Message of the Day - Routines Matter

Good Morning,

 

As I recover from my leg surgery and more importantly, I as slowly regain the basic skills of standing and walking, I am finding that my former daily routines, those things I did day-in and day-out have taken on a more important part of my life. Each of these daily activities, once completed, brings a sense of calm and accomplishment in my daily life. While I cannot walk, or drive my car, accomplishing one of my daily routines brings back a sense of comfort and familiarity to my daily life. I become more in control.

 

It is as if each routine task completed is a step back to the normalcy I had prior to my surgery. Each daily routine then becomes, in and of itself, a milestone to achieving in my healing. More importantly I can set some of these tasks as milestones, knowing that as I continue to heal, I will achieve them. For example, climbing stairs, driving, walking, sitting at a desk for 1 hour, or 3 hours, etc.  Achieving each of these then becomes a roadmap to normal. My path of recovery.

 

Having such a roadmap can bring a lot of sanity back to our lives, especially when the world we live in moves at 120 miles per hour, with changes being thrown at us nearly as fast as we have to make split second decisions.  When we do find ourselves in this rambunctious world of quicksand and need to get our bearings, it can be our simple daily routines which can help anchor us and bring back a sense of calm and control.

 

These familiar routines, like reading my Bible in the morning, or at work reading emails in the morning, or reviewing our to do list prior to leaving the office the night before, can give us some level of comfort while the #$%#$5 is hitting the fan.  

 

And when we can get some foothold of calm and control, it allows us to time to breath and think about and increase that amount of control and regaining composure.

 

My convalescence has given me the opportunity to stop and look at the simple tasks which make up my routine life, but that does not mean the rest of us need to do the same. Simply take some time to reflect on what are the routines of our lives and take a mental snapshot, or better, write them down.

 

When the world starts getting out of control, pull out that list and start getting your bearings back, and start regaining control.

 

Routines matter, more so that I first thought.

 

Enjoy

 

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
http://www.berenberg.net

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/
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Message of the Day - We All Play A Part

Good Morning,

 

I received an email from a Metro Council member sharing a police report about a rash of auto-break-ins and thefts in our district, and that the culprit was caught red-handed. The police indicated that the officer who made the arrest was able to do so because they were able to patrol. The challenge is that officers are routinely being called off their patrols when a crime is reported. Crimes which could easily be avoided. In this case, it was people who leave their cars and houses unlocked being burglarized. By deterring crime (people locking their car and house doors), the police have a better capacity to monitor their beats and focus on their primary roles.

 

The police's message to the public is that we all play a part in fighting crime.

 

This is a bigger message, is that in just about all things, everyone should play a part as well.

 

If you work in customer service and you hear a complaint about a new product, but you don't work in marketing or product development, it doesn't mean to ignore it, since it is not your area. By reporting feedback, especially on new products and services, can help correct issues quickly and both improve sales, and avoid customer rejection.

 

If you work with a computer, but not directly in computer support, you can still help the support team. You can help by not going to questionable websites and downloading unnecessary programs which can compromise your computer or worse, the company's network.

 

If you hear any customer feedback for any other part of your organization, it makes sense to let that group know, in a professional way, of course, what you heard and in what context. That is, rather than simply shrugging and saying it is not your job.

 

As each of us plays a part in the betterment of ourselves, our organizations or wherever we spend time, we all DO play a part in making these places better.

 

It may not be our job, it may not be easy to do, and it may not be in our comfort zone. Ultimately, though it is help the entire group improve their game.

 

And isn't that what its all about? Being the best we can be?

 

So play your part!

 

Enjoy!

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
http://www.berenberg.net
http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/
Follow Me on Twitter! http://twitter.com/sberenberg

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Message of the Day - I love It When Someone's Plan Comes Together

Good Morning,

 

As I am recovering from my leg surgery at home, my family and close friends are coordinating efforts to help me rest, keep my incisions clean and at the same time start getting back into the swing of things (which ultimately includes Physical Therapy...aka Torture....but I still love my PT friends.).

