The World Economic Forum's (WEF) Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, this year varied dramatically from previous years. It was held during the bleakest economic outlook in more than a decade, at a time when public confidence in CEOs and world leaders has plummeted to new lows.

The meeting was fraught with pessimism. Many CEOs cancelled at the last minute. There were few Americans, and even fewer from Wall Street. Three points surfaced as top priorities for emerging from this ...