- Choose a great environment and surround yourself with the smartest people you can - your environment is much stronger than your intellect so make sure you choose it wisely
- Follow your bliss - do whatever it is that makes you tick, that brings a smile to yourself and feels like play
- Judge yourself based on an "inner scorecard" - don't put so much weight into what others think of you
- Knowing what to avoid is often as important as knowing what to focus on
- We all have shortcomings - be honest about limitations and figure out ways around them (pair this with Dalio's Principles)
- Have a group you admire and meet with regularly to share ideas - your mastermind group (Spier recommends Toastmasters or his group, Value X, among others)
- Write letters often, showing people you genuinely care about them
- Many small, good decisions over time can make a huge difference
- Become the most authentic version of yourself
- Never buy anything that is being sold by Wall Street
- Many investments are acutely uncertain but not as risky as initially seem
- Develop a series of rules/routines to apply consistently - helps improve any decisions since you have a better structural framework to work with
- Create a checklist to avoid obvious and predictable errors
- Whenever you meet someone, figure out how you can help them out
What I got out of it
- A thought-provoking and deep read which is obviously written by someone who has very consciously asked and answered very many important questions of himself. Spier helps lay out a framework to help people think structurally about what and how will make them happy and successful. A must read for anybody even if they have no interest in investing.