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“Better work, done faster”

Mr. Josh Lyons based his forum on the book Deep Work by Cal Newport and spoke to the students about the importance of developing the skill of “deep work”. He went on to explain the problem that “deep work”’solves, what it means, and the practical steps the students can take to achieve the skill.

The Problem

In today’s society, concentration spans are shortening, and the ability to think deeply is decreasing. This is affecting our personal and work lives. Phones, with the many various apps they contain, have increasingly consumed more of our attention. At the same time, our ability to focus for long periods has decreased. He pointed us towards a news article on how technology has affected our ability to concentrate, which further emphasized the point that we are all becoming less focused.

The Solution

Mr. Lyons then went on to explain how “deep work” can help us overcome the problems we see today which lead to ineffective work and a lack of focus. According to the book, “deep work” is defined as “professional activities performed in a state of distraction free concentration that push your cognitive capabilities to their limit. These efforts create new value, improve your skill, and are hard to replicate” ( (Newport 3). It is a meaningful and rare skill that adds value and leads to thriving at work. “Deep work” means being steady, diligent, earnest and energetic. Proverbs 22:29 states “Do you see a man who excels in his work? He will stand before kings; He will not stand before unknown men”(NKJV). “Deep work”  can be equated to diligence and will be noticed by others, increasing our opportunity to succeed.

Practical Ways to Achieve Deep Work

1. Do as little shallow work as possible: menial tasks that don’t require skill should be completed in batches to avoid wasting so much time.

2. Ruthlessly block distractions: try blocking notifications on your phone. We must be intense and intentional with getting rid of and avoiding distractions that affect our work.

3. Block out chunks of time to do “deep work”

4. Good location for “deep work”

5. Learn to love“deep work”. Embrace the challenge of trying to reach your potential in terms of work output and quality. This adds value to work, family, your life and your success rate.

6. Be intentional in improving your ability to do “deep work”.  “Deep work” is not a habit; it is a skill that you need to train and practice. The more you exercise the skill, the more you will strengthen your mental ability to perform it.

Final Thoughts

The skill of “Deep work” can aid us in overcoming the effects of technology and the many distractions around us that seem to stop us from producing quality work in a decent time period. Mr. Lyons ended by reading a few quotes on the topic of concentration.

Resources:

Newport, Cal. Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World. Grand Central Publishing, 2016.

Recently, Mr. Hernandez gave a forum on the importance of following the seven laws of success. He started by explaining that success should not just be thought of in physical terms, but also spiritual terms. Spiritual and physical success are connected. Mr. Hernandez showed that by practicing the 7th law of success, seeking God first, all other laws can be achieved.

Seek God and Put Him First

Our relationship with God must be of the utmost importance to us. As students, Mr. Hernandez pointed out, it could be all too easy to think that we are right with God just because we are attending classes and learning about the Bible. He reminded us that we should continue in daily prayer and Bible study, in addition to our classes here at LE. If we put God first, starting and ending our day with prayer and Bible study, we will be successful. 

Jesus provides an example of this in Mark 1:35; “Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place, and there He prayed”.

If we are making the time to study and pray and develop that personal connection with God, then His word will fill our minds and guide us throughout the day. This personal relationship enabled Joseph to be successful even when he was a slave in Egypt (Genesis 39:2).

1. Set the right goal: Matthew 6:33 states our overall goal should be to “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness”. Mr. Hernandez emphasized that seeking His righteousness means we should be keeping His commandments. Staying loyal to Christ will lead to future success. Our focus should be on putting the knowledge we have about God’s way of life into action. 

2. Seek knowledge and the right education: As Living Education students, our primary source of knowledge is the Bible and Mr. Hernandez encouraged us to read the whole Bible. In Deuteronomy God stated that he wanted those appointed as kings to write a copy of the law for themselves and that they were to read it their whole lives (Deuteronomy 17:18-19).

3. Maintain good health: Mr. Hernandez emphasized watching what we eat. We should be mindful of the effects of different foods on our bodies and be careful to observe the examples of clean and unclean meats listed in the Bible. He mentioned the booklet, Biblical Principles of Health as a useful resource.

4. Drive: “The soul of a lazy man desires, and has nothing; but the soul of the diligent shall be made rich” (Proverbs 13:4). Working hard leads to success and blessings from God.

5. Be resourceful: Resourcefulness involves wisdom, which “is the ability to solve problems by applying God’s law in the right way”. For the Lord gives wisdom; From His mouth come knowledge and understanding” (Proverbs 2:4). 

6. Have endurance: The only way we will get into the Kingdom of God is if we endure to the end. Start working towards your goals today, don’t wait for tomorrow. 

