Page 440 - Ray Dalio - Principles

there are three ways to fix the problem: 1) having fewer things
to do by prioritizing and saying no, 2) finding the right people
to delegate to, and 3) improving your productivity.

Some people spend a lot of time and effort accomplishing

very little while others do a lot in the same amount of time.
What differentiates people who can do a lot from those who
can’t is creativity, character, and wisdom. Those with more
creativity invent ways to do things more effectively (for
instance by finding good people, good technologies, and/or
good designs). Those with more character are better able to

wrestle with their challenges and demands. And those with
more wisdom can maintain their equanimity by going to the
higher level and looking down on themselves and their
challenges to properly prioritize, realistically design, and make
sensible choices.

a. Don’t get frustrated. If nothing bad is happening to you now,
wait a bit and it will. That is just reality. My approach to life is

that it is what it is and the important thing is for me to figure
out what to do about it and not spend time moaning about how
I wish it were different. Winston Churchill hit the nail on the
head when he said, “Success consists of going from failure to
failure without loss of enthusiasm.” You will come to enjoy
this process of careening between success and failure because
it will determine your trajectory.

It makes no sense to get frustrated when there’s so much
that you can do, and when life offers so many things to savor.
Your path through any problem is outlined in these principles
—and in others you’ll discover yourself. There’s nothing you
can’t accomplish if you think creatively and have the character
to do the difficult things.

14.3 Use checklists.

When people are assigned tasks, it is generally desirable to
have them captured on checklists. Crossing items off a
checklist will serve as both a task reminder and a confirmation
of what has been done.