“If you can stare hard at your problems, they almost always shrink or disappear, because you almost always find a better way of dealing with them than if you don't face them head on. The more difficult the problem, the more important it is that you stare at it and deal with it.” IfsWayLifeImportantHardProblemFacesDifficultGrowthDealsPersonal GrowthInvestingDisappearStaringShrinksBetter Ways Author:Ray Dalio
“Since the only way you are going to find solutions to painful problems is by thinking deeply about them - i.e., reflecting - if you can develop a knee-jerk reaction to pain that is to reflect rather than to fight or flee, it will lead to your rapid learning/evolving.” IfsThinkingWayLifeProblemPainFightingGrowthSolutionsPersonal GrowthInvestingPainfulReactionsEvolveKneesRapidsReflectingJerkKnee Jerk ReactionsThinking Deeply Author:Ray Dalio
“Success is achieved by people who deeply understand reality and know how to use it to get what they want. The converse is also true: idealists who are not well-grounded in reality create problems, not progress.” PeopleKnowsWantLifeWellsUseProblemRealityGrowthKnow HowProgressPersonal GrowthInvestingGroundedIdealistConverses Author:Ray Dalio
“I believe that our society's "mistake-phobia" is crippling, a problem that begins in most elementary schools, where we learn to learn what we are taught rather than to form our own goals and to figure out how to achieve them. We are fed with facts and tested and those who make the fewest mistakes are considered to be the smart ones, so we learn that it is embarrassing to not know and to make mistakes. Our education system spends virtually no time on how to learn from mistakes, yet this is critical to real learning.” KnowsLifeBelieveRealFactsProblemSchoolFormI BelieveGoalGrowthMistakeAchieveFiguresTaughtSmartPersonal GrowthInvestingCriticalMaking MistakesOur SocietyFedsEmbarrassingTestedLearning From MistakesEducation SystemElementary SchoolPhobia Author:Ray Dalio
“One of the greatest sources of problems in our society arises from people having loads of wrong theories in their heads - often theories that are critical of others - that they won't test by speaking to the relevant people about them. Instead, they talk behind people's backs, which leads to pervasive misinformation.” PeopleLifeProblemGrowthBehindsTheorySourceTestsPersonal GrowthInvestingCriticalAriseOur SocietyRelevantLoadMisinformation Author:Ray Dalio
“Ironically, people who suppress the mini-confrontations for fear of conflict tend to have huge conflicts later, which can lead to separation, precisely because they let minor problems fester. On the other hand, people who address the mini-conflicts head-on in order to straighten things out tend to have the great, long-lasting relationships.” PeopleLifeLongProblemHandsOrderGrowthHugeConflictPersonal GrowthInvestingSeparationAddressesLastingMinorsConfrontationLong LastingLasting RelationshipLong Lasting Relationship Author:Ray Dalio
“Radical transparency is critical to having an idea meritocracy because it shows what's actually happening without spin and prevents people from maneuvering politically behind each others' backs. It brings problems and weaknesses to the surface and allows people to see how they are dealt with, so it's great for training people on how to deal with real problems.” PeopleIdeasRealShowsProblemDealsBehindsTrainingHappeningsWeaknessCriticalSurfaceRadicalTransparencyReal ProblemsMeritocracy Author:Ray Dalio
“Most people have a hard time confronting their weaknesses in a really straightforward, evidence-based way. They also have problems speaking frankly to others. Some people love knowing about their weaknesses and mistakes and those of others because it helps them be so much better, while others can't stand it.” PeopleWayHardHelpingProblemMistakeKnowingWeaknessEvidenceHard TimesStraightforwardConfronting Author:Ray Dalio
“When I say I believe in radical truth and radical transparency, all I mean is we take things that ordinarily people would hide, and we put them on the table, particularly mistakes, problems, and weaknesses. We put those on the table, and we look at them together. We don't hide them.” PeopleBelieveLooksMeanProblemTogetherI BelieveMistakeWeaknessTablesI Believe InRadicalTransparency Author:Ray Dalio
“With the media, we don't know what's true, and we don't have radical transparency because we're seeing everything through somebody else's eyes. There's no other industry that has as much power and as much freedom and as little quality control. I can't imagine how anyone could not think that's a problem.” ThinkingKnowsLittlesI CanProblemEyeQualityImagineSeeingMediaIndustryRadicalTransparencyQuality Control Author:Ray Dalio
“We don't know what truth is anymore. You or other media people can say there's no problem, but you're losing your credibility. There's distortion, and it's hurting our society. And as a result of that, there will be forces that, one way or another, are going to naturally bring that into equilibrium.” PeopleKnowsWayProblemForceHurtResultsMediaTruth IsLosingOne WayOur SocietyNo ProblemCredibilityDistortionEquilibrium Author:Ray Dalio
“I think the basic problem is that everybody thinks they know what the truth is, and sometimes they're even distorting the truth to make their arguments.” ThinkingKnowsSometimesProblemTruth IsArgument Author:Ray Dalio
“I'm sure Donald Trump will think that he has the truth, and some journalist is arguing that he has truth, and somebody else is arguing that they have the truth. And in fact it's even worse than that because they're so hell bent on their arguments that they will distort the truth consciously. They'll manipulate the facts to support their arguments because they're so hung up in the fight. That's where the problem is, so we argue all the time.” ThinkingFactsProblemFightingSupportHellTrumpArgumentArguingJournalistHungBentManipulate Author:Ray Dalio
“I believe that the biggest problem that humanity faces is an ego sensitivity to finding out whether one is right or wrong and identifying what one's strengths and weaknesses are.” BelieveProblemFacesHumanityI BelieveEgoFindingsWeaknessSensitivityIdentifyingStrength And Weakness Author:Ray Dalio
“Life is like a game where you seek to overcome the obstacles that stand in the way of achieving your goals. You get better at this game through practice. The game consists of a series of choices that have consequences. You can't stop the problems and choices from coming at you, so it's better to learn how to deal with them.” WayLifeProblemLife IsChoicesGamesGoalDealsPracticeAchieveConsequenceOvercomingSeriesPersonal GrowthInvestingObstaclesGet BetterLife Is LikeAchieving Your Goals Author:Ray Dalio
“The pain of problems is a call to find solutions rather than a reason for unhappiness and inaction, so it's silly, pointless, and harmful to be upset at the problems and choices that come at you (though it’s understandable).” LifeReasonProblemPainChoicesSolutionsSillyUpsetUnhappinessPointlessInaction Author:Ray Dalio
“In China anything less than 6% growth is a recession meaning that it also causes financial problems and it's disruptive and it's a problem.” ProblemCausesGrowthFinancialChinaRecessionsDisruptiveFinancial Problems Author:Ray Dalio
