The Sanford Berenberg Experience

502-533-9336

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Thursday, February 12, 2009

Message of the Day - Achievement and Risk

Good Morning,

My most recent read, book 300, is Ray Kroc’s story about the making of McDonalds “Grinding It Out” (http://www.amazon.com/Grinding-Out-McDonalds-Ray-Kroc/dp/0312929870). In it Ray Kroc talks about his life and how he got from his youth to being one of the richest and most successful people in the world.

The last paragraph of the book has a very powerful message. It is as Ray Kroc summed up his entire story in these words to us, on how to succeed in life:

“Achievement must be made against the possibility of failure, against the risk of defeat. It is no achievement to walk a tightrope laid flat on the floor. Where there is no risk, there can be no pride in achievement and, consequently, no happiness. The only way we can advance is by going forward, individually and collectively, in the spirit of the pioneer. We must take the risks involved in our free enterprise system. There is only one way in the world to economic freedom. There is no other way.”

In other words, we must move forward and take risks for us to achieve economic freedom.

Do you think it is a coincidence the world has so many people struggling to succeed and at the same time so many people who would rather ‘play it safe’ and NOT take risks? Possibly there is a correlation with ‘playing it safe’ and not succeeding?

Slow and steady may no longer win the race, especially when the race track of life keeps changing from minute to minute. This goes along with another great American proverb: ‘Nothing Ventured, nothing gained’. By ventured, is meant risk taken.

To achieve we need to risk. Of course we should take care not to take foolish risks, but we need to step outside our comfort zones from time to time to help achieve our goals. I spent over $1000 to get self-published. It is a risk, but without taking it, I am certain that getting my first book published would take a lot more time sending it out from publisher to publisher and hoping that someone may like it enough to publish it, it could take years. Will I succeed, that has yet to be seen, but I know that my chances have greatly increased because I took that first step out of my comfort zone, I took a risk in order to achieve.

We can achieve, by taking risks, and as Ray Kroc says, ‘Grinding it out’.

Enjoy!

Sanford Berenberg

502-533-9336

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Message of the Day - Is Being Grateful a Dying Art?

Good Morning,

One of the organizations I work with performs an annual charitable service to our community. Each year a different charity is chosen as well as what to give. This year, money was raised for a local health facility. This facility often raises millions of dollars from donors around from the world. Our organization’s donation was just under $1000. We did not expect to get hoopla, news conferences or anything of the sort, rather we helped just for the sake of helping, because we care.

The donations were given back in early December 2008, and at this time, have yet to be deposited. The donations included personal checks from several members as well as a check from the organization. When investigated, we received a response that they would look into the matter since nearly two months had passed. The response we received floored us. The envelope with our donations was locked in a drawer of an employee who was now out on maternity leave. The new person we were working with said they would take care of the issue, and here it is two weeks later and still no deposited checks.

Our board was livid on how this health facility seemed to have little or no care for our donation. Worse yet, we wonder how many other donations are sitting there, not being used for their intended purpose.

We have since decided to no longer support this health organization, seeing how ungrateful they have been.

This ungratefulness made me think about other times in life where others have been ungrateful for the favors we have done for them, or the gifts we have given to them. I learned a long time ago, that you should think twice or more before turning down a gift from someone. Giving is such a powerful act that shutting it down by not accepting can be very painful, both in humiliation and in other ways.

Turning down the generosity of others can be very painful, and that is because of how good it feels to give. Helping others is such a powerful feeling that many folks focus their lives on helping others to keep that high going for as long as possible. Imagine the feeling of being shut down, having the door slammed in your face when you are trying to give to another (not trying to sell anything).

Devastating is one word for it.

Please remember it is okay to allow others to give to you, and think twice before turning someone else’s help down. In other words, allow others to help you from time to time. Even us self sufficient folks can use a hand every now and then. Really.

Our organization will support a smaller charity next year, and I am certain that they will be more grateful (or will at least acknowledge our gift by depositing the checks and using the money to actually help someone).

Enjoy!

Sanford Berenberg

502-533-9336

Monday, February 9, 2009

Message of the Day - Will the REAL you please stand up?

Good Morning,

I remember my Dad talking to me back in the 1980’s about why he was buying a larger house. His current house seemed fine to me; it had 5 bedrooms, a living room, family room, and plenty of storage and a garage. The reasons he told me he wanted a larger house was because one of his employees had recently bought a house larger than his. I asked him if he was serious. He said it was the custom in corporations, and that was the reason he got the new house. Some of these customs drove the image of the ‘Corporate Clone’.

