Message of the Day - Stonewall's failings are lessons for us

Good Morning,

 

One of my recent reads was a biography of General Thomas J. Jackson, better known as ‘Stonewall’ by Byron Farwell (http://www.amazon.com/Stonewall-Biography-General-Thomas-Jackson/dp/0393310868). Throughout the book you could see Jackson’s genius, strong personality and his ability to formulate solid plans in seemingly chaotic environments and lead large units which made him as successful and famous as he was.

 

A man so smart, educated and skilled as General Jackson is often going to have skills and abilities that other folks like you and me will have a hard time replicating. Genius is hard to reproduce. Weaknesses, or challenges are a bit more easy to replicate, or better avoid.

 

As such its within Jackson’s weak suits that we find some interesting failings which then translate into lessons for us on what not to do.

 

1. Jackson had a tendency not to communicate to his leadership team. He would not share his plans, even the destinations of where he was marching his army was a complete mystery to everyone, even to those who directly reported to him. This sometimes caused issues when opportunities were lost due to unclear direction, and at the Battle of Chancellorsville, where Jackson was shot, his back up leadership were unaware of his full plans and had to make due, costing time and two different leaders to get it done.

 

Whether this was due to a lack of trust, or fear of failure, or whatever, this lack of communication limited the ability of Jackson’s Army to more fully operate efficiently due to not knowing the goals or destinations. In our society with the speed of change and the overload of information, secrecy can be much more devastating.

 

2. Jackson held grudges. He brought up more charges on his subordinates and other officers than pretty much any other Officer in the Confederate State. He at one point had his second in command under house arrest for failure to fulfill an order, only to have him report back to duty because no other subordinate General could carry out the currently needed military operation.

 

While leaders should be critical of those who work for them (in the sense that they want them to do the best, and debug any issues), going for a constant stream of reprimands and punishments is not going to build an organization of trust. Doubtless there were many who felt Jackson to be the best General in the Confederacy, and there were others who had to work with him, knowing that they were about to be court-marshaled for what may have been minor issues (some had their charges dropped after Jackson’s death, as no one else could find supportive evidence worthy of a trial). I don’t know about you, but I don’t tend to give it my best when my boss or upper management are holding corrective action or worse over my head as a method of organizational control.

 

We need to be up front with those we work with, and also fair. When we instill a culture of trust and mutual support, we can build a far better organization than one run by strict discipline. Reference Captain D. Michael Abrashoff’s book ‘It’s Your ship’ for an excellent example of open, supportive leadership building a culture of trust and high performance.

 

In all, General Stonewall Jackson was an amazing man with genius for his business. He fell at this high point and many still conjecture what would have happened at Gettysburg had Stonewall been there.

 

In all of that wisdom and skill, we can find many lessons from his failings, as these traits are more common to others. These become a roadmap to help us not make the same mistakes, and ultimately improve our game.

 

Enjoy!

 

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
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Message of the Day - The Lost Art

Good Morning,

When I was growing up, playing in sports or in gym class (which I was pretty terrible in either) or just palling around in our neighborhood, when someone got hurt, the coach, parent or whomever was in charge would often give us the sharp words of wisdom: ‘Suck it Up’. Meaning, deal with the pain, the hurt and keep playing, or doing whatever we are doing.

In today’s world when that same hurt comes, the approach has changed dramatically. The world must come to a stop, and we must make sure everyone is okay, both physically and mentally. When someone gets hurt, its all stop, and add more padding, more protection, reduce risk to the point of absurdity. Heck I have seen cases where folks who were not directly involved had to be helped out because they witnessed something which ‘bothered them’.

It makes me wonder if the kids of today are going to be tough enough when real life hits them after their leave their parents house. I say this because even though I had been told to ‘Suck it Up’ as a kid, I was often reminded of how our parents and grandparents had it much worse than us. That what we endured, no matter how bad, was nothing compared to what our forefathers had to live with.

