InvestingWithBrandon

I'd rather own 5 ULTRA high conviction stocks vs 50 garbage companies that are pipe dreams...
What I Look For:
- Good Valuation
- Moat
- Pricing power
- Durable Competitive Advantage
- Ok To Hold For Long Run
- All 1+ year option contracts
You work hard for your money, stop gambling like most retail "traders" do.

I'll never criticize the new investor making $50/month selling options...
Unless they do covered calls or cash secured puts...
Then I will.
(those strategies are a trap)
Most new investors fall victim to this because it's viewed by the herd as "safe" and "low capital"
But in reality, it's a way to cap upside on a bullish company (covered call) & a way to sit on a bunch of cash when you are bullish on a company (cash secured put)
I haven't met a single person that made millions selling CCs or CSPs...
But I have personally made millions selling portfolio secured puts, not cash secured.
Ratios in

When the market "CRASHES"
Everyone says "Buy the dip"
But do you know what it feels like to actually buy during a "meltdown" as an average retail investor?
- Your portfolio is red.
- The news says the world is ending.
- You second guess everything.
- You end up panic selling... at the exact wrong time.
Happens every cycle.
Smart investors will:
- Buy shares while they are on sale.
- Buy calls when nobody wants them. (cheaper)
- Sell puts when the herd is paying top dollar for them. (selling for max premium)
I always say the emotional aspect of investing is what crushes most retail investors

Sometimes, the best move to make in the stock market is to DO NOTHING.
Every headline doesn't need to be reacted to.
Every dip doesn't justify being bought.
Every pump doesn't justify to sell.
Be calculated and stick to your plan.

🔴Please... Just Stop
Stop selling CSP's
Stop selling covered calls on bullish stocks
Stop day trading
Stop doing short duration options trades
Stop getting emotional with your investments
Stop following the broke herd
Instead, do this:
- Build base portfolio
- Sell portfolio secured puts
- Use cash flow to buy more shares & some LEAP calls.
- Know what you own and why
- Accept volatility as opportunity
- Do 1+ year duration plays because they are easier
- Keep ratios in check
- Be patient

I make about $29k a month with options.
NO Day trading
NO Swing trading
NO Covered calls
NO Cash secured puts
NO BS
INSTEAD, I DO THIS:
Build base portfolio
Sell portfolio secured puts (not cash secured)
Buy LEAPS with the premium from sold puts
BUY shares with the premium from sold puts
(all 1+year option contracts)
I can explain it to a 13 year old & I will likely outperform 95% of people that read this.
Simple wins.

Retail investors have been fed crap their entire lives about how to make it in the stock market.
Do more trades
Get more screens
Draw more lines
Get more indicators
Take on more leverage
Get your timing better
Do more complex options strategies
All to realize... it was all a waste.
The disgust you will eventually feel will be like nothing you ever experienced before.
You poured your heart and soul into trading and didn't make it.
Just like almost everyone else...
And at that point, you will give up and think the stock market is not for you.
But the hard truth that took me many years to realize

If a 8% dip from ATH when valuations were high to start is shocking you... You need to re assess your investment philosophies.
Take a mental note of all the X accounts posting crazy high beta stocks last year that are now down 75%+
I never forget.
Be an investor, not a speculator.

Selling covered calls is the most popular herd mentality "options strategy" on earth.
Let me explain.
Covered calls means you own the shares, that's what makes it covered.
If you own the shares, you are bullish right?
Hope so!
So what does selling calls actually mean?
Well, you are agreeing to sell your shares at a certain price in a certain timeframe.
Sounds good right?
You get to sell your shares for a profit and collect the premium.
In theory, sure.
But in the real world, there is a MAJOR problem.
CAPPING YOUR UPSIDE!
I can't tell you how many people I have talked to that bought shares caus