7. Seek God first:  These 6 laws of success would not be possible without the 7th law- Seeking God and putting Him first. If we fail to put God first, we won’t see the right goals to set and we will be seeking the wrong kind of knowledge. Without the Bible, where can we find health laws on what we should and shouldn’t eat? The proverbs instruct us on how to act and how to work. Without spending time in prayer and Bible study, how will we have access to God’s wisdom? Finally, how can we achieve success if we do not endure to the end? 

Remember to put God first in all things.

Mr. Strain began his forum to the LivingEd students by introducing himself and his role in the church as a pastor of the Charlotte, NC congregation. He went on to share with us what we can expect from Living Education and being close to the work at headquarters. These values that guide the program and Church culture were passed down from Mr. Armstrong and the Worldwide Church of God.

Understanding Church History

Living Education and the cultures and values the Church espouses can be traced back to Mr. Armstrong and the Worldwide Church of God. Mr. Strain himself attended Ambassador College, part of the Worldwide Church of God. Several of the men involved in the work at Headquarters attended Ambassador College. This has also influenced how Living Education has been designed and how the Church acts. To understand more about the history of the church and its teachings, the speaker encouraged us to read: Mr. Armstrong’s Autobiography (Vol. 1), Mystery of the Ages, and to study the LCG Statement of Fundamental Beliefs. He went on to give several examples of the values that Mr. Armstrong helped introduce within the Worldwide Church of God that we still hold onto today.

Work

Mr. Strain described how students were expected to work at Ambassador College and to maintain the cleanliness of the dorms and facilities. Similarly, at Living Education, students have the opportunity to work at headquarters and these same standards of living are to be valued and upheld.

Attire

Proper dressing standards have also been passed on. Mr Strain described how women should dress modestly and pay attention to what they wear for Sabbath services. Men also should take care of their appearances and make sure to not dress casually when appearing before God on the Sabbath. The speaker commented that the LE students should strive to apply these same standards of dress to what is worn throughout the rest of the week.

Music

Special music for Sabbath services should not cave into the ‘nice sounding’ songs with a contemporary feel which are popular nowadays. Much popular ‘Christian’ music is shallow, emphasizing only grace, not the keeping of the law and the gift of grace. The Church should strive to hold itself to a higher standard of music that is played at services. Mr. Strain commented that performing special music for Sabbath services is not a display of skill, but a service to the congregation and to praise God.

Manners

Mr. Strain also emphasized how good manners never go out of style and should be valued by the students. Those who are older or in a higher office should be addressed properly, not by their first name, but by using ‘Mr’, ‘Mrs’, or ‘Miss. He mentioned Leviticus 19:32 where God says to “rise up before the hoary head, and honor the face of the old man.”

Final Thoughts

As the students began their nine-month journey, Mr. Strain provided valuable insight into the perspective that the Living Church of God holds and that is mirrored at Living Education. Mr. Strain shared the history of how the culture and standards upheld now are a result of God working with Mr. Armstrong and the Worldwide Church of God. 

Mr. Mike DeSimone provided us, newly arrived Living Education students, with an insightful lesson on how to become even more effective in our work, academics, and personal lives. He provided an interactive game that made his points stand out even more. This was a much-appreciated discussion, and it inspired us as we begin to kick off these exciting nine months here!

The Myth of Multitasking… 

Mr. DeSimone started by sharing a story of how shift-tasking can be falsely confused with multitasking.  Unlike how we think of multitasking being a good and productive way to manage our time, shift tasking, also known as switch tasking, takes the focus off the project at hand and distorts it elsewhere.  Instead of being able to do the work quicker, shift tasking takes longer to complete because of the time to “switch” back and forth between tasks.  It is better to do one task efficiently, then move on to a second, instead of a poor attempt at doing two things at once.  

The 5 S’s 

A large key to Mr. Desimone’s discussion was focused on the 5 S’s.  

1. Sort:  Keep only what is necessary and discard everything else.
2. Set in Order: Arrange and label only necessary items for easy use and return.
3. Shine:  Keep everything swept clean, and tidy.
4. Standardize:  The state that exists when the first three pillars of the 5 S’s are properly kept.
5. Sustain:  Make a habit of properly maintaining correct procedures.

The 5 S’s, we have learned, are beneficial in ensuring that the precious resource of time is well cared for.  Mr. DeSimone provided a handout to assist our grasping of how the 5 S’s can play a drastic role in the effectiveness, efficiency, and accuracy in our lives.

Further Than Just the Physical

When posed with the question of whether the 5 S’s could be taken past the obvious physical principles they hold, Mr. DeSimone responded with, “These can be taken and used to assist the personal relationships we hold with others.”  If how we interact with others is not sorted, then we may be spending time as a group when it should be one-on-one.  Setting the time spent with others in order can aid in a stronger relationship with other people. Mr. DeSimone’s lessons were taken to heart by all of us as we strive to be the most efficient and effective students/workers we can!