I believe that our society's “mistakephobia” is crippling, a problem that begins in most elementary schools, where we learn to learn what we are taught rather than to form our own goals and to figure out how to achieve them. We are fed with facts and tested and those who make the fewest mistakes are considered to be the smart ones, so we learn that it is embarrassing to not know and to make mistakes. Our education system spends virtually no time on how to learn from mistakes, yet this is critical to real learning. As a result, school typically doesn’t prepare young people for real life—unless their lives are spent following instructions and pleasing others. In my opinion, that’s why so many students who succeed in school fail in life.

我認(rèn)為社會上“犯錯恐懼癥”會帶來嚴(yán)重后果历帚。這個問題從小學(xué)就開始了奏甫，老師教什么，我們就學(xué)什么浴骂，也不會教我們樹立自己的目標(biāo)或?qū)崿F(xiàn)夢想的方法殴玛，擺在我們面前的是機(jī)械地學(xué)習(xí)一堆知識并參加考試籍铁。犯錯最少才被認(rèn)為是最聰明的水评。要犯錯或承認(rèn)自己不懂，我們會覺得很丟人甲锡。我們的教育制度重心從來都不教學(xué)生從錯誤中學(xué)習(xí)兆蕉，但其實(shí)從犯錯中學(xué)習(xí)才是真正的學(xué)習(xí)。因此缤沦，學(xué)校培養(yǎng)出來的年輕人難以適應(yīng)現(xiàn)實(shí)生活虎韵，不過如果他們愿意一生只做遵守指令、取悅他人的人缸废，那就另當(dāng)別論了包蓝。所以我覺得很多學(xué)校成績優(yōu)異的學(xué)生驶社，人生并不成功。

I learned that the popular picture of success—which is like a glossy photo of an ideal man or woman out of a Ralph Lauren catalog, with a bio attached listing all of their accomplishments like going to the best prep schools and an Ivy League college, and getting all the answers right on tests—is an inaccurate picture of the typical successful person. I met a number of great people and learned that none of them were born great—they all made lots of mistakes and had lots weaknesses—and that great people become great by looking at their mistakes and weaknesses and figuring out how to get around them. So I learned that the people who make the most of the process of encountering reality, especially the painful obstacles, learn the most and get what they want faster than people who do not. I learned that they are the great ones—the ones I wanted to have around me.

我發(fā)現(xiàn)养晋，大眾對于成功的概念是這樣的：穿著拉夫·勞倫服裝衬吆，像一幅光鮮亮麗的宣傳照旁邊附上自己的成就介紹：上最好的私立預(yù)科學(xué)校，考入常青藤聯(lián)盟的名牌大學(xué)绳泉，能答對所有的考試題逊抡。其實(shí)這是對真正成功人士生活的誤讀。我閱人無數(shù)零酪，沒一個成功人士天賦異稟冒嫡，他們也常犯錯，缺點(diǎn)也不少四苇，他們成功是因?yàn)檎曞e誤與缺點(diǎn)孝凌，找到日后避免犯錯、解決問題的方法月腋。所以我覺得蟀架，全力利用好直面現(xiàn)實(shí)的過程，尤其是在和困難障礙斗爭時的痛苦經(jīng)歷榆骚，從中竭力吸取教訓(xùn)片拍，這樣定能更快實(shí)現(xiàn)目標(biāo)。這樣的人妓肢，才能成為成功人士捌省，這才是我想打交道的人群。

In short, I learned that being totally truthful, especially about mistakes and weaknesses, led to a rapid rate of improvement and movement toward what I wanted.

簡而言之碉钠，要直面真相纲缓，特別是自己的錯誤和弱點(diǎn)，會大大促進(jìn)自我提升喊废，離夢想越來越近祝高。

While this approach worked great for me, I found it more opposite than similar to most others’ approaches, which has produced communications challenges.

