Page 467 - Ray Dalio - Principles

the precise data on what those people are like, synthesize the
key qualities that make them that way, and then search the
database to help you find other similar people. The

Combinator can also be used to generate job specifications
(based on the type of person you are looking for) that you can
apply both inside and outside the company.

ISSUE LOG

The Issue Log is our primary tool for recording our mistakes
and learning from them. We use it to bring all problems to the

surface, so we can put them in the hands of problem solvers to
make systematic improvements. It acts like a water filter that
catches garbage. Anything that goes wrong must be “issue
logged” with the severity of the issue and who is responsible
for it specified, so that it’s easy to sort through most problems.
Issue logs also provide paths for diagnosing problems and the
information pertaining to them. In that way, they also provide

effective metrics of performance, as they allow you to measure
the numbers and types of problems coming up (and identify
the people who are contributing to them and fixing them).

The Issue Log is a good example of a tool that changed
habits and perceptions. A common challenge people had at
first was openly pointing out mistakes, because some people
instinctively viewed pointing out mistakes as hurtful to the

people who made them. Once they got used to doing this, they
realized the benefit of it and they got in the good habit of
doing it. Now most people can’t do without it.

PAIN BUTTON

I believe Pain+Reflection=Progress. In other words, pain is an
impor-tant signal that there is something to be learned, and if
you reflect on your pain well, you will almost always learn

something important. That prompted me to create the Pain
Button.

The moment someone experiences pain is the best time for
them to record what the pain is like, but it’s a bad time to