Table of Contents
In this interview, Titans of Tomorrow sits down in Miami with options trader JDun, known for transparent live broker logins and a straight-talking approach to what actually works at the screen. He breaks down why psychology without sound technicals is useless, how he scaled from small size, and why paper trading often creates false confidence. If you’re new, this is a friendly on-ramp; if you’re seasoned, it’s a refresh on the fundamentals that keep P&L intact when markets speed up.
You’ll learn how JDun builds edge with volume-price analysis on the 1–5 minute charts, waits for confirmation, and sets stops and targets using R-multiples so winners outweigh losers. He explains handling hot streaks without giving back gains, why starting with tiny real risk beats months on a simulator, and how to think about prop firms pragmatically—use them if fair, but fund yourself and focus on process over daily dollar goals.
JDun Playbook & Strategy: How He Actually Trades
Core Edge & Instruments
Here’s the big picture: JDun keeps it simple—high-liquidity names, clean levels, and price/volume confirmation. He often expresses ideas with liquid weekly options to capture momentum while capping risk.
- Focus on large-cap tickers with tight spreads and heavy volume (e.g., index ETFs or top tech leaders).
- Trade only when the average 1–5 minute volume is meaningfully above the 20-day intraday average.
- Use options with sufficient liquidity: open interest > 1,000 and bid–ask spread ≤ $0.05 where possible.
- Prefer deltas ~0.30–0.45 for trend legs; go closer to 0.50–0.60 only on A+ conviction moves.
- Skip illiquid chains, wide spreads, or news-hype names with erratic prints.
Pre-Market Prep & Levels
Before the bell, he sets the map: where are yesterday’s key levels, where is VWAP likely to matter, and what catalysts could drive flow. The goal is to avoid randomness and let a prepared plan meet live confirmation.
- Mark the prior day’s high/low, premarket high/low, and overnight session mid.
- Draw the first test zones: opening range (OR), high/low, and the previous day’s VWAP.
- Note scheduled catalysts (earnings, data releases) and align bias with higher-timeframe trend (H1/D1).
- Build a tight watchlist (3–6 names) with a clear “if–then”: “If price reclaims OR high on volume, then call side.”
- Decide in advance your A, B, and C quality setups; only A and B are tradable.
A+ Setup Criteria (Confirmation First)
JDun waits for the price to prove itself. He avoids guessing tops/bottoms and instead trades the confirmation—the moment when buyers/sellers clearly take control.
- Require a 1–5 minute close through level (OR high/low, prior H/L, or range break) with above-average volume.
- Add a retest rule: after breakout, enter on the first clean pullback that holds the breakout level or intraday VWAP.
- Reject entries if the breakout candle is extended (>1.5× average true range of last 10 bars) without a pullback.
- For shorts, mirror criteria: breakdown close + low-volume bounce failing at the level, then put side.
- No trade if the first retest fails—wait for a second structure or skip.
Entries & Timing
Timing makes or breaks R. He uses simple, mechanical triggers so decisions are repeatable, not vibes-based.
- Entry on the close of the confirmation candle or on the first retest tag that holds for 1 full bar.
- Avoid the first 1–3 minutes unless it’s a planned OR breakout with volume > 2× the 5-bar average.
- Size the first clip at 0.5–0.75R risk; add only if the next higher low/higher high (or lower high/lower low for shorts) confirms.
- If the spread widens at the trigger, use a limit order at mid; skip if you can’t get filled within your max slippage rule.
Risk, Sizing, and Daily Guardrails
Survival first. JDun frames risk in R-multiples so winners have room to pay for inevitable losers.
- Hard stop at the invalidation level on the underlying (not the option price); place where the structure truly breaks.
- Per-trade risk: 0.5–1.0% of account for standard A setups; 0.25–0.5% for B setups.
- Daily max loss: 2R; hit it and you’re done—no exceptions.
- First scale-out at +1R to reduce basis; trail remainder against VWAP or the 9/20 EMA stack.
- If a trade immediately moves -0.5R after entry without your invalidation hit, cut half and reassess.