Your HORRIBLE strike price is why you get smoked with options...
(how to fix it right now)
Most retail investors sell puts with a strike price 5% ish below the current market price to "build a margin of safety"
They usually do this with monthly contracts.
Here's the BIG problem.
5% is not a good enough margin of safety, especially with a 1 month contract where you have no tailwinds of growth behind you.
(as EPS climbs, the stock will follow that up)
The solution is to sell 1+ year portfolio secured puts.
You can pick a strike price 20% below the money, get great premium, build a MUCH better ma

If you put $100 into $TSLA in 2010, you would be "rich" today.
Well...Let’s play it out if you somehow did nothing & held until right now.
You would have $1,005 by the end of 2015
and did nothing
Then watched that $1,005 climb to about $1,589 by the 2018 peak
and still did nothing
Then watched $1,589 get cut to $1,049 in the late 2018 crash
and still did nothing
Then watched it rip to around $25,741 at the November 2021 peak
and still did nothing
Then watched $25,741 collapse to about $12,871 at the October 2022 bottom
and still did nothing
Then watched $12,871 explode to a little over $26,95

The market is off its highs.
Here is exactly what I am doing.
Q about $573. NVDA about $171. META about $556.
All below ATH. All compelling fundamentally.
1. Selling portfolio secured puts for top dollar.
The herd is buying puts for protection. Premiums are elevated.
Q $515 strike. META $500 strike. NVDA $150 strike.
Taking in premium and deploying it into shares & some calls.
2. Buying 1-2 year LEAPS while nobody wants them.
Nobody wants call options when the market pulls back.
I buy them for bottom dollar.
Direction just has to be right. Timing forgiven with long duration.
3. Dollar cost ave

$10,000 in VOO. Never touch it.
Here is what happens over 30 years.
S&P 500 historical average: 10% per year.
10 years: $25,900.
20 years: $67,275.
30 years: $174,494.
This already beats 95% of professional fund managers.
You did nothing.
Now add the options layer on top.
Sell portfolio secured puts on quality companies near intrinsic value.
Take premium. Buy more VOO & Q. Buy LEAPS.
$10k at 10% for 30 years: $174K.
$10k at 25% for 30 years: $2.8M.
Same starting amount.
Same 30 years.
The system is everything.
40% VOO. 40% Q. 20% individual companies.
That is the base. Then the options layer d

Meta is down 30% from its ATH.
Here's a trade that could make sense
52 week high: $796.
About today: ~$556.
Off ATH: -30%.
EPS beat last quarter.
Moat. Pricing power. AI cycle intact.
Down on macro noise not fundamentals.
The trade:
Strike price: $500.
Duration: 1 year.
Est. premium collected: ~$5,500.
Secured by base portfolio.
Take the $5,500.
Buy Meta shares & LEAPS.
Zero cash idle.
Would I buy Meta at $500?
Absolutely.
So I sell the put and get paid to wait.
Portfolio secured put wins again.

Nvidia is down about 19% from its ATH.
The math on a 1 year sold put right now.
ATH: $212.
About today: ~$171.
Off ATH: -19%.
1 year portfolio secured put at $150 strike:
Est. premium collected: ~$2,300.
12% below current price.
Breakeven after premium: ~$127.
Cash secured would need $15,000 sitting idle.
Portfolio secured = $0 idle.
Take the $2,300. Buy NVDA shares & calls.
NVDA at $127 breakeven.
EPS still growing.
That is extraordinary value.
I take that assignment happily.
Portfolio secured put wins again.

Q is down 10% from its ATH.
Here is the exact trade I am looking at.
Q: about $573 today. ATH was $637.
Sell Put:
1 month put at $545 strike: ~$400 collected.
1 year put at $515 strike: ~$3,700 collected.
Monthly put problems:
Need 9+ trades in a row just to match.
Cash secured needs $54,500 sitting idle.
Market can stay down for months.
1 year put — why I do it:
EPS has 12 months to grow.
Base portfolio is the collateral. Zero cash idle.
Take the $3,700. Buy Q shares & calls potentially.
Q at $515 in 1 year would be historically cheap.
I am fine with that assignment.
Portfolio secured put win