Message of the Day - The Statistics Trap

Good Morning,

My current read is "Crush It!: Why Now is the Time to Cash in on Your
Passion" by Gary Vay.ner.chuck
(http://garyvaynerchuk.com/post/107300929/crush-it-why-now-is-the-time-to-ca
sh-in-on-your) which was recommended to me by Noah St. John, author of the
"Secret Code of Success". This book is full of energy and very down to
earth and simple ideas on how to turn your passions into a personal brand
and turn that into a profitable enterprise. The road to success is a road
full of hard work and passion, Gary makes no bones about putting in a lot of
time and effort into building you and your brand, but the roadmap is very
easy to follow.

I am eagerly looking to put this new information to work for me. You can now
follow me on Twitter, see my signature line.

One point which hit home was getting caught in a trap of following
statistics based on the numbers and findings (Gary was talking about using
web statistics to make decisions on running your business). When we measure
the productivity of anything, we often use statistics to guide how we move
forward and plan for the next move or how to react to a situation which
arises.

Statistics are often our friends and they do not lie. Unfortunately,
statistics also can be misleading and if interpreted incorrectly, can lead
us down the wrong path.

So how do we know if the stats are misleading?

Use the old gut check. What does your gut tell you about the situation?
Often our gut feeling or intuition will be more accurate to the situation at
hand then any statistics. Our gut feelings are based on years of experience.

Here's an example, I led a team of technical/software support agents. They
were able to handle 10% of the calls their received, 90% needed to be routed
software companies and other specialists. Statistically, it made sense to
focus their skills and training on the 90% of the calls they could not
handle and build better processes for them (i.e., run the team as a 'catch
and dispatch' group). My gut said don't do it, to 'focus on the 10%, and
make it more'. I directed my team to reach out to those we normally simply
routed call to and learn from them and document it. Then share the
information with each other. After eighteen months, the team could handle
over 50% of their calls and even more important, they added a lot of value
to the company and the customers. Most of my team members then went on into
management due to what they learned on my team.

Before you all go off and toss out your statistical management, realize that
in many cases the numbers do not give an accurate account of what is going
on, rather they give clues, but not the whole picture. There is often more
at play, and that is where the gut check will help out.

Numbers are good, but so are our gut feelings. Let's work them together to
do our best.

Enjoy!

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
http://www.berenberg.net
http://learnandgrowdaily.com ←-Click here to order: "Learn And Grow Daily!"

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/
NEW → http://twitter.com/sberenberg <---- NEW
502-533-9336

Message of the Day - Looking for the Instant Cure

Good Morning,

I did not have a message for you today, and while trying to fall asleep
after a rather chaotic and trying day, a thought popped into my head. The
thought expanded into a message. possibly even a good message!

So as I lied there thinking through the message I started wondering if I
would remember the message when I woke up tomorrow morning. Since you are
receiving this message Thursday morning, I realized I most likely would have
forgotten it and deprived us all of this wisdom, or I would have been upset
at myself for being lazy, or both.

In reviewing Facebook updates this evening, I noticed several people are
under the weather and looking for quick cures for their colds and other
ills. This made me think about how we often look for an instant cure to our
daily troubles. Kind of like how some people play the lottery or PowerBall
as an instant cure for their financial woes.

And why shouldn't people look for instant cures? Our society is full of
instant gratification on so many different levels. We can download songs and
movies instead of having to go to the store and buy them or worse order
them. We can get information at the touch of our fingers to a keyboard while
surfing the web.

But we lose something along with these instant cures. We lose the journey to
the cure.

It is the journey to the resolution where most of the wisdom is gained. It
is seeing the progression of fixing our problems where we have the
experiences which give us the 'aha' moments.

Without the journey, there is little to be learned. We end up much in the
same state as we are when we look for the instant cure.

With the journey, we have knowledge on how to get the cure or solution and
the need for it is lessoned because we know how to get it.

With enough journeys through life, we become able to face most challenges
without fear or trepidation because we have the knowledge gained through
those journeys.

