We were lucky to catch up with Lindsey Bruckbauer recently and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Lindsey thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Risking taking is a huge part of most people’s story but too often society overlooks those risks and only focuses on where you are today. Can you talk to us about a risk you’ve taken – it could be a big risk or a small one – but walk us through the backstory.
The riskiest decision I ever made wasn’t joining the Army at 19… or moving across the world to South Korea for my first duty station… or walking away from the security blanket the military provides to pursue a “normal” civilian life… or even relocating across the country in the middle of a pandemic for a job.
It was walking away from a stable, six-figure tech career to become a full-time trader and start a business — with no roadmap, no safety net, and no guarantees.
But to understand that decision, you have to go back.
I took my first big risk at 19 when I joined the Army — no one in my family had done anything like it. I served for eight years. And when it was time to transition out, everyone warned me: the civilian world was different, harder, riskier. There would be no team.
Still, I trusted myself. I moved to Dallas for a corporate job, then eventually to D.C., starting from scratch as a systems engineer.
After having my son, I came across a conversation on Fishbowl that led to a referral — and, somehow, to a spot in a dual-university MBA program with Cornell and Queen’s University. It was hybrid: weekend remote sessions and four in-person residentials in New York and Canada. I juggled that program with full-time work, motherhood, and being a wife. (My husband was an incredible support system.)
That’s also when I discovered stock options.
I was immediately hooked — the logic, the structure, the challenge. It felt like engineering, but with real-time consequences. Like I had unlocked a portal to a different kind of freedom.
I started studying during early mornings, nap times, and late nights. Eventually, we moved back to Texas — and the pull became too strong to ignore. I left my job to trade full-time.
But even that wasn’t enough.
I saw how broken the trading education world was — the hype, the scams, the lack of structure or safety. So I built what I wish I had when I started.
Everyone thought I was crazy. Trading is risky. Entrepreneurship is risky. Doing both — with a child to raise and a life we’d worked hard to build? Reckless, they said.
But I knew what I was building. I didn’t want to just trade for myself — I wanted to help others trade with clarity, confidence, and integrity.
I believe everyone deserves to live their dream life. And most people just need two things: clarity — and someone who believes in them.
That’s what I set out to create.
Today, that risk is JMT² — an AI-powered financial analytics platform helping retail traders make smarter, data-driven decisions. It’s also Stock Options Made Simple — a structured education program that’s helped thousands trade safely and strategically.
I’ve built something I’m proud of — not just profitable, but purpose-driven.
As a first-generation Mexican-American and Army veteran, I wasn’t handed a roadmap for any of this. I had to build one.
My mission is to help underestimated retail traders build income, skill, and confidence — without getting scammed or burned in the process.
What I’ve learned is that risk isn’t about recklessness — it’s about trusting your ability to adapt. Every risk I took opened a door I didn’t even know existed. And every time, it was worth it.
Taking risks didn’t just change my life — it built the life I always dreamed of living.
Because the best risk you’ll ever take… is betting on your ability to rise.
And if you don’t believe in yourself, who will?
Lindsey, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
About Me & My Work
Hi, I’m Lindsey Bruckbauer — a first-generation Mexican-American, Army veteran, systems engineer and Agile Coach by training, and now a fintech founder and trading educator.
I’m the founder of JMT² (Just My Trading Thoughts) — an AI-powered financial analytics platform helping retail traders make smarter, more confident decisions. I’m also the creator of Stock Options Made Simple (SOMS) — a structured, scam-free options trading education program that’s helped thousands of people learn to trade safely, clearly, and strategically.
But my path here wasn’t traditional — and that’s exactly what sets my work apart.
At 19, I joined the Army — the first big risk I ever took. It changed everything. I served for eight years, then transitioned into civilian life as a systems engineer in Washington, D.C., while also earning an Ivy League MBA and raising my son with my amazing husband. Somewhere in between, I discovered stock options — and I was instantly drawn to the logic, structure, and freedom they offered. It felt like organized chaos — but with real-time stakes.
As I learned to trade, I was shocked by how broken the trading education world was: all hype, no structure, and a lot of dangerous advice. So I decided to build what I wish I had when I started.
What I Offer
JMT² (Just My Trading Thoughts) — a smart, AI-driven analytics and alerting platform that simplifies complex trade signals into plain-English insights. It helps traders make decisions based on data, not noise. We’re building features like real-time trade scoring, categorized alerts, embedded education, and dashboards to help retail traders grow their skillset with clarity and confidence.
Stock Options Made Simple (SOMS) — a flagship education program that teaches logical, low-risk, cash-account-based trading strategies using proven technical setups, mindset tools (like NLP and breathwork), and real-world examples. It’s built for logical thinkers, high-performers, and people who want a system — not a gamble.
What Problems I Solve
Clarity in Chaos: Trading can feel overwhelming, noisy, and fast. I help people cut through the clutter with structured, data-backed insights.
