Principles by Ray Dalio

Part of summer prep work for the MBA program is tackling the suggested reading list. However, the books in the link are really suitable for anyone looking for self-help material or thought-provoking material. Principles is written by the founder of Bridgewater, one of Fortune 500 companies and one of the top investment firms to date. Ray Dalio tells his story first before giving life principles then applying them to work. Although the writing sometimes is lengthy and wordy, the ideas and logic given is worth the read. Especially considering the start of Bridgewater began from the ground up from his two bedroom apartment with multiple failures at the start tells lessons of how principles of idea meritocracy were formed and what it looks like in context.

Idea Meritocracy = intelligent, open-minded individuals working together + audacious goals + believability weighted decision making

"There's only two things you need to do in life to be successful. First you need to know what the best decisions are and second, you have to have the courage to do what's necessary." Ray Dalio

Takeaways:

1. The best idea wins, not based on seniority or in age

2. Radical truth and transparency is key to productivity and creativity

3. Increase confidence by challenging your ideas: how do I know what I know is right

4. Pain + Reflection = Progress (struggle well to have meaningful achievements)

5. Learn first then make the decision - consult experts and the upper you, not just the lower you

6. Baseball cards: know everyone's attributes and display them to maximize teamwork and results

7. Turn tested decision making into algorithms that can learn much more data and information

8. Embrace reality and deal with it

9. Don't over worry about looking good or other people's opinions

10. Money should be an outcome, not the goal. Don't confuse wants/desires with aims.

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5 Steps to Success

Cheers,

Kelly

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