Ep 74: Rick Carson on Taming Your Gremlin for Traders
Ep 74: Rick Carson on Taming Your Inner Gremlin
Rick Carson — psychotherapist, executive coach, and author of the bestselling Taming Your Gremlin — joins Kim to explore the “monster of the mind” that uses past experiences and self-doubt to keep traders from realising their full potential. His core insight: any belief you have about yourself is just an opinion you have developed loyalty to. Learning to see the sliver of light between who you are and your inner narrative is where real change happens.
2026 editor’s note: We kept this conversation live because the noticing practice Rick teaches is one of the cleanest bridges between mindfulness and trading behavior — and it applies directly to FOMO, revenge trading, and emotional discipline at the desk.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:03:54 — 117.1MB)
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Episode Chapters
0:57 – Intro to Rick Carson
3:56 – Did Rick ever expect his book to do what it has done?
5:18 – What is an inner gremlin and how can it affect traders?
10:50 – Kim’s experience of Rick’s book: its profound effects in her life
14:09 – Effort vs. strain and actionable tips
18:07 – Lean into losses for catharsis
19:50 – Rick’s take on accepting losses in trading
23:37 – Tuning in to your physical experience
27:34 – The monster of the mind for traders
29:40 – How traders can face uncertainty, insecurity, and volatility
32:13 – How to identify if it’s your gremlin talking or you
37:50 – Revenge trading and why it’s like poison
43:08 – The negative power of resisting
45:39 – What is a healthy relationship to fear?
48:50 – Anecdotes of survival
52:05 – Getting comfortable with loss, navigating grief, and parting words of advice
About Rick Carson
Rick Carson is a practicing psychotherapist and personal/executive coach with five decades of experience. His seminal work, Taming Your Gremlin®, has been a top seller for HarperCollins since 1984, translated into numerous languages, with a Revised Edition in 2003 and a sequel, A Master Class in Gremlin-Taming, in 2008. He is an Approved Supervisor for the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy and a former faculty member at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School.
Follow Rick Carson
Website: tamingyourgremlin.com
Instagram: @gremlintaming
Twitter: @gremlintaming
Facebook: tamingyourgremlin
YouTube Channel
Disclaimer: All information provided is for educational purposes only and does not constitute investment, legal, or tax advice, or an offer to buy or sell any security. For full disclosures: www.thewallstreetcoach.com
Related trading psychology reads: If this is the pattern you’re working on, continue with How to Control Your Emotions While Trading, FOMO in Trading, and What Is Trading Psychology?
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Not ready for a call? Take the Trader Positioning Index — a 15-minute clinical assessment that benchmarks your decision-making under pressure.