Given the recent stock-market rout, volatility seems like a dirty word. But it doesn’t have to be. Volatility simply means opportunity in the options markets.

Every opportunity to make money includes the potential for risk. In highly volatile markets, you really need skills to have a fighting chance.

The problem is many traders focus solely on predicting the market’s direction, a foolish task in such an uncertain environment. Instead, sophisticated traders try to take advantage of rising volatility regardless of which direction the markets are headed.