Edit: Just called Scott Trade and was told I can not play...
... probably did me a favor...
Yeah, you need to start with Level 1 trading. That's the ability to sell Covered Calls. That's usually considered safe, since what you're doing is taking some money up front (by selling the Calls) for the obligation to sell the stock if it reaches the "Strike Price." You can only sell the calls if you already own the stock. So, it's kind of like a delayed sell on stock you already own.
Let's take TSLA as an example. Let's say you bought a few months back at $28. You decide you want to take some profits if the stock bumps up again. You could just put in a Sell Limit order for, say, $38, and wait to Tesla to hit that. If it does, you get $10 profit. If it doesn't no harm, no foul. Anyone can do this.
But, if you instead sold the Sept $38 Call, today you would have gotten $0.90/share. If the stock doesn't reach $38 by Sept 22, 2012, then you keep that $0.90. If it does hit $38, then most likely the person who bought the call would want to exercise it, which means he'll buy your shares at $38. Now your profit is $10.90 instead of $10 without the call. So, either way it's a win-win, which is why it's the first step in options trading.
It's not all roses, though. The downside with selling Covered Calls is that you're agreeing today to sell the stock when it hits that price. If the stock continues to rise past that price, you won't get that additional money. But, you're not going to lose any money, you're just potentially not going to make as much. Another downside is that while you can cancel your limit order at any time without consequence, to "cancel" the Covered Calls means you have to buy them back. If the stock has risen in the meantime (even if it's not yet at the strike price), you'll pay more to buy those Calls back than you sold them for.
Anyway, if you want to play, you need to start out small and safe(ish). See about getting Level 1 trading to sell covered calls on stock you own.
