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micahc: Morgan Freeman: Why do we need a Black History Month, I...

Sun, 28 Jun 2009 13:51:07 -0400

Morgan Freeman: Why do we need a Black History Month, I am an American

Project Management Philosophy

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 17:17:47 -0400

I thoroughly enjoy seeing a project through from concept to reality. The odd thing is that I love the process as much as the product of the process. The process fascinates me.

Over the past few years of this sort of work in the web world, I’ve gone through a dozen different methodologies. I completely adopted some and some were just impetuses for my own system. Among the best was (and is) SCRUM.

SCRUM is a style of project management that was created for software development and focuses on planned, incremental, manageable version releases. (With the right person, this method can be adapted for many types of projects, not just software.)

I’ve adapted the traditional SCRUM methodology to fit my own personality and natural work flow, but retained its overarching principles; roles, meeting philosophy, and the priority of adaptation to variables. I’ve abandoned the terminology and specific meeting parameters, though.

I might go into my system in a little more detail in the future, but I just wanted to clue you in on the inspiration for my methods. Do you have a method of preference?

I’ve been a loyal user of Google Voice since it was called...

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 14:21:00 -0400

I’ve been a loyal user of Google Voice since it was called GrandCentral back in the day. They just opened up the service to more folks on an invite only basis. You can sign up here. Watch the Google Voice explanation video here. Or give me a call on my Google Voice number in the sidebar.

As you may know, I’m a worship pastor at RiverTown Church....

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 12:04:24 -0400

As you may know, I’m a worship pastor at RiverTown Church. I enjoy every Sunday I get to spend with those folks, approaching God with honesty and passion. One of the songs that’s really been grabbing the hearts of my people is Bless the Lord by Jon Owens.

Listen to the song and then hop over to iTunes and buy his whole live worship album called Arize Live. You will not regret it.

Trying New Things

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 00:31:47 -0400

Erica and I spent a fun evening with the Driscolls tonight; watching Wipeout and discussing random stuff. One of the random topics that came up was wine. Lori and Tim (the Driscolls) have recently begun studying and discovering wine as a hobby. They went to Napa valley and got hooked.

We got tangled up in conversation because Erica and I have a couple bottles of wine that we’ve never touched in our four years of marriage. They just sit in our wine rack, gathering dust and trying their best to look cool. (Sorry @garyvee.)

So, after a little while of listening to Tim and Lori’s fascination with wine, we decided we might want to check it out a little closer. We’re hoping to take our two bottles of wine over to the Driscoll’s home soon and join them in a little tasting. Hopefully, Tim and Lori will teach us something and help us appreciate wine more fully.

FriendFeed Widget

Tue, 23 Jun 2009 23:40:50 -0400

I just added a FriendFeed widget to my sidebar. I tend to dislike most widgets due to their downright ugliness and this one’s no different in the visual realm. It’s pretty ugly, too.

However, I decided to add this widget because it’s the only one that actually adds value to my blog. It highlights real conversations that I’m a part of as well as the small snippets I’m thinking about.

Along with a couple other guys, I’ve been trying to move social media activity to FriendFeed for one simple reason; it hosts conversations better than any other platform on the web. So, skip on over to FriendFeed, sign up for an account (if you don’t have one), and join the conversation.

Tumblr's Unique Commenting System

Tue, 23 Jun 2009 13:41:39 -0400

As you know, Tumblr is my favorite blogging platform, even though it’s technically a “tumblog” platform. They’ve been adding features like crazy over the past 6 months; mobile posting, theme engine support, “liking”, etc.

They recently included a simple commenting system to appease the hordes of users that were requesting it. I guess people got tired of using Disqus for comments. My initial review is that it’s wonderful. Exactly what a comment system should be.

First, it limits commenters to 126 characters and only asks for name and email. Also, if the commenter is not a Tumblr user, it sends an email confirmation to the commenter before the comment is approved. There is no other way to filter comments, so some bloggers won’t like it, but I love it.

