The Gift of Lift

We live in a world that tells us how to live, what matters (and what doesn’t), and how to get what it says we want. These impersonal, external forces push us around and leave us off-balance, confused, and fatigued. Like actors following a script they didn’t write, we find ourselves uncertain of where we have ended up, much less where we want to go, and asking ourselves, “What am I supposed to do next?” Among us, however, are those who live differently. Held steady by the pull of purpose that comes from the upward lift of something far bigger than themselves, they amplify that force with their own deep personal engagement. These women and men live in an ascending spiral of clarity, vision, and balance that guides their lives and allows them to make lasting impacts in the world. More than mere consumers, dreamers, or even owners, these people have found the ancient secret to a life lived as a Steward.

While each uniquely different and diverse, every Stward builds on two essential building blocks: transcendence and investment. They know what calls to them, and they know how they are going to engage themselves with that call to create lives full of purpose, direction, and impact. Imagine a world filled with people whose first question isn’t, “What’s in it for me?” but rather, “What’s in it for us?” Imagine being the kind of person who says, “I want what matters,” instead of, “What I want matters.”

In The Gift of Lift: Harnessing the Power of Stewardship to Elevate the World, award-winning author and trusted wealth planner David R. York aims to help readers clearly articulate and identify what truly matters to them, and, once identified, how to engage with it in deeply personal and profoundly impactful ways. A meaningful purpose allows one to develop a sense of true self-awareness so that it can be utilized as a catalyst to finding the right direction in whatever the next step will be. York’s new perspective gives readers the opportunity to not just learn about themselves, but also to connect to an uplifting, energizing, and fulfilling life.

A life of purpose is also a simpler and easier one. Instead of being pushed around by an impersonal world, York describes how we are lifted, strengthened and carried by that purpose and over the myriad obstacles that cover the ground. The Gift of Lift is not a business book. It is not a self-help book, a memoir, a history, or a treatise on economics. This book is about a perspective we can all choose to adopt when engaging with the world around us. Stewardship is for anyone who chooses to embrace it. The Gift of Lift seeks to unlock these secrets of life and provides a pathway towards intention, meaning, and purpose.

Author Bio: 

David R. York is an Attorney, Certified Public Accountant and Managing Partner with the Salt Lake City law firm of York Howell & Guymon. He practices law in the areas of estate planning, tax, business planning, and nonprofit entities. With more than 25 years of experience, he has worked with over 7,000 clients, including billionaires and business owners, celebrities and sports figures, and entrepreneurs of all shapes and sizes, representing first generation wealth creators, fifth generation wealth maintainers, and everything in between. He is a Fellow with the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC) and is the Dean of Legacy with the Purposeful Planning Institute. York has extensive experience in designing and implementing advanced wealth planning strategies for ultra high net worth clients. 

A highly sought-after speaker, he has spoken on the TEDx stage as well as to hundreds of public groups and professional organizations, including Q Commons, the Million Dollar Roundtable, the AALU National Conference, the Hawaii Tax Institute, the Purposeful Planning Institute, Investments and Wealth Institute, Valmark Member Summit, and the Southeastern Family Office Forum.

York is the co-author of three books. His newest The Gift of Lift will be released nationwide June 2022. His other titles included, Entrusted: Building a Legacy That Lasts and Riveted: 44 Values that Change the World, which after its release was the #1 Business Ethics book on Amazon. He also created the game Experience RivetsTM, which helps individuals, families and businesses identify their unique and shared core values to assist them with holistic wealth transfer, effective estate planning and team building. 

York has also written for Trusts & Estates Magazine, Estate Planning Magazine and Investments and Wealth Monitor. In 2017, YHG was recognized as an Inc. 5000 Company. York currently serves on the Board of Directors of Holding Out HELP and Healing Nations. He lives in the Salt Lake City, Utah area with his wife, Mindy, and their five children and enjoys biking, skiing, softball, writing and photography.