Good Morning,

As you have probably noticed, there has not been a lot of activity on this blog for the last few months.

While I have not been posting here, I have been active in other areas and and as such and have been dividing my time, and of course, some areas, like this one have been dropped.

I am going to keep this site, up but share with you where I will be continuing my posts.

www.learnandgrowdaily.com will bring you to my Learn and Grow Daily Facebook page where I will share my reading reflections and other wisdom I have come across.

www.learning-loved-ministries.org will bring you to my new ministry where I hope to encourage and help people learn more about the Gospels and bring them closer to God.

Hope to see you all there.

Love,

Sanford 'Sandy' Berenberg
sanford@berenberg.net
www.learnandgrowdaily.com
www.learning-loved-ministries.org
502-533-9336

Smiling to help others and ourselves

Good Morning,

 

We all know a smile is powerful. It is contagious and it can have some amazing side effects.

 

Last week, in support for The Crusade for Children, I joined our local fire department at their annual roadblock (collecting money from cars coming through the intersection). The fire house is the charter organization for my Boy Scout Troop. Each year, we look forward to making a growing effort to support the fire fighters and the Crusade for Children.

 

So here I am, standing in the intersection, most folks holding their pails and looking at oncoming traffic, waiting for the light to turn red to start walking up the line. And then comes this loon, (that would be me) who starts waving to every car that comes by and gives each driver a big smile.

 

Many smile back while waiting for the light to turn green and some well, they keep their faces planted on their phones or other devices, or try to avoid eye contact.

 

What I find is that when I wave and smile that more people start pulling out their change or cash and offer it to the Crusade. 

 

The smile makes a connection, it makes it okay to interact with someone that they do not know.

 

My scouts who are at the side of the road watching me cringe as they see me wave to anyone and everyone, even them. They have not gotten passed that awkward shyness of youth, secretly, they are happy that someone cares enough to connect with them.

 

Smiles can do many good things. Smiles bring a quick joy to those who smile. It is has been shown in studies that our facial expressions actually drive our feelings in addition to, or even instead of our feelings driving our facial expressions. To read more click here.

 

So, if you are looking to help others, smile. If you are feeling down, smile.

 

And if you have nothing better to do, just smile.

 

 

 

Smile!

 

Sanford Berenberg

Sanford@berenberg.net

http://www.learnandgrowdaily.com 

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com

  

  

 

Click on the book to order: "Learn And Grow Daily!"

502-533-9336

 

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Get muddy and increase your productivity

Good Morning,

 

Today I gave about an hour and a half volunteer time to my community to help clean up a park as part of Louisville’s ‘Give a Day’ community-wide community service initiative were folks are asked to give any time to help the city and its communities.  

 

It turns out the park has been cleaned several times previously that week in preparation for a Shakespeare in the Park production this evening. A parks worker thanked me for my help but said it was unlikely I would even fill 1 bag with what garbage that was left.

 

I walked around and picked up the small stuff and then began to see cups, bottles, plastic bags and other debris in the woods, where it was wet and muddy. So I did what any good Scout would do, being prepared, I walked into the forest, and filled two bags with debris as I got muddy.

 

The assumption was there was only low hanging fruit and most of that had already been picked, so there was little to do. That I would not even fill one bag.

 

The truth was, I went where others were not willing to go, do get dirty and make an even larger difference by doing the unexpected.

 

Getting muddy, I got a lot more done.

 

Are there things in your life that you are unwilling to do because you feel it will be too dirty, too much work, or not worth the effort?

 

Maybe take a step off the clean path into the over saturated ground and do those things that others are unwilling.

 

The amount of work completed may just surprise you and those around you.

 

Enjoy!

 

Sanford Berenberg

Sanford@berenberg.net

http://www.learnandgrowdaily.com 

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com

  

  

 

Click on the book to order: "Learn And Grow Daily!"

502-533-9336

 

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Focus through Chaos for increased productivity

Good Morning,

 

It’s not going to be a surprise to anyone that we live in chaotic times, where the workloads and expectations on us continue to grow, and we have to find new ways to manage in a continually changing environment, where the rate of change mercilessly increases.

 

Yet, some of the same skills which helped us in quieter times can still provide us value to today. Near the top of the list is focus. You multi-taskers may want to skip to the bottom of the message on this one…or maybe not.

 

Keeping our eyes on one task at a time and doing it well, then moving to the next, and so on is still a good way to get work done, even with chaos still flying all around.

