November 6th, 2009 by
PhillipGibb
Who remembers the movie Jerry Maguire? Jerry, a Sports Agent, has an encounter with his conscience which results in a life altering mission statement. He arrives at the conclusion that more personal attention is required - that it is more about the people they represent than the money that that can get from them. On the web it may be a bit more difficult to maintain a personal touch because you can’t always look each other in the eye and watch for non verbal cues. Yet, more than ever before, the Web is far more ‘humanized’ - we are able to express ourselves better and engage better and it is only going to improve.
Continue reading Trust Agents 6a: Human Artist
November 4th, 2009 by
Graham Brenna
“First, you must build awareness of who you are, … Next, you try to grab their attention… [by being] entertaining, informative, and/or useful. Then you develop that awareness across several groups until you are considered an authority in as many of these groups as possible.”
In order to be an affective ‘Agent Zero’ we must follow 5 simple, yet very important steps. Many Agent Zeros will naturally do these steps without realizing it. That’s what makes them so good at what they do. As you read through my explanations of these steps think about your own position within your church and make a list of how you apply each step to your specific area of ministry.
Continue reading Trust Agents 5b: Agent Zero
November 3rd, 2009 by
Paul Steinbrueck
Attitude is everything. An attitude of gratitude changes everything.
It’s so easy to complain about what we don’t have, to get frustrated when our expectations are not met, and just see the glass as half empty. But when we take stock of how blessed we are, the disappointments and frustrations really pale in comparison and we can truly live each day with a joyful heart.
My friend Deana Kistner (aka Organized Artist) started the #Gratituesday Twitter hashtag a few weeks ago after deciding she was going to designate Tuesday each week to blog about something she’s thankful for. With November being Give Thanks Month at OurChurch.Com we’re going to follow her lead. Each Tuesday we’re going to post about something we’re thankful for and invite you to join the conversation. Future Gratituesday posts will be less techy, but today here are…
9 Websites I’m Thankful For
Continue reading Thank God for These Websites #Gratituesday
November 2nd, 2009 by
GregAtkinson
“No matter where they go, trust agents have a desire to connect good people together. We refer to this as being Agent Zero; being in the center of a network and being able to spread ideas.”
As one who is known as a networker and what Brogan and Smith call “Agent Zero”, this chapter was kind of freaky to read. It was almost as if they had been reading my mail. This description of what I do naturally was kind of weird to read about until I read where they said that “trust agents are naturals at finding other connector types in other groups. They are able to recognize individuals who like building networks of value and know how to reach out. ”
Continue reading Trust Agents 5a: Agent Zero
October 30th, 2009 by
Jan Cox
And I don’t just mean a really cool TV series starring Timothy Hutton.
Leverage is where Chris Brogan and Julien Smith take us throughout the second half of chapter four. Leveraging while building trust with your community, leveraging social media, tools we use in order to leverage better, etc. But it was one sentence toward the middle of chapter four that’s been swirling around in my brain for the last few days…
“Don’t ever sell to your audience. Instead, be their gatekeeper.”
Wow. I think we should all take a moment of silence to let this sink in.
Continue reading Trust Agents 4b: Leverage
October 29th, 2009 by
Paul Steinbrueck
As Halloween approaches I’ve noticed a proliferation of churches doing “harvest festivals” and “trunk or treats.” Lutherans are even getting into the act with “Reformation Parties.” (Up for a game of pin the 95 Theses on the church door? Yeah, baby!) These are all supposedly well-intentioned attempts to give people a godly alternative to the pagan holiday of Halloween, though some would argue it’s just a way to celebrate Halloween without calling it Halloween.
Of course you’re probably aware that Christmas is not Jesus’ actual birthday either. It was originally a pagan festival to celebrate the winter solstice. Since the church couldn’t get pagans who converted to Christianity to give up the celebration, they co-opted it and made it a Christian holiday.
With all the success Christians have had at taking over those two holidays for the Lord (yes, that’s sarcasm), I started dreaming… what other pagan holidays could Christian co-opt and came up with…
The Top 5 Pagan Holidays Ripe for a Christian Takeover
Continue reading After Halloween, The Top 5 Pagan Holidays Ripe for a Christian Takeover
October 28th, 2009 by
evdaddy
“Online communities are valuable. They can be reached more quickly and leveraged more effectively, and the right kind of trust agent can work with those communities to effect actionable change.”
As people who follow Jesus, this principle that Brogan and Smith identify is important for us. To bring about the kingdom of God “on earth as it is in heaven” takes servant-leaders (trust agents) who can help initiate “actionable change” in our world, and the good news is that social media provides a new and wonderful avenue for doing that.
The authors teach us about leverage - “using the advantage you have in one place to help you in another,” and arbitrage - “using something that is less valuable to one person and benefiting from its greater value to someone else.”
Continue reading Trust Agents 4a: The Archimedes Effect
October 27th, 2009 by
Paul Steinbrueck
Clint Runge is the kind of guy who likes 7-11 Mountain Dew Slurpees and Velcro shoes. His saving grace is that he does great creative. As cofounder and creative director of Archrival, a distinguished youth brand strategy and design firm, Runge kicks the tires and lights the fires for clients such as Red Bull, Facebook, SPAM, Colt 45, A&E Network, Walgreens and a host of entertainment brands. He’s won as many awards as he’s had all-nighters with numerous national gold Addy’s, Art Directors Club, Young Guns, AIGA awards and One Show appearances including multiple One Show Pencils. His work has also been featured in publications like Communication Arts, HOW, Print, Graphis, STEP and the One Show Book. Most frightening of all, Runge teaches at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in the advertising college.
Continue reading #Cultivate 2: Clint Runge
October 27th, 2009 by
Paul SteinbrueckDoes social media empower or impair our call to act as the body of Christ? Let’s examine together how we might learn from Christ’s work of applying everyday scenarios as life lessons—in common language, wrapping His message in simple, yet soul-gripping stories.
Ryan Wynia - I lead social brand innovation at a new brand consultancy called Firebone in Chicago. We believe brands begin and end with people.
Joe Dascenzo - Wooer. Futurist. Ideator. Communicator. Activator. A 14-year veteran of the creative industry, my work includes strategic ideation, brand storytelling, and group facilitation and mediation.
Continue reading #Cultivate09 Custom B: What would Jesus Tweet?
October 27th, 2009 by
Paul SteinbrueckOnline discipleship, building community and outreach are often talked about, but what is working? Come hear case studies, best practices and participate in a conversation about how the web can be used to fulfill our mission.
Drew Goodmanson - CEO of Monk Development + Elder at Kaleo Church
Gabe Taviano - Christian web designer at Taviano.com + blogger at GabeTaviano.com + podcaster at GodsMac.com + disciple at DigitalDisciples.net + husband to @marlataviano
Continue reading #Cultivate09 Custom A: Developing a Web Strategy
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