How many actions do we make in our lives which are merely for position or for politics?

And if we dedicate our lives to playing politics or playing ‘the game’ do we lose ourselves in the process? I mean, does the ‘real’ us get covered up with what the world wants us to be? Then what happens to us?

I often seem folks find heroes in life who go against the grain. They do what no one else is willing or able to do, and then suddenly they go main stream. They ‘Sell Out’ and join the machine. These are people who supposedly give up who they are to get some quick cash, position or take advantage of some opportunity instead of going forward with how they are doing things today. Then again, are those people truly selling out, or are they just being themselves and their audience put them on a pedestal for wrong reasons?

It is a hard road to take for some. We feel pulled in all directions and are easily swayed down the nearest path or start the newest hobby or read the latest book just because someone else said it was all the rage. Remember in ‘I Love Lucy’ (there I go dating myself again) when Lucy, Fred, Ethel and Ricky are in a fancy restaurant. Lucy orders first and then changes her order after everyone else orders because she likes what they ordered? Some folks change directions and positions like the way the wind blows. Others know who they are and can stay the course no matter what life and others throw at them.

To make matters more confusing, we have to try to be ourselves in a world where life is lived in overdrive and speeding up. We can look forward to a greater number of life events being pushed so fast, they become ludicrous. Like Danny Kaye in the knighting ceremony in ‘The Court Jester’ (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=64Aiyec2czY) where the entire ceremony is rushed to the point that it is hilarious. The sad part is if we take a look back out or very day lives, we can easily see this happening to us today!

I have struggled in every place I have ever worked, lived and played because I am me. I say things people do not like, and I refuse to be someone that I am not, honesty can be upsetting. Then again, there were times in my life when I was not totally sure who I was. It has been a lifelong struggle for me to make sure that the person I know that I am is not being shaped into something else due to the company I work for, or the company I keep.

It has served me well to be able to negotiate life better being myself. In tough times, when we don’t know who we are or we pretend to be something we are not, that is when the walls come down. Back in 2003 when I was downsized from the Dot.Com, I did not know who I was and my world nearly collapsed. Today, I am more prepared, not totally there yet, but more prepared as I have a better understanding of who the real me is, meanwhile continually sharpening the saw.

So when the real you is asked to stand up, do you know who that person is? Have you met them? May it’s time you do.

Enjoy!

Sanford Berenberg

502-533-9336

Thursday, February 5, 2009

Message of the Day: Beauty in the Heart of the Storm

Good Morning,

Many of you have heard of the ice storm that came through Kentucky, devastating parts of it, knocking power out for over a million people through Kentucky, Indiana, Tennessee and other places. Some folks will not get their power back for up to another month in rural areas. Some of you have lived through it and others are still living through it.

It is now over a week later and it is still not back to normal, but on the drive home today I saw some beautiful signs. And when I came into the house and saw the news, I saw beauty on the evening news. I know, not what you expect to see these days. But it was there and it was beautiful.

The warmth of people’s hearts heated up like solar flares around the country as they these people rolled up their sleeves and came to ‘storm ravaged’ Kentucky and helped out. Even more fitting were the teams of workers who came up from Louisiana to return the favor of 2005 when Kentucky and others went down to help Hurricane Katrina victims. They took vacations and time off from their own jobs and just drove up to help. They did not charge money, they just came to help. It was about LOVE!

And its not just the folks from around the country who are helping out, it is the locals too. On my drive home I saw a sign on a local Fivestar Gas station offering free coffee to utility workers. The utility workers, who have been working ‘16 on and 8 off’ shifts (yes, 16 hour work shifts every day since last week), are getting a little love from the locals too. And there are a lot of utility workers. Over the last five days I have seen utility trucks from other towns, cities and states driving around Louisville.

The warmth of the hearts of others, of people receiving this message (you), was felt by others too. Karen and I took in some friends who lost both power and water and faced spending a week in a shelter which had no water either. It was a wonderful week, somewhat stressful at times, but we all came out of it loving each other even more. You see it is about Love.

The beauty in the hearts of people is there, and I am seeing it like a symphony all around town these days and I it warms my heart, chokes me up and brings tears to my eyes.

There is a lot of garbage going on in the world today, but if we don’t stop and take a look around every now and again, we may miss the joyous celebration of love and beauty that shows it wondrous visage when we least expect it.

And why stop there, why only let our hearts ring out in love of others after tragedies and tough times? Why not get and keep the momentum going, get out there and practice random acts of kindness and senseless beauty to those around us. Its Valentines day in a week and a half, lets show our love to our friends, family and community!

