I help Asian American Millennial men succeed in wealth, love, and happiness.
Ray Dalio and his new book, Principles, need little introduction. He has a net worth of over $18.9 billion+, made through the hedge fund he started. The book is a memoir of his life and breaks down his principles for success in clear-cut detail. Plus, Bill Gates endorses the book on the cover with this quote, “Ray has provided me with invaluable guidance and insights that are now available to you in Principles.”
Here are the biggest takeaways I got through reading the entire book.
Views – 58
I recently watched an interview with Jay Abraham, known as the “9 Billion Dollar Man” for adding that much attributable cash to his clients’ bottom line. He said that his #1 skill was his incredible curiosity. It allowed him to learn so much from people.
It made him interesting and fascinating to others because he was interested and fascinated by them. Coincidentally, I watched an interview of the billionaire John Paul DeJoria shortly after and he said his #1 strength was being able to listen to people without trying to respond, though it took some time for him to get good at this.
It reminded me of another billionaire, Richard Branson, emphasizing the subtle importance of active listening in his books.
When I hear communication advice from the world’s best interviewers, dating coaches, speakers, leaders, and communicators, they emphasize how being interested is the key to appear interesting and how active listening is key .
Seems simple, right? Most of us already listen well, right? Wrong.
Views – 74
I’ve heard about this book everywhere. It’s called Getting Things Done by David Allen.
It’s one of the best-selling, most well-known productivity books . It’s always on the top of recommended lists and blog articles.
It’s a quick read of 267 pages. I’d like to share the top insights and my disappointed review.
Views – 83
I have heard billionaires, athletes, and President Barack Obama all mention how they take their business (or career) seriously but themselves.
Most people fail to keep in mind the bigger picture. So many of us are so fortunate to have been born healthy, with all our limbs, no diseases, and to not have to worry about food.
Over 2 billion people live off less than $2 a day. As Americans, we’re born lucky. If you’re making $10+ a year, you’re in the top 1%. Yet many of us get so caught up in the superficial small things of life that we forget this. Do you know someone who’s making a lot of money but still gets frustrated or angry at the smallest inconveniences?
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Here’s a book summary of The Magic of Thinking Big by David J. Schwartz. This book is recommended often by successful people, topping the list of recommended books from Tim Ferriss’s podcast interviewees.
But this is not just a summary. It’s much more than that.
I want to give you the WHY behind the tips and cross-reference that with my knowledge of all the other advice I have obtained from successful people.
Views – 124
Learning faster is one of the keys to success. For starters, you’ve seen the massive piles of books that make up the reading lists of Bill Gates, Charlie Munger and Warren Buffett. They’re lifelong learners. But learning comes in many forms beyond reading text. How do you consume information rapidly without forgetting and putting it into practice? What’s the secret to my light speed learning?
There is a secret. Anyone can learn how to consume and retain information faster. I’ve studied intensely world class learners, people who have achieved international success in multiple domains in their life, like Arnold Schwarzenegger, Josh Waitzkin, and Tim Ferriss, and have discovered what works with experimentation.
You don’t need to take a long, boring course to learn how to learn better. I’ll teach you how in 15 minutes or less. I’ve tested tactics and included my own ideaas to find out what works. Here are my tips:
Views – 156
When it comes to living a life free of unnecessary stress and anxiety that hold you back, you can’t dwell on what you can’t change. If you don’t have the ability to change something, then worrying about it will only make you more sad and limit your potential.
For example, if a man can’t change his height but can improve his work ethic, feeling sad about his height and dwelling about that all the time as the reason you can’t get girls will only make you enjoy life less and make you suffer more.
However, he can focus on learning how to work harder, which can improve his wealth, fashion, appearance, physique, social intelligence, and empathy — all areas that improve his attraction to get him girls.
But what can we change and what can we not change? Nowadays, there are a lot of different opinions on where to draw the line from gurus on social media and blogs.
