“You do not have to get something for nothing but can give to every person more than you take from him.”  Wallace Wattles
 
Who do you know who is a true giver?
 
A gift opens the way for the giver and ushers him into the presence of the great.  (Prov. 18:16; NLT)
 
Earlier this month, I highlighted the book The Go-Giver: A Little Story About A Powerful Business Idea (see 2/4/08 DG). In that book are presented five rather unusual laws called “The Five Laws of Stratospheric Success.” For the next several DGs I would like to look at each of those laws individually.

The first law is the Law of Value and simply states, “Your true worth is determined by how much more you give in value than you take in payment.” Almost seems the antithesis of good business doesn’t it? That’s the point of the whole book. In a culture of distrust and “dog eat dog” as ours has become in many respects, the idea of giving more than you get paid for seems quite foreign and frankly, just bad advice.

In the dialogue in the book, it comes out that giving to get is not the proper strategy either, but rather giving out of the love of giving. In other words, giving to give is something you “do,” while giving because you love to give is something you are…who you “be.” As we’ve noticed in several of the past Daily Grams, you must be before you can do with any integrity. Quoting from The Go-Giver parable, “…but the point isn’t to [exceed people's expectations so they will] pay you more, it’s to give them more…because you love to. It’s a way of life. When you do, then very, very profitable things begin to happen.”

The author sums it all up by noting, “All the great fortunes in the world have been created by men and women who had a greater passion for what they were giving–their product, service, or idea–than for what they were getting. And many of those great fortunes have been squandered by others who had a greater passion for what they were getting than what they were giving.” Pretty significant shift in thinking, don’t you think?

Can you think of any modern day examples? I can think of a couple that Sharon and I have been blessed to be involved with over the past three or four years. The first that comes to mind is our web site guru and peer-coach, Dr. Randy Peck. I could give you story after story of how we’ve seen this working out in the way he approaches both business and friendships. Another is our good friend Tony Stoltzfus who taught us all we know about coaching, and who continues to be our mentor and encourager. A couple of others include our chiropractor and friend, Dr. Julia Trudeau, as well as a long distance mentor and colleague (whom I’ve never met face-to-face), Mike Klingler who lives in Portland, OR. There are others, but those four kind of rise to the top in my mind.

I’d like to encourage you to (1) get this book as it can change your life; (2) think of a couple of examples of people you know who embody the Law of Value; and (3) begin to look for ways that you can give more value than you expect to get in return. The stand back and watch what happens!

Prayer Power
Lord, let this law of value become a habit, a way of life for us. Grant us the grace to let that become who we “be” rather than just what we “do” as we happen to think of it.
 
Link of the Day 
The Go-Giver: A Little Story About a Powerful Business Idea
 
Blessings on you as you look for just one place where you can give more than you expect in return.