Time SpreadsDue to their simple construction and low maintenance, time spreads (a.k.a. calendar spreads) are some of the most widely used strategies in the options world. This manual offers step-by-step instruction on how to place and manage long and short time spreads in order to maximize the effect that time decay and volatility have on the positions.

While many traders focus on futile adjustments, we at Random Walk understand that the key to successful time spreads lies in the preparation. Through careful examples, we will teach you to avoid the most common mistakes that time spread traders make. Notably, we will once and for all debunk the volatility skew myth.

In keeping with our tradition of excellence, we have included sections covering early exercise and assignment. To ensure that your education is complete, we have added an appendix on basic synthetic positions to help you understand your trades should you get assigned.

Finally, we have included a chapter dedicated to exploring how the new risk based margin rules will forever change our industry. Strategies that were once out of the retail trader’s reach due to high capital requirements will now be more accessible. This chapter is filled with examples on many of the most common strategies that will benefit from the rule changes. These include married puts, collars, gamma scalping, short time spreads, and more.