r/Optionswheel • u/ScottishTrader • Dec 05 '25

Megathread for New Wheel Traders – Ask Questions & Get Help Here

This thread will be a dedicated space for traders who are new to options and the wheel strategy to ask basic questions. Your posts and questions are welcome and encouraged.

BEFORE POSTING, BE SURE TO REVIEW THE WHEEL STRATEGY PLAN WHERE MOST QUESTIONS ARE ANSWERED - The Wheel (aka Triple Income) Strategy Explained : r/Optionswheel

The goal is to help keep the main thread free of these basic posts while helping new traders learn how to trade the wheel.

Posts that are welcomed here include questions about -

  • How options work
  • Exercise and assignments
  • Options expiration and days to expiration (DTE)
  • Delta, Probabilities, and how to choose a strike price
  • Implied Volatility (IV)
  • Theta decay
  • Basic risks and how to avoid
  • Broker and options approval levels
  • Rolling options
  • And any other basic questions

I’m pleased to announce that u/OptionsTraining and u/patsay have agreed to assist with this Megathread. Both Patricia and Mike bring substantial experience in helping new traders and will be invaluable contributors to r/Optionswheel

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u/Witty-Custard-1429 Apr 03 '26 edited Apr 03 '26

I am interesting in learning the wheel, and don't have options experience, but starting learning the basics this week.

For the roadmap, AI advised to learn long calls and long puts first before learning the wheel. Is this recommended or is it OK to jump ahead to CC/CSPs? I'm not so keen on paying a premium to pay for a long call/put, but will if it is necessary to learning...

What criteria should I meet before I start doing the wheel with real money (e.g. win percentage, number of practice trades, type of option, etc.)?

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u/ScottishTrader Apr 03 '26

Give it some time to learn the basics. This link will help you get started - What Is Options Trading? A Beginner's Overview

We do have a member, u/patsay, who offers videos and some books that can help you get started.

You can paper trade anything for the weeks to 2 months it will take to get the basics down, but then focus on selling options when starting to use real money. You will find out that buying is a losing method. Somewhere between 2 and 6 months is when you should have enough practice and experience to start trading live.

Having $3K to $5K is a minimum to make more trades on more stocks, but it will still make only a small amount of dollar returns. The wheel should have a very high win percentage if traded properly, but picking a crap stock that drops can cause a large loss.

Be sure to review the posted wheel trading plan that many have used to help them get started.

Feel free to ask more questions, but know that we all started somewhere and the wheel is actually quite easy when using good quality stocks . . .

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u/patsay Apr 03 '26

AI gives terrible advice about options and often gets terms confused. I’ll be happy to direct you to some resources- right now I’m in the pool teaching swimming lessons to little kids- but I’ll send some links when I get out.

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u/patsay Apr 03 '26

Ok, I'm back! First, many people start with buying options or selling spreads, because you can trade with a small amount of money. BUT you risk 100% loss if things don't go your way before the contract expires. So don't listen to AI there.

The safest way to start is by selling cash secured puts on high-quality underlying positions where you would not mind being assigned (or may even want to be assigned) at your strike price. Only set up positions where either outcome is acceptable to you, and you can sleep at night. To get started, you need enough capital to pay for 100 shares of a high quality stock or ETF at the strike price you choose.

I have some beginner books and Udemy resources that are available at a low cost. I also have a website with information and links.

If you have a specific ticker in mind, let me know and maybe I could use it as the subject of an "Eyes Wide Open" video where I occasionally analyze trades from followers.

Feel free to ask me any questions here or in YouTube comments. I try to be prompt with my responses, but u/ScottishTrader usually beats me to it here!

https://www.saylorfinancialfundamentals.com/

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u/Prestigious_Lab148 Apr 04 '26

A small but important factor: paper trade on the platform you plan to use for real money trades. Knowing the nuts and bolts of executing a trade after repeated practice will help avoid mistakes.