Options trading isn't just about speculation -- although it can be. For example, even many beginners are familiar with the concept of a covered call. You sell a call contract on a stock you already own at a price above where the stock is trading. If the stock reaches the exercise price, you sell the stock, keeping the gain and the premium you collected at the outset of the trade. If the stock doesn't rise to the exercise price, you keep the premium and the stock. Win-win. Read here about the many uses of options, from generating income, to hedging a portfolio, to pure speculation.