It calls comments, “notes,” which makes more sense to me. They’re displayed on the post page and in the bloggers dashboard in order that they were posted. It feels as if even the comments are a piece of the tumblog style system that Tumblr reinvented.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on it. Care to share a note?

The Problem With iPhone OS 3.0

Tue, 23 Jun 2009 10:44:20 -0400

I updated my iPhone to 3.0 a couple days ago. Upon doing so, I noticed an immediate speed drop. Launching applications takes a moment longer. Sending an SMS takes longer. And don’t get me started about inserting an image in an email.

I don’t know why it’s so much slower, but I think the fact that the iPhone 3Gs had to have a faster processor to keep it running smooth might be an indicator that 3.0 is slow. The problem isn’t so much that it’s heavier. The problem is that Apple didn’t indicate to iPhone 3G owners that they would experience a slower OS.

I know, why would Apple tell us that? Because they want to maintain loyal customers. The least they could have done is rename it something more appropriate as a hint. Maybe, Slug OS? Or possibly, Sloth OS?

Every geek needs a wife like this. (from Tony Steward and...

Mon, 22 Jun 2009 16:56:00 -0400

Every geek needs a wife like this. (from Tony Steward and @messycanvas)

Posterous vs. Tumblr

Sun, 21 Jun 2009 23:52:00 -0400

I’ve been hearing a lot about Posterous as the possible missing link between blogging and Twitter. Posterous’ biggest asset is that it works smoothly from email. The post I’m writing right now is from Gmail, which means I’m sending a post to Tumblr via email. I don’t know what the big deal is about email.

I’m looking into whether Tumblr can handle all types of posts from email (quotes, video, images, chats, etc) as well as Posterous can handle multiple types of posts. We’ll see. Until then, Tumblr still wins as best blogging/quick-posting platform for me.

BabelWith.me: Free Group Chat in 45 Languages

Sun, 21 Jun 2009 17:19:00 -0400

LifeChurch.tv released BabelWith.me late on Friday afternoon. BabelWith.me is a group chat tool that translates messages in 45 languages in real-time.

I was privileged to be a part of the team that developed this tool as the project manager, although I’ve only been involved for the last couple weeks. LifeChurch.tv is an international church with partners and networks all over the world. They even have an Internet church service that attracts attenders from over 140 countries each week. Naturally, they continuously encounter language barriers.

The technology behind BabelWith.me has been around for a while as a part of the Church Online experience. LifeChurch.tv decided that it was a technology that many others would find useful, so they created BabelWith.me as an open platform for multi-language communication.

To read more about it and to start your own multi-language conversation, go to http://BabelWith.me. We’ll be rolling out new features and improving speed and accuracy of the translation in the coming days. Stay tuned!

FriendFeed

Fri, 19 Jun 2009 19:23:10 -0400

I’m giving FriendFeed the old college try. I’m going to try to move most of my convos to FF. It has great conversation features, but the adoption rates are slow, which means it’s tough to have conversations since there are fewer people there.

http://friendfeed.com/readscott

Social Metrics for Churches: What is Success?

Tue, 16 Jun 2009 14:39:00 -0400

As churches approach social media with intentionality, enhancing real-world community with online tools, how are they measuring success?

Success is measured in a bunch of ways in churches. Sometimes it involves numbers (quantitative). Sometimes it involves stories of life-change (qualitative). When it comes to social media and churches, is there a way measure with both quantitative and qualitative data?

For example, if part of your web strategy is to use Twitter for communication, what does success on Twitter look like? What if its purpose is conversation? What is success for your church’s Facebook page, your pastor’s blog, or the youth pastor’s MySpace account?

Do you measure with hits, time on site, number of comments, number of content-shares, number of unique people involved in conversation?

What about stories? Can you extract meaning from those numbers? Are people in your church talking about how your social media strategy is helping them learn more about the Bible, grow closer to Jesus, or love people?

