August 27, 2010

Seth Godin: Promises not meant to be kept = Lies.

Seth’s Blog: Little lies and small promises. “Not a true statement because it’s a promise not meant to be kept.” Plausible promises are meant to be kept–they are not goals meant to be broken. Are you keeping your promises? Did you ever intend to? What specific steps are you taking so that your good intentions aren’t paving a road to a very hot place?

Read more →
July 31, 2010

Aim for the wrong things, get to the wrong place

Our human nature and our own cultural upbringing sometimes make us aim for the wrong things. I’d like to point out three things we tend to want to aim for, but in gaining them we end up with sand slipping through our fingers. via Why Simple Churches Don’t Work, Reason #3 – thejesusvirus. `Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?’ `That depends a good deal on where you want to get to,’ said the Cat. `I don’t much care where–’ said Alice. `Then it doesn’t matter which way you go,’ said the Cat. `–so [...]

Read more →
July 27, 2010

7 simple rules to swarm

A friend just asked me if I had any basic tips for decentralized networks. I ripped these off so fast that I realized they had become second nature to me – and they’re really not bad. So I thought I would post them here. If you want a swarm: 1. Be able to clearly articulate your vision – the bigger picture. If you are at the stage, then also be able to articulate your “plausible promise”: the specific, measurable, agreed-upon, realistic, time-defined goal you are working on, as well as your “shared values” – the things you will do and [...]

Read more →
April 15, 2010

Ethicists discuss a moral “duty to rescue” polio victims

Finishing the job of polio eradication worldwide is an ethical obligation: Experts (PhysOrg.com). An interesting argument with implications for missions.

Read more →
February 22, 2010

The difference between an Impossible Goal and a Plausible Promise

In http://bit.ly/cvpSXq, the writer considers how Google believes in setting “impossible” goals each quarter and striving to reach them. “65% of the impossible is better than 100% of the ordinary.” This approach is very similar to the idea of a “Big Hairy Audacious Goal” (BHAG). We’ve written here before about the idea of the Plausible Promise: something specific, measurable, agreed-upon, realistic, and time-bound. So, does Google not deal in Plausible Promises? Probably the key here is to consider what is ‘realistic.’ I think that in all actuality, Google’s “impossible goals” are actually quite realistic considering the scope of Google’s daring, brain-trust, [...]

Read more →
August 12, 2009

The plausible promise, the definition of success, and avoiding disappointment.

C. Holland wrote Aug. 3 about “Disappointment Avoidance.” I’ve been working pretty hard on some other projects and haven’t gotten this far down in my Google Reader subscriptions, but I was very interested in this particular article and how it relates to the swarmish idea of the plausible promise. In particular this passage was interesting (although you ought to click through and read the whole thing, it’s just a few paragraphs long): Obedience is not a formula, nor is it a means to an end, usually assumed to be success. Perhaps it’s a more Western ideal, even an American lesson, [...]

Read more →
July 8, 2009

How a promise can cut through global clutter

Our world is an incredibly noisy place. Over 6 billion people live life and make noise: talking and writing and sharing about their lives, their needs, the desires, their dreams, their visions, their passions. Some make more noise(even when dead), and some make less. Marketing is the art of getting your message heard in the midst of this noise. It is a challenge, and growing more so. Every day there are new tools that enable us to write more, share more, talk more, in more ways, over more mediums. When Heidi and I married in 1995, the web was not yet born: [...]

Read more →
July 2, 2009

A promise is not a call

J. D. Greear at Resurgence.com has written a passionate post on The Confusing Language of “Calling” in which he says in part: “Jesus made it clear that his will was for people of every nation to know the gospel. Why, then, are so many Christians waiting on a warm and fuzzy sensation—for God to spell out "Afghanistan" in their Cheerios—before they go? The call has been given. Go. If your talents can best serve God’s kingdom by using them overseas, why would you wait on a call to do so?” The passion in his voice led me to reflect on [...]

Read more →