Let’s turn to the most credible sources in science. Martin Seligman is one of the most famous and respected scientists in the self help movement for pioneering the field of positive psychology. His short book, What You Can and Cannot Change, exposes the truth behind the myths out there.
I learned some incredible stuff about what you can and cannot change, as well as some credible truth about basic psychology from the book:
Views – 154
I’ve found a strange pattern on my journey of personal development…
Style and fashion matter. It’s important to many areas of life: dating, sales, business, presentation, grooming, etiquette, and so on. Yes, you have a few tech billionaires who wear what they want, but most of the population care about looking presentable (and sexy).
If you believe me, you’re way ahead of my young self. For decades, I disregarded fashion because I thought it was what was on the inside that counted and getting good grades was all that mattered. Obviously, that backfired for years in my dating and professional life.
Views – 2227
Most overachievers have point struggled with how to stop being a perfectionist. They’re ambitious but they fall under the trap that you have to be perfect before you can deliver anything.
But deep down, we all know that being a perfectionist isn’t a good thing. It leads to analysis paralysis. It leads to situations where your performance suffers because you procrastinate and miss deadlines.
Or you could be too focused on perfecting something to ever execute and achieve your dreams because you or your creation is still “not good enough.”
Here are some steps that might help you defeat procrastination.
Views – 1275
You asked. I delivered.
Many of my young email subscribers have asked about how they can learn more about how to save and invest money. Well, it just so happens that I’ve been an undercover fanboy of personal finance. In fact, it’s one of the ways I got into my love of Warren Buffett and self development.
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I used to think I was smarter than others.
I was learning about personal finance and saving money while others were splurging so I could become rich.
I was asking for books and courses for Christmases and birthdays while others were asking for clothes and shoes so that the money invested would grow rather than decay through what was purchased.
I was working out every day while others watched Netflix.
In theory, this would make me happier. But it didn’t work out that way.
Views – 205
I got a question from a mother who is going through tough times on multiple fronts. If you join my email newsletter, you can reply to an email with your question, and I will try to help you.
As the title of this article hints, she realized one day that she’s not doing so well in many areas of life, even though she once was doing fine. Let’s call her Dana (not her real name).
I don’t tend to address issues like this because it attracts people I can’t help (even if I want to). My content is focused more on high achievers who can execute. But this time, I was compelled to answer (and post this with her permission) because it was so emotional, genuine, and almost everything I’ve released online started because I was like this women and wanted to learn how to get better. I want to add some value here, even if my tips won’t solve everything.
Views – 1318
The blog, Wait But Why, has a popular article on why procrastinators procrastinate. The summary of it is that people procrastinate because the long-term thinking part of your brain gets overtaken by the “Instant gratification monkey.”
This monkey plays in the “Dark playground” of unproductive activities, like watching pranks on YouTube, until you’re up against a deadline. Then, the “Panic Monster” arrives, which forces you to get back on track.
I loved the fun characters used to illustrate this, but I think it misses the mark on the core of why we procrastinate. The playful story may even be diverting your attention from the main cause of procrastination.
Views – 210
Here’s a shiny, sparkling new podcast on why shame may be the hidden obstacle holding you back from your goals and dreams. It also covers how you can identify and fix it.
Views – 270
In the online self help and entrepreneurship communities, meditation and mindfulness have started to be worshiped as magic pills for success with wealth, happiness, focus, health, and more.
One of the drivers of this idea are podcast interview shows, like The Tim Ferriss Show and Eventual Millionaire. These shows interview tons of successful people and claim most interviewees practice some form of meditation practice.
But is it true? Can it solve every problem under the sun, from anxiety to procrastination? Or it is confirmation and fallacy of correlation proving causation? Maybe only 5% of them actually meditate, but they over-inflated how frequently it showed up based on their estimates.
One of the most respected scientists of our time, Daniel Goleman, author of books like Emotional Intelligence, stepped up to find out the truth by writing a whole book proving and debunking meditation myths based on hard, empirical research. The book is called Altered Traits. Here’s what he found.
Views – 295