Notes

When you decide to do something, you must complete it within 72 hours, otherwise, you will likely never do it again.

First, those who are in debt should destroy all their credit cards, because most people spend significantly more when using them than when using cash. The second piece of advice is to pay down each loan installment as little as possible. Most people fail to estimate how high their living expenses will be. When they need to purchase a new car or something in the house breaks down, they are forced to cover the costs by taking out another loan. Third, save half of the money not allocated to living expenses, and use the other half to repay the loan.

Debtors should put a note in their wallet that says, “Is this really necessary?” This way, when they stand at the checkout counter, they will remember not to spend too much.

The most important thing is that you genuinely have this desire, otherwise, you’ll give up the moment things get tough. I always tend to focus on the negative side of things, and I absolutely must change this habit.

Your level of confidence determines whether you believe in your abilities and whether you believe in yourself. If you fundamentally don’t believe you can do it, you simply won’t take action, and if you don’t start, you won’t achieve anything.

You must imagine that you already possess these things, so that your small wish will transform into a strong desire. The more you imagine, the stronger your wish becomes, and the more you yearn for it, and then you will start seeking opportunities to realize your dreams. Those who do not seek opportunities will, at most, stumble upon a windfall when luck strikes.

Money has certain secrets and patterns. The prerequisite for understanding these secrets and patterns is that you must genuinely desire them yourself. If you only approach it with a “let’s try it” mindset, you will ultimately end in failure and achieve nothing. “Trying” is just an excuse; before you even do it, you have already prepared your escape route. If you cannot test it, you only have two choices: do it or don’t do it. The most critical factor in whether you can earn money is not whether you have a good idea. How smart you are is not the main reason; the deciding factor is your level of confidence. You must first clarify where your interests lie, and then consider how to earn money through them. You must do something every day that is profoundly significant to your future. The time you spend on this will not exceed 10 minutes, but those 10 minutes will make all the difference. Those who are in debt should cancel all their credit cards. You should repay loans as much as possible. You should save half of the money that isn’t used for living, and use the other half to pay down debt. It is best not to apply for consumer loans at all. Before borrowing money each time, ask yourself: “Is this truly necessary?” When you set a big goal, it means you must put in far more effort than others. Poverty makes people more unhappy. If I don’t have my “goose,” I always have to work just to earn money. But once I have a “goose,” my “money will work for me automatically.” Luck is actually just the result of thorough preparation combined with hard work. Money only stays with those who put in the effort for it. People who acquire unjust wealth through illegal means often feel worse off than when they had no money at all. Fear always appears when we imagine how things might go wrong. The more we think about the possibility of failure, the more afraid we become. But when you think toward positive goals, you won’t feel fear. Whenever winter passes, spring comes, followed by summer; after every summer comes autumn, and then winter again, year after year. Just like the changes in nature, the stock exchange always experiences the changing of seasons, cycling back and forth. If you don’t do this thing today, you will never know what you are capable of writing after putting some pressure on yourself. The things a person feels most proud of are the ones that were the most difficult to achieve.

Soon, I was 12. Everything was still the same; we still didn’t go on vacation by the sea. Mom and Dad kept saying that the business was affected by the “economic recession.” What they meant was that the domestic economic situation was the root cause of their financial problems. But I had a question: why, under the same economic situation, are my friend Monica’s parents’ finances getting better and better?

If you approach things with a tentative mindset, you will ultimately end in failure, achieving nothing. Trying is purely an excuse; before you even do it, you have already prepared an escape route for yourself. If you can’t test, you only have two choices—do or don’t do. Too many people hesitate when taking action because they feel they haven’t completely understood something. But actually putting it into practice is much smarter than pure thinking.

You can imagine your life as a large mail-order company. If you write to a mail-order company saying, “Please send me some good things,” you definitely won’t receive anything. Our desires are the same. We must know exactly what we truly desire.

Ultimately, it is because they do not understand where their own interests lie. For example, addicts, workaholics, those entangled in misguided interests, supporters of the large government, publishers, book reviewers, or certain respected officials—none of them realize that their actions are damaging their own interests.

It suggests that people tend to pay closer attention to the information they need or like, while neglecting the actual information— they are more willing to see the world they “want to see,” rather than the real and objective world.

Every individual, no matter how high their rank and authority, or how vast their wealth, has moments when their mind is chaotic, their thoughts are unclear, or they even lose their sanity.

1981: Prince Charles marries; Liverpool wins the European Cup; Australia loses the Ashes; Pope dies. 2005: Prince Charles marries; Liverpool wins the European Cup; Australia loses the Ashes; Pope dies

For example, if deep down we “hope” or “need” something to be “this way” or “that way,” we will consciously select, filter, and arrange the information we have gathered, causing that thing to become the way we hope or need.

The so-called “Halo Effect” refers to the tendency for people to positively view a person, a place, or a thing based on a single event or a single trait.

Strawman Direct Translation: Strawman Alternative: Adding a Charge/Accusation (or: Adding a Fault) The act of distorting an opponent’s arguments to make them easier to attack. By exaggerating, distorting, or even completely fabricating an opponent’s arguments, one presents their own position as more reasonable. However, sincere and rational debate is destroyed by this form of argumentation, which is essentially fraudulent. Example: Xiao Ming says: “The state should invest more funds in the medical and education sectors.” Xiao Liang replies: “That’s terrifying! You actually hate the country so much that you want to reduce defense spending, leaving our army defenseless and unable to protect the nation.” ...

For example, I bought a new car and am now waiting for delivery. Naturally, I pay close attention to this matter, going onto the forum every evening to check and research related information. Why do I do this? It is just an ordinary car; it won’t bring any substantial change to my life. I know that as soon as the car is in hand, I won’t pay attention to it anymore. The key point of the problem lies in my obsession with the “desire” for external things. The fixation I have towards external things that bring me happiness and joy is actually a kind of delusion.

I believe that life itself isn’t that difficult; it is ourselves who makes life difficult. I am striving to shed the word “should” in my life. When “should” appears in the mind, what lies behind it is guilt or social conditioning. If you do something because of “should,” it means deep down you don’t want to do it, and going against your own will will make you unbearably miserable. Therefore, I strive to reduce the things I do in life because of “should.”

The reality is, life is a single-player game. Humans are born alone, die alone, and interpret everything in the world by themselves. Your memories belong only to you. Before you are born, no one cares, and after you leave the world, no one cares. You exist in the world for only a short few decades; life is a single-player game.