 

The amount of support is humbling. I am truly blessed, especially for my wife, Karen.

 

From our initial consultation, we anticipated three incisions to perform the surgery. After removing the bandages on Sunday (per Doctor's instructions) we found six. To keep these clean, we will need many bandages and betadine, etc. The hospital provided us with some, but not a lot.

 

Over a year ago, after my Mom passed, Karen, my sister and I cleaned out Mom's apartment. She was certainly a hoarder. She bought what she thought she needed, and then bought more assuming she may not get another chance to go shopping for a week, month or so, etc.

 

Mom had a need for large gauze bandages, so she hoarded.

 

In changing my bandages on Sunday, we found enough bandages to keep us going for several days just on the stuff Mom collected (and I remember we donated a fair amount of her first aid materials to the Wayside Christian Mission also).

 

Although it was not my plan to be prepared for this specific situation (we have some first aid supplies), it appears to have been someone's. Thanks Mom!

 

When we have multiple people all planning to be prepared for the future, the future they are planning for may be tied to the same future as others, like my Mom's bandages and my surgery over a year later. 

 

This also means that those things that we plan for that don't happen the way we feel they should may not be a total loss as our preparations could benefit others down the road in some way we never intended. 

 

Or, we may find someone else's failed plan actually ends up benefitting us, almost as if it were the plan all along...

 

Enjoy!

 

 

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
http://www.berenberg.net
http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/
Follow Me on Twitter! http://twitter.com/sberenberg

http://learnandgrowdaily.com  Click here to order: "Learn And Grow Daily!"
502-533-9336

 

Message of the Day - The Heart of the Champion

Good Morning,

 

We all look to heroes and champions who inspire us to be better than we are, to help us to aspire to achieve greater things in our own lives. Most every champion has a lot of  heart. In some cases they are champions because when everything else has failed them, they are tired, they are in pain, they feel like giving up, they push through with their heart alone.

 

One of my heroes is a horse, you probably heard of him, Secretariat. He is often called the Super Horse and considered by many to be the best who ever lived. What inspires me about Secretariat is that he ran because he loved it, not for the accolades the money or the fame. He just did what he loved to do and he was very good at it.

 

He was so good that in the Kentucky Derby, which he still holds the Churchill Downs track record of 1:59.2 (from 1973), he ran each quarter of the race faster than the last. It was as if he had more in him the further he ran. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QyqllleV6WA

 

In the Preakness, he would have held the track record to this day except for a timing discrepancy, but that did not bother Secretariat, he just ran. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kNChcy3WC2Q

 

In the Belmont, he not only holds the track record, 2:24 (from 1973), he won the race by 31 lengths beating the standing track record by over two seconds. On the far turn, Secretariat’s jockey had to look behind to see where the other horses were. After Secretariat crossed the finish line it was another six seconds before the second horse crossed. Six seconds doesn’t seem like much, but in racing, any racing, it is a huge margin. In fact this race is considered one of the greatest achievements in sports of all times.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hu5_nuIEgkw

 

When Secretariat was finally put down in 1989 due to laminitis, an incurable foot disease which finally was too painful to bear, the doctors found a try outstanding discovery. Secretariat’s heart was two and half times the size of the average thoroughbred heart.  

 

It is said that Secretariat’s secret weapon, among other things, was his heart.

 

Maybe it was more literal in Secretariat’s case, but it is a lesson to all of us.

 

What about us?

 

With our heart in the game, we can press on when we feel we can go no further.

 

With our heart in the game, we can win and surpass our own best performances.

 

With our heart in the game, we can open up opportunities we may never have thought possible.

 

With our heart in the game. That is the key.

 

Is your heart in the game?

 

No matter what the game is, get your heart into it.

 

Enjoy!

