Action Method is a brilliant suite of products to help you get organized on whatever projects you’re working on. Developed by the people at Behance, a platform for creative professionals, this digital organizer has the visual learners in mind. For those who would rather organize themselves on paper, they also offer a suite of products to be shipped to you. I’m a huge fan of this product and would recommend it to anyone.
Why Flat Organizations Don’t Create Great Leaders
For some time now, the predominant workplace trend has been to go flat and democratic – everyone working together in a large open space with direct access to supervisors and even the company president. Merit is based on your skills, creative output, and ability to work with the team. Leadership is about having confidence and speaking up.
I recently started following Jonathan’s blogs and tweets – and I must say – I love his insight! His focus is the creative process and its application to our work – especially in the ministry world. You may also know him from the popular church website, Church Stage Design Ideas.
So… Things aren’t working the way you want them to, or rather, you’re simply looking to improve upon what already works or exists. Awesome! Sometimes we need to push ourselves outside our comfort zone in order to grow!
But here’s where it gets complicated.
From my time in both the corporate and church worlds, I’ve observed two common reactions to change: an immediate panic if new goals aren’t met fast enough OR a super lax attitude that figures something else can be tried in the future.
Before I continue, know that there are occasions when these reactions are completely appropriate. Perhaps your new project is causing you to hemorrhage money when it should be producing quick results. Or, perhaps this project costs you nothing and is simply a reallocation of resources. Fair enough.
But there are many occasions where small businesses, non-profits, and ministries simply don’t know how to react. This, my friends, is where measuring comes in.
Before implementing any changes to your organization, consider the following things:
1. Set realistic goals for your new project or structural change.
Know where you’re trying to go, and if possible, assign a number to it. This gives you a measureable result to track from start to finish of your project, and ultimately, will allow you to see how successful it was!
2. Monitor your numbers.
Keep track of how you’re doing! Do you see changes occurring more at one time than other? Why is that? And what does that mean for your organization? Don’t be afraid to make adjustments if you’re already noticing changes that you do or do not like. You can then use that as a new starting point to track results.
3. A “fail” now could mean a “win” in the future.
If you don’t get the results you wanted, study the numbers and compare them with your own observations. What worked and what didn’t? Create a new plan that starts from that point and change a variable. Keep testing until you find what works! By studying your previous numbers, you have a much greater chance of bettering your results going forward.
This young woman was born in South Africa and lost her parents when she was very young. Her grandmother took her in and raised her as best she could while living in a shack.
Her story blew me away when I first heard it back in the summer of 2010. I was an intern with These Numbers Have Faces in Portland, OR, and had just received my Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from the University of Portland. The office I worked in was kind of dark; we were located a few floors up in an old storage building in SE Portland. The owners converted some of the storage spaces into offices for non-profit organizations needing space. The unit was long and narrow, and the only natural light source came from a window behind Justin, the executive director, who sat at the far end of the room.
Justin is a pretty happy guy in his late twenties who owns two chickens with his wife Tricia. He jumped into action after seeing the need for educational opportunities in South Africa. In fact, even using the word “need” feels like an understatement because dreams were dying in the hearts of South African students. Dreams that required getting out of poverty and receiving an education so that actions of change could take place.
Zintathu’s dream? Check it out:
Zintathu is now a 3rd year marketing student in college. These Numbers Have Faces has provided her an opportunity to exercise her dream by getting an education, receiving financial literacy training, and being mentored by amazing leaders in her community. To get to this point, however, she worked hard – and continues to do so. Her education is important and she will stop at nothing to keep growing.
She refuses to simply sit back – she is working hard to fulfill her dream.
Her opportunity has come because of one man fulfilling his own dream. Every day Justin receives stories about students like Zintathu – students who have dreams and will do anything to see them through. Who knew that dreams from halfway around the world could be fulfilled because one man, sitting in a quiet, humble office with a window in the back, chose to follow through on a dream of his own?
Your dream could bless others without you even knowing it. The question is… Will you take the next step?
With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope.
In honor of Dr. King’s memory: We dream that young people who have dreams, but lack the means to carry them out, will be able to walk forward with the confidence that they are not only dreamers, but that they are leaders who can and will make a difference in their communities.
