Ten Principles for Living a Good Life. They’re Unconventional.
You’ve reached financial independence. You’ve won the lottery. But the jackpot isn’t money. It’s time. With time, you can live the life you’ve always dreamed of. Consider these ten life principles as you design your perfect life.
With Charlie Munger’s passing in 2023, I thought I’d use one of his mental models to share a set of life principles that I have compiled. I hope to use these as my guide to living a good life in 2024 (and forever, for that matter).
One set of life principles
Take care of yourself to take care of others
Build leadership skills
Chart an efficient path to career success
Faster is better
Pause and reflect
Learn from your failures
Find the next market wave to ride
Meditate and be in the present
Visualize your best self and pursue it
Invest in your professional persona
Aha. I didn’t share Charlie’s mental model I chose to use with you. It is to “think in the inverse.” So, ignore everything that you’ve read above. I choose to live according to principles that are 100% the opposite of what I just shared. These will fit you better if you’re newly financially free. (In fact, they are better even if you’re not.)
My actual life principles…
…that some might say are unconventional.
Relationships are all that matter. Those near the end of life consistently share relationships as their #1 reason for living. (It’s not achievements.)
Build character and not skills. Selflessness, generosity, and kindness serve us better than leadership, problem-solving, and other resume skills.
Wander through life to find opportunities. Embrace divergent paths, and be open to opportunities that appear. There are many if you make an effort to see them.
Slowness beats speed. Take your time to enjoy your experiences. And if you do many different things, your sense of time can even slow as you age.
Keep moving. Move slowly, but don’t stop. If you have to, move sideways or even backward, but don’t stop. Continue becoming a better you.
Success and failure are equally important. Possible failure shouldn’t stop you from trying new things. Treat failure as an equally valid, even celebrated, outcome. What have you got to lose?
Be different. It’s more interesting. Don’t let social stigma keep you from trying something, however strange it is.
Feel my emotions deeply. Emotion is what makes us human. It’s okay to hurt. It’s okay to swell with pride. Emotions deepen personal relationships.
Pursue something greater than me. This is the secret to a fulfilling life.
Laugh a lot (when all else fails). Enough said.
Why think in the inverse? The inverse forces us to form more complete thoughts and ideas. At least, that’s what Charlie Munger says. I like that.
If you identify with these life principles, please email me at brian@herriotconsulting.com. I would love to learn from you. If all goes well, they will be guiding me for another 50 years.
Cheers!
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Brian Herriot tries to think bigger from his home in Alameda, California, and cabin in Hazelhurst, Wisconsin. He also prepares financial freedom plans for consultants and other mid-career professionals in one-week sprints. Check out his take on a new and different kind of retirement at choosyconsultant.com.