Next time you find yourself looking for a quick fix, maybe stop a moment and
look forward to the journey of discovery awaiting you as work through your
challenges rather then clicking a mouse button to resolve mindlessly.

Enjoy!

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
http://www.berenberg.net
http://learnandgrowdaily.com ←-Click here to order: "Learn And Grow Daily!"

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/
502-533-9336

Message of the Day - Dare to Be Uncommon

Good Morning,

My current read is Coach Tony Dungy's second book 'Uncommon: Finding Your
Significance' with co-author Nathan Whitaker
(http://www.amazon.com/Uncommon-Finding-Your-Path-Significance/dp/1414326815
). Like his first book, 'Quiet Strength', this one is also engaging and
inspiring. The theme of the book is to do the hard work and avoid short
cuts, while being humble, honest and dedicated to be the best you can be.
That these traits are, in today's world, uncommon.

Coach Dungy's message for us is more of a plea for everyone, especially
young men, to do what is right and step-up to be the best they can be for
themselves, their families, friends, community and God.

One section of the book that stuck with me was on respect.

We need to be respectful of others, but also realize that others may not be
respectful to us. In those times when we are disrespected, we may not be
able to control or change what is being said or done to us, but we can
control our reaction to these times. It can be tough to be under verbal
attack and not attack back.

That no matter what happens in bad times when we are stressed, or made angry
by those who have hurt us, we can chose how we respond and do so in a way
that we can be proud of.

All too often, in the heat of the moment we tend to say or do things which
will have long lasting negative effects on us and in our lives. With the
internet, that much is even worse as 'Google Never Forgets'. What gets out
on the web stays out on the web… forever.

If we work to control our anger and frustrations so that when get into those
funks or bad times, that we can look back at our reactions and be proud of
ourselves on what we did, or sometimes more importantly, what we did not say
or do.

We can change ourselves to be more uncommon like Coach Dungy says, by bring
respectful of others, even when we do not feel they deserve it or worse, if
they are hurting us. As we do the right thing over and over again, it will
become part of who we are. And wouldn't you like to be known as a person
who is always able to look back at how you acted and what you said and not
lose sleep?

There are so many other good messages in this book. I originally took it out
from the library, but ended up buying it I liked it so much.

Enjoy!

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
http://www.berenberg.net
http://learnandgrowdaily.com ←-Click here to order: "Learn And Grow Daily!"

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/
502-533-9336

Message of the Day - Machiavelli, it has been fun, but I really have to go

Good Morning,

I used to be enamored with Machiavelli and his belief that 'The Ends
Justify the Means'. It had been a force in my life and the reason and
justification for many of my actions. Worse than that, I used to question
others who did not believe in the same way. I wondered 'if this is what you
want' then why do you care how it is achieved.

Being Machiavellian has its benefits in getting a lot of things done, faster
and more efficiently, but has the draw back of eating away at your
conscience and sometimes a trail of destruction.

The more I pushed to get my goals accomplished, the more my conscience
started eating at me. Over the last three or four years, when I became a
Christian, I started changing my focus from the goal to a larger picture of
the journey to the goal as well as achieving the goal itself.

Where before I felt accomplishment with achieving goal after goal, I felt
little to nothing except a growing guilt in the ways I did things. Now,
please don't get me wrong, I was not breaking the law; rather I filtered
out the consideration of others and just got the job done, kind of like
straight-line thinking (get from A to B, there is nothing in between that
matters). That is, I tended to upset a lot of people.

Now, while taking the full picture into view, I find that I enjoy the
journey toward the goal as much as if not more than the goal itself. How I
do things, then does matter. If the journey is not worth it, then the goal
should not be either.

The ends then only justify the means if the means take into account doing
what is right and fair and honest.

My productivity has actually improved with this new approach and my personal
satisfaction has as well. I am taking more time and consideration in my
efforts, but I spend far less time dealing with my conscience and I have
many less people who get upset with what I do and how I do it.

So, I say to Machiavelli, thanks, but no thanks.

I'd rather savor and enjoy the journey, knowing that it will make achieving
my goals that more rewarding and enjoyable!

Enjoy!

