15 tips from a billionaire for those who want to succeed and live a happy life

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

A wise parting word from Charles Munger to graduates of the University of Southern California.

1. Remember: trust, success and fame must be earned

You get what you want from the world if you imagine yourself in its place. By and large, people who live by this principle get more than just money and fame. By earning trust, they earn respect.

It is very gratifying to receive recognition by justifying the trust of other people.

2. Learn to admire the right people

The second idea, which I came to very early: there is no love other than that based on admiration for another person. However, he does not have to be alive. The main thing is what he inspires you to do. I have remembered this idea all my life, and it turned out to be very, very useful to me.

3. Learn new things. It is a moral duty, as is the application of knowledge in practice

You need to turn your life into a constant search for new knowledge. Without this, you cannot become a person who does a good job of your duties.

If you are going to move on, then you must continue to study even after you leave the university.

If a civilization can develop only by creating new inventions, then you can develop only by gaining new knowledge.

4. Learn to understand a little bit of everything

I noticed that basic ideas are 95% of the important information in any area. It was easy for me to take these ideas from all major disciplines and make them part of my thinking process. Of course, it is not enough to know something, you have to use it.

All my life I have applied this approach in practice. I cannot tell you about everything he gave me. But he made my life more fun, and me - more effective and more useful to other people. He helped me get rich.

But this approach has its dangers: experts in different fields and, perhaps, your boss will cease to be the authorities. You will know a lot more and find the right solution faster than they do.

But all of this won't work if you just memorize the information to get great on the exam. You must assimilate these ideas so well that you can operate with them in the process of thinking. This is the only way you can use them in other areas of your life.

5. Think about the causes of problems, not just their consequences

Problems are easier to solve if you look at them from the other side.

If you want to help India, you need to ask yourself not how you can help the country, but what is causing it the greatest harm and how to neutralize it. It may seem that from the point of view of logic, they are one and the same, but they are not. For those of you who have studied algebra, you know that sometimes transferring a term in an equation from one side to another helps solve a problem.

6. Be reliable. Insecurity can negate your dignity

If you cannot be relied upon, then all your good qualities can be immediately sent to the trash heap. Do everything in good faith, do not be lazy.

7. Avoid Extremes, Don't Become Fanatic

Another thing to give up is reckless adherence to any ideology. You've probably seen people with disabilities. For example, religious leaders who hold opposite points of view on theology. They are united by one thing: they cannot go beyond the limits and think freely.

This also applies to political convictions. When you are young, it is easy to get fired up with some ideas, believe in them, declare yourself to be a supporter of something. You can push yourself further and further into the framework of ideology. So you will forget how to think for yourself.

Every time I think about it, I think of the kayakers from Scandinavia. They successfully floated on all the rapids in their countries and decided that they would achieve the same success in the United States, in Grand Rapids. They all died.

The great whirlpool is not where you want to go. And I think the same can be said for a really deep ideology.

8. Get rid of jealousy, resentment and self-pity

Why should you envy, take offense, take revenge, feel sorry for yourself? These are disastrous thinking patterns. And they get used to it pretty quickly.

I have a friend who carries a stack of cards with him. When someone tells him a story filled with self-pity, he takes out one of them and gives it to that person. The card reads: “Your story touched me. I have never met a person with whom there were so many misfortunes as with you."

You can consider this a prank. But I think when you start feeling sorry for yourself, the reason is completely irrelevant. Your child may be dying of cancer, but self-pity won't help you fix the situation. Just give yourself one of these cards.

When you learn to avoid self-pity, you will have a huge advantage over others. Don't blame circumstances or other people. Learn to take responsibility for your actions.

9. Work with people you admire

Your life will bring you more joy if you are inspired by the people you work with. This will take talent. I decided for myself what people I admire at work, and deftly maneuvered between them. And he never spoke badly of any of them. This is how I have always worked under the guidance of people who admire me.

10. Learn to maintain objectivity, especially when it's hardest

Remember Darwin: he always paid a lot of attention to the indisputable evidence. Constant tests of your own objectivity are necessary if you want to think correctly. This will be helped by the same attitude to facts as Darwin, and the habit of keeping checklists. By checking everything against the list, you can avoid many mistakes. And there is no other way that works as well.

11. Let Talented People Lead

Everyone will only benefit if most of the business is concentrated in the hands of capable people who love and know how to learn. This is a prerequisite for the development of civilization.

You don't want to choose a neurosurgeon for your child among 50 applicants, of which only half are real pros. You don't want to fly an airplane that was designed by unskilled people. You do not want talentless people to work in your company. You will want power in the hands of the right people.

12. Remember: you will be more successful in what you are most interested in

If a person is really going to succeed in any business, it should arouse his genuine interest. I can be good at many things, but I cannot be the best in a field that is not interesting to me. So, if possible, do what really interests you.

13. Sit down and do it until you complete everything

Two of my acquaintances have started a small construction company. They divided all work equally and were guided by one important rule. Here it is: "Every time we miss the deadline, we will both work 14 hours a day until we get it all done." It should be added that the business did not go bankrupt and these people became very rich.

14. Use failure as an opportunity to improve

Life will deal terrible, terrible, unfair blows. But it does not matter. It's just that some people get up, others don't. And I think the position of the ancient Greek philosopher Epictetus is the best in such a situation. He believed that every misfortune in life is an opportunity to express oneself and learn something. Your duty is not to plunge into self-pity, but to turn the blow into a constructive channel.

15. Trust people

This is the last idea I want to share with you before you become a lawyer. Procedures and precautions (all of which are so abundant in your profession) are not the highest form of civilization. The highest form of civilization is a trustworthy system. The main thing is that people can fully trust each other, and not blindly follow strict rules.

If a whole crowd of lawyers leads the process and everyone pulls the blanket over themselves, the case will be lost. Trust should be in your personal life as well. If your marriage contract has 47 pages, I advise you not to marry.