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
http://www.berenberg.net

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/
Follow Me on Twitter! http://twitter.com/sberenberg

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Message of the the Day - The Sharing World of the Mesh

Good Morning,

 

My current read is Lisa Gansky’s new book “the mesh: Why the Future of Business is Sharing” (http://www.amazon.com/Mesh-Why-Future-Business-Sharing/dp/1591843715).  In ‘the mesh’ Lisa Gansky shares with us some of the wonderful new realms of opportunity we are entering. These open as an increasing number of people more fully leverage the web, social networking and mobile technologies.  The Author shares case histories from many organizations, including some of her own, and their success in the Mesh. Some of these companies I have previously heard about, some I am already associated with, and others were completely new to me.  Some of my favorite features of the book are Lisa Gansky’s expertise in this subject. She writes like a pro (which she is) yet the book is so very easy to read. Add to this, she has a great sense of humor spread throughout the book.

 

The Mesh is a new world unfolding for us right now, and like new worlds it can be exciting and even a bit daunting, like walking into Willy Wonka’a Chocolate Factory with the awe and wonder of the fantastic and new (without the freaky Umpa Lumpas).

 

So what is the Mesh? And why is to so amazing? And why do we have to embrace it?

 

The Mesh is all about sharing. The Sharing of information through the web, mobile technology like smart phones, and social networking.  The Mesh allows for the sharing of products, services and information between groups of people in provocative new ways.

 

So? What does that mean? Happy you asked! Through her book, Lisa Gansky aptly guides us through a thorough understanding of the Mesh.

 

Some examples include:

 

Through the Mesh, people are sharing baby clothes through sites like http://www.thredup.com. Think of the savings of baby clothing being used for the several months they fit, and then swap for a larger size, at a far reduced cost of getting new. And you don’t have to store up all those old clothes, but you still have to clean them…  This can be done with books too, like through sites like www.BookMooch.com, although you only have to dust a book off, not clean it.

 

Through the Mesh, people can share the spare bedrooms, couches, tools, cars, their knowledge, or whatever. The sky is the limit. The Mesh is allowing the thinking of how business is even performed. For example, a network of private lenders (individuals) review requests for loans and their terms, and bid on them. This is allowing start ups to get loans without engaging banks or other financial institutions. The end of the book has an abbreviated list of Mesh organizations and companies broken down by industry and interest, with a far greater list on her website (http://meshing.it/).  Check it out, it is very impressive.

 

Businesses of all sizes, even individuals can participate in a Mesh network. Additionally entry costs continually reduce as technology improves and while social networks and mobile phones become more powerfully pervasive. The concept provides a myriad of benefits (here is but a few):

 

-We don’t have to buy what we can share (pay for what we use, and then pass along to the next person, and save some money each time).

-We don’t have to store, or worse, insure and repair what we don’t own (most services carry their own insurance and maintenance capabilities).

-We don’t have to study and research everything we are looking to learn when we can reach out to a Mesh of experts who can clue us in by sharing and even teaching us what we need.

-We waste less as we are sharing instead of buying and discarding (this forces increased quality and directly attacks planned obsolescence, not to mention creates less garbage destined for the landfill).

-We have better access as these products and services are all web enabled and often have phone apps tied to GPS, etc., to help access more services (easy to see what is going on, and choose what we want, when we want, how we want).

-The more we use the Mesh, the more the Mesh helps us, it is a learning construct (the better the Mesh organizations understand us, they can better cater to us).

 

The future of mesh businesses is even more exciting as networks grow and then connect with each other. Imagine a network sharing rooms for travelers links up with a network sharing rental cars or bicycles. And those two networks combine with a network of tour guides and restaurants. Each of these networks gets a piece of the action all the while reducing a traveler’s stress and giving them an even better vacation.  

 

Big businesses are now looking into the Mesh seeing how it both saves them money and expands customer offerings, and keeping themselves alive (read about the case of NetFlix and Blockbuster).

 

This book is also a call to action and I hope you read it and then see about getting into the Mesh.

 

Enjoy!