盡管這個方法對我很適用，可是似乎與其他方法比起來操禀，顯得與眾不同褂策，很多人不認(rèn)同，交流起來甚是困難颓屑。

Specifically, I found that:

具體來說斤寂，我發(fā)現(xiàn)：

* While most others seem to believe that learning what we are taught is the path to success, I believe that figuring out for yourself what you want and how to get it is a better path.

盡管很多人認(rèn)為教你什么就好好學(xué)才能實(shí)現(xiàn)成功。但我認(rèn)為揪惦，發(fā)現(xiàn)自己想要什么遍搞，明白實(shí)現(xiàn)夢想的方法，這才是更光明的道路器腋。

After all, isn’t the point of learning to help you get what you want? So don’t you have to start with what you want and figure out what you have to learn in order to get it?

學(xué)習(xí)的目的不就是實(shí)現(xiàn)夢想嗎溪猿？那一開始是不是就應(yīng)該先弄明白自己想要什么以及要實(shí)現(xiàn)夢想需要學(xué)什么呢钩杰？

While most others seem to believe that having answers is better than having questions, I believe that having questions is better than having answers because it leads to more learning.

盡管很多人認(rèn)為答案比問題更好，但我認(rèn)為問題比答案好诊县，因?yàn)閱栴}能讓我們學(xué)到更多讲弄。

In fact I believe that most people who are quick to come up with answers simply haven’t thought about all the ways that they can be wrong.

事實(shí)上，我認(rèn)為那些很快就想出答案的人并沒有考慮自己會出錯的方方面面依痊。

While most others seem to believe that mistakes are bad things, I believe mistakes are good things because I believe that most learning comes via making mistakes and reflecting on them.

盡管很多人認(rèn)為犯錯是壞事避除，但我認(rèn)為犯錯是好事，因?yàn)槿藗冎饕际菑膶Ψ稿e的反思中受益進(jìn)而學(xué)習(xí)和提高自己的胸嘁。

While most others seem to believe that finding out about one’s weaknesses is a bad thing, I believe that it is a good thing because it is the first step toward finding out what to do about them and not letting them stand in your way.

盡管很多人認(rèn)為發(fā)現(xiàn)缺點(diǎn)是壞事瓶摆，但我認(rèn)為缺點(diǎn)是好事，因?yàn)檎J(rèn)識到缺點(diǎn)是尋找解決辦法的第一步性宏，進(jìn)而不讓缺點(diǎn)成為自己的絆腳石群井。

While most others seem to believe that pain is bad, I believe that pain is required to become stronger.

盡管很多人認(rèn)為痛苦不好，但我認(rèn)為想要變得強(qiáng)大毫胜，就需要經(jīng)受痛苦书斜。

I don’t mean that the more pain the better. I believe that too much pain can break someone and that the absence of pain typically prevents growth so that one should accept the amount of pain that is consistent with achieving one’s objectives.

我不是說越疼越好，我認(rèn)為過于疼痛會對人產(chǎn)生損害酵使。沒有痛苦一般不利于成長菩佑，所以我們應(yīng)在與實(shí)現(xiàn)自己目標(biāo)相一致的前提下，承受一定的痛苦凝化。

One of the advantages of my being over 60 years old—and there aren’t many—is that we can look back on my story to see how I came by these beliefs and how they have worked for me. It is now more than 35 years after I started Bridgewater and about the same number of years since I got married and began my family. I am obviously not your Ralph Lauren poster child for success, yet I’ve had a lot of successes, though they’re probably not what you’re thinking.

我60多歲了，我這個年紀(jì)的人優(yōu)勢已經(jīng)不多了酬荞，其中之一就是我能回望過去搓劫，審視這些原則是否真的發(fā)揮過作用。我成立橋水聯(lián)合基金公司35年混巧，結(jié)婚成家也差不多這么多年枪向，從我的經(jīng)歷來看，顯然我不是大家想的那種拉夫·勞倫宣傳海報(bào)上的成功典范咧党，但我還是取得了很多成功秘蛔，盡管不一定是你想象的那種成功。

Yes, I started Bridgewater from scratch, and now it’s a uniquely successful company and I am on the Forbes 400 list. But these results were never my goals—they were just residual outcomes—so my getting them can’t be indications of my success. And, quite frankly, I never found them very rewarding.