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
http://www.berenberg.net
http://learnandgrowdaily.com ←-Click here to order: "Learn And Grow Daily!"

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/
502-533-9336

Message of the Day - The Power of 'Being There'

Good Morning,

Life with our Bull Terrier, 'Bo' keeps us on our toes. Bo has been
spending more and more time inside our home, but being a puppy at heart, he
is not ready to be left inside overnight or during the days. As the nights
get colder, we needed someplace for Bo to sleep other than the largest crate
we could find. We just could not justify having him sleep in a box just big
enough for him to turn around in. So, off to Home Depot I went for some
shelving units and a dog kennel. My Dad has two in his basement, so I
decided to borrow that idea.

At the Home Depot, I found a Quick Kennel, advertising that you can assemble
it in 30 minutes! (If you have 3 people, maybe, but I was alone, so it took
me 90 minutes). The box had several large labels saying 163 pounds or 167
pounds, etc. I guess the box either gained or lost weight. Anyway, it was
too big for me to carry or to strap to the top of my car. I could hear the
mental messages of my moon roof saying 'NOOOOOOOOO!' before it shattered
onto my head. So, I needed another plan.

A friend in my Bible study class who lives in my same development has a pick
up truck and told me to call anytime if I need anything, that he would be
there. So, I called him on my cell and within 20 minutes he was pulling into
the parking lot and we loaded the heavy box into the bed of the truck. Bo
now has a larger overnight home.

Having someone there when you need them is a wonderful feeling. It is more
than being connected. It is an enlargement of your being. Like family and
close friends, when we are there for others, we help improve the lives of
these people as they improve our lives. We are connected!

Most of us do not really think about it, we just come when we are asked, and
have others who come to help us when we ask. All we have to do to appreciate
these blessings is no have them for little while and we can see how hard of
a time we would have.

And when we meet others who do not have those 'there' for them, maybe we
could those people from time to time. Maybe someone lost a loved one, or
their children moved out and they don't have that person nearby anymore.
What would it cost us to step up and be that person for these others every
now and then?

Go for it!

Thank you to all of you who have been there for me. To Kirk for reviewing my
presentation and giving me tips. To Howard for giving supportive feedback on
my work. To Jenny who is a constant reminder of what being positive is all
about. To my wife Karen who reminds me daily what it means to be loved. To
those I mentor, thank you for letting me help you. To those who respond to
my messages with memories and thoughts of your own, and positive feedback
for me, Thank you! And to all the rest of you who are there for me and the
others you are there for, a big hearty Thank you!

Thank you!

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
http://www.berenberg.net
http://learnandgrowdaily.com ←-Click here to order: "Learn And Grow Daily!"

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/
502-533-9336

Message of the Day - Supercharge your Leadership & Management Skills

Good Morning,

In finishing 'Love & Profit: The Art of Caring Leadership' by James A. Autry, his final sections were reflections of decades of leadership. This one point jumped out at me. It is easier to manage when you have authority and what you say goes. It is harder to manage when those who work with you do not work FOR you; for example, in a volunteer organization.

If you can build up a good rapport and strong team in an environment where people are there because they want to be there, rather than being there because of a paycheck or benefits, then you are showing greater leadership and management skills.

Sometimes we misunderstand our performance as leader or manager when our staff follows our every order. That is their job. Their doing it may not be out of their joy in following us. It may be out of a desire to be compensated.

I remember years ago when the company I worked for had a large list of system enhancements which was updated nearly every day. New ideas would be prioritized and added and others bumped on a weekly or monthly basis. I noticed that new ideas would come by the CEO's desk and he would immediately suggest adding them to the list and bumping other items which could have been sitting there for years. When I questioned the CEO on this, he did not seem to realize the impact of his actions. He said that since he was the CEO, that his desires may have a greater level of impact on decisions than other employees. I just sighed.

In a volunteer organization, being the boss would not always give that same level of authority. Leaders and managers would need to negotiate more with their fellow volunteers and get buy in, agreement and consensus on system enhancements. Only when the volunteers truly respected the leader would their influence and thus authority grow.

