Hey y’all,
One book that had a profound impact on me is One Thousand Gifts.
If you’re not from the fairly conservative Christian world that I grew up in, you might not be familiar with it.
But One Thousand Gifts is a quick little book from blogger Ann Voskamp that swept through Christian circles back around 2010.
And its message was simple: that thankfulness should be the core to who we are as human beings.
Here’s one quote that stands out in particular: “Our fall was, has always been, and always will be, that we aren’t satisfied in God and what He gives. We hunger for something more, something other.”
Now, I don’t think you have to be a Christian or understand the doctrine of “the Fall” to get what Ann’s saying here…
Ultimately, she says that humans come up short when they get greedy.
And I think that’s incredibly true.
We like to say that we live in a very divided and chaotic world — what we tend to forget is that the world today is far less divided, far less chaotic, and far, far, FAR less dangerous than it has been at any other point in human history.
But still, as Voskamp says, we “hunger for something more, something other.”
And when that hunger manifests as a desire for progress or unity, those are good things.
But it can be incredibly bad when it solely identifies as dissatisfaction with where we are and what we have.
Thanksgiving has become a controversial holiday (what holiday hasn’t anymore?) for many reasons — and I’m not here to adjudicate what is right and wrong about that controversy.
But I think even if the origins are controversial, the core idea that this nation devoted a day to being thankful for what we have and where we’ve come from is a very good thing.
So with that in mind, I wanted to talk about five things that I’m really thankful for — and I’m going to focus on the stock market, because that’s what we’re here to talk about.
It’s al little self-indulgent, but I hope it’ll inspire folks to take a moment and be thankful for what they have… even if it’s been a hard year.
First, I am truly so thankful that the stock market offers everyday people a chance to change their circumstances.
I’ve talked about this before, but I grew up in a family where money was tight. Sometimes things were good, and we got greedy, and spent too much. Other times, things were… not so good…
But the idea that you could take what money you had and invest it wisely and come away with more money? That wasn’t a thing. At all.
And, listen, we’re very quick to remind everyone that the stock market is risky. You can always lose money. You should never invest your bottom dollar like the stock market is a lottery ticket. That’s all still true.
But really, for me, as someone who grew up pretty poor and has the opportunity to climb the social ladder thanks to the stock market, it is truly remarkable.
Earlier this year, I followed Nate’s Automated Options strategy and nearly quadrupled a small $800 trading account. That’s crazy to me. I’ll never get used to it.
But I’m so thankful for the opportunity. And speaking of AOP…
Second, I’m thankful for spreads. I know that sounds crazy, and no, I’m not talking about the big Thanksgiving spread I’ll be cooking in a few hours.
Spreads give traders crazy power in the markets. The ability to know your exact risk and set a precise target without ever risking more than you can afford to lose.
They’re beautiful, and too often misunderstood.
We’ve been proselytizing on spreads pretty hard at ProsperityPub, and even still, every webinar, we get fearful questions about them.
The truth is: they’re not hard. They’re not expensive. They are not more risky than other options trades. They are extremely powerful and very precise when used correctly.
And I love them. They helped me with Automated Options, and I think I prefer them outright to any other kind of trade.
Third, I’m thankful for weekly and even daily options.
Not a lot to say here, but when the market gives us even more options and opportunities to trade, it’s a good thing.
 (Freedom is a good thing in Scotland and the markets!)
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You Don’t Need to Wish on a Shooting Star…
Fourth, I’m thankful for dividends.
I’ll be honest: I haven’t even built my dividend portfolio yet. But it’s one of my main goals in 2025.
Jack Carter talks about his grandson, “Little Jack,” asking him “papa, how much does this stock pay you to own it?”
“Out of the mouths of babes,” right? It’s really not more complex than that. And it’s super cool.
Fifth, I’m thankful for our experts.
Listen, trading is tough. And the world out there is full of people who talk a lot about their success without trying to share it.
I wouldn’t want to do the job I do unless I was fully convinced that each one of our experts had every trader’s best interests at heart.
With our crew, I am absolutely certain of that.
They help me get to know the markets better every single day. And my goal is to make sure you get the same help and insights, too.
If you’ve read this far, thank you, and I encourage you to come up with a few things you’re thankful for, too. I’m happier now than I was when I started writing!
You won’t hear from me tomorrow, and Friday is up in the air, but truly, whether you’re celebrating Thanksgiving tomorrow or not, I hope you have a great holiday and I am thankful that you’re here!
To your prosperity,
Stephen Ground
Editor-in-Chief, ProsperityPub
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