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What are the ideals that make Apple unique?

2010-03-14T22:16:33Z

I love Gary Hamel’s writings in the Wall Street Journal on management. Last week, he had an interesting article on the ideals that have made Apple the company that they are today. This was his list:

Be passionate. “I think, for a company to generate years of exceptional returns unless it first devotes itself to the pursuit of an exceptional ideal.”
Lead, don’t follow. Apple “always sets out to radically redefine a category with a distinctive product or business model.”
Aim to surprise. “Apple seems committed to exceeding expectations—to evoking a “Wow!” from even its most jaded customers.”
Be unreasonable. “Reasonable people don’t produce breakthroughs.”
Innovate incessantly and pervasively. Apple “must be relieved that innovation is still a sideshow in so many of their competitors.”
Sweat the details. “Great design isn’t just about bold strokes, it’s about getting all of the tiny things right that conspire together to make a product truly exceptional.”
Think like an engineer, feel like an artist. “A company can’t produce beautiful products if the bean counters win every argument.”

This is just a snippet of Hamel’s thoughts. Check out the rest of the article for more insights.

I think he pretty accurately describes what makes Apple unique. What would you add to the list? Do you think any of these attributes have a place in the organizations we lead? I do.

Killing Cockroaches Anniversary Sale

2010-03-13T15:29:38Z

It’s hard to believe, but Killing Cockroaches was released one year ago. The book continues to be available on Amazon and in your local bookstores, but I also have about 125 copies remaining. So, until supplies last, you can purchase a copy for $10 plus shipping. I’ll sign it. With that, I’m sure it’ll become a collectible.

You may use the link below to place your order.

By the way, you may not know that I’ve also written three other books with Tim Stevens. The three books are part of the “Simply Strategic” series. One is on details of running a church. There’s one on volunteer strategy. The third one is on growing churches. Again, all three of these books including the Kindle version of Simply Strategic Volunteers is available on Amazon.

YAALASHTOTIIYOU

2010-03-12T00:28:56Z

YAALASHTOTIIYOU = Your acronyms are like a secret handshake that only the insiders in your organization understand.

I was driving behind a minivan heading to the mall today and I saw a vehicle with an “NCC” sticker on the back. It was the only sticker on the back of the minivan, so it grabbed my attention. In that respect, the marketing worked. The only problem is that I have no idea what NCC stands for. I’m guessing it’s “Northland Chiropractic Center.” Or maybe it’s “New Covenant Church.” Or maybe its “Norfolk Community College.”

Acronyms make sense to everyone inside your organization. In fact, it’s just easier to say “NCC” rather than “Northland Chiropractic Center.” The problem is everyone outside your organization has no idea what the initials stand for.

Some organizations incorporate their initials into their logo. If that’s you, you’ll just need to remember to always include the name of your organization everywhere you use your logo. We can Google the name of your organization and find you. It’s not going to do us any good to Google your initials.

It’s just a great reminder that we need to be careful that we’re not using insider language when we’re trying to communicate with people outside our organizations.

By the way, if someone doesn’t agree with this advice, just tell them that APM said it was so.

Listen to the New Passion Album for FREE

2010-03-10T12:49:08Z

The newest album from Passion, Awakening, just released. It has songs from your favorites including Chris Tomlin, David Crowder, Fee, Kristian Stanfill, Matt Redman and more. You can listen to the album one time in its entirety for free below:

Passion: Awakening – Passion

If you like what you hear, feel free to use my Amazon link to download the new album. After you’ve listened, leave a comment indicating which track is your favorite.

Driving the Chevy Impala

2010-03-10T01:31:55Z

I read this fascinating article last night from Forbes about how General Motors destroyed its Saturn division. Among other things, David Hanna, the author of the article, suggested:

“Saturn, a GM company that had great promise in the early 1990s, ultimately failed because senior GM leaders couldn’t see the benefits of new ways of doing things and a new kind of organizational culture.”

