“Life is business, and business is life. Learn one, and you will have also learned the other.”

Rabbi Daniel Lapin

The time-tested knowledge found in the ancient Jewish faith and culture gives “scientific” support of the relevance of this faith and culture to living an abundant life. Dr. Lapin has shared a treasury of advice and directions that Kingdom Ambassadors can easily relate to. This post and the previous one is an attempt to introduce you to the wealth of knowledge found in this great book, “Thou Shall Prosper”.

The last five chapters and directives revolve around the various leadership roles that successful people practice. As you evolve into the Multimillionaire of your Vision, you will change as a person and your leadership style will be effected. Dr. Lapin describes how to be successful as circumstances change and he also explains the importance of an unshakable foundation.

“You can prosper by integrating into your life the things that must never change along with an openness to the things that can and should change.”

Rabbi Lapin

Commandment #6 Constantly Change the Changeable.

Change is an inevitable force in our dynamic, environment. Don’t fight it. Knowing how to manage change as you grow your business will be a valuable skill that will put you far ahead of your competition. If you are unprepared for change, you could face disastrous business results. Human nature resists change. That’s the first obstacle you must face. Now also consider this, when building a sustainable enterprise, one of your priorities should be to consistently engage in proactive innovation. In other words, you’re causing self imposed change. This greatly increases the change your business enterprise will encounter. So how can you survive with this much change surrounding you? Remain grounded in your personal and business Mission/Purpose and Values; the teachings of the Torah being paramount. These are the anchors that will hold your strategy and business together.  Important concept:” …some things never change. Businesses that don’t do something valuable for others do not survive and should not survive. Profit is a way to measure how useful a business is. That doesn’t ever change.”, Dr. Lapin

“Who is wise? One who can tell what will be hatched from an egg that has been laid. Not he who can see the future — that is a prophet. Wisdom is seeing tomorrow’s consequences of today’s events.”

Babylonian Talmud, tractate Tamid

Commandment #7 Learn to Foretell the Future

It is important to understand what is going on in the world, not just in your particular business discipline. If you are building a business, staying ahead of and managing constant change is a paramount survival skill. Trend foraging will help you control and direct the types of change required if you want to build a strong business.  The availability of vast amounts of information will help you know what you need to know to become and remain an industry leader.  Trend foraging is using as many methods as you can afford, to find out where your industry and the world is now, and where it is going in the future.

Norma D. Anderson in “The Importance of Watching Trends” suggests,   “Network with other entrepreneurs, both in and out of your industry. I promise, you’ll gain some of your most valuable trend insights by talking to people in completely different industries. Take advantage of social networking tools like LinkedIn and Facebook. Start or join groups on the networks and see what people are buzzing about. Pose questions about trends you are seeing.” “There are always larger patterns and trends to watch and to try to understand. As a business professional, you should remain on high alert for these trends, and you should try to understand the underlying causes driving them.” Rabbi Lapin.

“Money is the most effective way ever invented for men and women to quantify their creative energy—a most convenient measure of our time, dignity, skills, health, experience, and persistence.”

Rabbi Daniel Lapin

Commandment #8  Know Your Money

The basic thought for this commandment is to have as much information as possible about your money. Do not be afraid of learning the basics of Finance. If we are serious about becoming wealthy, we must know as much as possible about our finances.

Rabbi Lapin shares three benefits of developing knowledge and fluency with numbers.

First, we will become accustomed to thinking and talking with precision. We will ask for exact numbers and come across as crisp and knowledgeable when discussing finances. Second, you will develop confidence about your judgements and decisions. You can compare deals and investments with confidence. Third, you will feel more alive because you will feel more related to the world around you. Most of us don’t want to put a lot of time into accounting, but Rabbi Lapin wants us to grow to love numbers as a tool to use in our communications. Financial accounting is an important tool as we move to greater prosperity.

It is important to know “how to compile and maintain your own accurate set of financial records”. We have many apps and software programs to help us with accountancy, but we must really understand the numbers and not just press certain buttons on the computer. Rabbi Lapin even suggests enrolling in a basic accounting course. Quicken by Intuit or Money by Microsoft can help you see an accurate financial picture of your business or endeavor. “You need to know your money, and this is how to know it. You need to know your exact financial situation because that is what you are intending to improve. You can hardly measure improvement if you have no way of keeping score,” Rabbi Lapin.

“Through the mystical alchemy of money, giving charity jump-starts wealth creation.”

Rabbi Daniel Lapin

Commandment #9 Act Rich: Give Away 10 Percent of Your After-Tax Income

An interesting perspective offered by Rabbi Lapin is that giving helps you see your self as a giver and not a taker. This does several things. Seeing yourself as giver enhances your drive to achieve, your persistence, and your zest for life. Charitable giving does this. You will give money away not because it is rational. You will give it away because it is right. It is part of the traditional way of life in our country. We give to charity more than any other country in the world.

“Give money away because it is one of the most powerful and effective ways of increasing your own income”, Lapin. In time transactions, partnerships, and collaborations will come because of your association with your charity.  Also giving money away is like investing. Even if you don’t see results right away, the practice of charity is a great way to make investments and be primed for opportunity.

“Because death is quite incompatible with creativity, it is impossible for anyone to die while occupied in creative endeavor.”

Rabbi Daniel Lapin

Commandment #10 Never Retire

Productive work where you are caring for  others is a recipe for long life.

Our lives are most enriched when we believe we are doing something to help others. Dr. Donald Hensrud, director of the Mayo Clinic Executive Health Program says, “Caring for others makes us care for ourselves..” Mutual dependency in the workplace leads to close relationships which in turn, improves our  health. Rabbi Lapin believes that retirement is a selfish goal because it cuts off our relationships with many others.

Work is more valuable than just money. It keeps you energized, involved and engaged with others. This promotes not only survival but longevity also. Work is valuable particularly when you are doing something that you enjoy. As we grow older we know more about our profession, we know more people who need our expertise, and we know how to handle adversity more effectively. Persevere and continue to offer the benefits of your wonderful talent to others.

The Ten Commandments for Making Money in this book are priceless laws of success and wealth. These brief summaries do not adequately represent the invaluable advice offered in this book. Get the book, “Thou Shall Prosper”, by Rabbi Daniel Lapin and read it several times then do what it says. You will become a successful multimillionaire in Yah’s Kingdom and stay there!