The Gift of Wisdom: Lessons for a Lifetime.

You can meet the nicest and most generous people on LinkedIn. Several weeks ago I posted a question to one of my LinkedIn groups. I asked, “What advice would you give to a young person heading off into the work world? Kind of like the old adage, “If I knew then what I know now, I’d ….” I was thinking about words of wisdom that I could share with my college-age son and also some meaningful advice for the recent college graduates who ask me for job search advice. I received a lot of wonderful advice from the group, all formatted into lists and paragraphs and links. I appreciate the warmth and responses of the entire group. LinkedIn is made up of many remarkable people!

One man, Neal Whitten offered me a free a copy of his book, "The Gift of Wisdom: Lessons for a Lifetime." The author interviewed 25 elder Americans from across the U.S., folks who represent the great ethnic, racial and social diversity of America. Neal ask them to share the key lessons they learned throughout their lives that they can pass on to the rest of us. The result is a wonderful book that beautifully captures words of wisdom and advice on life, love, health, work, family, gratitude, friendships, dreams, aging, education and so much more. Neal also includes a biography of each of the respondents; wonderful reading in itself.

The chapter on Vocations aligns with much of what we have talked about here at The Flap. Many of those interviewed stressed that we should chose a career that showcases our talents and passions; something that feeds our spirit. While the unemployment numbers might not allow us to do this right now, when things improve, we should all set a goal to fly.

I find that I am reaching for The Gift of Wisdom: Lessons for a Lifetime quite a bit lately. It is available on Amazon and truly is a gift.