Note: Today is a Monday, and yes, that typically means a video blog. Due to a special post scheduled for Wednesday, however, I decided to move Wednesday’s post to today. That said, we’re still going to keep the video theme alive and strong.
When social media really started to take off in the early 2000′s, video still wasn’t that accessible for most people. As cameras became cheaper and smaller, and more and more laptops had built in webcams, we began to see a need develop for video sharing websites. Today we have a lot of choices – but which one is best for your video?
YouTube is now the 3rd most visited site on the web. In 2006, Google bought YouTube for $1.65 billion. With this purchase came the opportunity to increase research and development dollars for the website so that it would continue its dominance in the market. Today we see video results from the website popping into our Google searches, comments coming from Facebook and Twitter users, and more and more companies flocking to have their ads seen.
But is it right for your video?
From my standpoint, your video belongs on YouTube if:
You want it to be shared on Facebook and Twitter.
These days both social media giants can interpret the YouTube URL to provide custom embedding / link-shortening so that your followers can more easily share your content.
You upload videos frequently.
If the quality of your video isn’t necessarily 720/1080p HD, and you upload frequently, YouTube provides awesome opportunities for you to host your steady stream of content. With the ability to easily monetize your videos, it’s ideal for the semi-popular vlogger or independent movie maker.
You want decent embedding options on your website.
The embedding features are good, although it isn’t the sleekest design. If you’re not embedding onto a third party website, however, it may not matter.
You want people to easily find it.
As I mentioned earlier, with the integration of YouTube into Google’s search engine, your video stands a better shot of being seen if you take advantage of the keyword options it gives you. Think outside of the box too! The more extensive your list of keywords – the more likely you’ll get your video some playtime!
We used YouTube for a testimony video from our church’s youth ministry because the quality was strong – as is her amazing story – and we wanted it to be more easily shared on the Internet due to YouTube’s search engine advantages.
Vimeo launched in 2004 and offers a basic free package for users, but even more features if you’re willing to throw down $60 a year. It’s worth it. With a simple, clean layout that also can be seen in the simplicity of the video player, you’re in for a “win” if you need something a bit more straightforward and to the point than all the social features of YouTube.
Your video belongs on Vimeo if:
You want high quality embedding features.
It doesn’t get much more simple than Vimeo. The player embeds seamlessly into any website, and you can customize link colors and even the items that display on the player (depending on if you purchase the “plus” package).
Your videos are of a higher quality.
Videos just look nicer on Vimeo. While YouTube offers HD playback as well, Vimeo gives you the option of standard play or HD. It gets straight to the point.
You want people to be able to download your videos.
Unlike YouTube, you can choose to make your videos available for download. So if you ever upload that family video and then your computer crashes, you’re good. Or, if you just want to be creepy and download someone else’s family video, you’re good too… But you’re weird.
We place sermons from my church’s youth ministry on Vimeo because of the large file size and nicer looking embed options.
Facebook got into video back in 2007. It’s been slow going, but the player has gotten much better over the years. That said, it’s very different in scope from YouTube and Vimeo.
Your video belongs on Facebook if:
You run a Fan Page.
If you’re sharing videos on YouTube to communicate with your followers, chances are you have a Fan Page. If you don’t, it doesn’t really matter which video service you use.
Your video doesn’t have replay value.
Let’s say you have a quick video update for your fans. Facebook video is perfect. You’re not going to clutter up your YouTube or Vimeo channels with content that will eventually be outdated and irrelevant. If it’s something worth watching again, you’d want it to be more easily found through one of the other two major services.
This is a one time video for the students of our church’s youth ministry that we put on our fan page.
Your Turn
These are just one man’s thoughts. How do YOU use each video service?
Hey everyone! Long time no post… Sorry about that. I should be back to my regular schedule next week.
Social Media & the US Presidential Election
Interesting video I found on the web regarding social media’s involvement in this year’s USA Presidential Election.
Stickygram – Update
I’ve attached a photo here of my magnets that came in the mail yesterday! If you don’t know what Stickygrams are, look at last week’s Grab Bag Friday. In short, this company takes your Instagram photos and creates magnets out of them!
The magnets are a little smaller than I was expecting – about 1.25″ squared. Still, the printing was of high quality, and most importantly, they stick to my fridge. Definitely would recommend this service to you!
