President Barack Obama has been a steadfast friend to the people. He is more than that to President-elect Joe Biden. The two spent eight years managing the great gears of the United States, ones that move based upon how well the president makes his decisions on all things.
Obama describes himself as Dad, husband, President, [and] citizen said:
‘In A Promised Land, I talk about the decisions I had to make during the first few years of my presidency. Here are some thoughts on how I approach tough questions:’
Donald Trump tried to send severe shock waves through the pillars of our institutions, morals, and government. When he realized that President-elect Joe Biden won the election, he sent his minions out with flame throwers to burn down the White House before he was evicted come January 20.
Biden was the perfect choice for this time in our great nation’s history. Yet, when he comes in to clean up this president’s mess, even he with all his political experience in the Senate and then in as vice president will need some help.
In walks President Barack Obama with the how-to be a president user guide manual, version 1.0. It was his gift to Biden and gives him the glowing ball of presidential power, according to The Medium.com. It boiled down to 12 not-so-easy steps:
- ‘No decision that landed on my desk had an easy, tidy answer. The black-and-white questions never made it to me — somebody else on my staff would have already answered them.
- For economic “free fall,” I had settled on what was the least bad of three lousy options — subjecting the 19 largest banks to “stress tests” to see whether they had the capital to survive an even worse economy.
- Every tough decision came down to a probability, then certainty was an impossibility — which could leave me encumbered by the sense that I could never get it quite right…I created a sound decision-making process — one where I really listened to the experts, followed the facts, considered my goals and weighed all of that against my principles.
- [T]hat only works if you listen — really listen — to others. For me, that meant asking everybody in a meeting what they thought about the problem at hand. I’d call on folks in the back row, including the most junior staffer.
- [My] women advisers “felt diminished” by the men. Listening to their stories, I considered the degree to which my own tolerance for machismo behavior had contributed to their discomfort and, inadvertently, stifled their important contributions. The men were oblivious.
- Having at least one contrarian in the room pushed us all to think harder — and, frankly, everyone was a bit freer with their opinions when that contrarian wasn’t me.
- Even in situations where you have to act relatively quickly, as was frequently the case during the financial crisis, it helps to build in time to let your thoughts marinate.
- Establishing boundaries and rituals. ‘There was nothing more refreshing than spending that time with the three most important people in my life — listening to Malia and Sasha narrate their days, ask questions and tease me to no end…family had decluttered my mind and restored my equilibrium.
- [W]e bring our whole selves to the decisions we make. And those decisions, in turn, both reflect and determine who we are.
- [M]y mother made sure I understood. [There are two kinds of people.] Those who only think about themselves and tear others down to make themselves feel important.. and those who think about how others feel and avoid doing things that might hurt them. “So,” she asked me, “Which kind of person do you want to be?”
- I followed my own basic humanity and sense of decency…I trusted my team. I listened to every voice in the room. I gave myself space to think. And then I made a decision that reflected my own personal sense of what was right
- It’s not always clean and straightforward. But as my mother would say to me, “The world is complicated, Bar. That’s why it’s interesting.”’
The Mueller Report Adventures: In Bite-Sizes on this Facebook page. These quick, two-minute reads interpret the report in normal English for busy people. Mueller Bite-Sizes uncovers what is essentially a compelling spy mystery. Interestingly enough, Mueller Bite-Sizes can be read in any order.