That is leaders in volunteer organizations cannot simply waive their title around and expect everyone to follow. They must earn respect, and gain influence first.

Getting that experience with volunteer organizations then can help us in our other jobs and endeavors, as we can lead with the influence and trust we cultivate in those we work with. That is, they follow because they want to, not because their paycheck is contingent on it.

If you want to lead where those who are to follow you do so because they want to, then join a volunteer organization and get experience navigating those waters.

Try it. Volunteer somewhere.

Enjoy!

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
http://www.berenberg.net
http://learnandgrowdaily.com ←-Click here to order: "Learn And Grow Daily!"
http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/
502-533-9336

Message of the Day - Toss the Metaphors and Get to the Point

Good Morning,

My current read is "Love & Profit: The Art of Caring Leadership" by James
A. Autry
(http://www.amazon.com/Love-Profit-Art-Caring-Leadership/dp/0380717492).
This book, written in 1991, talks about the need to transition from
'command and control' leadership to a more hands-on caring leadership
style.

One section which caught my eye was on the use of familiar metaphors which
served little or no purpose to someone who did not understand them. Leaders
or managers would dig into their personal lives and personal interests and
pull out quotes from those interests to help motivate their staff and teams.

The challenge with using favorite metaphors is that not everyone will know
what you are saying. Remember my message on different acronyms and idioms
found in all different industries and how these words and abbreviations
breed confusion. It is similar here.

If we are a football fan, we say things like 'do an inside charge' or 'go
long' or 'throw a Hail Mary', etc. When we want to encourage someone, we
can tell them to 'grab the bull by the horns' or in other words, 'slam
it'. In the end, what we are trying to convey is to 'roll up our sleeves'
and 'dive into the problem' and ultimately 'have at it'.

It can get so confusing from all the different metaphors from all the
different genres and that is not the worst of it.

We love reciting lines from our favorite TV shows. Something catchy is said
in a show and next thing you know, it part of our culture. Some of the more
famous lines are from shows like 'Seinfeld' like 'Yada yada yada.'
Another classis is 'It ain't over until the fat lady sings' coined by Dan
Cook, NBA sportscaster, said it over the airwaves in 1978.

Why do we say them?

Its fun and WE know what they mean when we say them.

The challenge is that our audience may give us the eye's glazed over look
as the witty metaphor sails over their head and down the street.

The solution, according to James Autry, is say what you mean. Use your own
words.

Less fun, yes, more easily understood? Absolutely!

Enjoy!

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
http://www.berenberg.net
http://learnandgrowdaily.com ←-Click here to order: "Learn And Grow Daily!"

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/
502-533-9336

Message of the Day - When the Medicine is Worse Than the Disease

Good Morning,

 

Back in the late 1990's I had a tick bite. After having the tick removed, I went to the Doctor's office and was prescribed Cipro. This antibiotic is a powerhouse. It killed every unwanted bacteria in my body and probably a few that I wanted to keep. Anyway, the medicine made gave me a major headache, sensitive to light, unable to focus on my work, and ultimately I had to take a few days off from work. The medication made me ill and it was brutal. At times I wondered if I should have just taken my chances with getting Lime's disease.

 

This made me wonder about other solutions we try to implement for problems we see. For example, in a previous company, we had a simple back up plan for call routing if our phones went down. We could plug in cell phone numbers into the system and the calls would come to our cell phones instead of our desk phones. Change the number and we were ready to go. Then we installed a complete back up phone system, server and all. When this system was activated, it would have to programmed and redirected, to each of our desk phones and took up to an hour to make the changes.

 

When we had hiccups in the phones, they generally did not last more than a few minutes, but using the new back up system, the solution took over an hour to activate and then deactivate. In effect, the solution caused more confusion and heartache than the problem for the staff and management.

 

Ultimately that solution was retired after a few uses in favor of a less complicated and painful one.

 

I also remember a time from Black Lake where folks who owned land on the lake had access to their property by oil and chipped roads. These people once came to a community meeting to complain about there being so many potholes in the roads and wanted the town to fix them. A bigger complaint though was about people driving on the roads too quickly and the land owners wanted the town to put in speed bumps to slow down the drivers. My uncle came up with a simple and cheap solution: to leave the roads as they were. The potholes as they got worse would force drivers to slow down.

