$Invesco QQQ Trust(QQQ.US)

20260625

It surged 2% pre-market, then fell all the way after opening. Another day of brainless trading.

The market had already surged at the open. Bought a long straddle/strangle option strategy as planned.

1. But again, a poor man's mindset. Bought at the limit order price, prioritized buying calls. But it had already surged, betting on puts should have had a higher success rate. Couldn't buy the puts around $2, watched them turn in-the-money, from $2 to $13! Just didn't buy them.

2. It was already up 2% pre-market, so the probability of a plunge should have been higher, right? Couldn't buy the puts, got stuck buying calls. Delta reached 0.1, quickly cut losses and liquidated.

3. Couldn't sit idle. Delta was less than 0.1 again, entered a position, added cheap positions to bet on a rebound. Unfortunately, the delta was too small, almost no rebound. Probably another day of going to zero.

Lessons:

1. The strategy itself is viable, especially in such volatile markets with big swings. When entering a two-legged position, prioritize buying the side with stronger directional bias first, then buy the other side to ensure hedging.

2. After making a contrary judgment, don't hesitate too much. Get on board first, don't miss it, to avoid having a single leg without hedging. After buying at a high price, you can add positions to average down.

3. Don't just focus on zero-days-to-expiration options. You can also buy options expiring a few days later. Although the cost is higher, the time value is greater, and the margin for error is better. In the case of large volatility, you can expect decent returns.

Started funding in May, trying to learn options.

Funded around 80k, have lost almost 30k so far. Xiaomi fell 10%, most of the rest were options expiring worthless.

Taking a break for now, better to learn more with a paper trading account before playing again.

The country isn't giving any more chances. Can I still add funds and increase positions?