Good morning, traders…

I’m sure you’ve heard the common statistic that “90% of traders lose money.”

This might strike fear into the hearts of many aspiring traders.

I get it. I wouldn’t take an individual trade with a 10% chance of success.

But that’s not what this is.

This stat doesn’t mean trading is a lottery. It means most people approach trading the wrong way.

The options market isn’t easy, but it is beatable.

Take it from me…

We’ve already completed two small account challenges…

Turning $1,000 —> $3,000 … TWICE.

Now we’re giving ourselves a bigger challenge:

To make a 400% return on a new small account. 

$1,000 → $5,000 by October 14.

And this time we’re doing it LIVE.

Join me and Danny Phee TONIGHT, July 17 at 8:00 p.m EST to see how we’ll conquer the challenge together. 

Our last two challenges have proven the options market is beatable. Then why do so many traders lose money? 

It Comes Down To 4 Main Reasons…

Reason #1: They Don’t Have a Plan

Out of everyone who trades on planet Earth, how many write down a game plan before entering a position?

I’d guess about 10%. It’s not a coincidence that the same % of traders make money consistently.

SPOILER ALERT: They’re the same traders. 

Most “traders” (I hesitate to even call them that) don’t have a plan. That’s why they lose. 

When I was playing Division I basketball, we ran scrimmages as a team to memorize our plays. 

We did it every day, over and over again, until the entire playbook was ingrained in every one of our brains.

A trading plan is like your playbook. Having one is the difference between being a bad pick-up basketball player and being Michael Jordan. 

Every trade plan should include:

• Ticker
• Entry time and exit time
• Entry share price and exit share price
• % Gained/Lost
• Volume
• Market cap
• Charts
• Catalyst
• General Notes

Add a separate section for options columns:

• Expiration date
• Contract price
• Call or Put
• Option Volume
• Open Interest
• ‘The Greeks’ – delta, gamma, theta, and vega

Without this plan, you’re not trading … you’re improvising.

Reason #2: They Don’t Set Stop Losses

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen traders on social media posting a trade down 99%. 

Or worse, an entire account down 99%.

Why? Because most “traders” don’t even set stop losses.

They watch their positions bleed all the way to zero as if they’re powerless to do anything about it.

Don’t be like these people. 

You need to automatically close losing trades at a certain price so the position doesn’t wreck your whole account.

If you don’t manage risk, one bad day can take you out of the game.

But if you set stop losses on every trade, you’ll never take an account-ruining loss.

Reason #3: They Don’t Study Outside of Trading

Markets coalesce news, finance, human psychology, global affairs, geopolitics, and much more to form the big picture. 

The best traders in the world are genuinely interested — and incredibly well-researched — in all of the topics I just listed. 

You can’t take shortcuts. To win in trading, you need to:

• Understand how markets work—things like trading hours, order types, exchanges, options chains, etc.
  
• Read the news daily—if you don’t know what’s happening in the world, current events will catch you off-guard (and potentially ruin your trades).
  
• Stay curious—you need to be inquisitive, always looking for that elusive piece of the narrative that the rest of the market is sleeping on. 

Reason #4: They Overtrade (and Revenge Trade)

Most people just trade way too much. 

When they’re winning, they feel invincible. They think it’s time to “press their edge.” 

That’s textbook overtrading. 

When they’re losing, they think they need to claw it back, to “trade their way out” of the hole. 

This is textbook revenge trading. 

Both practices almost always end in disaster.

How much trading is too much? 

You’re not overtrading if:

• You wait for setups that check all your boxes.
  
• You follow your rules (even when it’s hard).
  
• You don’t change your plan or get emotional during big wins and losses.

I’ve taught thousands of people about the stock market. 

These are the four problems I see time and time again, student after student. 

If any of these issues sound familiar, stop what you’re doing and take a step back.

Only work on fixing that one aspect of your trading until you’re never making the mistake.

Do that, and you won’t be a part of the 90% who lose…

You’ll be in the 10% that are successful. 

Happy trading,

Ben Sturgill

*Past performance does not indicate future results