Managing Winners (Letting R Work)
The point of confirmation entries is to hold when the trend behaves. He uses objective rules to avoid snatching profits too early.
- Take 1/3 off at +1R; move stop to breakeven minus fees.
- Trail the rest below higher lows (long) or above lower highs (short) using the 20 EMA on the 1–5 minute.
- If momentum stalls (three consecutive lower highs for longs or higher lows for shorts), take another 1/3.
- Close the final third into measured move targets: prior day range extension, ADR, or a clean supply/demand zone.
Option-Specific Tactics
Options add leverage—but only if you control the Greeks and execution. JDun keeps rules that neutralize common pitfalls.
- Choose expiries with at least 2–5 days left for trend trades; use same-day only for A+ OR continuation with fast tape.
- Avoid theta traps: if the underlying stalls for 10–15 minutes after entry, trim and tighten stops.
- Use spreads (debit verticals) when IV is elevated to cap extrinsic risk.
- Never average down the option premium; re-enter only if the underlying re-qualifies.
VWAP, OR, and Micro-Structure
He treats VWAP and the opening range as truth serum. If price respects them with volume, he participates; if not, he waits.
- Long bias when price holds above VWAP after a breakout retest; short bias when below post-breakdown.
- OR strategy: trade the first confirmed OR break with volume; otherwise, trade the first OR retest that holds.
- No chase rule: if price is >1 ATR beyond the level at signal, wait for the pullback or pass.
Psychology & Process
Discipline isn’t mindset quotes—it’s rules you actually follow with real dollars. JDun emphasizes tiny real risk early so your brain believes the rules.
- Start with the smallest real size that still makes you care; never switch to sim mid-session.
- Use a physical checklist before each entry; if one box fails, no trade.
- After two consecutive losses, take a 15-minute reset—no screens, hydrate, reset plan.
- Ban “get-back” trades; you only take planned setups that just triggered again.
Journal & Metrics That Matter
You can’t improve what you don’t measure. He logs only the metrics that change behavior and edge.
- Record setup type, time-of-day, MFE/MAE in R, add-on behavior, and exit reason.
- Track win rate, average win, average loss, expectancy, time-in-trade, and slippage per ticker.
- Run weekly reviews: kill the bottom 20% setups by expectancy; double down on the top 20%.
- Create a “No-Fly List” of tickers with chronic slippage or fakeouts and avoid them for a month.
Funding, Prop Firms, and Scaling
Capital is a tool, not a goal. JDun treats prop funding pragmatically and prioritizes longevity.
- If using a prop, verify rules allow your playbook (no overnight bans if you swing, realistic daily loss limits).
- Cap external account risk at the same per-trade R you’d use personally; never chase targets to meet payout dates.
- Scale only when your 20-trade rolling expectancy is positive and your drawdown stays within plan.
- Add size by increasing contracts after two green weeks with stable execution—not during a hot streak day.
Size the risk first: fixed R, capped drawdown, never average losers
JDun starts every decision with the downside, not the upside, and that shift is his real edge. He defines a fixed R before entry, so the stop, size, and expectations are locked—no “we’ll see” after the fill. A daily drawdown cap keeps him out of the spiral where bad trades breed worse ones. This turns trading into repeating a process, not chasing a feeling.
He typically risks a small, consistent slice of equity per trade—think 0.5% to 1.0%—and shuts down the day around 2R max loss. When price violates the invalidation level, he’s out without debate, because capital protection beats being “right.” He never averages down; if structure rebuilds, he re-enters as a fresh trade with a fresh R. The result is simple math: smaller losers, room for winners, and survival long enough to let skill compound.
Let volatility set allocation: trade smaller, fewer plays, wider room
When markets heat up, JDun cuts size and counts, not corners. He lets the tape dictate risk by shrinking position size as intraday range expands, so one spike can’t wreck the day. Wider stops paired with a smaller size keep the same R while giving trades the breathing room volatility demands.