Scam-Free Learning: I offer real education and real tools — no Lambos, no hype, no manipulation.
Confidence Through Systems: I help traders go from second-guessing every move to trusting themselves and their process.
Empowering the Underestimated: I build platforms and communities for people who’ve been overlooked or underserved — especially women, veterans, and people of color — and help them build income and skill on their own terms.
What Sets Me Apart
I’ve lived every part of this journey — from military to tech to trading to entrepreneurship — and I bring systems thinking, integrity, and mission to everything I build.
I’m not just a coach, and I’m not just a founder. I’m a bridge between the real skills of trading and the real needs of everyday people who want more freedom.
My platforms are built around education, empowerment, and ethics — something this industry desperately needs.
What I’m Most Proud Of
Building SOMS from scratch while trading full-time and raising a family — and watching it reach students from all walks of life who now trade with clarity and confidence.
Bootstrapping the early version of JMT² from a Telegram bot into an intelligent, user-centric fintech product.
Creating a brand people trust — because they know I lead with transparency and I’ve actually walked the walk.
What I Want You to Know
If you’re just getting started with trading — or if you’ve been burned in the past — you’re not alone, and you’re not too late.
You don’t need to be perfect. You just need a system, some patience, and someone who believes in your ability to figure it out. That’s what I’m here to offer — through education, through software, and through example.
My mission is simple: to make smart, safe, skill-based trading accessible — especially for underestimated retail traders — and to help you build the life you deserve, one decision at a time.
We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?
The biggest lesson I had to unlearn was this:
Loyalty isn’t the same as integrity — and I don’t need someone else’s permission to lead.
I got started in trading through a mastermind that focused more on wealth mindset and personal transformation than actual strategy. That’s where I first heard about stock options — and I was hooked. I didn’t wait around for someone to teach me; I found a low-cost MLM that offered trading education, joined their stock options group, and got to work.
I was waking up at 4 a.m., studying every nap time, learning everything I could. Within two months, I started trading and getting results — not because I had help, but because I put in the hours. The educator leading the group noticed and made me an admin. I helped her run her community — unpaid — out of pure passion and belief in what we were doing.
But over time, I started noticing red flags. She’d constantly talk about people stealing her content. She made it clear she was the only one qualified to teach. When people asked me to mentor them, I’d send them back to her — out of loyalty and fear of conflict. Even when she used my mindset language in her own content, she never gave credit.
Fast forward to early 2024: I was attending my final in-person MBA session at Cornell. Eight different people asked if I taught stock options. They were genuinely interested. And in that moment, I realized — I had something worth sharing. I just hadn’t allowed myself to step into it.
When I got home, I called her to let her know — out of respect — that I was going to start taking students. I wasn’t asking for permission. She told me I couldn’t teach anything she taught me — that her knowledge was proprietary, and that everyone who tried this before me had failed. Then she blocked me on everything and told me I was unqualified to teach.
It was crushing — not because I believed her, but because I had stayed small for so long just to avoid this exact moment.
But that moment? It set me free.
On December 1st, 2024, I launched Stock Options Made Simple — my own structured, mindset-rooted trading education program. Within two weeks, I signed eight clients into a beta with no funnel and no fancy launch. Since then, I’ve brought in over $25,000 in cash revenue, supported more than 25 students, and laid the foundation for JMT², my fintech SaaS platform now in launch mode.
I’ve built this with my own experience, my own voice, and my own strategy — not to compete, but to contribute. Because it was never about her. It was about helping more people access clarity, safety, and confidence in trading.
That’s the lesson:
You don’t owe anyone your silence. You don’t need permission to rise. And no one gets to gatekeep your gifts.
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
Honestly? Clarity, consistency, and staying real.
In the trading world — especially online — there’s so much hype, so much manipulation, and so many people flexing results with zero substance behind them. I knew early on that I wanted to be the complete opposite of that.
What helped me build my reputation wasn’t flashy wins — it was the way I broke things down. The way I made complex concepts simple. The way I showed up — consistently, with structure, without ego. People started to trust me because they could feel the difference.
I built trust by:
Teaching with integrity — no fluff, no FOMO. Just logical, risk-managed strategies and mindset tools that work.
Being visible but authentic — I shared my journey as a trader and a mom and a systems engineer and a founder. People related to that.
Giving before asking — I shared insights, resources, and educational breakdowns for free before I ever sold a thing. That built credibility.
Saying the hard things — I wasn’t afraid to call out shady practices in the industry or explain what not to do, even if it wasn’t popular.
But above all, I think people saw that I was doing the work. I wasn’t selling a dream. I was building a system. And that level of structure, care, and transparency is what helped me stand out — and stay trusted.
Because when you combine clear systems with real heart? People notice. And they remember.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lindsey.trades/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lindseylugo/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@LindseyTrades
