Principles

Ray Dalio, founder of the investment firm Bridgewater Associates, shares what he learned over a long career. His argument: life, management, economics, and investing can all be understood like machines and run on clear rules. At the core are "radical truth" and "radical transparency." Dalio shows how they work in practice, from "baseball cards" that sum up each employee's strengths and weaknesses to decisions weighted by believability, and offers a straightforward approach to decision-making that anyone can use.

Recommended by 26 people

Tom Bilyeu
Tim Ferriss
Reed Hastings
Naval Ravikant
Mark Cuban
Marc Benioff
Kevin Systrom
Jack Dorsey
Howard S. Marks
Gary Vaynerchuk
Dustin Moskovitz
Drew Houston
Doug McMillon
Bryan Johnson
Bill Gates
Austen Allred
Arianna Huffington
Patrick Bet-David: “it's the reason why I had every one of my sales guys in the company read it”
Andrew Ross Sorkin: “My column on Ray Dalio's new book. It made me think about how we all deal with each other in pretty profound ways.”
Stephen A. Schwarzman: “Ray brings unique analytic insights about how to think about complex issues. His Principles is a must read. It's a gift to all of us.”
Keith Rabois: “Highly recommend reading this. (Even if you have read the original PDF).”
Michael Bloomberg: “Ray Dalio's market acumen is legendary, but it was creating and living by a set of principles that allowed him to reach the top. Everyone with goals and dreams can learn from Ray's approach.”
Jamie Dimon: “It’s important and instructive to share what you’ve learned in life with others, and Ray does this in an interesting and provocative way in this compelling work.”
Adam Grant: “The billionaire investor has created the strongest culture I’ve ever seen in an organization—one that prizes radical transparency over politics and meritocracy over democracy. In his long-awaited book, he describes the systems that he has designed to shape meaningful work, meaningful relationships, and the world’s most successful hedge fund.”
Shane Parrish: “One of the most interesting books I’ve read in a long time. Ray Dalio, the author, is the founder of Bridgewater Associates, the largest hedge fund in the world. His TED Talk, released this week, explains how he fosters and idea-meritocracy at his workplace. After nearly going bankrupt, Dalio had to change course.”
Tony Robbins: “Ray Dalio is a dear friend of mine and a total genius. ... In this book, Ray tells you how he figured it all out – and about all the principles that guided him toward success in his life, business and finances.”