Mike Walker

BIG NEWS!!!!

I am excited to announce the new website for Mike Walker Creative! 

Thank you to the team at Church Media Group for an amazing job! Yuri Star, Travis Gates, and their team did exceptional work! Thanks guys!

Stop by and check it out. The new site will also be the new host for the blog. The new location will be www.mikewalkercreative.com/blog. The past year has been an incredible journey and I look forward to the ride over the next few months. 

See ya there!

Lessons learned from baseball

Every morning I head to Starbucks to grab a Venti Americano and catch up on my ESPN radio.

This morning the announcement came out that Major League Baseball is going to try out instant replay in their fall league. 

A lot of baseball purists are openly speaking out against it as technology shouldn't be a part of the game and it will slow it down (I guess they haven't figure out that it's baseball and there isn't much you can do to make it slower).

The radio host made a brilliant point. He said "do the purists not realize that a good number of people sitting in the stands at the game are working or playing on their PALM or BlackBerry device? They are likely listening to the game on SIRRIUS Satellite radio. They probably purchased their ticket online. And, they probably got to the stadium by using a GPS system. If the people you are trying to reach and connect with are in the 18-28 year old range then they are using technology."

What about in the churches, are you using technology to it's fullest? What audience are you trying to connect with? Are they a group that is tech savvy? If they are then take a leap and meet them where they are and figure out how to incorporate more technology (effective technology) and reach them.

It's ok to try a few things. Going back to some sports examples, the NBA tried enforcing a dress code which many thought would fail and it turned out to be a great thing. At the same time, they also tried introducing a new ball and it didn't last. Point being, try a few things and see where it takes you.

Buy in

I am currently working on a couple of larger production projects as well as working on buying a company. All of these things require large amounts of capital to execute.

I have a good friend of mine who is a venture capitalist that I went to for some advice while putting all my documentation together. The first thing he told me was "before anyone gives you a dime or buys in to your idea...they have to buy in to you. If you have a track record that will make it easier, but if you don't then you have to sell yourself...then, and only then, will they listen to your idea".

I have heard that said in a similar manner before, but it was a good reminder.

It got me to thinking later about employees. Sadly most organizations see them merely as that...employees there to serve "me" (the leader) to carry out "my" vision.

What if as leaders we viewed our employees as investors? What if we got them to buy in to the vision for the organization to help build it and grow it. What if the organization grew beyond the leader and we were able to grow something larger than ourselves? I think most would say they want that, but not many go out and DO that.

A side note on buy in...it's not fear. Having your employees fear you does not mean they buy in.

Some time ago I was an observer in a meeting. There was a new leader put in place to run a department. I just about fell over when he made statements to the effect (I will paraphrase) "it's now my department so it's my way. I have taken some larger leaders out and I won't hesitate to do the same to any of you if you don't buy in to my vision".

While yes it sounds absurd and cartoonish, but it happened. Consequently, the team, instead of getting on board and helping dig in to grow the vision they now, even to this day, do just enough. They do their jobs and nothing more. There is no buy in.

I have also sat in meetings where a new leader is brought in and clearly laid out the vision, told the team "this is your department. We will grow and develop as to the level you all buy in and contribute. If you are ok with being average then we will be average. If you want to be great then we will do it together."

I spoke with the leader of the organization just the other day and they are still growing leaps and bounds and morale is at an all time high. Everyone is working hard, but they are digging in and doing it together because they bought in to the leader then the vision.

Get the buy in and there's no telling where you can go...as a leader, as a team, and as an organization.

Wikinomics

I have been reading a book called Wikinomics. The book talks about a whole lot more than what I am going to write about. Below are some thoughts I have been jotting down as I am reading so I thought I would share.

"Net Generation" Leader - my thoughts on Wikinomics and how it relates to culture and leadership

Born 1977-1996
First Generation to grow up in a digital society – we are probably about 5 years from seeing the emergence of the leaders of this generation.

They grew up more in a digital culture than boomers or genexers did.

We grew up socializing in malls, burger joints, etc….this generation is connecting on the web.

Yesterdays web was a noun – todays web is a verb

University of Berkeley-based social scientist Danah Boyd research online social behaviours. She states that sites like Myspace and Facebook allow young people to reclaim private space. It’s like inviting someone in to your bedroom except that with Myspace you can invite them in 1000 at a time. They lack control at home and they don’t see home as private space.

Online offers safer solutions for teens. Malls and 7-11’s wont allow them in unless they are accompanied by parents.

Academic studies show a massive decline in interest and enthusiasm related to school work. Everything else is so much more engaging. We are still learning through reading and regurgitating.

A younger generation doesn’t trust advertising or media as much as they do peer-to-peer opinions and social networks.

