Be radically open-minded and radically transparent.

Ray Dalio’s paired principles encourage serious consideration of contrary views and visibility into relevant reasoning and information. They can make assumptions easier to question, but do not guarantee accurate judgment, trust, or an organization in which the best ideas prevail.

Open-mindedness concerns what you do when an observation or argument challenges your view. Transparency concerns what other people can inspect about your information and reasoning. They can support each other: a visible assumption can be questioned, and a willingness to revise can make that question useful. Neither makes a conversation accurate by itself.

A practical application makes a particular decision easier to examine. State the relevant evidence, uncertainty, and reasons; invite a substantive objection; then explain whether it changes the conclusion. The scope of sharing should serve that purpose and respect the people concerned. Candor about a project does not require exposing private life or turning every interaction into a public evaluation.

When to use it

When hidden assumptions, incomplete explanations, or reflexive defense of a preferred answer are obstructing a useful discussion.

How it can help

Helps make a belief or proposal inspectable and creates an opportunity to revise it when another person supplies relevant evidence or reasoning.