WWJD for the Fiscal Cliff?

WWJD?

If America's President, Speaker of the House and Senate Majority Leader asked and answered "What would Jesus do?", I would have reason for hope in resolving the Fiscal Cliff.

The politicians in Washington have been talking amongst themselves too long. They're stuck in a rut of doing the same thing over and over yet expecting better results. They don't believe anyone but themselves have good ideas, much less Jesus.

I believe adding new voices and views to the knowledgeable people we've elected can be a catalyst. Inviting new people will revitalize the discussion. A discussion that defines solutions and outcomes for our nation's financial malaise.

I nominate Rabbi Daniel Lapin, Stephen M. R. Covey, Dave Ramsey, and Rick Warren.

·        Rabbi Lapin wrote Thou Shalt Prosper, a very practical source of financial wisdom based on Jewish principles of the Old Testament. President Obama wants the middle class to prosper. So does the Rabbi.

·        Surveys show Americans no longer trust Congress. In The Speed of Trust author Stephen M. R. Covey explains how to restore trust. Without trust, it takes much more time and money to reach an agreement. Stephen can also coach Washington's elite on his father's 7 Habits of Highly Effective People so the Fiscal Cliff does not reoccur.

·        Dave Ramsey is espouser of "Debt is dumb, cash is king". Dave can inform and inspire our leaders to create a budget that pays down the debt. Dave's mantra of "spend less than you make" is simple wisdom that solves complex problems.

·        I'd like Rick Warren to read and explain to our politicians the first sentence of The Purpose Driven Life: "It's not about you". While some of our elected are humble, apparently most are not. Otherwise, they would have asked for and accepted fiscal advice months ago. Servant leadership is easy to say but difficult to do, especially in Washington D.C.  

What would Jesus do regarding the Fiscal Cliff?

I could take an educated guess, but God told me in Isaiah 55:8 "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways".

I believe Jesus invites the President, Speaker of the House, Senate Majority Leader and the men I listed to get down on their knees, humble themselves and ask for divine guidance to avert the Fiscal Cliff.

I'd be willing to pay more taxes to hear what they had to say after that prayer meeting!

Advice from Ten Books of 2012

I averaged reading one book per week in 2012. Listed below are my Top Ten Book recommendations and one piece of advice I took away from each that you may find helpful. I've provided a picture of each book and a link to my full Amazon.com book reviews in case you want to learn more about my choices.

1. There is no market for a speaker who tells an audience the obvious. A speaker should begin speech preparation by asking "What insights can I provide the audience they don't already have and how do I want them to act on that insight?" I use Swindoll's advice everytime I begin to write a speech or workshop.

http://www.amazon.com/Saying-Well-Touching-Others-Words/dp/0892968311/icminc

2. "The person or organization who has a clear, compelling, and white-hot burning WHY will always defeat the best of the best at doing the how." For this reason, I have made WHY the starting point of strategic planning sessions I lead, not a vision or mission statement. A great WHY causes people to lean in, have an AHA! moment that appeals to both their heart and head.

http://www.amazon.com/Compound-Effect-Darren-Hardy/dp/159315724X/icminc

3. "Any organization that really wants to maximize its success must come to embody two basic qualities: it must be smart, and it must be healthy." Smart organizations are good a basic business fundamentals like strategy, marketing, fianance and technology. Healthy organizations have minimal politics and confusion, high degrees of morale and productivity, and very low turnover among the good employees. I found very few organizations in 2012 that were both smart and healthy. Smart seems to be easier to achieve than healthy.

http://www.amazon.com/Advantage-Organizational-Health-Everything-Business/dp/0470941529/icminc

4. "This may sound counterintuitive, but I deeply believe that the path to happiness in a relationship is not just about finding someone who you think is going to make you happy. Rather, the reverse is equally true: the path to happiness is about finding someone who you want to make happy, someone whose happiness is worth devoting yourself to." I will celebrate my 44th anniversary with Sue in January 2013. We both found someone in 1969 we wanted to make happy. Divorce often happens when the husband or wife frames the marriage only in terms of whether she/he is giving me what I want. If he/she isn't, then I dispense with him/her, and find someone who will. You reap what you sow. If you want to reap happiness, you first must give it.

http://www.amazon.com/How-Will-Measure-Your-Life/dp/0062102419/icminc

5. "We start getting old instead of growing old. There is a big difference." I turned 65 in 2012. Author Ken Davis clarified my future plans. I'm going to retread and keep right on going. I feel like my age is an advantage. This book gave me sound, practical advice to improve me physically, mentally and spiritually.

http://www.amazon.com/Fully-Alive-Lighten-Journey-Change/dp/0849948428/icminc

6. Some problems in our personal and professional lives cannot be fixed. If something is not working or a product is not selling, there comes a time to end it. " Make the endings a normal occurence and a normal part of business and life, instead of seeing it as a problem." There is a time, a moment, when it is truly over, and if that is not in your view of life, you can miss the right time to get out and to turn your attention to something different or new.

http://www.amazon.com/Necessary-Endings-Employees-Businesses-Relationships/dp/0061777129/icminc

7. When I ask people "Do you have a plan for next year?", they commonly answer "Yes". But when I ask "Where is the plan?" they point to their head. No one can help if your plan is not written down. This book contains lots of great advice, but one thing that stuck out was: The 7 characteristics of a good strategic planning process are (1) Use pencil & paper, not technology; (2) Use a facilitator; (3) Offsite; (4) Great food & drink; (5) Don't sit; (6) Makes data gathering easy; and, (7) Gives every strategic planning participant a deck of blank cards labeled Objectives, Goals, The Pivot Point, Results, Constraints, Strategies & Tactics.

http://www.amazon.com/Commitment-Engine-Making-Work-Worth/dp/1591844878/icminc

8. I enjoy books that challenge conventional thinking and promote change. This author offers three clears steps to effective change. "Austrian economist Ludwig von Mises, once said that three requirements must be present for an individual to change: 1. The individual must be dissatisfied with the current state of affairs; 2. The individual must see a better state; and, 3. The individual must believe that he or she can reach that better state." Step 3 may be the most overlooked step of change processes.

http://www.amazon.com/Best-Practices-Are-Stupid-Out-Innovate/dp/1591843855/icminc

9. Almost every organization is seeking a way to increase demand for their products or services. This book offers a way to increase sales ... solve people's hassles. "Great demand creators eliminate or reduce the hassles that make most products and services inconvenient, costly, unpleasant, and frustrating." If you opened this blog with a touch to your iPad, iPhone or similar device, your experience resulted from a creative team solving your hassle of opening a document by simply touching your finger to a screen.

http://www.amazon.com/Demand-Creating-What-People-Before/dp/0307887324/icminc

10. I don't just underline books. I also write at the front of the book the page numbers and short summaries of important things I want to be able to find quickly at a later date. I wrote page after page of page number summaries in this book by Andy Standley. While the intended audience for the book is ministry leaders, the principles and innovative practices Andy shares in this book apply to for-profit and governmental organizations as well. Andy emphasizes that change takes place in circles, not rows. That applies to all of us. So does this advice "People are far more interested in what works than what's true. As long as you are dishing out truth with no here's the difference it will make tacked on the end, you will be perceived as irrelevant by most of the people in your church, student ministry, or home Bible study." I have found that principle true for Lean trainers, Activity Based Cost consultants and Learn@Lunch speakers.

http://www.amazon.com/Deep-Wide-Creating-Churches-Unchurched/dp/0310494842/icminc

What book did you find most useful in 2012? I'd like to add it to my 2013 reading list. Send your recommendations to TPryor@uta.edu or TomTex@aol.com .