
Market Misbehavior with David Keller, CMT
The Market's Only Job | 2026 Options & Trading Psychology with JJ Kinahan
In this episode of the Market Misbehavior podcast, Dave is joined by JJ Kinahan, Senior Vice President at Cboe Global Markets. Recorded September 24th 2026. JJ shares timeless trading wisdom from his early days as a pit trader, explaining why learning to "break even" and cut losers is the most critical survival skill for any investor. We dig into why equity traders should always consult the options chain to understand the implied move of a stock, how the VIX serves as a risk monitor (and why a reading over 25 demands your attention), and the rise of Zero DTE (Days to Expiration) options as a precise hedging tool for both retail and institutional traders. The conversation also explores Cboe's push into SEC-regulated prediction markets, allowing investors to trade specific corporate KPIs (like Amazon Web Services revenue) rather than relying on the unpredictable stock reactions that often follow earnings reports. Topics Covered • Timeless trading wisdom: Why surviving the first six months in the options pit required learning to break even and ruthlessly cut losing trades • Using options data for equity trading: Why checking the "implied move" of a stock (e.g., Apple or Netflix) prevents emotional decision-making when volatility strikes • The truth about 0DTE (Zero Days to Expiration) options: How the market is evenly split between retail speculation and precise institutional daily hedging • Understanding the VIX: Why a reading of 15 is a green-yellow light, 20 is a yellow light, and 25 is a flashing warning to pay attention • The psychological power of trading in "partials": Why scaling in and out of risk prevents the catastrophic "all-or-nothing" panic selling that plagues retail investors • Navigating the new frontier of SEC-regulated prediction markets: Trading specific corporate KPIs (like Home Depot's Home & Garden revenue) rather than the overall stock price • Generating synthetic yield: How selling covered calls (thinking in terms of the strike price plus premium) allows investors to enhance returns while defining their exit points • Why "Hope" is a dangerous four-letter word: The fatal mistake of turning a defined short-term trade into a long-term investment because it went against you Take Dave’s FREE course on behavioral investing: https://www.marketmisbehavior.com/freecourse Check out Dave’s recommended reading list: https://www.marketmisbehavior.com/readinglist Follow Dave on X: https://x.com/DKellerCMT Follow Dave on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/dkellercmt.bsky.social Follow Dave on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marketmisbehavior Follow Dave on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marketmisbehavior The content in this presentation should not be considered as a recommendation to buy or sell any security. All information is intended for educational purposes only and in no way should be considered as investment advice.

