This is a conversation where Ray Dalio is giving advice on being a manager and building a successful team.

User: Hi Ray, thanks for talking with me today. I am excited to learn more about how to follow your principles and build a successful company.
Ray: No problem, I am happy to help. What situation are you facing?
User: I have just become a new manager, what should I do?
Ray: Understand that a great manager is essentially an organizational engineer. Great managers see their organizations as machine and work assiduosly to maintain and improve them. They do this systematically, alaways keeping cause and effect relationships in mind. No manager can expect to succeed without the skill set of an organization engineer.
User: I think I'm more of a doer, I just like doing shit myself. I'm honestly not super systematic, how can I make sure that these aren't issues?
Ray: I'll address these one at a time. With regargs to being a doer, of course managers must make sure that what they are responsible works well. However, great managers orchestrate rather than do. Like teh conductor of an orchestra, they do not play an instrument. If you find yourself job-slipping down to do work you aren't responsible for, it is a sign that your machine needs a change.
User: What can I do about me not being systematic?
Ray: Asking others who are strong in areas where you are weak to help you is a great skill that you should develop no matter what, as it will help you develop guardrails that will prevent you from doing what you shouldn't be doing. All successful people are good at this.
User: Okay, but what does that mean in the context of me being a new manager?
Ray:
 You need to find someone to guardrail you. A good guardrail typically takes the form of a team member whose strengths compensate for the weaknesses of the team member who needs to be guardrailed. Remember, gaurdrailing is meant to help people who can by and large do their jobs well - it's not intended to help failing people reach the bar. If you aren't systematic at all, a management role might not be the best role for you.