Let’s keep the beauty of humanity alive and well in our lives, and keep it going into tomorrow and the next day, and the next day, etc.!

There is beauty in the heart of the storm, and lets nurture the love so it blossoms for all to see.

Enjoy!

Sanford Berenberg

502-533-9336

Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Message of the Day - Are You Being Good? Are You Sure?

Good Morning,

I recently read that some people have a different viewpoint of what is considered to ‘be good’. That what some consider to ‘be good’ may not be something that we feel is ‘being good’. And if that is the case, is their good, really good, or for that matter, is our good really good?

In my current read “How Good Is Good Enough” by Andy Stanley (http://www.amazon.com/How-Good-Enough-LifeChange-Books/dp/1590522745), there is a section where he talks about how missionaries were sharing the gospel with a people group who held betrayal in high esteem. That is, these peoples thought it was good to get into the good graces of others then the ‘stab them in the back’ figuratively. In this case, these folks thought Judas Iscariot was the hero.

These peoples saw this behavior as good. They esteemed this behavior and people who exhibited it. Although this is not a feeling or value I share with these people, but it makes me think.

There are many different perspectives held by many different people, and often the viewpoints held by others do not match those we hold. This means what we consider to ‘be good’ may not, in fact, be thought of as ‘being good’ by others. What we think of that is ‘the bomb’ may be a dud to others.

Assuming that what we hold as important and valuable to us may actually not be important at all to others, and at the same time, what we hold as unimportant may be all important to others.

This also ties into customs. Dr. Todd Arwood shared with me that when giving business cards to a person from Japan, it should be treated reverently, and held in its own case. To the Japanese the business card is a revered item, and to pull it out of your wallet where you keep everything else, demeans it, and thus demeans you in their eyes.

So what does this all mean?

It means that we need to get a better understanding between us and the other people we deal with if we are to truly communicate and work with them. This does not mean that we have to agree with everything that the others we deal with believe, but we should make the effort to at least understand what they are thinking.

Get passed assumptions and work toward understanding. It will help clear up many many issues, like ‘being good’.

Enjoy!

Sanford Berenberg

502-533-9336

Monday, February 2, 2009

Message of the Day: Being Adaptable to the Changing Times might have Saved Rome

Good Morning,

Currently I am listening to “The Secret of the Ages” by Robert Collier (http://www.amazon.com/Secret-Ages-Robert-Collier/dp/0912576111) and came across an interesting section right up front. Robert Collier asks what the Dinosaurs, Ancient Greece and The Roman Empire have in common.

They all are no longer with us…Why?

According to Collier, they did not adapt to the changing times around them and were ultimately swept away by the changing world. In other words, they stopped growing or learning and expanding their ability to change with the times.

Okay with the Dinosaurs, there was this meteorite thing, but not all of the Dinosaurs died off, only those who could not adapt.

We are seeing this same situation in action in our economy today. Like two tectonic plates rubbing against each other, the old and new economies are causing financial earthquakes the world over.

The times have changed, and many ‘old school’ businesses and people are fighting tooth and nail to hold onto what they know are comfortable with and fight off adapting to the changing world around them. The harder they fight, the tougher the economic times will be with them when they finally fold.

This is nothing new. In the early 1990’s, IBM’s funeral was being planned by such companies as Microsoft and others. The global giant, IBM, lost touch with the current playing field and continued doing business as usual; not listening to customer’s needs, but doing what THEY thought the customer needed. Other smaller companies came in and started eating away at market share and IBM did not even notice nearly half of its market was gone. It took a strong CEO, Louis Gerstner Jr., to turn them around and make them more flexible and adaptable, and he did not have an easy job of it.

Apple was in the same boat when Steve Jobs was hired back as CEO. He had to go in and literally change the culture of the company from top to bottom to get it to stop dying. He forced them to change and adapt.

We too can become victims of the changing times if we refuse to change and grow. When I was downsized in 2003, I felt I had all I needed to get a new job ASAP. I had experience, I had an Associates Degree, and I had landed my last four jobs on the first interview. It was a rude awakening for me seeing that I was very, very wrong. I had to change and adapt and grow if I wanted to survive. And that is what I did, two college degrees and nearly 300 books later I am in a better, but still not invulnerable position, so I will keep learning and growing myself.

We all need to grow and learn and boost our ability to adapt. The world is changing, we cannot stop it, so we better find ways to allow ourselves to embrace the new world or we may be going the way of the Roman Empire and the Dinosaurs.

Enjoy!

Sanford Berenberg