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
http://www.berenberg.net

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/
Follow Me on Twitter! http://twitter.com/sberenberg

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Message of the Day - Its all about customer service

Good Morning,

 

I recently watched a presentation by the author of “Crush It”, Gary Vaynerchuk (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEYjvifUdeM) where he points out (with a healthy dose of colorful metaphors) that customer service is the industry that all businesses, no matter where they are today, will ultimately end up serving in. This is a point, which Gary Vaynerchuk also pointed out is very scary, because if you notice, not all businesses, or people for that matter, are very good at customer service, and that is a problem.

 

Customers/Clients/ aka People like us have an amazing ability to know if they are being treated poorly, lied to, given the business, etc.

 

In the past, that happened all the time and unless we were Rockefeller, a Senator, or someone with ‘Power’ there was little to nothing that we could do about it. We knew what we were getting was less than quality and there was not much we could do about it.

 

Today with the social networks all over the place with instant messaging, tweets, email, mobile phones, etc., we all have a voice, and that voice can be plastered all over the web and shared with the millions, scratch that, billions of people who go to the web.

 

The Blogosphere has nothing on people who can share photos and notes with their friends and connections on multiple web platforms in seconds. A photo and a tweet can have more power and impact than some of the best thought out and wordsmithed blogs. Sure not everyone follows every tweet or Facebook post, but I am sure that when the hundreds of friends or thousands of fans we have see a note about some good or bad experience we had with a business, it will sink in.

 

This is especially true due to the continued power of work of mouth marketing. It is still the most powerful form of marketing today. The only change is how that word of mouth is shared. It is no longer just to your neighbor, pastor or relative. The word of mouth testimony gets tweeted or spammed across the internet for many many more people to see.

 

With all of this in place, it makes sense that all companies need to start focusing more on customer service or we the people will be carving into their businesses with sharing our bad experiences and how they don’t care. Smart entrepreneurs and startup companies will enter the scene and with a healthy dose of caring, lure away our business from the brick and mortar folks who only see us for the money we bring them.

 

The next time you have a bad experience, just whip out your cell phone and start tweeting, yelping or texting about it and you may just get a change in that experience.

 

Enjoy!

 

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
http://www.berenberg.net

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/
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Message of the Day - Re-Igniting the Flames

Good Morning,

 

As you have read in previous posts, I am gearing up for a complex leg surgery in the middle of next week. This surgery was originally planned for Tuesday of this week and had to be postponed. I had mentally geared myself up for the surgery, preparing myself for the fact that I would not be able to walk for several weeks or longer, and that I would have a lot of pain as part of my life.

 

When the surgery was postponed, the mental preparation sputtered, and collapsed.  Ultimately I had to regroup. Now having to wait another week, I have to get my mind back into gear to re-prepare for this surgery and re-calibrate my life around the aftermath.

 

I have spoken to many people, and kept my Facebook updated with what has been going on, all complications, and other side tracks included. Today I was talking to my Dad about getting myself ready again for the surgery. I told him that I was positive that I could get my mind back on track and get everything in order. He laughed and said “You better be, you wrote a book on being positive”. We both laughed.

 

While I am a positive person for the most part, there are still mountains to climb and challenges to overcome. Success can come at a high cost, and occasionally we get dirt kicked in our faces for our efforts. If we remain positive, and focused, even the tough jobs can be accomplished. Getting a fire started in a downpour is possible, but it is difficult. It takes knowledge and skill and often a persistence to overcome the adversities.

 

Getting my mind unwound from being out on disability and back at work for a week, just to be out again next week, and all the other mental preparation is not easy. It takes resilience and focus. Something we all have within us, if we only look and focus on it.

 

We can get ourselves pumped and prepared for whatever faces us over and over if we needed to. The secret is to look within ourselves and see what makes us tick. If we are pessimists and try to get our engines primed and ready, we will have a harder time as we will be looking at reasons why we can’t, shouldn’t, etc. The good news is that it is our decision whether we want to be positive or not. We can turn our frowns upside down. We can mentally gear ourselves up the next challenge.

 

It may not be easy, but we can do it if we believe in ourselves and don’t give up. Over time, we will find this task is easier and easier, even when we don’t always succeed, or if like what happened to me earlier this week, the winds are taken out of our sails.

