I read Ray Dalio's Principles in October 2023. By November, I had my own list.

Not because the book told me what to believe. Because it taught me how to think about beliefs.

The core insight: you need principles. Not vague values. Not aspirational platitudes. Actual principles that you can apply quickly and confidently to any decision you face.

Facts Are Facts

Dalio's first principle: accept reality as it is, not as you wish it were.

This sounds simple. It's not simple when reality conflicts with your ego, your identity, or your preferred narrative.

Most people don't accept reality. They argue with it. They rationalize it. They find ways to explain why the facts don't apply to them.

Dalio's method is different: facts are facts. If the data says you're wrong, you're wrong. Update your beliefs. Move on.

This requires radical honesty. You have to be willing to look at your failures, your blind spots, your mistakes, and say: "That's what happened. Now what?"

No excuses. No blame. No defensiveness. Just reality.

Principles as Operating System

Dalio's second insight: principles are decision-making shortcuts.

Most people make decisions reactively. Something happens, they respond based on how they feel in the moment. They're inconsistent. They contradict themselves. They make the same mistakes over and over.

Principles change this. When you have clear principles, you don't have to rethink every decision from scratch. You just apply the principle.

Example: one of my principles is "optimize for learning, not comfort." When I'm deciding between two job offers, one safe and one challenging, I don't agonize. I apply the principle. I take the challenging one.

Example: another principle is "default to transparency." When I'm deciding whether to share something difficult, I don't debate. I apply the principle. I share it.

Principles make decisions faster, clearer, and more consistent.

Building My Own List

After reading Principles, I spent two weeks writing my own list.

Not copying Dalio's. Building mine. Based on my experiences, my values, my mistakes, and what I've learned about how I operate best.

Some of my principles:

Optimize for learning, not comfort. Growth happens at the edge of your ability. If you're comfortable, you're not growing.

Default to transparency. Hiding information creates friction. Sharing information builds trust.

Systems over motivation. Motivation is unreliable. Systems make the right choice the default choice.

Focus on inputs, not outcomes. You control your effort. You don't control results. Optimize what you control.

Inner scorecard over outer scorecard. Care about being right, not looking right.

Compound over sprint. Small improvements, sustained over time, beat big bursts of effort.

Read more, consume less. Books compound. Social media doesn't.

Walk more, sit less. Thinking happens when you move.

Build in public. Share your work. Share your process. Share your failures.

Facts are facts. Accept reality. Update your beliefs. Move on.

I have about 30 principles now. I review them monthly. I update them when I learn something new. I apply them daily.

How Principles Change Decision-Making

Before I had principles, decisions felt hard. I'd agonize over choices. I'd second-guess myself. I'd make different decisions in similar situations depending on my mood.

After I had principles, decisions got easier. Not because the choices got simpler. Because I had a framework.

When I'm deciding whether to take on a new project, I run it through my principles:

• Does it optimize for learning?
• Does it align with my circle of competence?
• Does it compound over time?
• Does it require systems I can sustain?

If the answer is yes, I do it. If the answer is no, I don't. No agonizing. No second-guessing.

Principles don't make decisions for you. They clarify what you already believe. They force you to be consistent with your own values.

Updating Principles

Dalio's method includes a feedback loop: when reality contradicts your principles, update your principles.

This is critical. Principles aren't dogma. They're hypotheses. You test them against reality. When they fail, you revise them.

I've updated several principles since I started:

I used to have a principle: "say yes to everything." I thought optionality was valuable. Reality taught me that saying yes to everything means saying no to depth. I updated the principle: "say no to most things so you can say yes to the right things."

I used to have a principle: "move fast and break things." I thought speed was always valuable. Reality taught me that speed without direction is just chaos. I updated the principle: "move deliberately. Speed matters, but direction matters more."

Principles evolve. That's the point. You're not trying to find the perfect principles. You're trying to build a system that helps you make better decisions over time.

What Changed

Having principles changed how I make decisions, how I spend my time, and how I evaluate opportunities.

I'm more consistent. I don't contradict myself. I don't make decisions based on mood or impulse.

I'm more confident. I know what I believe. I know why I believe it. I can defend my choices.

I'm more honest. I can't hide from my principles. If I violate them, I notice. I either change my behavior or update the principle.

I'm more focused. Principles help me say no. They help me filter out distractions. They help me stay aligned with what matters.

What You Should Do

Read Principles. Not to adopt Dalio's principles. To learn how to build your own.

Then write your own list. Start with 5-10 principles. Things you actually believe. Things you can actually apply.

Test them. Apply them to real decisions. See what happens.

Update them. When reality contradicts your principles, revise them.

Review them. Monthly. Quarterly. Make sure you're still living according to what you believe.

Principles aren't magic. They're just clarity. They're a way of making your implicit beliefs explicit so you can apply them consistently.

But clarity, applied consistently, compounds into wisdom.

Facts are facts. Anchor down. Build your principles. Live by them.

That's what Principles taught me.

That's what changed everything.