My First Million

Podbit · My First Million

Ray Dalio: The principles that made me a billionaire

Explore episode Jul 17, 2026

Where this was said

Principles

At 26:38 · chapter starts 26:26

At 27, Shaan Puri did something almost no one does: he wrote out what he actually wanted from life. Prompted by Dalio's Principles PDF, he listed five priorities — his loved ones, his health, his work, being someone who lights up rooms, and learning as 'the master key that unlocks all doors.' Dalio's reaction is genuine admiration, followed by a crucial instruction: revisit and revise it every year, because the arc of your life changes even if your nature doesn't. The broader point is one of Dalio's most practical: principles are only useful if they're explicit, tested ('have the shit kicked out of them'), and lived. Etching them in stone — like John D. Rockefeller Jr.'s values outside 30 Rockefeller Center — is the gold standard. Most people operate on implicit, unexamined values, which is a form of living by accident.

Similar podbits

Education
Should a 17-Year-Old Quit Baseball to Start Investing?

Stop Giving Away Your Control · Aug 10, 2026 Education

A baseball-playing junior who learned about compound interest now wants to quit the sport to start working and investing. George says let him decide and own it. Jade says team sports build something a job can't replace — try doing both during off-season first before making the call permanent.

Education
33 Years Old with $69K Debt: Is 11 Years of Med School Worth It?

Stop Giving Away Your Control · Aug 10, 2026 Education

May is 33, carries $69K in combined household debt, and wants to spend 11–13 years training to become a forensic pathologist at $14K/year in tuition. The prerequisite is non-negotiable: zero debt before a single class. Then, with the spouse earning $4,500/month and able to run the household debt-free, cash-flowing medical school is genuinely possible.

Education
The Education System Is Failing Boys

The Surveillance Economy, and How Capitalism Can Fix Poverty · Aug 10, 2026 Education

K-12 schools ask students to sit still, raise their hand, use fine motor skills, and be pleasers — behaviors that describe girls more than boys. Boys are twice as likely to be suspended for the same behavior, and five times as likely if they're Black. The system needs male teachers, national service, and kindergarten starting at 6 for boys.