Ethics & Launching Leaders

MONEY, MONEY, MONEY!!!

(What you can do with it and how to get it)

    This week I want to talk to you about..... MONEY!!!! Have you every heard of the phrase "Money isn't everything". People who use that saying are in my mind incorrect. To me that's something a person who doesn't have money or has been taught incorrect principles about money would say. I have often said "They say money isn't everything, but you need money for everything." The reason I have said this is because you need money to pay tithing, you need money to help those in need, you need money for food, to pay your mortgage, pay your insurance, put gas in your car, keep the lights on, the list goes on and on.

    This week we read an article called "Attitude on Money" by Stephen W. Gibson, in this article he talks about two types of people, those who know what money is for and those who want absolutely nothing to do with it. He also compares it to looking through lenses if we see through the correct lenses we'll be able to see things around us clearly, if we don't use the correct lenses everything around us will become distorted. This is a valuable lesson because if you have never had money and your parents teach you that it's evil then you'll most likely feel that way as an adult, unless you change your prescription to a lens that allows you to see clearer. I grew up in a household where I thought we had money. It wasn't until I had grown into an adult and read my fathers journal that I realized I grew up poor. Looking back through clearer lenses I was able to see just how poor we were. We lost houses, vehicles, and many other things that I probably was too young to know about. We weren't taught that money was evil, but I've come to the conclusion my father was always looking for either the get rich quick route or he thought about everything that could go wrong. He also dismissed the advice of those who were more successful than he was and he didn't think about everything that could go right.

    With that little bit of background and some insight that money is not evil, it's how it's used that's important to remember. I say this because you can use money to do evil things or you can use money to bless the lives of those who aren't able to do what you are doing because of different circumstances. 

    Stephen W. Gibson gives us six rules to prosper in our world so we can have the ability to help others.

Rule 1. Seek the Lord and have hope in him

Rule 2. Keep the commandments, that includes the temporal ones, tithing and fast offerings.

Rule 3. Think about money and plan how you can become self-reliant

Rule 4. Take advantage of chances for learning so you will not be ignorant of these matters. Education, as President Hinckley has taught us, is the Key to Opportunity.

Rule 5. Learn the laws upon which the blessings of wealth are predicated.

Rule 6. Do not send away the naked, the hungry, the thirsty or the sick or those who are held captive.

In addition to these rules Stephen W. Gibson lists at the website address called the Rules of Thumb at https://www.the-academy.org/rules

These are some amazing rules and videos to go along with each rule. I highly suggest you take time to read these rules as you start a business or just want some great advice for life in general.

    I recently interviewed a friend of mine who is a very successful person in my community. I asked him for his top 3 books. After a few days he told me one of those books was the book The Richest Man in Babylon by George Samuel Clason. I remember my brother when we were younger had this book on the floor of our bedroom, he said his seminary teacher recommended they all read it. I picked it up when I was about 12 years old and tried to read it but I wasn't great at reading then. I read it a few years ago and absolutely loved it and want to personally recommend it to all of you to read if you want to have some more understanding about money, how it works and what to do with it. 

    Money can bless your life and the lives of others, so go develop your talents put them to work and money will be a blessing to you, your family and those around you. Remember to put on the correct lenses!