We’re all familiar with the demise of GM, so this is a very vivid image of what can happen when an organization becomes so stuck in its traditional approach of doing things that the world passes it by. Ultimately, when organizations stick to “the way we do it,” the safe approach of avoiding innovation and change becomes the riskiest approach.

Hanna goes on to explain:

“There were just two underlying forces behind Saturn’s demise: GM’s insistence on managing all its divisions centrally with a tight fist, and the demand by leadership at both GM and the UAW that Saturn get in line with traditional ways of doing things.”

That highlights one of the biggest challenges in leadership. Leaders have to choose between control and innovation. You can’t have both. You can define the desired outcomes. You can create the boundaries, but you can’t expect your team to be creative, innovative or artistic if you try to control every element of the execution. If you must have full control, you just need to know that you are also choosing to shut down new ideas and innovations in your organization.

Unfortunately, the Church is notorious for religiously keeping things the way they’ve always been but hoping we’ll somehow achieve different results. Avoiding new approaches. Top-down, centralized leadership. Preserving the traditional ways of doing things. Sound familiar?

It’s a great reminder that our past successes can be one of the greatest contributing factors to our future demise. GM used to have a winning formula. It worked in previous generations. It doesn’t work now.

I used to drive a powder blue Chevy Impala just like the one pictured above. Thirty years ago that was a great ride. In essence, GM still wants to make cars like it was 1979 and expect to get the same results. By sticking with that approach, they’ve gone from 45% of the market share 30 years ago to under 20% today.

It’s easy to look at churches that might still be “driving the Chevy Impala” and easily draw conclusions for why they are in decline. Before you do that, though, I think it’s good to remember that GM was once a very successful company. When you experience success, it’s tough to let go. You want to control the formula because it works. You are reticent to try new approaches. The only problem is that eventually the world around us is going to change. When that happens…

You, too, will be driving the Chevy Impala.

“And” Instead of “Or”

2010-03-09T01:02:58Z

Why does it have to be attractional or missional? I’ve seen lives impacted by both approaches. Why can’t it be attractional and missional?

Why does it have to be evangelism or discipleship? Christ-followers need to be engaged in both. Why can’t it be evangelism and discipleship?

Why does it have to be teaching from the platform or teaching in the living room? I’ve been stretched by God’s Word in both settings. Why can’t it be teaching from the platform and the living room?

Why does it have to be worship with an amazing production or simple, stripped-down worship? I’ve experienced powerful worship in both environments. Why can’t we do both?

Why does it have to be corporate gatherings or one-on-one relationships? I need both to be encouraged and stretched in my faith and my leadership. Why can’t we embrace both ways of connecting with others.

One of the things that most frustrates me about church blogs is the “or” approach to writing. I don’t get it. Honestly, it’s probably one of the reasons why in most cases I’d prefer to read marketplace blogs. In marketplace writing, if someone thinks they have the “right way” of doing something, they just go do it. Then they write about how it worked or didn’t work. In church writing, if someone thinks they have the “right way” of doing something, they write about how the other church is wrong.

What if we took the “and” approach? What if we were open to the possibility that more people might be reached if we stopped doing either/or and started embracing both/and? What if God really designed some churches to be one way for one community or culture and other churches to be another way for another community or culture? My guess, as an example, is it’s going to take a completely different type of church to reach the inner-city than it’s going to take to reach the neighborhoods of Paulding County, Georgia.

We spend a lot of time and energy fighting for the “or.” Wonder what would happen if we just embraced the “and” needed to reach our communities?

The problem, of course, is that we like to worship our methods. Our preferences are the priority. In fact, we shape religion around our preferences even if it means sacrificing the broader impact of our ministry. Why help other people when it might make us uncomfortable?

I just wanted you to know I’m more of an “and”-type of guy. I know that frustrates you. It would be a lot easier to dislike me if I didn’t agree with you. The problem is that in many circumstances, I think you’re right. The only difference is that I don’t think you’re always right.

And neither am I.

The Loudest Voice

2010-03-06T16:41:11Z

In any given situation, someone is the loudest voice in the room. Sometimes the loudest voice is the also the wisest voice. Sometimes the loudest voice is the most experienced voice. Sometimes the loudest voice is the most spiritually mature voice. Sometimes the loudest voice is the angriest voice. And sometimes the loudest voice is just that–the loudest voice.

