The Need for WISDOM

Wisdom - Best Practices
By Thomas E. Ambler

The Need for WISDOM

With your head spinning from the challenges posed by accelerating change, heightened complexity and deteriorating integrity in your world, you, as a leader, may well be crying out for something of great worth that you can grab hold of and hang onto. One such lasting thing is WISDOM.

Personal and organizational success becomes more likely where Competency/Capability, Passion and Need all intersect. A key additional ingredient to raise more likely to likely is WISDOM.

No doubt you can identify many more reasons why there is a desperate need today for WISDOM.

Meaning of WISDOM

Dictionary:
''WISDOM is knowledge and good judgment based on experience, being wise.''

''Wise implies having knowledge and understanding of people and of what is true and right in life and conduct, and showing sound judgment in applying such knowledge; suggests having wide knowledge and experience plus profound thought.''

Further insight into what WISDOM is and isn't:

Wisdom denotes the pursuing of the best ends by the best means. (Francis Hutcheson)
Knowledge without wisdom is a load of books on the back of an ass. (Japanese Proverb)
Wisdom comes not from experience but from meditating on experience and assimilating it. (Joy Elmer Morgan)
To know is not to be wise. There is no fool so great as a knowing fool. But to know how to use knowledge is to have wisdom. (Charles H. Spurgeon)

According to Jack Welch, much of good strategy is finding the Best Practices and then making them better. Where could we find a better list of Best Practices for WISDOM than from the book written by the all-time #1 guru of WISDOM? That would be King Solomon of Israel and the book would be Proverbs, which is recognized well beyond Judeo-Christian circles as a source of timeless truth applicable to timely issues.

Wisdom Best Practices Taken from Proverbs (New Living Bible Translation)

Solomon's first chapter defines our goal with these words.
''These are the proverbs of Solomon, David's son, king of Israel. The purpose of these proverbs is to teach people wisdom and discipline.... Let those who are wise listen to these proverbs and become even wiser. And let those who understand receive guidance by exploring the depth of meaning in these proverbs, parables, wise sayings, and riddles. Fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge. Only fools despise wisdom and discipline.''

Listed below are a few 3000 year-old proverbs that I believe have special meaning for business leaders today. They are grouped by 21^st century business topics. (The numbers shown are Chapter:Verse.) Chew on these truths multiple times and explore their meaning for you and your business.

Focus
4:25-27 Look straight ahead, and fix your eyes on what lies before you. Mark out a straight path for your feet; then stick to the path and stay safe. Don't get sidetracked; keep your feet from following evil.

Planning
21:5 Good planning and hard work lead to prosperity, but hasty shortcuts lead to poverty.
19:21 You can make many plans, but the LORD's purpose will prevail.

Integrity
10:9 People with integrity have firm footing, but those who follow crooked paths will slip and fall.
12:19 Truth stands the test of time; lies are soon exposed.

Counsel
15:22 Plans go wrong for lack of advice; many counselors bring success.
24:5-6 A wise man is mightier than a strong man, and a man of knowledge is more powerful than a strong man. So don't go to war without wise guidance; victory depends on having many counselors.

Caution
14:16 The wise are cautious and avoid danger; fools plunge ahead with great confidence.

Growth
14:28 A growing population is a king's glory; a dwindling nation is his doom.

Expression
15:1 A gentle answer turns away wrath, but harsh words stir up anger.
28:23 In the end, people appreciate frankness more than flattery.

Fairness
16:11 The LORD demands fairness in every business deal; he sets the standard.

Pride
16:18 Pride goes before destruction, and haughtiness before a fall.
15:31-32 If you listen to constructive criticism, you will be at home among the wise. If you reject criticism, you only harm yourself; but if you listen to correction, you grow in understanding.

Valuing Employees
14:35 A king rejoices in servants who know what they are doing; he is angry with those who cause trouble.
22:29 Do you see any truly competent workers? They will serve kings rather than ordinary people.
27:18 Workers who tend a fig tree are allowed to eat its fruit. In the same way, workers who protect their employer's interests will be rewarded.
22:2 The rich and the poor have this in common: The LORD made them both.

Diligence
12:24 Work hard and become a leader; be lazy and become a slave.
14:23 Work brings profit, but mere talk leads to poverty!

Faithfulness and Love
20:28 Unfailing love and faithfulness protect the king; his throne is made secure through love.

Finances
22:7 Just as the rich rule the poor, so the borrower is servant to the lender.

Source and Benefits of Wisdom
2:6-11 For the LORD grants wisdom! From his mouth come knowledge and understanding. He grants a treasure of good sense to the godly. He is their shield, protecting those who walk with integrity. He guards the paths of justice and protects those who are faithful to him.
Then you will understand what is right, just, and fair, and you will know how to find the right course of action every time. For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will fill you with joy. Wise planning will watch over you. Understanding will keep you safe.

In an age where information is typically valued most if its date of publication is most recent, how refreshing and reassuring it is to encounter information whose value is defined by how enduring is its truth. Genuine WISDOM never gets old. Make these WISDOM Best Practices your own. Improve on them-if you can. But most importantly, share them and live them!

Tom Ambler is a Consultant with Center for Simplified Strategic Planning, Inc. He can be reached via e-mail at ambler@cssp.com.

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