Page 422 - Ray Dalio - Principles

Consider how personal the questioning is. It doesn’t stop at
“Because Harry programmed it badly.” You must go deeper in
order to understand what about the people and/or the design

led to the failure. This is difficult for both the diagnoser and
the RPs, and it often results in people bringing up all kinds of
irrelevant details. Be on your guard because people will often
look to cover themselves by diving into the weeds.

h. To distinguish between a capacity issue and a capability issue, imagine how
the person would perform at that particular function if they had ample
capacity. Think back on how the person performed in similar

functions when they had ample capacity. If the same kinds of
problems came up, then the problem is very likely one of
capabilities.

i. Keep in mind that managers usually fail or fall short of their goals for one

(or more) of five reasons.
1. They are too distant.

2. They have problems perceiving bad quality.

3. They have lost sight of how bad things have become
because they have gotten used to it.

4. They have such high pride in their work (or such large
egos) that they can’t bear to admit they are unable to
solve their own problems.

5. They fear adverse consequences from admitting failure.

12.2 Maintain an emerging synthesis

by diagnosing continuously.

If you don’t look into significant bad outcomes as they occur,
you won’t be able to understand what things they are

symptomatic of or how they are changing through time—i.e.,
are they getting better or worse?

12.3 Keep in mind that diagnoses

should produce outcomes.