Good Advice for Launching Projects

Wed, 10 Jun 2009 11:59:00 -0400

Michael Hyatt is seated firmly in the genius category of my mind. He’s the CEO of Thomas Nelson, a prolific and successful blogger, and a surprisingly adept social media guru.

He wrote When Social Media Marketers Stumble, a blog post about how StumbleUpon messed up the launch of their new Twitter integration feature-set. Within the post, Hyatt covers five rules for launching a new web project.

Don’t launch a new project until it is ready.
Make sure you have checked every path a prospective customer might take.
Check and double-check links to make sure you know where they lead.
Don’t go big on the promotion until you know for sure you have everything working.
If you screw up, fix it and then admit it—fast!

These rules apply to every single project you launch, web or otherwise. Just replace words like “links” with “directions” or “instructions.”

If you’re launching a new initiative for your church to utilize Facebook more effectively, these rules will guide you. If you’re launching a new ministry, these rules will guide you. If you’re launching a new campus, these rules will guide you.

Make sure you skip over to Michael’s post to read the full spread and be sure to join the discussion by leaving a comment on his blog.

[Image via Azchael]

Taking "Live" to the Next Level

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 19:02:00 -0400

I’ve been mulling over a huge idea for a couple months. The idea started when I followed my first live event via hashtags on Twitter. Then I heard about Paratweet at Catalyst West. Then I had a series of experiences and conversations about connecting people to each other within multi-campus churches.

Now I’m convinced it needs to happen. We need to begin melding live, real-world events with live, online conversations. Picture this, a worshipper attends a 10am service in Miami while another worshipper attends a 9am service in Dallas at a remote campus of the same church. Currently, there’s no way for them to connect and share as ‘one church’ in their simultaneous, but geographically remote worship settings.

What if we had a way to connect them together within a mobile environment crafted specifically for anyone participating in any of those simultaneous gatherings? All they would need is a cell phone with Internet access, which is beginning to approach ubiquity. The church could provide the ability to discuss the message, access more content like relevant links and commentaries, buy any or all songs from the worship set, find a Small Group to join, give their tithe, find a ministry to serve in, and tons of other stuff; all together in a mobile social environment meant specifically for the people in that church.

My mind is racing with the possibilities…

[Image via TheShumas]

My Addition to #OnePrayer: God is Real

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 18:30:36 -0400

OnePrayer is a global cooperation of churches that are working together to focus on one thing for four weeks. Last year, 1700+ churches participated and they’re expecting more this year.

Some of the best communicators from around the world are contributing messages on the topic of, “God is…” I’m not a verbal communicator. I’m a written communicator. This is my one prayer.

God is real.

I’ve been dwelling on this thought for a couple weeks. I struggle with belief sometimes. Not faith; belief. There are times when it’s hard to believe that God is real. My mind can’t grasp it. Where is the proof?

Things that are real have proof. I’m sitting on a couch that’s real. I’m typing on a computer that’s real. I’m even thinking about a thought that’s real. But, believing the God is real doesn’t come easy.

I have zero interaction with God in any physical experience. I sense him, but I don’t feel him. I know his heart, but I don’t hear his voice. He comforts me, but I don’t feel warmth. He guides me, but there’s no hand on my back.

But, God is real. Revelation 1:8 says, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”

As the beginning and the end, he is the creator of reality. Before him, there was no reality in our limited sense of the word. Our reality exists only in our sensation of things and thoughts. His reality exists both within and without our sensation. He is inside and outside our reality. He is before it and after it.

So, more than anything in our limited reality, God is real.

How I Use Email Subscriptions to Bolster Productivity

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 10:00:00 -0400

I just reconfigured the email subscription option for this blog. If you’re already subscribed via email, you don’t need to change a thing. It will automatically fix itself for you. If you haven’t subscribed via email, give it a try.

Why Subscribe via Email?

I use two tools to subscribe to interesting blogs and other RSS feeds. The first is Google Reader. Since half of my online life happens in Google properties, it makes sense to also use Google Reader.

