Goodmanisms: Charlie Goodman’s Sayings on Trading, Explained
'Sit on your hands, Dad.' 'A small profit is a loss.' The complete Goodmanisms, Charlie Goodman's trading sayings, with Michael Archer's interpretations.
11 Jul 2025 · 7 min read
Risk & Psychology
Why You Should Stick to Your Trading Plan: A Soybean Story
A true Hawaii brokerage story: a trader with a sound plan for a soybean downtrend talked himself out of it. Stick to your plan.
8 Jul 2025 · 5 min read
Akiko, Wittgenstein and Charlie: Serendipity in the Markets
A Hawaii gift-stand owner, a broken-down tour bus and a line from Wittgenstein: why you should pay attention when something unusual shows up in the markets.
6 Jul 2025 · 4 min read
The Golden Ratios 2: Bottom-Line Leverage for Traders
Small changes in your winner-to-loser ratio can transform your return. A ten-trade example shows the 10-4-1 Rule and the power of a single Line trade.
6 Jul 2025 · 5 min read
Money Management Lessons from Kenny Rogers’ The Gambler
Charlie Goodman ranked money management first and method last. Lessons from The Gambler: stay in the game, keep winners, cut losers.
5 Jul 2025 · 4 min read
Common Sense 2: The Due Diligence Affair
A 1970s Colorado penny stock boom, a wireless-power pitch and Charlie Goodman's common-sense verdict. A due diligence story with a lesson for every investor.
29 Jun 2025 · 4 min read
The Windfall Profit: When to Take It and Run
When news sends a trade most of the way to target soon after entry, Goodman traders may go off the book. Michael Archer on the Windfall Profit and…
20 Jun 2025 · 2 min read
Fighting the Trend: Charlie Goodman’s Speeding Ticket Lesson
A speeding ticket, a losing trade and one piece of advice from Charlie Goodman: don't fight a trend you can't win. A short, memorable trading lesson.
13 Jun 2025 · 2 min read
Paper Trading: Yes or No? A 50-Year Trader’s View
Is paper trading worth it? Michael Archer explains why easy wins mean little, why to trade micro lots, and how to dry-run a pattern one bar at a…
1 Feb 2025 · 3 min read
Why Some Clients Can’t Trade: The Mama-San Story
A Honolulu mama-san opened a $10k commodity account, was profitable, and closed it in a panic. A true story about temperament, risk and who should not trade.
3 Jan 2025 · 4 min read
The list
One letter, when there is something to say
Charlie wrote to his students. We do the same: a new plate, a chart worth looking at, a note when a book is finished. No schedule, no sequence, no selling to you every Tuesday. Leave when you like.
We keep the list ourselves. It is never sold, rented or shared.