Truth - more precisely, an accurate understanding of reality - is the essential foundation for producing good outcomes. Ray Dalio
REFLECTIONS (learnings and actions): Today I want to talk to you about a lesson I learned from Ray Dalio.
Who is Ray?
Well he is the owner of the one of the most lucrative hedge funds in the world...net worth 17 BILLION dollars.
One of the richest people on the planet.
He wrote a great book called PRINCIPLES, in which he discusses lessons for success from both his business and personal life.
I have just started listening to it, but it is a fantatic read thus far.
Something jumped out at while I was listening to it and I want to share it with you this week.
In the book Ray talks about different levels of consequences of our choices and the impact it can have on the success we achieve.
He did this by retelling an experience he had in Africa where he saw a wildebeest taken down by a pack of hyenas. Ray said the experience was visceral and he empathized with the wildebeest.
Yet in the middle of the experience he asked himself how he could be "wrong" for feeling this way.
Ray took some time to reflect but then was able to see it was actually a good thing as nature always operates in optimizing itself. Thus this one instance was actually helping the WHOLE move forward.
He relates this situation to what he calls first, second, and third level consequences.
Below is a description of each:
1st level based on what is good or bad for ones' self or someone or thing they empathize with
2nd level empathize with greater good, good for the whole
3rd level actions which optimizes for second level.
Now the hyena and wildebeest example might be a little removed from our everyday experience so let me relate it to something we can all understand.
Exercise. Something we all grapple with and especially this time of the year when we set out to make a better version of ourselves in 2018.
Lets examine the 1st - 3rd level conseuqnces for this.
1st level: your body hurts and is in pain. Thus you quit without even considering the gains you can reach by thinking about 2nd or 3rd level consequences.
2nd level: You understand that the pain is required to get to new levels of health, thus you push trhough the initial pain.
3rd level: You embrace pain to get to new levels of success in health, but then incorporate this in other areas of your life!
The path to achieving your dreams will present moments where you will face uncertainty. Focusing solely on the uncomfortable feelings produced from this lack of clarity is only seeing the 1st level of consequence. This in turn, allows you to quit and settle for other pursuits which are far shorter than what you are capable of.
You must learn to recognize 1st level consequences, but then learn to look for and focus on the 2nd level, where you can see how other people will be impacted by your work, and 3rd level, where you can make an impact on a world scale.
Thus, learn to see the THREE levels of consequences to accelerate your progress on the path to achieving your dreams and creating a life you love!
Top three activities that move me forward?
1. Disciplined to Zen. When the body is out of rythm, so are all the other elements of your life.
2. Dedicated to making time for a quality morning ritual. The day runs away from me when I do not make time for this in the morning.
3. Listening to Audible and Life Coach podcast. These areas of my life do not thrive as much, when I do not make time for this.
Biggest lessons and learnings?
Processed food is a drug. It is crazy but the normal food of today is a drug we are all addicted to and it holds us back from the best versions of ourselves.
The sooner you break the addiction, the sooner you will reach new levels of mental, physical, and spiritual clarity.
What are you grateful for?
Having two kiddos that are happy and great sleepers. We literally take them all over the world and they are troopers for being able to handle sitting on planes for many hours and traveling through various airports!
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PLANNING (Implementation Intention): You will follow through 2X to 3X more likely to complete your weekly task than you normally would just by filling in the following statement.
PLANNING (Implementation Intention): You will follow through 2X to 3X more likely to complete your weekly task than you normally would just by filling in the following statement.
I plan to complete the weekly task [day] at [time] in [location].
A reminder you might have to use multiple Implementation Intentions in order to follow through.
EXECUTION (strategies used): From week to week, I use a combination of many strategies. There are always some which are used more than others depending on what comes up, but I wanted to offer a link to all them at once.
My advice is to identify the I CAN'T statement you tell yourself during the most. Then find a strategy below the statement which resonates with you, and then start using it.
Enjoy!
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