white flour buns, white rice, and a couple of packets of sugar in coffee on hospital dinner trays.
Fruit is a food group that is occasionally villainized because of sugar. So I wasn't surprised when some readers asked why I keep telling people to eat more fruit. As I've written many times over the years, moderation is key. Blueberries are an incredibly healthy food packed with nutrients. Just don't eat too many at once...
Today, I'll talk more about my No. 1 superfood, ways to supplement your retirement income, why there's no substitute for floss, and transportation alternatives for seniors.
Q: What would be a daily recommended portion size [of blueberries] to eat? – J.V.
A: I like to have blueberries throughout the day. In the morning, I'll eat blueberries in my cereal, oatmeal, and yogurt. And in the evening, I keep some fruit – including blueberries – close by for snacking. In total, I eat about a half-cup of blues per day.
Q: We have taken your advice and have started eating our blues with active culture yogurt – Fage and Latta Russian Kefir from Wegmans. We do rinse our blues (a pint at a time) when we get them home and store them in a glass bowl with a plate on top. We also rinse the ones we freeze. But before putting them in freezer bags we dry them on a cookie sheet. Your thoughts on our methods please. – J.S.
A: Your method is just fine. The key is to not rinse too many at once. As I mentioned, washing berries makes the skin soggy and speeds up the pace of mold growth. If you freeze the berries right after rinsing them, you should be fine. Instead of letting them sit around for too long, just use some paper towels to give them a quick dry.
This week, a reader wrote in with a request: "Please stop saying, 'Do like I do.'"
It's a phrase my longtime subscribers know well. It's become a catchphrase of mine.