January 2026 Report — My First Options Trade: GOOG Sell Call Assigned
💡 Reading time: ~10 minutes ｜ Series: Monthly Performance Review #1
Monthly scorecard
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Trades | 3 |
| Monthly P&L | +$3,714 USD |
| Win rate | 100% (3/3) |
| Underlyings | GOOG, NVDA |
| Strategies | 1× Sell Call, 2× Sell Put |
January was my “opening month.” Three trades, three wins. But more important than the profit number — this month helped me build the prototype of my whole trading system.
Trade #1: GOOG Sell Call $320 × 6 contracts
My very first options trade.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Open date | 2026/01/06 |
| Expiration | 2026/01/09 (only 3 days) |
| Strategy | Sell Call (covered) |
| Contracts | 6 (= 600 shares) |
| Strike | $320 |
| Premium | $2.63/share |
| Total income | $1,578 |
| Result | Assigned |
| Margin ROI | 0.8% |
| Annualized ROI | 100% |
Why did I pick Sell Call for my first trade?
Because I was already holding GOOG stock. Sell Call on top of the shares is a “Covered Call” — the lowest-risk options strategy there is. The worst case is having my stock called away at $320.
And $320 was exactly the price I wanted to sell at anyway, so even assignment was within the plan.
Why a 3-day ultra-short expiration?
For trade #1, I didn’t want to carry much time risk. A 3-day expiration meant:
- Quick validation that the workflow works
- Minimal exposure window
- Limited damage if something went wrong
The moment of assignment
At the close on January 9, GOOG was above $320 and my Sell Call was assigned.
Result: 600 shares of GOOG sold at $320, plus the $1,578 premium already in the account.
My first reaction was a tiny bit of regret — the stock I’d been holding for a while just “got taken away.” But rationally, $320 was a fair price, and I had pocketed $1,578 on top.
Lesson: assignment isn’t failure, it’s part of the plan. If you set a Sell Call strike at a price you’d happily sell at, assignment is the perfect ending.
Trades #2 & #3: NVDA + GOOG dual Sell Put
After tasting the sweetness of Sell Call, on January 12 I started my Sell Put career. This time I opened positions on two underlyings at once to spread the risk.
| Item | NVDA Sell Put $170 × 6 contracts | GOOG Sell Put $310 × 3 contracts |
|---|---|---|
| Open date | 2026/01/12 | 2026/01/12 |
| Expiration | 2026/02/02 | 2026/02/02 |
| Holding period | 21 days | 21 days |
| Opening premium | $3.15/share → $1,890 | $6.82/share → $2,046 |
| Closing premium | $1.50/share → $900 | $3.00/share → $900 |
| Net P&L | +$990 | +$1,146 |
| Margin | $102,000 | $93,000 |
| Margin ROI | 1.0% | 1.2% |
| Annualized ROI | 16.9% | 21.4% |
The logic behind strike selection
- NVDA $170: NVDA was around $185 at the time, ~8.1% above the strike. Delta ~0.20.
- GOOG $310: GOOG was around $325, ~4.6% above the strike. Delta ~0.30.
NVDA had a wider safety buffer (8.1%); GOOG was a bit closer (4.6%). In hindsight both made money, but GOOG’s safety margin was actually a bit thin.
Why close after only 21 days?
In theory both trades expired on 2/2, so I could have waited for full premium collection. But at day 21, the premiums on both had decayed by more than 50%, so I chose to bank the gain.
NVDA: premium $3.15 → $1.50 (52% decay)
GOOG: premium $6.82 → $3.00 (56% decay)
The logic of closing early: I’d captured 50%+ of the profit, and the risk of holding through the final days of Theta decay wasn’t worth freeing up the margin for a new trade.
This is a “conservative” approach. If you’re a beginner, I’d recommend closing when you’re up 50%–75%.
January recap: three important takeaways
Takeaway 1: Covered Call is the best entry-level strategy
If you already own stock, Covered Call (Sell Call) is the lowest-risk way to get into options. Assignment just means selling the stock at a price you wanted, plus pocketing the premium.
Takeaway 2: Running two underlyings at once diversifies risk
NVDA and GOOG don’t move in lockstep. Running them together means a problem in one can be cushioned by the other.
Takeaway 3: Build trading discipline from day one
I started keeping a full trading journal from trade #1: the reason for entry, the strike logic, the stop-loss plan, the reason for exit.
It’s not that discipline makes you money — discipline is what lets you keep making money.
January cash flow
Starting account net value: ~$310,000 USD
This month's premium income: $5,514 ($1,578 + $1,890 + $2,046)
This month's closing costs: $1,800 ($0 + $900 + $900)
This month's net profit: +$3,714
Ending account net value: ~$313,714 USD
Monthly return: +1.2%
📌 Little Otter’s January note: Going undefeated in my first month, I admit I got a little cocky. I told myself — that’s beginner’s luck. The real test comes later. In the next post, we’ll look at February’s “four-leg operation.”
Disclaimer: This article is a personal trading experience share, not investment advice.
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