成立橋水聯(lián)合基金傍衡，我算是白手起家深员，現(xiàn)在這家公司已經(jīng)非常成功，我也在福布斯400富豪榜上占有一席蛙埂。但這些從來都不是我的目標(biāo)倦畅，算是附加回報(bào)吧，這些不能說明我就是成功的绣的。說實(shí)在的叠赐，我也不覺得這些所謂的成就有什么意義欲账。

I have been very lucky because I have had the opportunity to see what it’s like to have little or no money and what it’s like to have a lot of it. I’m lucky because people make such a big deal of it and, if I didn’t experience both, I wouldn’t be able to know how important it really is for me. I can’t comment on what having a lot of money means to others, but I do know that for me, having a lot more money isn’t a lot better than having enough to cover the basics. That’s because, for me, the best things in life—meaningful work, meaningful relationships, interesting experiences, good food, sleep, music, ideas, sex, and other basic needs and pleasures— are not, past a certain point, materially improved upon by having a lot of money. For me, money has always been very important to the point that I could have these basics covered and never very important beyond that. That doesn’t mean that I don’t think that having more is good–it’s just that I don’t think it’s a big deal. So, while I spend money on some very expensive things that cost multiples relative to the more fundamental things, these expensive things have never brought me much enjoyment relative to the much cheaper, more fundamental things. They were just like cherries on the cake. For my tastes, if I had to choose, I’d rather be a backpacker who is exploring the world with little money than a big income earner who is in a job I don’t enjoy. (Though being in a job that provides me with what I want is best of all, for me). Also, from having come from having next-to-nothing to having a lot, I have developed a strong belief that, all things being equal, offering equal opportunity is fundamental to being good, while handing out money to capable people that weakens their need to get stronger and contribute to society is bad.

我一直都很幸運(yùn)，因?yàn)槲矣袡C(jī)會體驗(yàn)身無分文芭概，也知道富有是什么感覺∪唬現(xiàn)在很多人都花很大精力賺錢，我如果沒體驗(yàn)過貧窮與富有兩種狀態(tài)罢洲，就不會明白金錢對于我來說是否真的重要踢故。富有對別人來說意義如何我是無法評論的，但對我來說奏路，賺更多的錢同只能滿足基本需求的收入相比畴椰，并沒有那么大的差別。因?yàn)槲矣X得人生最棒的事情是：有意義的工作鸽粉，有意義的人脈斜脂，有趣的經(jīng)歷，吃得好睡得好触机，聽歌帚戳，各種新點(diǎn)子，性等其他基本需求和令人愉悅之物儡首。當(dāng)金錢積累達(dá)到某個臨界點(diǎn)后片任，增加再多，也就不會明顯提升這些我認(rèn)為人生最棒的東西蔬胯。金錢對我來說的重要性就是对供，能夠滿足我的基本生活需求，再多我就認(rèn)為不重要了氛濒。我不是說認(rèn)為擁有更多不好产场，只是覺得這沒什么大不了的∥韪停花錢的時候京景，有些東西特別昂貴，購買這些東西并不能給我?guī)矶嗌倏鞓菲保徺I經(jīng)濟(jì)實(shí)惠且更重要的東西才能給我?guī)砜鞓啡丰恪＿@就像蛋糕上的櫻桃一樣，錦上添花罷了执桌。要我選的話鄙皇，與其做一份高薪但不喜歡的工作，我寧可做個環(huán)游世界的窮背包客鼻吮。對我來說育苟，從事的工作如果做的是自己想做的就是最好了。從幾乎一無所有到擁有甚多椎木，我培養(yǎng)了一個很強(qiáng)的信念违柏，即萬物皆平等博烂，提供平等的機(jī)會對成功很重要，有能力的人獲得的報(bào)酬豐富漱竖，就可能削弱他們渴望變強(qiáng)大貢獻(xiàn)社會的意愿禽篱，這對社會發(fā)展不利。