Archive for August, 2010

@maurilio:

26

Stupid Stuff I Can’t Believe I Said

Words are a powerful and interesting things. With words we build people up or tear down friendships. They are used to bless as well as to curse. I’m a communication professional. I’m deeply flawed and to make matters more complicated,  I’m also Brazilian. Brazilians are often fun, but we’re also blunt in ways that make southerners blush. Over the years I have tried not only to adapt to my new adopted country, but also temper my not-so-subtle foreign ways.  I have not always succeeded. Here’s some memorable exchanges I wish I could have taken back: “I have the best hair money can buy” jokingly to a gentleman at a church I was interning as he commented on how much he liked my hair. I didn’t realize he was wearing a toupee. (it was a good one, after all) “When are you due?” To my non-pregnant waitress at Cancun restaurant. Twice.…

Read More
57

Narcissism, Social Media, Christianity and Me

I knew I was in trouble even before I began reading a very thought-provoking post on social media by Mitch Joel, Confessions of a Narcissist brought to my attention by Mike Hyatt.  The title alone was convicting. In his post, Joel unplugs from the Matrix long enough to see what we have often feared would happen: a feeding frenzy of the cult of ME. Social media has empowered narcissism to a new level and given it legs to run amuck. He poignantly writes: The true destination for most of our online endeavors really are the new media equivalent of the biblical statues that were presented as deities. These digital shrines that we create to ourselves. The post hit  a nerve with me. Intellectually I know that social or any type of media is inherently neutral. Unlike some who believe Facebook, and Twitter and whatever new social network a 19 year-old…

Read More
16

Can a Purple Cow Endure?

“You know we can’t be the Purple Cow forever, ” said the voice on the phone. That was 4 days ago, and I can’t get the conversation out of my mind. In case you haven’t read it, “Purple Cow” is a book by celebrity marketer Seth Godin that says: “You’re either a purple Cow or you’re not. You’re either remarkable or invisible.” I like to think of myself as a purple cow. Well, if I don’t pick up my running mileage I’ll be a different kind of cow, but none one us wants to believe that we’re no longer remarkable or that we now work for a boring, invisible or irrelevant organization. Mr. Godin and others have written a lot about becoming a purple cow, but once we get our colorful cow status, how do we stay there? Very few have been able to sustain purple cow status for a…

Read More
4

How to Give The Perfect TED Talk

The TED conferences in Long Beach and Palm Springs alto have featured some of the best minds in worlds of design, entertainment and technology. Famous for its 18-minute limit per presentation, TED talks have been streamed online millions of times. Recently, Fast Company published a controversial article titled “Is TED the New Harvards?” proposing that TED will become the Harvard of the future. I’m not sure about that, but one thing is for sure TED talks are a hot commodity. If invited to present, you’ll have less than 18 minutes to wow the audience that pays $6,000 to be there and the subsequent millions who might watch your presentation online. Talk about pressure. But don’t fret There’s help. Sebastian Wernicke, an engagement manager at Oliver Wyman and former bioinformatics researcher, did a statistical analysts of all the publicly available TED talks and used it to create tedPAD—a TED talk generator…

Read More
16

3 Questions You Must Answer Before Launching a Website

“we have a technology problem,” is what I often hear from a client or potential client, but while that might be true, most of the time it’s not the technology problem that’s causing the issue, but a communication one. My company, The A Group, has a technology division where we have developed a sophisticated platform for media-rich tools as well as a powerful and easy-to-use content management system. While I’m happy to sell our products to anyone who needs faster, easier and overall better technology, I’m always careful to make sure people understand that’s the communication strategy that drives the technology and not the other way around. This might sound simplistic to some, but I can tell you from personal experience that many churches, businesses and not-for-profits believe that a shiny new website, a powerful digital media tool, or an iPhone app will cure their communication problems. They won’t. What…

Read More
16

Even Runners Need Etiquette

Saturday mornings I do my long run with a group of runners. We meet at the Gates of Percy Warner park in Nashville, TN. Percy and Edwin Warner parks feature 2,684 acres of some of the most beautiful woods in Tennessee. Lot’s of runners make these parks their favorite running grounds along with my running group. I’ve noticed a trend lately that has me a bit miffed. Runners who are coming opposite side from our group who look us in the eye but won’t acknowledge our gregarious “good morning,” or a friendly smile followed by a wave if the runner has ear plugs in. That’s just plain rude. I haven’t seen a guide for runner etiquette but I’m sure there’s one somewhere. Here’s a few rules that should be in it: 1. If you make eye contact with another runner, smile or wave or say hello or maybe do all…

Read More
15

Stop Lying. Your Children Need the Truth

Tim Elmore’s new book “Generation iY” has messed me up lately, particularly the chapter on amending the lies we told Generation iY. According to Tim, these are well intentioned platitudes we say to our children in order to encourage them, to build their self-esteem but at their core, they are lies that will potentially wreak havoc as kids get old. According to him, “we have lied to manipulate, and often we have lied out of love. We’ve even taught young people to lie to themselves. . . in ways that will eventually sabotage them as a young adult.” Out of Dr. Elmore’s list of seven lies, the one that hit me the hardest was: You can be anything you want to be! Wait a second Tim, isn’t this part of the American Dream? Don’t people risk everything to come to America so their children can grow in a place they…

Read More
81

Hipster vs Polyester Christianity and the Cultural Trap

Every church movement in America, and around the world for that matter, has its share of critics. Friday morning I read a Wall Street Journal article by Brett McCracken on the perils of what he entitles “Hipster Christianity” . In this summary of his recently-released book, which I have not yet read, Mr. McCracken condemns Christian leaders for trying too hard “to rebrand Christianity as hip, countercultural, relevant.” He even names a few churches as examples of what he calls “cool churches,” saying at the close of his article that “as a twentysomething, I can say with confidence that when it comes to church, we don’t want cool as much as we want real.” I’m glad Mr. McCracken knows what he and his generation want, but whose job is to define what a “real” church looks like? Mr. McCracken and his generation of anti-hipsters? The Baby Boomers and their love…

Read More
8

Vienna: I Barely Knew You

Last month I spent a few days in Vienna, Austria working with the TWR’s European team. While I didn’t have a chance to enjoy much of what has to offer, I put together a quick slide show of pics I took with my iPhone. The music comes from Vienna’s own Mozart, of course. I now want to get back to Vienna to explore more of this beautiful city. Where have you been that you’ve said to yourself, “I’ve got to get back here!”?

Read More
9

How to Speak International: Communication in a Global Economy

It’s a small world after all. And I’m not talking about the never-ending, annoying Disney ride that can drive you insane. In the global economy we now live in, you’ll eventually have to work with people from different countries and cultures. This year alone I have been in Hong Kong, Sao Paulo, Singapore and Vienna working on projects and have seen first hand what a global economy looks like. Clear communication across the entire world has never been more important. As a communication professional, I often find well-meaning people commit grave errors because they don’t understand the cultural implications within a discussion. Most of the time, words alone fail to give you the true meaning of an international exchange. There are some lessons every business professional, pastor or even mission-bound volunteer should learn before they blow a deal, an exchange or, worst, start a war. Bad translations will derail any…

Read More