 

Are there solutions to problems that you use which are more painful, confusing and time consuming than the problem itself?

 

Could these solutions be replaced by something simpler, like they did on Black Lake?

 

Enjoy!

 

 

Sanford Berenberg

Sanford@berenberg.net

http://www.berenberg.net

http://learnandgrowdaily.com ←-Click here to order: "Learn And Grow Daily!"

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/

502-533-9336

 

 

Message of the Day - A Treasure Trove of Knowledge

Good Morning,

 

Earlier today, was reflecting on a part of a presentation I am putting together for this coming Friday. It is a section about resources for learning, and the subject was tapping the vast knowledge collected by our elder generations. You know, the folks who did what we did, often for years before we even did it.

 

Back in the day when I was a welder I met a man who was a retiree from Phillips America, nearly 70 years old. While he had not been in the field for some time, his knowledge of the field was super extensive. We started having conversations about technique and common pitfalls, etc.

 

After a few hours speaking to this man I walked away like I had just gained a new certification in welding. His knowledge from his years of experience not only answered many of my questions, but showed me parts of the field that I never knew existed. And all this knowledge was free!

 

While there are new jobs out today which did not exist five or ten years ago, most of what we do today is still very similar to the jobs over the last 50 or so years. The tools and rules may have changed a bit, but the core knowledge and skills have not.

 

When I wanted to learn more about corporate budgets and finance, I called my Dad. He left that field over 15 years ago, but had worked in it for nearly thirty years. At first he told me that he did not have the current information and may not be of help, but we soon found the core competencies of corporate finance had not changed much at all. He was (and is) a treasure trove of information.

 

If we find ourselves struggling with some area of knowledge or missing some skill, why not look to those who have come before us and quite possibly have the answer waiting for us to ask. And if they don't have the answer, they will often have a lot of great information and a few wonderful stories to share.

 

All that wonderful knowledge out there, waiting to be shared…what are you waiting for?

 

Enjoy!

 

Sanford Berenberg

Sanford@berenberg.net

http://www.berenberg.net

http://learnandgrowdaily.com ←-Click here to order: "Learn And Grow Daily!"

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/

502-533-9336

 

 

Message of the Day - Purpose - Having or Creating

Good Morning,

Have you ever noticed that when you have a purpose behind your actions that
you tend to be more driven, more focused.

Your drive to achieve is higher when you are fueled by passion ignited by a
purpose to your existence or a purpose for a specific task. Either way, it
is the same. Whether it is striving to solve world hunger or making sure the
garbage is taken out on time, having a purpose is a fuel which ignites
within us and boosts our power.

Without this purpose, we tend to lose a lot of energy and mope around. It
could be that we have no purpose in our lives or in this particular
situation; we have no purpose so we just walk around aimlessly.

Back in the days when I had nothing to do after work (a situation that I
have not known for over 10 years) I would simply start pacing. I would drive
the people around me crazy. They would ask why I was pacing and I could not
answer them other than I have nothing to do so I started pacing. In effect,
I had no purpose so I sought one.

When I found a purpose I could take action, but until then, I wandered,
aimlessly pacing. It reminds me of the character Colonel Brandon from Jane
Austin's 'Sense and Sensibility' when he stood around uselessly waiting
for something to do when his beloved was ill. When Eleanor gave him a task,
he lit up and went at it. He went from serving no purpose to having one and
BOOM, action.

When we get into low points in our lives or our days when we have no purpose
and we seem to spend our time taking up space, we can actually create a
purpose in our lives.

It could be as simple as when walking the dog, use the pooper scooper to
pick up trash you find in the street. After a while I find that need to pick
up trash wherever I go. I created a purpose and it became part of me.

You can do this too. When you feel like you are waffling in life and are
looking for something to fuel your passions, take a look around. It could be
as simple as cooking a meal for yourself and finding passion in creating
meals, or going to a local charity and asking how you can help.