This all indicates that our younger generations are getting progressively ‘wimpier’ and unable to face the rigors of life with the same aplomb their predecessors have come to achieve.

And if this is the case, then it becomes even more important, then, to help change the cycle, to help toughen up our youth to help prepare them for the austerity times that some have said are just around the corner.

Our future are the youth, and if they cannot stand up to the face of tough times because we have lost the art of ‘Sucking It Up’, then we will have to stay in the game long enough to either help them, or step in for them when the going gets rough. And if you doubt me, think of our hero’s in days past compared to those of today. Is there a hero in today’s world like John Wayne anywhere today? Yeah, I haven’t seen one either.

What do we do?

One suggestion is to let our kids and our youth wallow in the pain and suffering in the situations they created and have fallen into. Even for just a little bit and not dive in to save them from the next unpleasant experience, which they caused and rightfully deserve. Not so much for our morbid amusement, but rather as a training tool so that they learn to toughen up and be able to take the blows in life which come to us all.

The apparent sheltered generation here today is on a collision course with upcoming economic and social crises is not a good recipe for our future.

Let’s help them toughen up. Call it’ Manning Up’, or ‘Cowboy Up’, or whatever, but it is imperative that we help our future generations by showing them it is okay to face difficulty and adversity, and how to learn from it.

Every so often, tell them to ‘Suck it up’. And move on.

Enjoy!

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
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Message of the Day - The Path We Take

Good Morning,

 

For about five years, I have been sharing information from the books I read. In the earlier days, I more directly shared from the books that I was reading at the moment, and currently, the messages have been less tied to this practice. Why the change?

 

The path I chose to follow in 2005 and on through to today was to read as many books on the specific subjects which I felt I could best share with others. These including Leadership, Self-Improvement, Management, Helping Others, Business, etc.

 

I dove into those books and when these books recommended other similar books, I found and read some of those as well. At the same time, I was also exploring my faith. In total, I would read 20 books to 1 Christian book.

 

As mentioned in my book, ‘Learn and Grow Daily!’, all of the reading had lead me to the Lord. And as such, I chose to spend more time learning about Him. My reading habits changed and currently, I read 20 Christian Books to 1 business/self-help/leadership/business book.

 

The path I had planned for myself to achieve my goals of helping others had effectively changed course and took to me a whole different area in life.

 

I still have many, many leadership, self-help, etc., books sitting on my shelves in queue to read, and I plan to get to them, but I saw the change in my attitude and where life was taking me, and I accepted that change. Should I have ignored the signs, and persisted down the path I laid out five years ago, I am not sure where I would have ended up, but I am pretty sure it would not be as rewarding as the path I am on now.

 

If what we do in life is not something we are interested in, or called to do, then why should we do it at all? Last week, I had the privilege of hearing Dr. Alistair Begg (http://www.truthforlife.org/) preach at the Southern Baptist Seminary. He shared one thought that resulted in this whole line of thought. He said that if a pastor does not have a specific calling to be a pastor, that he should to do the congregation a favor and quit.

 

What this means is that if we are not wired for, or have a passion to do something, everyone will know. And it can be painful for those who witness or worse are forced to experience our attempts.

 

That path we take in life should be the path of our passion, the path of our calling, the path that is revealed to us from the Almighty, etc., and not the path that we have stitched into our mind years ago, when situations, knowledge and interests were different.

 

It is okay to change the path we take. To stay in our passion, and to be the best we can be, we need to follow the right path. The alternative is going to be painful for at least ourselves and quite probably others who have to endure us in a wrong fitting role.

 

Follow your passion, heed your calling, and chose the path you take.

 

It will lead to a much more fruitful destination.

 

Enjoy!

 

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
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Message of the Day - It's not a Postcard

Good Morning,

 

I find most of my best ideas come after speaking with someone or just speaking an idea through to myself. Today, I was talking with my friend and trainer, Dr. Hope Zoeller about having flexible goals after an event, and in the midst of the conversation, I spouted out the words:

 

“Our life’s destination is not a postcard”

 

Then it dawned on me how many of us set our goals of what we are looking to accomplish based on what we think the outcome should look like. And that outcome is often more flowery and fancy than it normally ends up. It’s kind of like a postcard where the picture is often taken at the best time of year, in the best weather conditions, etc.