 

As an example, I saw a documentary on fighter pilots and famous dogfighting aces. One was an Israeli pilot who once had an aerial battle with 10 to 12 enemy fighters. That is 10 – 12 against 1. And this pilot came out victorious, but not by taking out all of the enemies.  He understood that the only way that he was going to get caught was if someone was to get directly behind him to target him. So he kept his focus on finding one adversary and not being caught from behind. He did not worry about those who tried to come after him from all different angles as they most likely could not due to the speed, angles of attack, etc.

 

The pilot saw many tasks, but focused on what was most important. And then when that task was completed, he moved to the next, and so on on.

 

Yes, the chaos will continue around us as we focus, but again, if we look to work on what is truly most important, the rest will wait, or even vanish. You know, those urgent, but not important tasks which are fueled by the passions of the moment and when the moment passes, so does the task.

 

So, find your target, what is most important NOW, and focus on that. Then wash, rinse, repeat.

 

Chaos will diminish, and you will have more accomplished. A great resource on this subject is Patrick Lencioni’s ‘The Advantage”.

 

Enjoy!

 

Sanford Berenberg

Sanford@berenberg.net

http://www.learnandgrowdaily.com 

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com

  

  

 

Click on the book to order: "Learn And Grow Daily!"

502-533-9336

 

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Learning the risks of Learning

Good morning,

 

I love to learn new things. And just about everybody will admit that new knowledge is a good thing to have. Unfortunately there's a risk to gaining new knowledge.

 

In many cases the knowledge that we learn is far from the subject matter. That is, we learn part of something, and not all. Then again, very few subjects can be learned in one 30 minute sitting.

 

This sounds very intuitive and really should be a simple concept for everyone to understand, yet we often forget this.

 

Take the executive who gets his first call center assigned to him. He reads a book or two on how call centers work, and now manages that call center as if he was an expert with this tunnel of information. The actual call center managers, with wider and more extensive knowledge and experience in the subject, have to cope with this very narrow focused manager who thinks he's an expert.

 

I have seen this over many years and in many areas of life. From the drug addicted college student who becomes a born-again Christian knowing three verses of the Bible to the seasoned operations manager who has run the same operation the same way, year after year for 20 years, both have a limited scope of knowledge, but act as if what they know handles all situations.

 

Knowledge in and of itself is neither good nor bad, it is only what is done with it.

 

With more knowledge, used appropriately, more things can be done for the benefit of others.

 

Knowledge used inappropriately, like ignorance, can often go and hurt others in many different ways.

 

The goal is to understand what knowledge we have learned, and, sometimes more importantly, to understand what we have yet to learn. That part is often the hardest because we often do not know what we do not know until we learn a little bit more of what we do not know. Sounds confusing, sadly often is. John Kennedy, son of President John F Kennedy, died in a plane crash as he knew how to navigate and fly an aircraft by sight, but he had not learned to fly by instruments alone. His last flight was at night, when he could not see as well. He had part of the information on how to fly, but not the information he needed as difficult situations arose.

 

One trick is to understand that the more that we know equates to the more that we do not know. If we approach all situations both with the knowledge that we have and the understanding that we do not have all of the knowledge, we better prepare ourselves to succeed and the same time learn more but we do not know.

 

That means those who are smug about knowing something learn they need to change their attitude and realize there's a lot more out there. That those who know little and are afraid that they don't know much at all need to realize that they are often wiser than those who think they know.

 

Knowledge is a tool, like a shovel in a shed it is one tool which can do specific jobs certainly isn't the only tool needed.

 

Get out there and learn, but realize as you learn, what more you still need to learn. Good news is that you can Learn and Grow daily, every day of your life.

 

Sanford Berenberg

Sanford@berenberg.net

http://www.learnandgrowdaily.com 

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com

  

  

 

Click on the book to order: "Learn And Grow Daily!"

502-533-9336

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Power in that little icon.

Good Morning,

 

This past week and a half have been a blur. I had to drop everything and drive up to New York and Connecticut for my brother’s funeral. Part of the trip was to help carry out the often changing plans of everything that needed to be done. The crazy cold weather, snow storms, freezing rain and dare I say even colder weather made it more challenging.

 

In all of the trip, there was one moment where I felt a calming sense of joy. As I set up my GPS in my truck and touched the ‘where to’ section, it brought up a list of options.

 

Touching the ‘Home’ icon to navigate from West Virginia to home for my last leg was a happy moment.

 

All the thoughts of coming home, my loving wife and family (kids, dogs, cats, friends, etc.), even coworkers and organizations I work with filled me with warmth and happiness.

 

Just touching the icon caused a brighter outlook on the day.