No matter what purpose we fuel ourselves with; we are more energetic, driven
and happier when we have a purpose.

When all seems lost in the day or in our lives, remember, we can create or
find a purpose. And if the purpose is not to benefit you, that's fine too,
make it for someone else. It is a noble cause to help others.

Enjoy!

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
http://www.berenberg.net
http://learnandgrowdaily.com ←-Click here to order: "Learn And Grow Daily!"

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/
502-533-9336

Message of the Day - Specialized into Confusion

Good Morning,

In the circus industry I have heard that there are over 800 specialized
terms that are only used in that industry. In the music business there are
also hundreds of specialized terms. It seems that everywhere we go and in
everything we do we find terms and worse acronyms which have hijacked common
words and contorted them into specialize meanings.

Listening to someone speaking from an industry you are not familiar with you
might think you were in a foreign country rather than in your own.

I remember years back in Buffalo, NY listening to some folks from the
Dianetics Center saying: "The sit dev-t'd the Org. I got my TRs back in
and I 8-C'd the PTS WOG by body routing them out".

If you are familiar with these acronyms and specialized terms you might know
what this statement means.

Otherwise, you might think this was some sort of code. Maybe you were
wondering if there was some secret handshake involved. Maybe they were
trying to hide something....

Research into the Enron and WorldCom troubles found a much more frequent use
of jargon and technical terms in all communications, in an attempt to
confuse and blur the truth. That makes me think.

To be understood we need to be clear in our communication.

When we are looking to communicate with others, we need understand who our
audience is and also remember that most people have not been where we have
in our lives (what we have learned, where we learned it and with what groups
and industries we learned it in) and may not know all of the acronyms and
terms we do. It was culture shock to me to be a New Yorker coming to
Louisville for the first time and learning we spoke a different English some
of the time.

To make matters worse, haven't you noticed an increase in new terms hitting
the world's stage? These terms are coming out on top of the already
confusing ones we already have. As a guy, I enjoy learning new terms and get
the urge to use them right away. The problem is that just because I learned
a new idiom, does not mean the rest of the world knows what it is, and I end
up confusing the people I am trying to talk to.

A way to help improve communication, and make ourselves more easily
understood is to avoid using technical terms and jargon as much as possible.
If we have to use those words, then define them at least once and check to
see that our audience understands what we are saying.

Also, when we are talking to someone about our field of expertise or
interest, we may want to slow down as we ten to talk faster when we are
excited and happy. Additionally, with the speed, often comes the jargon.

Now that is a recipe for confusion.

Finally, for those folks who did not understand the line above, in English
is basically translates to: someone came into the building, stirred up some
commotion and had to be escorted out.

Enjoy!

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
http://www.berenberg.net
http://learnandgrowdaily.com ←-Click here to order: "Learn And Grow Daily!"

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/
502-533-9336

Message of the Day - Playing Favorites: The Good the Bad and the Ugly

Good Morning,

 

Whether we like it or not, we 'play favorites' in our lives. Maybe we use another term other than 'playing favorites' because it has a negative connotation, but we do do it every day. In reality, though, the fact we do it is not entirely bad. In some cases it is good, even in the business world.

 

An example of this in a good way could our be putting more time into a project that is a higher priority and less time into a project with lesser priority (yes this is common sense too). We are playing favorites with that one project over another. This goes for working with issues and people. We spend more time with new employees who need our attention to get used to their new roles and responsibilities. We spend less time with those who need our help less. We do have to balance this, because we should be investing our time also into the top performers as well, and not letting our time get too sucked up by those who are struggling.

 

When there is a greater benefit for giving more to one person, issue or item it is generally a positive action. There are, of course, exceptions.

 

We should strive to give our time and attention as fairly as possible, but with also focus on priorities and benefiting all involved.

 

Then there is the downside to playing favorites.

 

An example of this is enforcing rules differently on one person than on others. This not only creates a negative or even hostile environment, it also undermines the credibility of the leadership and worse, the system itself. That has a snowball effect on organizations where staff becomes apathetic about the leadership, knowing that they play favorites and are not inspired or motivated by anything because they know the system is corrupt.