In Google Reader, I subscribe to the fringe blogs and peripheral RSS feeds that interest me, but I’m not obsessed with. For example, I have a handful of web analysts that I keep in Google Reader. I follow them from a distance to keep up with their progress.

Second, I use email subscriptions to feed the most important RSS feeds to me. These are feeds from people I know personally, colleagues who write on relevant subjects that directly affect me, and really smart people who’ve earned my close followship.

After some time using Google Reader, I realized that there are a handful of feeds that I look for several times a day to see if they’ve posted recently. I found myself wasting stupid amounts of time in checking just for those few feeds.

For me, subscribing to those feeds via email freed me up to not check Google Reader as often. I know that the most important blog posts will be fed right to my phone. Talk about a time-saver!

Do you subscribe to any blogs via email? If so, which ones make the cut?

[Image via Somewhat Frank]

Why I Don't Do Project Proposals

Fri, 05 Jun 2009 21:58:36 -0400

@tonymorganlive tweeted a link to this blog post from 37Signals today. It’s a quick opinion-post about how a landscaper won the author’s business because he didn’t offer a lengthy proposal with estimates, a complicated time-line, and multiple options for completion.

This is exactly why I don’t do project proposals for either Updatable or my personal consulting. It muddles things up. It sends the message that you’re so unfamiliar with the task at-hand that you need time to figure out what it will take to accomplish the goal.

For example, here’s an email I wrote to a client that asked for a proposal concerning a church website design, development, and launch oversight.

Paul,

First, awesome question. VERY few clients ask about overseeing the actual launch and early success of their site.

Second, that’s actually our sweet-spot. There are many church website companies. They all do similar things, have similar design, and offer similar prices and features. The thing that sets us apart is the follow-through.

Of course, we handle all the technical integration, just like anyone else. The design is custom. Our CMS is powerful and feature-packed. Our prices are reasonable. But, our sweet-spot is in the creation and implementation of a unique web strategy that fits the personality and goals of our client-church.

As for pricing, we charge $1495 for the website design, development, and deployment. During that process, we’ll work with you (or your whole lead team) to workout a launch process that works, a strategy that fits, and relevant, attainable, and measurable goals for your entire web presence (not ONLY the website).

What do you think?

It was meant to be casual, conversational, and complete. Thoughts?

[Image via TheAlieness GiselaGiardino]

How to Write a Simple Web Strategy

Fri, 05 Jun 2009 13:00:07 -0400

When working with churches, the biggest obstacle to having a web strategy is clarifying a web strategy. The problem is that the process of clarification is painful. It requires saying “no” more often than “yes.” (Your dream for having a flash-based web portal with a 2-minute intro like this one should be put to sleep.)

So, to make the clarification step easy, let’s make the web strategy part simple. Here’s how I break it down for clients:

Website - Is it structured properly? Does the design match your church’s personality? Do you have the ability to maintain it yourself without technical knowledge?
Content - Do you write for members or visitors? Who writes? Do you only produce written copy or also other types like video or images?
Community - Where will you enhance your real world community online? Facebook? MySpace? Twitter? There isn’t a wrong answer, except to choose none.
Marketing - What tools will you use? What messages will you send? How often will you send those messages? Will you focus on active or passive approaches?
SEO - What keywords and phrases will you target? Do you have a goal for your SEO? A specific pagerank? A specific amount of search traffic?
Analytics - What tool(s) will you use? What metrics will you focus on? Hits? Time on site? Visitor goals ala Google Analytics? How will you change your web strategy in light of what information your analytics gives you?

Sit down and take a few minutes to answer each of these questions and you’ll be on your way to a nice, tidy web strategy for your church.

In honor of the 20th anniversary of Tiananmen Square on April...

Thu, 04 Jun 2009 15:22:10 -0400

In honor of the 20th anniversary of Tiananmen Square on April 15, 1989.

(via Google Video)