Tell Me About Your Year

It's been a good year. How good?

Well, I'd like to hear from you to tell me how good.

I've spent the past few weeks reflecting on my own trading transformation in 2025—the wins, the lessons, the shifts in confidence and approach. But I'm just one data point. One perspective. One journey.

There's incredible wisdom in this community, and I want to tap into it.

So here's what I'm asking: tell me about your year.

What worked for you this year?

Any certain strategies that delivered results? Maybe you discovered that credit spreads in high IV environments were your edge. Or that buying dips in semiconductors consistently paid off. Or that taking smaller position sizes paradoxically led to bigger overall gains.

Did a particular risk management scheme make the difference? Stop losses at specific percentages? Taking profits at predetermined levels? Position sizing based on volatility?

How did leverage factor in? Did you use it more or less than previous years? Did you find your sweet spot?

Any certain sectors or products that were particularly kind to you? Maybe you killed it in energy stocks. Or found your groove trading index options. Or realized small caps were your playground.

Did you make your money consistently throughout the year, or did it come in bunches? Were you grinding out steady wins, or did a handful of explosive trades carry your performance?

If you can give yourself credit—and you should—what smart decisions did you make this year? What did you get right? What choices are you proud of?

What did you successfully avoid? Maybe you stayed out of sectors that imploded. Or resisted the temptation to revenge trade after losses. Or avoided overleveraging when everything felt easy.

If you learned anything profound this year, what was it? A lesson about markets, about yourself, about the intersection of the two?

I want to hear it all.

Email me at [email protected] and share your story. It can be as long or as short as you want. Detailed breakdown of specific trades or high-level reflections on what changed for you. Whatever feels right.

I'll compile the responses and share the collective wisdom (anonymously) with the community. Not to brag or compare, but to learn from each other. To see patterns. To recognize what's working across different approaches and styles.

There's no single path to trading success. Every person here has taken a different journey, made different choices, learned different lessons. That diversity of experience is valuable.

Your wins might inspire someone else's breakthrough. Your lessons might save someone from making the same mistakes. Your insights might be exactly what another trader needs to hear right now.

Crowd-sourced wisdom, for the win.

So take a few minutes to reflect on your 2025. What worked? What didn't? What changed?

Then share it with me.

Let's build something valuable together—a collective understanding of what actually works in real trading, from real traders, in real market conditions.

Email me at [email protected]. Tell me about your year. I'm listening.

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Sean McLaughlin | Chief Options Strategist, All Star Charts