 

We are often drawn to make decisions which would force us to cross the line. For example, a scheduling policy allows higher tenure staff to choose holidays and vacations first. A lower tenured staff comes to us with a vacation request before you start taking requests from the rest of the team. Approving this vacation time, even though it may be a year in advance, could upset the higher tenured employees who have the right to choose first. If they feel slighted by you approving this holiday, they may question other policies and that starts down a dark path. A solution to this problem, would be to go to the higher tenured staff and tell them what you have been asked to approve and ask them if they have an issue with it and given them a few days to answer. Now you did not go around them, you included them.

 

When we have rules to follow, we need to follow them fairly. The rules themselves, should be clearly detailed and give the right expectations, making our lives easier. If we give one person wiggle room, we need to give everyone wiggle room, or else our credibility is questioned. Of course, when it comes to tough situations, like corrective action, even being fair will sometimes be seen as being unfair by those who are on the receiving end. We must maintain our integrity and do what is right.

 

Playing favorites when the impact is a detriment to individuals, groups and organizations is a dangerous game to play.

 

In many environments, following the rules are held in very high regard. Break those rules or try to work around them and the very fabric of stability in your environment may start coming unglued. At the same time, understand those issues and people who deserve more attention when that additional attention is a benefit to them, others and organization.

 

Play fairly and enjoy!

 

Enjoy!

 

Sanford Berenberg

Sanford@berenberg.net

http://www.berenberg.net

http://learnandgrowdaily.com ←-Click here to order: "Learn And Grow Daily!"

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/

502-533-9336

 

 

Message of the Day - We Don't Have to Trailblaze

Good Morning,

 

In our busy, hectic, and often crazy lives, we move so quickly through the day and week that we often-times find ourselves weeks or months down the road, involved in new roles, new endeavors and still buried. We have large to-do lists which grow faster than our ability to complete, delegate or discard these tasks. In some cases, the job is never finished. Like on a farm or ranch, the work you finish today most likely has to be re-done tomorrow (like feeding cats, or walking dogs, no matter how often you do it, you have to still do it again tomorrow).

 

When we take a pulse check, we may find ourselves in what we consider uncharted territory. We may look at our current situation and wonder how the heck are we ever going to get caught up? How are we ever going to get the job done?

 

This overwhelm, if we allow it, will consume our minds and take up our days with fretting and worrying. Don't go there!

 

A better alternative is to seek the advice of those who have passed through these lands and have learned and moved on. That is, folks who have had similar situations and learned to organize their lives to get passed these issues. In other words, find out what tricks and tools they use to help get the job done better.

 

It might be that they use lists religiously. Maybe they write out their to-do lists for the next day prior to leaving the office for the evening. Maybe they review email prior to arriving at the office so they can get right to work on large projects or high priority work out of the gate.

 

There is no one size-fits-all solution to improving our own organization. And like work on farms, organizing does not stop once you have organized. You need to spend time at least once a month to help improve your current system and to evaluate if your current system even works.

 

I have tried many different systems and I am still trying new things. I use my electronic gadgets for meetings and reminders, but I don't use them for to-do lists. I like writing down to do lists, but I don't like using large pads (as the pads are often used for other information, and it all gets convoluted and confusing…I was using this pad for what?).

 

In each of the new skills I learn, I find some that work for me and keep them. Some I use for a while and if they don't stick, I move on and stop fighting it to make it work.

 

The other side of this, though, is in order to create a new habit or break an old habit, we need to try these new tricks and tools for a month or more to see if we can make it work for us and make it a habit.

 

In the end, as we improve our personal space, our work space and get more organized, we will find that a lot of what we do is tools and tips used by those we work with and meet along the road of life.

 

Enjoy!

 

Sanford Berenberg

Sanford@berenberg.net

http://www.berenberg.net

http://learnandgrowdaily.com ←-Click here to order: "Learn And Grow Daily!"

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/

502-533-9336

 

 

 

 

Message of the Day - When You Prepare, Whose Guidelines are you Following?