Isn’t it interesting how our outlook, our decisions and how we approach life are shaped by the loudest voice in the room? Of course, depending on the character and heart of the individual, sometimes the loudest voice has the potential to rally people to a greater good. In other situations, the loudest voice has the potential to generate the greatest harm. One unifies. The other creates division. Unfortunately, it’s sometimes difficult to distinguish the two, because they’re both vocal.

Here are some quick observations about the loudest voices in different relational dynamics:

When the loudest voice is a critic, it’s easy to begin making decisions that compromise God’s calling.
When the loudest voice is our kids, we sometimes sacrifice their future by giving them an inflated view of their place in this world.
When the loudest voice is someone other than our spouse but they’re the opposite sex, it will very likely lead to an affair.
When the loudest voice is someone older and more experienced than us, there’s often great wisdom but it may also come with a hesitancy to take new ground.
When the loudest voice is a friend, sometimes their desire to protect us prevents them from delivering the truth we need to hear.
When the loudest voice is our voice, we can easily find ourselves at a place where we are crippled by pride or fear.

Counsel from others is a good thing. We need to foster relationships where good counsel flows. However, good counsel is typically confirmed through multiple voices. More important, good counsel is never contrary to the voice of God.

That brings me to this final thought. The voice of God never contradicts Scripture. God never tells us to do something that is different than what he’s already expressed through his Word. Though I know God uses prayer, promptings, circumstances, other people, etc. to get our attention and to point us in a new direction, he never tells us to move down a path that’s different from the plan he’s communicated previously through the Bible. Unfortunately, we all probably know of examples where someone ended up making poor choices and facing the consequences because “God told them to do it.”

That, of course, begs the question: Is the voice of God the loudest voice in the room? We need mentors. We need elders. We need critics. We need the conversation. At the end of the day, though, we need God’s wisdom. If we pray for that and discipline our lives to regularly engage his Word, he will give us that.

Pause for a moment. Listen. Who is the loudest voice in the room?

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Announcing Our New Communications Dude

2010-03-03T22:10:19Z

A couple of months ago, I posted something on Twitter indicating we were looking for a communications director at West Ridge. We had several great candidates respond. I’m excited to announce that Phil Bowdle will be joining our team in a few weeks. Phil is coming from Montgomery, Alabama where he was on staff at Frazer United Methodist Church, one of the largest United Methodist churches in the country.

Phil will be serving in our creative arts area where he’ll be building teams to help with communications including writing, graphics, media and web. If you attend West Ridge and have real life experience in one of those areas, let us know. We have volunteer opportunities for well-trained folks who are ready to help us with our web and marketing strategies.

By the way, John and his team are helping us put the finishing touches on the new WestRidge.com. Get ready for fresh web goodness.

In the mean time, head on over to Twitter and say hello to Phil.

Interview with Seth Godin

2010-03-03T16:20:09Z

Last week I had the opportunity to connect with Seth Godin to talk leadership. Here’s a recording of our conversation. It’s less than 15 minutes, so I’d encourage you to pause and be stretched by Seth’s current thoughts on how we may need to approach leadership differently. We hit on topics like leading artists, authority, faith and religion. I think you’ll enjoyed the conversation.

Seth Godin Interview

If you’re curious to hear more, here’s my Amazon link to Seth’s newest book on this topic, Linchpin: Are You Indispensable?

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fyi… Seth isn’t paying me to endorse his book. I’m inspired by his writing, and thought you might be as well. His publicist sent me a free copy of the book, and I devoured it. I think you will too.

Most Popular Posts of February 2010

2010-03-02T13:36:50Z

In case you missed them, here are the posts that generated the most traffic last month in order of popularity:

This top ten list is brought to you with the help of Google Analytics. It’s the easy, free way to track stats for your website. (And, no, they don’t pay me to say that.)

tonymorganlive.com

What are the ideals that make Apple unique?

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