Why Most People Make Bad Decisions

Most people make bad decisions because they are so certain that they're right that they don't allow themselves to see the better alternatives that exist. Radically open-minded people know that coming up with the right questions and asking other smart people what they think is as important as having all the answers.

Don’t Lower The Bar.

You reach a point in all relationships when you must decide whether you are meant for each other - that's common in private life and at any organization that holds very high standards.

At Bridgewater, we know that we cannot compromise on the fundamentals of our culture, so if a person cannot operate within our requirements of excellence through radical truth and transparency in an acceptable time frame, he or she must leave. 

Principle Of The Day

Everybody has strengths and weaknesses. The key to success is understanding one's weaknesses and successfully compensating for them. People who lack that ability fail chronically.

Where You Go In Life

Where you go in life will depend on how you see things and who and what you feel connected to (your family, your community, your country, mankind, the whole ecosystem, everything).

You will have to decide to what extent you will put the interests of others above your own, and which others you will choose to do so for.

Why People Make Bad Decisions

Most people make bad decisions because they are so certain that they're right that they don't allow themselves to see the better alternatives that exist.

Radically open-minded people know that coming up with the right questions and asking other smart people what they think is as important as having all the answers.

Understand How People Came By Their Opinions

Our brains work like computers: they input data and process it in accordance with their wiring and programming. Any opinion you have is made up of these two things: the data and your processing or reasoning.

When someone says, "I believe X," ask them: What data are you looking at? What reasoning are you using to draw your conclusion? Dealing with raw opinions will get you and everyone else confused; understanding where they come from will help you get to the truth.

Two People Who Collaborate Well (1+1=3)

Two people who collaborate well will be about three times as effective as each of them operating independently, because each will see what the other might miss—plus they can leverage each other’s strengths while holding each other accountable to higher standards.

Principle Of The Day: Teams Should Operate Like Those In Professional Sports

Teams should operate like those in professional sports, where different skills are required to play different positions. Excellence in each is mandatory, the success of the mission is uncompromisable, and members that don’t measure up may need to be cut.

Thoughts on Bitcoin

I think that Bitcoin (and some other digital currencies) have, over the last ten years, established themselves as interesting gold-like asset alternatives, with similarities and differences to gold and other limited-supply, mobile (unlike real estate) store holds of wealth.

As far Bitcoin relative to gold, I have a strong preference for holding those things which central banks are going to want to hold and exchange value in when they are trying to transact.

Successful People Learn From Mistakes

Everyone makes mistakes. The main difference is that successful people learn from them and unsuccessful people don’t. By creating an environment in which it's okay to safely make mistakes so that people can learn from them, you’ll see rapid progress and fewer significant mistakes.