Page 62 - Ray Dalio - Principles

especially since I wanted both to be great, so I combined them
whenever I could. For example, I took my kids on business
trips. When at first I brought my son Devon and later Matt to

my Chinese business meetings, our hosts were always very
kind—they would give them cookies and milk. One great
memory from Abu Dhabi was when my clients/friends took
my son Paul and me to the desert to eat a freshly killed and
roasted goat with our bare hands. I asked Paul, who was
dressed in the traditional gown they’d given him, how he liked
it and he said, “What could be better than to sit on the floor,

dressed in pajamas, eating with my hands, with nice people?”
We all laughed. I remember another time when my eldest son,
Devon, then about 10 years old, brought back silk scarves
from China he’d bought for $1 and sold for $20 in a shopping
mall just before Christmas—which was just the first sign of
his business savvy.

By the mid-1980s, Bridgewater had grown to about ten

people, so I rented a big old farmhouse. Bridgewater occupied
part of it and my family occupied the rest. It was extremely
informal and family-like: Everyone parked in the driveway, we
met around the kitchen table, and my kids would leave the
door open while they sat on the toilet. The people I worked
with would wave as they walked by.

Eventually, the farm was put up for sale so I bought a barn

on the property and renovated it. My wife, our kids (eventually
there were four), and I lived in a small apartment inside the
barn, and I made the unfinished hayloft usable as an office by
putting in electric baseboard heat, which I chose because it
was cheapest to install. It was a great space for parties and

there was enough land for us to play soccer and volleyball and
have outdoor barbecues. For our company Christmas party,
we’d have a big potluck dinner with my family. After a few
drinks, Santa would show up and we’d all sit on his lap for a
photo and find out who had been naughty or nice. The night
always ended with a lot of dancing. We also had an annual
“Sleaze Day” when everybody would dress up sleazy. You get
the idea: Bridgewater was a small community of friends who

worked hard and partied hard.