The Ten Principles of Win-Win
Every good game needs a few rules...
These are the ten principles of Win-Win. You can think of them as life tips, game rules, simulation parameters… whatever personally resonates. They are not compulsory, merely recommendations. Nor were they handed down from a booming voice on a mountain, as epic as that would be. They’re mostly distillations of various wisdoms I’ve learned through writings of, or conversations with, very brilliant people. Some are my own insights gleaned from various personal experiences. As such, please take them as seriously or lightly as you feel appropriate.
The universe is fundamentally and radically abundant. Scarcity is the exception, not the rule. As such, a mindset based in scarcity will ultimately self-defeat.
Permanence is a fool’s errand. A living universe is increasingly complex and dynamic. Be adaptive, not boring.
Do your best to grow the pie, not just take from it. In the rare case where the pie cannot grow further, only take your fair share. How you define fair is up to you. (See #4).
Love is that which enables choice1. As such, true power comes from empowering others to make their own choices; to design and play their own games.
All games have consequences. Intelligence is knowing how to win a game; Wisdom is knowing which games to play in the first place.
Selflessness and Sacrifice are not as noble as they appear, for such acts are lose/win. The best acts are mutually beneficial.
A win/win game usually requires some collaboration. That said, such games can — and ideally should — contain competitive win/lose sub-games within them.
Scoring systems can be useful tools, but resist the temptation to turn them into primary goals2. Don’t be a dogmatic maximalist.
While trade-offs can exist, beware of false dichotomies. A paradox often dissolves when viewed from higher dimensions.
Don’t take anything too seriously. The universe loves to play.
These are the ten principles of Win-Win as I best see them. This list is by no means fixed or complete; I just chose this number for obvious memetic reasons. Feel free to suggest any additional principles or propose amendments in the comments below!
I also appreciate some may be clearer in meaning than others, so I’ll elaborate on each in additional posts over the coming weeks.
Til then: GL,HF.
Liv
This is a quote from Forrest Landry’s “Tiny Book of Collected Wisdom”. I recommend it.
This one is derived from Goodhart’s Law , a concept so important and omni-applicable it should be taught in grade school.
What a great, encouraging read to start the day sipping coffee. #4 rocks.
What a great list! As a businessman who has made a living creating win-wins, I’ve always believed the trick is to align incentives - as once that is accomplished, no collaboration is required.