Has anybody ever taken the Optionetics course? What did you think about it?

Question

Has anybody ever taken the Optionetics course? What did you think about it?

Answer 1

I have never taken an Optionetics course, but I have seen posts by several different people who have. Based on them, here is my opinion.

(1) The lure of their courses is that you will learn "secrets" to successful option trading. While there are techniques to improve your option trading, THERE ARE NO SECRETS. Everything of any value you will learn in an Optionetics class you can also learn by reading a couple of good books on options at a fraction of the cost.

(2) One of the biggest subjects in their classes appears to be why you should spend a few thousand more dollars to take one of their more advanced classes.

(3) From everything I have heard the information they teach you about options is accurate and useful.

My recommendation is that you start by reading two ar three good books about options. My favorites are

McMillan, Lawrence G.: Options as a Strategic Investment, Fourth Edition, New York, New York Institute of Finance, 1992. The grand-daddy of options books. The complete treatment from intermediate level to advanced.

Natenberg, Sheldon: Option Volatility and Pricing, Revised Edition, Burr Ridge, Illinois, Irwin Professional Publishing, 1994. Extensive treatment of volatility and advanced strategies as they pertain to commodity options.

but you need to read books that are written in a style and at a level that meet your needs. I recommend you try browsing through differents books at a large bookstore, a large library, or at amazon.com to find the best books for you. Any of the books in the bibliography at

http://www.cboe.com/Institutional/Biblio...

is good, but may be a little dated. Anything written by Wade Cook should be avoided at all costs.

On beginner's book I will mention is "The Rookies's Guide to Options: The Beginner's Handbook of Trading Equity Options" by Mark Wolfinger. Mark regularly participates on the message board at

http://messages.yahoo.com/Business_%26_F...

as "dagnyt" so you can ask him questions directly if you want. (Beware of imposters on that message board.)