Good Morning,

 

This past weekend I had the opportunity to play a golf scramble for charity, to benefit the Steward's Staff (www.stewardstaff.org). I planned ahead by wearing comfortable clothes and a long sleeve polo shirt because it was cold in the morning. I had a t-shirt on stand-bye if it got too hot.

 

When I arrived at the golf course, I found they had different requirements necessary to play.

 

There was a 'no-denim' and 'collared shirts' only dress code for the country club. My jeans and backup shirt were not going to make the cut. So off I went to Wal-Mart and back I came with shorts and short-sleeved polo shirt.

 

My preparations did not expand beyond the scope of what I knew for playing golf. Since I was not familiar with country club rules, my preparations were inadequate.

 

This is something that can and often does happen to many of us as we go through life. We make plans for what we expect, but there are areas and situations which we either do not know or for some reason do not have the ability to know. When this happens, our preparations fall short because of what we do not know. Best laid plans….

 

How do we embrace this? The best path is to research and find out what we don't know. For example, I could of pulled up the website for the golf club I was attending to find out if there were any rules I should know about. Another possible solution would have been to contact people who I knew had been to this club before and may know the rules. The research does not have to be extensive to be adequate for our needs.

 

Then there are times when we cannot know what is going to happen. There are times and situations where the unknown elements are just a part of life. How people react in some situations may be foreign to us, and thus makes it hard for us to plan for what they may think or do. For example, we may never know what someone may be thinking, especially if we have never met this person, or if they from another culture or speak a different language, or a combination.

 

One way to embrace this situation is plan with loose ends specifically included in the plan. That is, don't plan every second of every day, and every step you need to take. Leaving room for the fine details gives us room to make changes as we need to.

 

Being adaptable by not planning ourselves into a corner allows us to better adjust when the unexpected happens. In my case with the golf course, I arrived nearly 40 minutes early for the event because I did not know what to expect. This gave me enough time to run to Wal-Mart, down the road, and make a course correction and be ready to join the event as it started.

 

Even though I looked goofy with cargo-shorts and ankle socks, I played my best game of Golf, ever!

 

Enjoy!

 

 

 

Sanford Berenberg

Sanford@berenberg.net

http://www.berenberg.net

http://learnandgrowdaily.com ←-Click here to order: "Learn And Grow Daily!"

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/

502-533-9336

 

 

 

Message of the Day: Not the Way We Realize

Good Morning,

 

Each morning I walk my dog 'Bo', you know the 75 pound, muscle-bound, four-legged rocket ride. As I go to put the leash on him, he stretches, wags his tail and makes happy sounds. Then we go for a walk. The leash is to keep him from running free in the neighborhood and getting into other people's gardens, garbage and stuff. The leash is also to keep him from running into heavily trafficked roads and get injured or worse.

 

We look at the leash as a tool to restrain the dog. That is why it is there, and that is why we buy them.

 

When I got back to the house this morning, I took the leash off Bo and tied up the plastic bag with the stuff in it, along with some other litter I found along the way. As I carried the litter to the garbage pail I noticed that I still had the leash on my wrist.

 

I was still tethered to this leash. Then a thought hit me. I was tethered to this leash before I even hooked it to Bo.

 

This leash, this restraint was as much for me as it was for him. While the purposes of the leash on my end was not to keep me from going places and doing things, it in fact was.

 

While I had the leash on me, I was not going to walk up to someone else's door, because I have the previously mentioned furry mini-missile on the other end of the leash.

 

That tool which we intended to use to restrain another was in fact a restraint for ourselves.

 

When we try to limit the actions of another, we in-turn, restrain ourselves.

 

I guess my dog, Scooby, from my childhood days knew this. When we walked, he would grab the leash in his mouth and he would walk me. We thought it was cute, but looking back in this perspective, you can see that he knew that I was just as restrained as he was.

 

It was just that I did not know it.

 

Something to ponder!

 

Enjoy!

 

 

Sanford Berenberg

Sanford@berenberg.net

http://www.berenberg.net

http://learnandgrowdaily.com ←-Click here to order: "Learn And Grow Daily!"

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/

502-533-9336