 

We can re-ignite the flames in our lives. So long as we believe that we can, and we put our mind and body into doing it.

 

Enjoy!

 

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
http://www.berenberg.net

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/
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Message of the Day - Dust in the Wind - Continued

Good Morning,

 

Since I posted this last message, I have since found out that the hospital I was to have surgery out on Tuesday received a number of emergency trauma cases which will tie up the surgeons well into the morning, and as such I was bumped.

 

I would like to say that my initial reaction to the change was one of joyful acceptance of being able to put off the pain of surgery for an unknown number of days, but I am not that good. I think some of my family now know that I know some not very good words.

 

It took a few hours, but I was able to get my mind around the change, again, and added to this, knowing that I have no idea when I will have to drop everything again and prepare myself for the surgery.  I actually thought of calling it off, knowing that I may have to be postponed again, and again, knowing that people with greater need than myself are going impact my scheduled time for surgery. That, unfortunately, is selfish reactionary, knee-jerk thought.

 

The frustration has died down and I am calmer, and having reflected, it is a perfect example of being able to roll with the punches. That at times in our lives, we are dust in the wind.

 

So, I look forward to when I have to drop everything again, and move forward.

 

Enjoy!

 

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
http://www.berenberg.net

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/
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Message of the Day - Dust in the Wind

Good Morning,

 

About 16 years ago a garage building collapsed on me, breaking both of my legs. Long story short, the one leg which was shattered was put in a cast and it healed poorly (it is bent slightly to the side and back). Each year, I knew something needed to be done, and each year, I mentally walked through the list of the surgical procedures necessary to fix the leg. That was enough for me to ignore it for another year (and no, there are no further details of this in the rest of the message).

 

16 years later, the growing constant pain was a hint I could no longer avoid doing something.  I needed to have it addressed. So, Karen and I visited a good doctor and he suggested a more experienced doctor… We then went to see that doctor, and the prognosis is surgery. So we made plans on when to have the surgery, what we needed to do both before and afterwards to prepare the house and for my recovery. In a sense we had pretty much everything worked out. The surgery would be at the end of October, and we had a month to prepare.

 

Then we got the call from the Doctor’s Office on Thursday, September 30^th. Pre-Op Testing was the following day, and the surgery would be the upcoming Tuesday, just four days later. In addition to this, we had a full weekend planned with guests coming in from out of town, a charity golf scramble to play, amongst other to dos. Our entire model of the surgery and post operative care was nuked right out from under us.

 

It can be mind numbing to consider all that needs to be done, knowing that there is not enough time for all, and at the same time, have more idle time than is comfortable looking at a situation all at once.

 

Our plans being obliterated caused us to rethink our priorities. When you have a month to plan, you can think of all the tasks and accomplishments you want to achieve in that month. When you have four days to do the same thing, you find that a lot of what you originally planned really is not as important as it once was, and then there is reduced possibility of accomplishing all tasks in such a short time.

 

Another take-away from the rapid change is that when we lose that feeling of being grounded in well made plans, and are floating down the river at the whim of the current, that it is okay. For the most part, our lives will not be ending because all of our plans go up in smoke before our eyes.

 

We have the ability to change gears and we can make new plans as necessary. Also, we should avoid the urge to make new plans immediately after our current plans vanish. Knee-jerk reactions, while the mainstay of exercises for some, are really not that wise in the long run.

 

Like the change in my priorities with the surgery going from one month to four days out, we need to take time to re-assess what is important to us now and with the current playing field. This helps gets us passed the overwhelm of seeing it all at once.

 

It is okay to be dust in the wind, because our skills, knowledge and experience do not leave us when our plans do. We still have the ability to think and plan and come up with solutions as our surroundings change.

 

An added benefit is also that we learn and grow from the experience. We become better prepared when those chaotic moments do arrive and toss our plans into the shredder.

 

Enjoy!

 

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
http://www.berenberg.net

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/
Follow Me on Twitter! http://twitter.com/sberenberg

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

502-533-9336