Advice for President Obama on Making Good Relationships!

Max's advice for February 28, 2009

Dear President Obama,

Max grew up as the son of a man who knew 'ALL' the answers to the problems of the world. Max's father said so! Many times, his father let everyone know that anyone who didn't know that he had the answers was a turkey or a knucklehead.

The famous Ma Bell, the second most powerful force in the world (next to God of course), thought so much of Max's father's opinions, that she made him 'Supervisor of Troubles'. This is true!

The advice Max promised you, President Obama.

Make friends with the people who will tell you the truth!

Max watches as you surround yourself with a group of able and well recommended individuals.

Many of these individuals thought they had the answers going into the next decade of this new century. Many were so sure that they ran for the same office that you, Mr. President, now hold.

In public it is a good thing for them to keep their tongues and not contradict you. In private, if they have different points of view, silence should be unacceptable.

You have chosen a group of exceptional people. They need to be made feel that their voices are heard. This may be easy for you to do as you start your Presidential reign, but as time goes on it may become easier to stifle the opposition within.

You need to make sure that you do not do this. You need to treat the members of the cabinet with the same deferrence that you need to show your wife. You have them by your side politically that you have her romantically.

Your administration will be a better one if the fur can fly in private and you can walk out of the room feeling that every voice was heard and every argument for or against was aired.

It is important, now more than ever, that the country is guided and led by people willing to honestly put the nation first. Some of the battles with those who would hurt the nation to make the government look bad are quickly approaching.

The spirit of openess can help you understand some of the view points and the legitimacy behind them. Those who wish to foil your presidency are not all doing it out of meaness and spite. They have real concerns and real positions.

The people in your cabinet and inner circle may lean somewhat left, but they will have ideas that do not conform to what you are thinking. The more unique ideas you examine, the better the plan and the implementation of the plan will be.

Taking the fight to the insurance industry as it appears you may be planning, is only rational if you recognize the things they want that can be provided by your proposals. They need to strike out based on clear differences.

The people who surround you need to attack your plans out of sight of the public where they can hammer away at the sharp angles that make attacks easy. They need to emphasize what it would take to bring them fully into a shared vision. And they need to do so with honesty.

You are not going to please everyone. Still, you need to be building proposals that build a solid foundation for decades to come, not a solution that is swept away by a presidential order the day after you leave office.

Max wishes you well in all your efforts to keep an open mind on all issues.

Max writes about greenways, rare diseases, timely topics, places to eat, travel and other issues of interest. He encourages you to add your comments.

Link one: an interesting article on an open mind.

Link two: group think and the risks it creates.

Link three: the topic of decision making.