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🎁 Write & Win | How I Managed to Make S$15,000 Profit in August: Discipline, Covered Calls & China Futures

August was a month that reminded me of one of the most important lessons in trading: making money is not always about predicting the market correctly. Sometimes, it is about managing risk, taking profits when the opportunity appears, and avoiding the temptation to be overly aggressive.

According to my August P&L, I finished the month with approximately S$15,500 in profit, representing a +11.69% P&L ratio. It was a strong month, but I would not describe it as simply “getting lucky.” There was certainly some luck involved, especially with my Palantir Technologies (PLTR) covered calls, but the bigger lesson for me was the importance of having a plan and adjusting when the market moved differently from what I expected.

Here is what I got right in August, what I could have done better, and how I am approaching September.

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📈 My August Result: S$15.5K Profit

Looking at my August P&L, the final number was approximately +S$15.50K, with a +11.69% P&L ratio.

But what I find more interesting than the final number is how the profit was generated.

My daily results were not consistently green. There were several losing days, including some days where I lost several hundred dollars. At the same time, I had a few very strong days that more than compensated for those losses.

That

is an important reminder:

Trading does not require me to win every day. It requires me to manage the losing days and allow the winning trades to contribute meaningfully.

Some of my strongest days came when I was willing to act decisively rather than constantly second-guessing the market.

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🧠 Lesson 1: I Didn’t Need to Predict Every Move

One mistake I think many traders make is believing they need to know exactly where the market is going.

I don’t.

Instead, I try to think in terms of probabilities, resistance, support and position sizing.

If I think a stock has resistance around a certain level, I don’t necessarily need to predict that it will reverse exactly there. I can structure my trade so that I benefit if the stock reaches that area.

That thinking was particularly important with PLTR.

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💰 Lesson 2: My PLTR Covered Call Worked Because I Didn’t Get Too Greedy

One of the more memorable trades I made in August was selling a PLTR covered call with a US$170 strike price.

I received approximately US$18 in premium.

At the time, US$170 was around the resistance level I had estimated.

My thinking was relatively straightforward:

If PLTR struggled around my resistance level, I could collect the option premium. If the stock continued higher, I was still holding the underlying shares and had structured the position around a level where I was comfortable selling.

The most important part, however, was something that happened before the trade.

I was lucky that I didn’t sell my PLTR calls too low.

If I had chosen a much lower strike price, the outcome could have been very different if PLTR continued climbing aggressively. I might have capped my upside too early and been forced to watch the stock rally above my strike.

This was one of those situations where being patient helped.

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🎯 Why US$170 Was Important to Me

The US$170 level was not a magical number.

It was simply my estimated resistance based on the price action I was watching.

That distinction is important.

Technical analysis isn’t about knowing the future. It is about identifying areas where the risk/reward makes sense.

Instead of thinking:

“PLTR definitely cannot go above US$170.”

I was thinking:

“If PLTR approaches US$170, this is an area where I am comfortable collecting premium.”

That mindset makes a huge difference.

I wasn’t trying to predict the exact top.

I was trying to monetise a level where I believed the probability of consolidation or resistance was reasonable.

And by selling the covered call, I was getting paid to wait.

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🛡️ Covered Calls: Turning Volatility Into Income

This is also why I like covered calls when used carefully.

If I already own the underlying shares and am comfortable selling them at a certain price, selling a call can generate additional income through the premium.

In my case, receiving around US$18 of premium gave me an additional return while I waited.

But covered calls are not free money.

The trade-off is that if PLTR suddenly explodes higher, my upside can become limited above the strike price.

That is why choosing the strike matters more than simply chasing the highest premium.

A high premium can look attractive, but if I sell the call too close to the current price, I may be giving away too much upside.

August taught me that lesson again.

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🇨🇳 Lesson 3: I Started Nibbling at China Futures

Another part of my August strategy was trading China futures.

This was quite different from simply buying and holding.

Instead, I was nibbling in and out.

When prices moved into areas where I thought they were relatively stretched, I would sell.

When the market pulled back toward levels I considered attractive, I would buy back.

The goal was not to catch the absolute top or bottom.

It was to take advantage of the volatility.

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🔄 Sell High, Buy Back Lower

My approach to the China futures was essentially a tactical strategy:

Sell → wait → buy back → repeat when the setup makes sense.

Of course, this sounds easy on paper.

In reality, the difficult part is controlling emotions.

After selling, the market can continue going higher.

That is when the temptation appears:

“Maybe I should have just held.”

But if my original reason for selling was based on resistance or an extended move, I need to stick to my plan.

Likewise, when the market drops after I sell, I shouldn’t automatically assume it will continue falling forever.

I need to identify where support may appear and decide whether buying back makes sense.

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📊 Lesson 4: China Was a Different Opportunity From US Tech

One thing I noticed in August was that I didn’t want my entire portfolio to depend on the same trade.

