credit spreads are like buying stocks you know except you lose all the upside. your ex-air force employees didn’t tell you that?
Credit spreads are interesting, but imo the risk doesn't seem like it pays off for the reward even if you set strikes far OTM and the probability of your sold options remaining OTM is high. All it takes is one bad trade to wipe all your gains. Just imagine doing this trading more contracts, since you make very little in premium especially on low priced stocks, it's possible to not just lose money, but even be in the whole just from one bad loser. I get the reasoning behind it, the probabilities of success are higher, and this style suits plenty of people, but you're still risking a lot more than you could potentially receive even if the probabilities are in your favor. Always good to know this. Having said this, you can always manage the credit spread in case it goes against you early, which is a principle that transcends all trading styles and strategies.