Traders love volatility because wider price swings create more opportunities to profit in shorter timeframes, turning a stock's typical daily range into double the movement when fear spikes.
Suppose XYZ averages a range of $0.50 from its daily low and high during periods when the VIX is between 12 and 15, but when the VIX jumps to 30, that range increases to $1.00, doubling the movement traders can profit from.
As volatility increases, the potential to make more money quickly also increases, with the tradeoff being higher risk.