With the finish line of 2017 fast approaching, the time for reflection is nigh. The first full year of my fun here at Tales of a Technician is officially in the books. I’m grateful to all the coaches at Tackle for allowing me the opportunity to share my thoughts every week. Churning out content on a regular basis is challenging, but intellectually stimulating. If you’ve met me in person, you’ve probably noticed I’m an introvert. I’d rather read a book than have a conversation and rather think than talk. The rare exception to that is when you get me going on trading topics. Put me in front of a group of eager individuals or a mentor-student excited to learn, and I could go on for hours.

Perhaps that’s why I enjoy writing so much. It requires me to find out what I think about a variety of topics and see if I can articulate them to readers. What I lack in spoken word, I make up in writing. At least, that’s the hope. It tests my ability to teach complex investing topics in a simple, digestible manner.

Part of my year-end reflection involves looking back on every blog post to identify my favorite messages. Some required me to think outside of the box. Others tested my ability to demystify convoluted topics. Some probably fell flat, but hopefully most hit the mark.

One of the tricks for making blogging easier is to pick a theme that you return to each month. It’s one less week you have to nail down a topic and provides a string of interconnected articles to build an ongoing story. I began my “The Month that Was” series in January and have added to it ever since. It’s required me to keep my pulse on the market to spot themes worth discussion. Additionally, I’ve had to religiously journal my trades to provide a proper accounting at month end. My consistency has benefited ten-fold, and I’m an unabashed cheerleader of using the Tackle Trade Journal and properly plotting each trading system as an equity curve. Early in my trading career, I was an active preacher quick to tout the advantages of journaling. Unfortunately, I was a better preacher than practitioner. But not anymore.

Here are my top five posts of 2017. If you had the pleasure of reading them, a refresher is in order. Let’s make sure you didn’t miss any minor tidbits. If you are late to the Tales of a Technician party and only just joined us, then consider these blasts from the past that are worthy of your attention.

Concerns of a Condor Caretaker
Behold, the Vexation of Volatility Catching
Don’t Be Obi-Wan Kenobi
How Theta Raiders Trend Trade
Selling Options, Low IV Notwithstanding