I Lost 4.7% in July… But My Portfolio Still Paid Me $13,825

At the end of July, my portfolio was worth approximately $823,000, with total profits since I started sitting just under $64,000, or roughly 7% on invested capital. My internal rate of return was just over 9%, while the portfolio's passive-income yield was approximately 20.29%, equivalent to around $168,000 in annualized income.

I've intentionally been bringing that average yield down over time as I move away from higher-risk positions and toward more core holdings. I'm less interested in chasing the highest possible yield and more focused on building an income snowball that I can live with for the long term.

The monthly income chart is one of the numbers I pay the most attention to. Over the previous year, my distributions have averaged roughly $13,000–$14,000 per month, even as the market moved through different conditions.

July continued that trend.

I received approximately $13,825 in distributions, including more than $3,700 from QYLD across four weekly payments, over $1,700 from QQQY, more than $1,000 from SPYI, and more than $1,000 from MLPI. XLEI also contributed approximately $563 on its first payday of the month.

The portfolio value matters, but so does the cash flow it produces. For me, that's the purpose of the income strategy: to keep the income engine running even when prices get noisy.

July was also a month of portfolio cleanup.

I exited XQQI, the leveraged version of QQQI, after deciding that the amplified downside wasn't something I wanted to continue carrying as market sentiment shifted. I collected the July distribution and sold the full position on July 22 and 23.

I also exited AIPI, the REX AI Equity Premium Income ETF. While the yield is attractive, I already had exposure to similar strategies through other positions, and I didn't want to keep adding overlapping AI income funds.

I also closed out several of my smaller weekly ETF experiments, including the Roundhill positions tied to ARM, AMD, and UNH.

The weekly-income concept was appealing, but after watching the price behavior, I decided the volatility wasn't worth it for my long-term portfolio. The experiments served their purpose: they gave me real-world experience with the strategies and helped me decide what I did and didn't want to own going forward.

The broader direction is becoming clearer. I'm moving away from leveraged and short-cycle structures and toward cleaner income positions with simpler mechanics and, where possible, longer track records.

That doesn't mean I'm eliminating risk. It means I'm becoming more selective about the risks I'm willing to take.

While I sold several positions, I also added four new ones. Each was intentionally small and designed to serve a different purpose.

NEHI: A Small Ethereum Income Bet

NEHI, the NEOS Ethereum High Income ETF, was my first addition.

I started with approximately 131 shares, making this a very small speculative allocation. The fund provides Ethereum exposure with an income overlay through a covered-call strategy, and its distribution yield was nearly 31% at the time of the update.

I'm not treating that yield as a reason to make a large investment. I already have significant Bitcoin exposure through BTCI, so this is more of a test drive. I want to see how the distributions behave and whether Ethereum can regain some momentum before considering a larger allocation.

AAPW: Apple With Weekly Income

Next was AAPW, the Roundhill Apple Weekly ETF.

Yes, I had just exited several weekly ETFs, so adding another one might seem contradictory. The difference is that Apple is a company I already have long-term conviction in, including direct Apple holdings in my retirement accounts.

AAPW started as another small position of approximately 116 shares. I'm interested in seeing how the weekly distributions perform over the coming months before deciding whether it deserves more capital.

OMAH: More Diversification Through Berkshire-Style Holdings

I also added OMAH, the VistaShares Target 15 Berkshire Select Income ETF.

This position has a different role in the portfolio. With the volatility we've been seeing in technology and semiconductors, I wanted more exposure to businesses and sectors that aren't as dependent on the tech trade.

OMAH provides exposure based on Berkshire Hathaway's portfolio while adding an income strategy on top. That gives me more exposure to areas such as financials, healthcare, consumer businesses, and other traditional sectors.

The distribution yield was around 14–15% at the time.

For me, OMAH isn't simply about the yield. It's about adding a more fundamental, value-oriented anchor to a portfolio that has historically had plenty of technology exposure.

XLVI: Building a Healthcare Position

Finally, I added XLVI, the Health Care Select Sector SPDR Premium Income ETF.

Healthcare is a sector I have long-term conviction in, particularly as I look for areas that can provide some balance against technology and semiconductor volatility.

I started with a relatively small position of a few thousand dollars and plan to DCA into it weekly.

The goal isn't to build the position immediately. It's to gradually create another source of diversification while earning premium income from the sector.

Together, these four additions have very different jobs: speculative crypto exposure, Apple income, value-oriented diversification, and defensive healthcare exposure.

The biggest change isn't necessarily any individual position. It's the direction of the portfolio as a whole.

I'm becoming less interested in simply finding the fund with the biggest distribution yield and more interested in understanding why I own something and what role it plays.

Some dollars are there for income. Some provide diversification. Some give me exposure to sectors I believe will perform well over the next decade. And a few are small experimental positions where I'm willing to learn with limited capital.

That's a much more sustainable way for me to think about the income snowball.

A 20% yield might look incredible on a screen, but if the structure creates more downside risk than I'm comfortable with, it isn't necessarily a good fit for my portfolio.

July reinforced that lesson.

My portfolio declined 4.7%, but the income engine continued operating. That doesn't mean losses don't matter. They absolutely do. But it demonstrates why I don't want to evaluate the portfolio exclusively through price movements.

I'm trying to build something that supports my retirement, not something that wins every month.

July wasn't a great month for portfolio values, but it was a useful month for the strategy.

I collected approximately $13,825 in distributions while the portfolio fell 4.7%. I exited several leveraged and short-cycle positions, closed out experiments that no longer fit my thesis, and added four smaller positions designed to improve diversification and long-term stability.

The direction I'm heading is clear: less unnecessary leverage, fewer short-term experiments, more diversification, and more intentional income positions.

I'm not trying to eliminate market volatility. That's impossible.

I'm trying to build a portfolio where every dollar has a purpose and where the income can continue working even when the market doesn't.

That's the income snowball.

Every dollar has a job.