US technology stocks, China equities, futures and ETFs can behave very differently.

That creates opportunities.

When one market becomes extremely extended, another market may still be trading at a valuation or technical level that interests me.

This is why I started paying more attention to China-related futures and ETFs.

Instead of putting everything into one direction, I could use different instruments to express different views.

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🧺 ETFs Gave Me a More Patient Way to Express the China Trade

While futures allowed me to trade more actively, ETFs gave me a way to take a more measured position.

That combination worked well for my personality.

With futures, I could be more tactical:

short-term sell → buy back → repeat.

With ETFs, I could be more patient:

accumulate when valuations or technical levels become attractive → hold while waiting for the broader trend to develop.

I don’t think every market needs to be traded in exactly the same way.

Different instruments should have different jobs in the portfolio.

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⚠️ What I Could Have Done Better

Despite finishing August with S$15.5K profit, I definitely made mistakes.

The P&L screenshot shows that there were several losing days.

Some losses were small, but there were also days where I gave back several hundred dollars.

The biggest lesson for me is that a profitable month doesn’t mean every trade was good.

It is very easy to look at the final number and think everything went perfectly.

It didn’t.

There were moments when I could have entered more patiently, reduced my position size, or avoided trading simply because I wanted to participate.

That is something I want to improve in September.

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😅 The Biggest Thing I Would Do Differently

If I could go back to the beginning of August, I would probably be more selective.

There were times when the market was moving quickly and it was tempting to chase.

But the best trades often come when I already know:

* Where my entry is

* Where my support is

* Where my resistance is

* Where I will take profit

* Where I will admit I am wrong

Without those levels, it becomes very easy for a trade to turn into an emotional decision.

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🔮 September Plan: Don’t Chase the Market

Going into September, my biggest objective is not to make another S$15K.

My objective is to protect the capital and repeat the process.

If another opportunity appears, I will take it.

If the market becomes too expensive or extended, I am comfortable waiting.

Cash is also a position.

I don’t have to be fully invested every day.

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🚀 PLTR: Patience Over FOMO

For PLTR, I will continue watching the relationship between price and resistance.

If the stock approaches levels where I believe the risk/reward is attractive, covered calls may remain part of my strategy.

But I don’t want to repeat the mistake of selling calls too aggressively.

August reinforced one important rule for me:

Don’t sell away too much upside just because the option premium looks attractive.

The US$170 call worked nicely because the strike was around an area I was comfortable with.

If the stock keeps breaking through resistance, I need to reassess rather than stubbornly rely on an old price target.

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🇨🇳 China: Trade the Range, Respect the Trend

For China, I will continue watching both futures and ETFs.

If the market becomes overextended into resistance, I may consider taking some profits or using tactical short positions.

If it pulls back toward strong support, I will look for opportunities to buy back or accumulate.

But I also need to respect the possibility that China could enter a stronger trend.

The biggest danger of a range-trading strategy is assuming every rally must reverse.

Sometimes resistance breaks.

When that happens, the correct response isn’t to fight the market.

It is to change the plan.

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💡 My Biggest August Takeaway

The biggest lesson from August is surprisingly simple:

I didn’t make S$15,000 because I was right all the time. I made it because I was wrong in manageable ways and right in meaningful ways.

The PLTR covered call taught me the importance of choosing strikes carefully.

The China futures trades taught me that volatility can create opportunities for tactical trading.

The China ETFs taught me that I don’t always need to trade aggressively.

And the losing days reminded me that protecting capital is just as important as making money.

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🏆 Final Thoughts: S$15K Is the Result, Not the Strategy

Looking at the +S$15.50K August P&L and +11.69% return, I am obviously happy with the result.

But I don’t want to become obsessed with trying to repeat the exact same number every month.

That can lead to overtrading.

Instead, I want to repeat the process:

📌 Identify support and resistance

📌 Use position sizing

📌 Take profits when the risk/reward changes

📌 Use covered calls carefully

📌 Trade China futures tactically

📌 Use ETFs for longer-term exposure

📌 Don’t chase FOMO

📌 Accept losing trades quickly

📌 Protect capital when the market becomes uncertain

August was a good month, but September is a new game.

The market doesn’t care how much I made last month.

So I am going back to the same mindset:

Stay flexible. Stay patient. Let the market come to me.

And if the next S$15K opportunity appears, I will take it—but I won’t force it.

That’s how I plan to look back on August, trade forward into September, and keep improving one trade at a time. 📈💰

$KraneShares CSI China Internet ETF(KWEB)$  

$Palantir Technologies Inc.(PLTR)$  

$China A50 Index - main 2609(CNmain)$  

$NVIDIA(NVDA)$  

Find out more here: GEX: A New Perspective on Market Moves

Use Gamma Exposure (GEX) to identify key price levels and potential volatility shifts across stocks, indices and options—adding another perspective to your market analysis.

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