Net Geners workplace needs – speed, freedom, openness, innovation, mobility, authenticity, and playfulness

They are on a quest for “newness”

It’s a new day…Leadership models are changing, marketing changes, delivery methods are changing…..we keep trying to “keep up with the cultural changes, but what we are really addressing are cultural symptoms. We end up a day late and a dollar short. We HAVE to innovate not only our delivery methods, but also our developmental methods. We are missing it right now as a church culture. We all have websites. Many of us have Myspace or Facebook pages, but we are failing in our attempts to be “relevant” to our culture because we have failed to understand the changes that have taken place. We are trying to lead and grow from an old model that has already begun failing us.

If the N-Generation doesn’t trust advertising or media then they probably don’t trust leadership…and they probably don’t trust the church.

It’s been interesting to watch the Grassley investigation unfold. There are those in the Christian Community who want to know why more Christians aren’t outraged and screaming out against it. Maybe, just maybe there is lack of trust in todays church. Maybe, deep down people aren’t crying out against the investigation because, while they want the allegations to be untrue, maybe they think they COULD be true.

As a side note, I have worked with Joyce Meyer on a couple of occasions and I will be shocked if anything comes out negative on her. My experience with her organization has been that they try to make sure everything is above the bar in all areas of their ministry. She really just wants to reach people. The others that were on the list and made public I do not have experience with so I will refrain from commenting on them.

We can become upset over this fact OR we can understand that this is where this generation is. This is how they think and feel. What we need to do is figure out how to connect with them. Take away all the smoke and mirrors and give them something authentic to look at. We all talk about being an authentic church, and while WE talk about it…what are the people outside our staff really saying? Do they see us as authentic or do they wonder if it’s all real?

Here is the thing about your brand….it’s not what you say it is….it’s what THEY say it is. What do the people walking in the door have to say about you? What do the people NOT walking in the door say about you?

Again, we are missing it. Once things go well we think we have it figured out. The toughest thing for any team to navigate is success. Success makes you forgive things that would otherwise be sins.

What we end up doing is that we think we have stumbled on to a magic formula and that anything we say or do will be successful. We quit paying attention to the thing that got us there in the first place. For many of us, we have forgotten about our customer. Yes, that’s right the customer. Every time someone comes in the church, tithes, engages with you online, etc… they are saying yes to you and no to someone/something else. We have forgotten our passion and why we got involved in the church in the first place.

What does all this mean in the grand scheme of things? I think I have more questions than answers, which is to say I don't know that I know right now, but it certainly provides some great things to think about....

What's Next???

A good friend of mine once told me that a great leader knows 3 things:
1 - What's Next
2 - Why it's important
3 - What does it take to get there

I see and talk with so many organizations that forget to look at these questions. What I see happen most often is that they start out with some good ideas to grow and gain momentum....then...they arrive.

After months and sometimes years of sweat and hard work the picture looks like what they thought it would. Great news, right? Here's the problem....what's next?

The people that have bought in to the vision are now looking for you to keep it going. In the old testamant the Isrealites provide us a good picture of what happens when you don't keep pressing forward and keeping a moving picture in front of people. Once they started getting in a mode of "arriving" they started complaining. Their point of "arrival" came when they just got out of Egypt. God had more them, but they failed to look and see "what's next". Because they failed to maintain their eyes on the promised land, many of them missed out and ended up in the wilderness for 40 years.

If things in your life or your organization are getting stale start asking and answering the question...what's next? From there figure out why it's important and then work out how you get there...just don't ever stop asking what's next.

It's not about you

Flying is my favorite time to shut down and read. I can completely check out from the world and focus on the material in front of me.

I was recently on a flight and read a great statement regarding branding. "Your brand is not what YOU say it is..It's what THEY say it is". In branding you can influence your brand, but you can not control it. At the end of the day a person or group of people's perception wins out.

Knowing this, an imporant thing to remember as you are marketing and interacting with your audience is don't market to yourself.

I see organziations all the time that build their messaging (websites, direct mail, signage, etc...) around messages that they would like to receive and almost everytime they end up hitting the mark with themselves and missing the mark with their audience which ends up limiting their growth and reach potential.

A friend of mine used to ask me "when you go fishing, what do you put on the end of the hook, what you like to eat or what the fish like to eat?" Unless all you are trying to do reach is yourself the spend some time figuring out what your audience is interested in.

Workers in most organizations often become insulated to the outside world. The very thing that attracted them is what they end up losing sight of because they get lost in the day to day. Take some time and see what is happening outside the walls of your own organization. I also recommend getting an outside perpective on your organization...it's always good to know what others think and say since they do have a unique perspective.