DON'T Act Your Wage...

Earlier I had a post entitled "Act Your Wage." The basic premise is to live according to your means.

In discussing this post with Pastor Scott, he threw a twist in for me. His thought was "don't act your wage." But he wasn't referring to spending habits; he was referring to your work ethic.

What do I mean? If you are flipping burgers at minimum wage and you work like you are getting paid to flip burgers at minimum wage, then you may be flipping burgers at minimum wage for quite a while. And typically you'll do so while whining and complaining about how your are underpaid and unappreciated.

But if you'll flip burgers like they are paying you $15, $20 dollars an hour, training you for a management position, you'll work differently. You'll work harder with a better attitude.

Maybe you are already a mid level person making $15 or $20 an hour. Work like you are making double that. Have an attitude that reflects that you are making double that.

Now some people would push back from that and say: "Well, I'm not going to be a 'Company Man'. If my boss wants more out of me, he needs to pay me better." Alright there, Bubba. You keep going with that attitude and see how far it gets you.

John Miller in his great book "QBQ!" says that we ask the wrong questions. Instead of asking "why aren't I getting paid more?" how about you ask "what can I do to show that I'm worth more?" (And if you are going to order the QBQ! you also need to get "Flipping the Switch"")

This isn't a new concept. Jesus tells us in Matthew 5:41 to do double what is expected or required of us. I know, it's probably not fair for me to Jesus Juke you like that... But hey, it's in red letters, so it must be right. You could probably throw the whole concept of sowing & reaping in there too... The old saying is plant what you want to harvest.

So, in your spending, act your wage. In your earning, don't act your wage. See how far this takes you. You'll like where you wind up.