How has that paper trading worksheet been treating you? Pretty well? I hope so. There are so many things to keep track of, you’d be surprised what all you can use it for. I even use it for tax purposes. Yes, really! It’s amazing how something so simple can be so helpful.
Well, I’m excited to share a couple of updates with you. I’ve gotten some great feedback and have implemented the suggestions. At this rate, I may have to end up charging for it. This is gettin’ good!
First of all, I’ve locked out all of the grey formula fields. I did this so that you wouldn’t inadvertently wipe out any special calculations. As a result, all you can edit are the blue and green fields…essentially, everything you’re supposed to modify!
Secondly, I’ve connected the paper trading worksheet to Google Finance. Sure, it already linked you to a stock-specific page with the appropriate chart and news, but the feedback encouraged me to take it one step further. Now, I’ve included the ability to pull in the current price of the stock. With the click of a button, the current price is imported for each stock listed in the worksheet. The best part is that it only takes a second, whether you have 1, 5, or even 30 stocks listed.
I’ve been using this for almost as long as I’ve been trading, and I never thought about including a current price feature. I always had my streamer or chart page open, so it never occurred to me to include this powerful feature in the worksheet. So, kudos for that feedback!
In addition to the guide videos I’ve already created, I added one more to cover these updates in more detail. You’ll watch over my shoulder, as I demonstrate these new features. You can find a taste of what to expect on the preview page.
I’ve just emailed information on how to get this paper trading worksheet to all of my subscribers. If you haven’t subscribed yet, you can do so at the top-right of this blog, or when you leave a comment on this post.
Let me know what else you want to see in this worksheet, down in the comments!
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Your spread sheet is great and I’m sure an indispensable tool for stock traders, to keep their accounts accurate and for tax time!
Unfortunately, I trade options! I can use the left (input half) of your spread sheet by simply multiply the amount of contracts I purchase by 100, to give me the amount of shares purchased! That works, until the computations are displayed in the right half of the spread sheet (although, that part works for stocks too of course). The reason the computed half won’t work for me, is because of the option Greek’s Delta, which is different depending on what strike price your option is at when you sell the option(s) and so a different computed result will show up!
Is there a way around this (maybe changing a formula somewhere) that will give me accurate results or, (better yet) are you planning on a spread sheet similar to the one you have now, (only, for options) in the near future? That would be a tremendous help, as I can’t seem to find one to use for options!
Thank you for your time and service to help people!
Thanks for the feedback, Don. Unfortunately, I’m not completely familiar with options trading, myself. While I do understand the basics (calls, puts, spreads, etc.), it would be a challenge to put together an options spreadsheet. Greeks, especially, are still beyond what I currently know about options.
While I do plan on covering options in the future, I cannot be sure how soon that will be. I’ll definitely keep track of your suggestions, as a paper trading worksheet would be the best starting place for any future options tutorials.
Best of luck, and I hope to have some better news for you in the future.