 

Often, what we are looking to achieve or end up at is not a true destination, that is, it’s not real. For example, if our goal is to start a new company, the goal may be to be rich by the end of the year. The reality is 90% of all new companies fail within their first year, and 90% of those that survive are gone within 5 years. The goal we set and reality can be far apart.

 

Sometimes the destination is just in our heads. Like in the movie ‘Dark City’ where billboard posters showed the vacation resort of Shell Beach, and oddly, no one could remember how to actually get to Shell Beach.

 

The postcard goal can be one that we can never actually get to. The sad part is all the time and effort we put into getting to that place, when we will ultimately fail.

 

So, what to do?

 

Have an open mind and be flexible. Sometimes almost counts more than being spot on.

 

If we achieve something like what we are looking for, like opening a business and doing our best, knowing that while the odds are stacked against us, we can gain a lot of information in the process. Information which can help us succeed when and if we have to try again.

 

Knowing that our goals can be moving targets, allows us to relax our strangle grip on ensuring we reach the postcard finish line, and allow us to live and learn and grow as we move forward.

 

And in the end, when we Learn and Grow Daily! we are taking steps to achieving our goals.

 

And sometimes, when we are flexible with our destination, the goal itself is far better than a postcard image.

 

Enjoy!

 

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
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Message of the Day - With True Grit

Good Morning,

 

In our Sunday School class is a couple, Chuck and Mary, who are sight impaired. They normally are picked up by a bussing service and wait in the Church lobby to be escorted to our classroom on the second floor at the end of the hall. This morning, as I was getting situated the class mentioned that they were not here yet and wondered who was getting them. A few moments later, as a plan was being finalized on who was going to escort them up, Chuck and Mary walked into the room on their own, with their walking canes.

 

We were all impressed at their feat, then Chuck said smiling:

 

‘It’s amazing what you can do when you have True Grit.’

 

Of course, that line got me thinking. And it is amazing what we all can do when we have True Grit.

 

First off, what is True Grit, though? … True Grit is synonymous with: Fortitude, Prowess, Tenacity.

 

People displaying these traits: fortitude (Strength), Prowess (Skill) and Tenacity (persistence and refusal to give up) generally have a greater success record than those who are not as strong, not as skillful and not as persistent.

 

The first step in showing True Grit is to make a decision, to draw a line in the sand, and remain firm in our decision, no matter what.

 

The next step in showing True Grit is to act, doing what we believe to be right, against all odds, and with only ourselves to rely on at times for assistance. All the while, making course corrections as necessary, but not giving up.

 

The final step in showing True Grit is to accomplish our goals, as we stated we would.

 

Chuck and Mary walked their way in the dark, resolved to get to where they needed to be, no matter what. And they succeeded.

 

What goal do you have set for yourself today which you can roll up your sleeves and show your True Grit in achieving today?

 

Once you decide, GO. DO. Succeed!

 

Enjoy!

 

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
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Message of the Day - Hard-Learned Wisdom

Good Morning,

 

During my recovery, I am able to spend some time pondering on how I got to where I am and more importantly what I have learned through this situation and life in general. Yesterday, I made a realization which would have completely altered the course of life had I followed my current wisdom of that of sixteen years ago.

 

The wisdom is that experts know better than me in their fields of expertise. This sounds pretty straight-forward and not worthy of mention, but there is more to it.

 

Sixteen years ago sitting in the hospital, the Dr. gave me a rundown of the options of treatments which I could have to correct my shattered leg. The graphic detail which these descriptions were given pushed me to take what seemed to be the least disgusting option.

 

The expert gave the list in order of their preference of what was best, and I made the decision on what I felt was the best, even though I did not have the best understanding of what my decision would mean to me in the long haul. The Dr. lamented that I should have chosen a different option. And as it turned out, I should have, but I was not wise enough back then.

