Super excited to share my first interview as a trader, with Becky Gaskell on the Market Mamas podcast! We talked for over an hour (I've got a LOT to say about trading once you get me talking!) about a wide range of topics, including: - My initial trading journey using crypto grid bots to "stack SATs" (accumulate Bitcoin) by capitalizing on volatility like a market maker. - My motivation for learning to beat the market after watching my mother lose half her retirement savings (twice!), highlighting the S&P 500's 13-year "lost decade". - The challenge of algo trading: failing prop firm challenges, learning about overfitting, and the market shakeup from the MetaTrader and prop firm shutdowns. - The necessity of a healthy money mindset, the life-altering lesson that "it's only money", and the need to adjust position sizing if you cannot weather the losses. - Applying stoic philosophy and the baseball analogy: world-class hitters miss 70% of the time, normalizing "swing and a miss" as part of the game of probabilities. - The turning point of unlearning esoteric strategies and focusing on "first principles" and "finding truth" from reliable sources and academic papers. - A paradoxical explanation of why I prefer algorithmic trading. - The trading truth that fixed profit targets (fixed TPI) have the lowest expectancy. A little something for everyone. If you're into trading (or even just curious), I'd really appreciate a view, a like, a comment, a share — any questions or feedback! youtube.com/watch?v=rXomEZhY…

Tell me again how AI isn't actually smart, or capable of original thought — that it's just regurgitating Wikipedia. Blown away… and this actually made me laugh out loud.

So glad to have this coming to my neighborhood. Looking forward to the golf course upgrades too! Welcome to Texas, Alton! communityimpact.com/austin/b…

It's days like today that are why I still trade the first breakout on ORB, rather than waiting for the retest like most people seem to be advocating these days. 12.7R & done for the day.

I know the last thing we probably need in Bastrop is another Mexican-ish restaurant, but I love our local @FREEBIRDS_WB (sorry @ChipotleTweets — gotta #KeepAustinWeird). Just wish y'all had gotten here sooner! communityimpact.com/austin/b…

What a horrible experience with @LendingTree this morning. I just wanted to get some quotes on a loan. I filled out my info (as one does). When I got through, I immediately started receiving a flood of phone calls. Nearly 100 phone calls! And then a list of lenders. No quotes! After spending 10 minutes blocking all those numbers, I'm no closer to a rate. And that's all I wanted. Not a sales pitch. Not "someone to discuss my loan options with". Just a number (or 2 or 3 or 5 or 10). If I'd wanted to talk to someone right then and there, I would have just started calling lenders. I don't need LendingTree to give me a list of lenders — Google can do that. I wanted what was promised, which was some quick quotes on rates/terms. I did not get that. Never making that mistake again.

This week at #Toastmasters our theme was Dr. Seuss, in honor of Theodor Geisel's birthday. For our Educational Moment, I shared some ideas on how to incorporate elements of Seuss's distinctive writing style to add humor & punch to your speaking. linkedin.com/pulse/speaking-… via @LinkedIn

This aged well. It's up another 40 % in 3 months, even with the 50 % drawdown that hit right after my last post on this.

The dangers of Martingale, 0DTE options, copy trading, and gurus in general: morningstar.com/news/marketw…

I think I have a new all-time favorite movie. Maybe when the freshness of it wears off, it'll slide to somewhere in the top five, but it's got a permanent place in my heart. Incredible chemistry between Kate Hudson and Hugh Jackman — two Oscar-worthy performances. The first time they play together (Cherry Baby, on just a piano and an acoustic guitar) is positively electric. Fair warning: be prepared for an emotional rollercoaster. I won't ruin it with spoilers. You may want to bring tissues.

I know they're not a weight loss product, but I've lost 7 pounds in the past month basically just using @Paleovalley beef sticks as my go-to snack and occasionally replacing a meal with 2-3 of them. Delicious and healthy!

Why I don't worry about sharing my edge(s) publicly (but not my code):

The most scalable traders don’t just trade well—they can explain why their edge works. Can you? Apply to RISE fundseeder.com/rise

Effort attracts effort. Entitlement repels it. That rule explains a lot of online behavior. open.substack.com/pub/scotta…

WTF happened at 2pm to trigger a sudden 3.5 ATR reversal candle out of nowhere? I've been checking all the squawks and can't figure it out.

80% of Americans believe the other party will destroy the country if it gets control. That fear—the belief itself—is what’s destroying us. We’re not losing to China or Russia. We’re losing to ourselves. geopolitical-alpha.com/p/the…

Gold is up 61% this year. Gold miners are up 139%. S&P 500 is up 13%. Nasdaq is up 17%. "Well, nobody could've seen that coming." Yes, you could have. Gold alternated with stocks all throughout last year, and had been running ahead from July up through the election. Stock market enthusiasm, buoyed by TSLA and others, wore off quickly. By the second week of December, gold was back on top, hesitantly, and then firmly so by Christmas. January confirmed defensive rotations into utilities, then consumer staples and low volatility. And gold kept running. As to miners? Gold miners are surging right now because they’re finally getting the sweet spot of the cycle: gold prices are high, but input costs—like fuel, equipment, and labor—have stabilized or even fallen, expanding profit margins dramatically. Unlike the metal, which simply sits in a vault, miners turn those high prices into cash flow and earnings leverage; every extra $100 in gold can multiply profits several times over. After years of underinvestment and cautious capital discipline, balance sheets are cleaner, dividends are rising, and valuations remain far below historical averages. In short, miners are giving investors both the defensive upside of gold and the offensive power of operating leverage—a rare combination that makes them one of the strongest asymmetric plays in the market right now. And from a technical standpoint, they hinted at surpassing gold last December, and cemented it mid-January. Yeah, you could've seen this coming.