JDun also prunes his watchlist during wild sessions, taking only A setups instead of forcing B and C ideas. He times entries closer to confirmation and resists stacking correlated names, because volatility clusters and can double-hit exposure. If realized range cools, he scales back in thoughtfully—never because he’s “due,” only because the data says the tape is calmer. The rule is simple: volatility expands, allocation contracts; volatility contracts, allocation expands, and the R stays constant.
Diversify by underlying, strategy, and duration—not five versions of the same bet.
JDun avoids stacking the same exposure by wearing different tickers, because correlated trades turn one idea into one big risk. He mixes underlyings with distinct drivers—an index, a mega-cap, and a sector leader—so one headline can’t tag them all at once. He also diversifies by strategy: breakout with confirmation, mean-reversion fades at extremes, and option spreads when implied volatility is high. Each play has its own rules and failure points, so a bad tape regime doesn’t wipe the slate clean.
Duration matters too: JDun staggers timeframes—scalp, intraday swing, and 1–3 day holds—so P&L isn’t tied to one tempo. He caps correlated names to a single active position and rejects “clone” setups that are just the same beta in disguise. With options, he splits between outright calls/puts and defined-risk verticals, matching expiry to the expected move. The result is controlled overlap: fewer all-or-nothing days, smoother equity curves, and more chances for the process to shine.
Mechanics over predictions: rule-based entries, exits, and reviews every week
JDun doesn’t try to be the market whisperer; he treats trading like running a machine. He uses a checklist to gate every entry—level, volume, candle close, and risk defined—so “I think” never overrides “it met criteria.” He won’t front-run signals; price must confirm with a close through the level or a clean VWAP retest before he hits the button. Each trade is labeled by setup type and assigned a fixed R so sizing and expectations stay consistent.
Exits are just as mechanical: partial at +1R, stop to breakeven, then trail behind structure or a short EMA stack. If a trade fails to follow through within a set number of bars, JDun trims and tightens rather than “hoping.” Every week, he reviews win rate, average win/loss, MFE/MAE, and slippage, promoting the best setups and benching the worst. The point isn’t to predict tomorrow—it’s to run the playbook flawlessly today and make small upgrades after each review.
Choose defined or undefined risk deliberately; hedge, cap tails, survive variance.
JDun treats risk type as a conscious choice, not an accident of the trade. When the expected move is tight and the structure is clean, he’s fine with undefined risk if position size and hard invalidation on the underlying are crystal clear. When volatility and gaps threaten to skip stops, he flips to defined-risk structures—debit verticals, calendars, or butterflies—so the worst case is pre-agreed. He keeps tail coverage simple: a small, out-of-the-money hedge when exposure stacks or into binary catalysts.
With undefined risk, JDun enforces a smaller size, quicker partials, and a hard “no average down” rule to prevent drift. With defined risk, he lets the trade breathe longer because max loss is capped, but he still manages for R and time decay. He avoids mixing risk types on the same thesis at the same time; the plan is either capped or uncapped, never both. The goal is durability: choose the risk profile that fits the tape, cap the tails when needed, and keep yourself in the game long enough for the edge to compound.
In the end, JDun’s edge isn’t a magic indicator—it’s the sequence he runs without fail. He starts with risk and stays there: fixed R per trade, a hard daily stop, no averaging down, and exits that move to breakeven once the first scale hits. Entries are earned, not guessed—confirmation through the level, a respectful nod to VWAP and the opening range, and volume that proves who’s in control. When the tape expands, he contracts—smaller size, fewer names, wider stops that keep the same R. And he refuses exposure creep: diversify by underlying, strategy, and duration so one thesis can’t punish the whole book.
JDun treats options as tools, not lottery tickets—liquid chains, sane deltas, and defined-risk structures when gaps threaten to leap over stops. Process outranks prediction: a pre-trade checklist, objective partials and trails, and weekly reviews of expectancy, MFE/MAE, and slippage to promote what works and bench what doesn’t. He scales only when the data says he’s earned it, keeps his psychology grounded with real (but tiny) risk, and views prop capital pragmatically rather than as a shortcut. The lesson is simple and transferable: build a rule set that protects you on bad days, lets winners breathe on good days, and gives your edge enough time to compound.