 

Flash forward to several months ago when I visited two Orthopedic Surgeons to review the issue. They gave me the same list of options, the same graphic procedures.

 

My learned wisdom, now applied, I asked the Dr.’s what they recommended. Both Doctors said the same thing. I needed the surgery to correct my leg, or else I would eventually lose the ability to walk.

 

No matter how I felt about the options before, I deferred to the wisdom of the experts. I did not make my choice based on my knowledge, but theirs, the experts.

 

In life we are faced with many challenges and questions. Many of these are the same issues which come to face us daily, weekly or rear their heads periodically through our lives.

 

It makes sense to apply our learned wisdom and make the best choice in going forward, even if, in the past, we did something different.

 

We Learn and Grow Daily! when we apply our hard-learned wisdom to these life situations.

 

Enjoy!

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
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http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/
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Message of the Day - Do It Anyway!

Good Morning,

 

Found this wonderful piece in one of my current reads. This was written by Kent M. Keith “The Paradoxical Commandments.”

 

 

People are unreasonable, illogical and self-centered,

                Love Them Anyway.

 

If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives,

                Do Good Anyway.

 

If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies,

                Succeed Anyway.

 

The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow,

                Do Good Anyway.

 

Honesty and Frankness make you vulnerable,

                Be Honest and Frank Anyway.

 

The biggest people with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest people with the smallest minds,

                Think Big Anyway.

 

People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs,

                Fight For The Underdog Anyway.

 

What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight,

                Build Anyway.

 

People really need help, but may attack you if you help them,

                Help People Anyway.

 

Give the world the best you’ve got and you’ll get kicked in the teeth,

                Give The World The Best You’ve Got Anyway.

 

 

Enjoy!

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
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Message of the Day - Life = Risk

Good Morning,

 

Life is seldom easy, unless you do nothing and aspire for nothing more than what you have now.

 

Wanting more, and aspiring to be better opens the door to failure.

 

And when you fail you have two choices, one is to go back to doing nothing and having no aspirations, or

 

Taking it as an opportunity to learn and grow daily so that you can take that next chance to improve your life.

 

A life enjoyed is often a life with risks taken.

 

Life = Risk.

 

Mere existence is not life.

 

This video shares these feelings   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_tjYoKCBYag&feature=related

 

Enjoy!

 

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
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Message of the Day - Drowning in Words

Good Morning,

 

I remember finding out back in 1985 that the English Language had some 250,000 words, and some more for technical/scientific terms. What I also found out is that most people of average intelligence use a vocabulary of between 2,000 - 10,000 words. Experts, PhD's, etc. could master a vocabulary of over 20,000 words. On the flip side, some folks use less than 500 words for all of their communications. These are words that each person knows and uses on a regular basis.

 

These people share ideas and concepts through the use of their own arsenal of words (and that based on their knowledge of what each of those words means). For everyone to understand each other, they must know the words that being spoken or written to them. So, it can be difficult to effectively communicate when we walk around with an average of 5,000 or so words in our vocabulary, in a language which totes over a quarter of a million words.

 

Flashing forward some 25 years later and in an internet search for the number of words in the English Language, and it is a bit more than what it was in 1985. http://hypertextbook.com/facts/2001/JohnnyLing.shtml

 

As you can see, with technical/scientific words, there are over 1 Million words in English. This was achieved, I believe in February 2009.

 

We have all been forced to learn more words and concepts as our society grows and advances, but even if we were to double our vocabulary, the number of words in the language has quadrupled.

 

The ability to communicate relies on our ability to share words in conversation which each party fully understands. We seem to be in a losing battle for this cause as the number of words created every year seems to outpace the number of words we learn and add to our vacabulary.

 

If we are not careful, we could drown in our own language.

 

Something to think about.

 

Enjoy!

 

 

Sanford Berenberg
Sanford@berenberg.net
http://www.berenberg.net
http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/
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