 

Knowing that I was heading to where I feel most comfortable and loved warmed those bones as it as negative something, and O’Dark Thirty in the morning (about 4:00 AM).

 

The power of that icon is not where it would lead me, but what it meant to me.

 

I certainly did not have that same feeling when I programmed my GPS to go to my family and start the work on the Funeral. While I love my family and enjoy seeing them, I was not looking forward to what had to be done, and why it had to be done.

 

No, going home was more powerful.

 

It should always be.

 

Enjoy!

 

Sanford Berenberg

Sanford@berenberg.net
http://www.learnandgrowdaily.com

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/

 

Click on the book to order: "Learn And Grow Daily!"

502-533-9336

 

 

Our Greatest Gift and Our Greatest Challenge

Good Morning,

 

I have been spending a lot more time over the past year or so, helping others, and at the same time spending time to help me de-stress from the crazy busy daily routines. What I have found is something I already knew, in my mind, but felt it in my heart.

 

We all have many assets: Our wisdom (experience, skills and knowledge), our physical abilities, our wealth (such as it is), our connections, our love and our time.

 

Of all of these assets, only one is finite. Only one is measured out to be used once and is gone.

 

·         Some will say money, but that is not true. We can always get more money and I believe I once spent the same dollar bill two times over the course of a few years.  We can get a second job, get a better paying job, and find other ways for additional income.

 

·         Some will say Love, that they give all they can, and it can be exhausting to shower love over someone, and then be expected to do it again and again. While it can be demanding, we can always find more love to give others.

 

·         Some will say Wisdom, and that may be true for those who never strive to Learn and Grow Daily, if at all. Yet, we all tend to learning something new even with the least of efforts.

 

·         Some will say our Physical Abilities, but again, we can condition ourselves to do more, exercise, etc. It is painful, but can be done.

 

·         Some will say our Connections, but unless we live as a secluded hermit, even the Monks in monasteries make new friends and connections.

 

Time is the only resource which is finite. We get 24 hours a day, and it can only be spent once (until the time machine is invented, but then again, disruptions to the time-space-continuum are another issue altogether… go watch Dr. Who).

 

Since time is finite, how we spend our time is increasingly important. Money lost by dropping it somewhere, getting a bad meal, a lot bet, etc., can be regained, but an hour waiting in line is gone, never to come back.

 

How we spend our time tells us what is important to us. It also tells those we spend it with that they are important to us, as we spent the time.  Being happy about it is an additional benefit, but the time spent is key. 

 

Time spent helping others then is greatest gift we can give anyone. It is a gift that cannot be recouped. The money I spent on Christmas for my friends and family can be made up again.

 

When we give someone an hour of our time, it is priceless. It is a gift that we give only once. Maybe that is one the reasons my Aunt who is spending the rest of her days in a nursing home smiles so much when I visit her for 30 minutes, knowing it will take over 2 hours to make the trip. That is time that I have given to her that no one else will ever get.

 

It also explains that when we spend time doing things, that others who do not get the time with us may feel neglected as we have chosen to give our greatest gift elsewhere.

 

Over the last year or so, I have stepped up my help with the Boy Scouts, and with all the hubbub they have been going through, I focus on helping the boys in front of me, those in my troop. I am told being a Scoutmaster is only a 1 hour a week job, and then you hear the laughing. It’s more like 10 – 20 hours a week, on the weeks that you don’t go camping.

 

My time reading has been shortened each day, so my reading is focused on God’s word and devotionals. That is where what time I have I want to be spent.  I still read other books, but my hour a day has been decimated over the last year. I have added time to play an online game to help me de-stress. I have tried giving that up, to read, but find that I am not always in the mood to or able to focus on reading the materials I often dive into.  Then again, I could try sleeping more too.

 

I have had to re-district my time, to spend more with my family, more helping the Scouts, less on frivolities and more to keep me sane.

 

Time is precious.

 

This makes how we use our greatest gift, our time, one of our greatest challenges.

 

We must consider how to not waste it, or use it in a way which will only eat up more of it, and take us away from who we are, who we love and what we love to do.

 

In call centers, every second counts. Well, that is so true for life today, especially in America with all of our ‘time saving’ devices which only make us do more and more eating up our precious, never to be regained time.

 

So that is my challenge to me and my charge to you.

 

Make every second count. Make your greatest gift mean something.

 

 

Sanford Berenberg

Sanford@berenberg.net
http://www.learnandgrowdaily.com

http://sanfordberenberg.blogspot.com/

 

Click on the book to order: "Learn And Grow Daily!"

502-533-9336