Inspiration

Connect to others: Social Summer

Connect to others: Social Summer

grillIn the third article in this series, we are going to take all our connections outside. Yes, you have heard this right. Summer is here and the weather is nice. So, just as you like to be outside, so do your friends and neighbors. Beautiful weather is a great opportunity to get to know new people or build on existing relationships. I am sure you are aware of that. So, where does technology come in and why am I writing about this?

To be honest, you might know all this and you might be a master at doing this right. But not everybody is. And Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and many other social networks are great tools to reach out and get to meet others. For instance, I like my barbecue. I am not the ultimate barbecue pit master, but I can do a nice pulled pork, ribs and do some great cooking of other grilled foods. I am usually quite happy with the outcome, which means that it comes easy to me to shoot a quick picture and share it online. The good part comes when that picture hits the net. Very often, it reaches people who live just around the corner. I often get comments saying “I would like a piece of that” or “When can I come over”? Which both are great openers to have people over. Or, if you have a couple in your street, you can say “lets just organize a street party together”. It does not need much preparation, it just needs getting up and doing it.

There are many activities you do every day, that might appeal to others. Or you might have a hobby that others like as well. Why don’t you share that online. Take a quick picture of what you are up to and help it look a bit attractive. If you do, you have a fair chance that people will see it and comment on it. And if you are connected to people outside your church or outside of your organization, this is a great chance to get to know them better. Invite them over and do your thing together. Or go out to the park and do it there. Very few things are as relaxing as heading out to the park with a good group to just hang out, play some games and have some food. Most people are always up to that. And the effect will be there. You will get talking, you will hear stories and you might have a chance to share some of yours. But the most important thing here is to just be there, be yourself and build that relationship. There will be a time when you can share the goals of your organization or your faith. But take it easy. Don’t avoid the subject, but don’t push it either.

About Connect to others
Reaching out to others can be challenging. Which is why Techpastors is running this “connect to others” series. Because we believe that it is easier to share your faith with others, when you get to know each other. Technology gives us a lot of new opportunities to get to know people and to share with people what you are up to. Remember, this is not about sneaking up on people and hitting them over the head with a bible. This is about building a relationship with people based on something that you and them love doing. And that will allow you to show them your personal relationship with Jesus over time.

Connect to others: location check-in apps

Connect to others: location check-in apps

Foursquare-screenshotIn the second article in this series, I would like to take a look at location check-in apps. So, what is a location check-in app and what does it do? These are apps like Foursquare and Facebook’s Places option. They allow you to tell the world where you are and then share that across your social networks. Often they add a gaming element to it. In Foursquare you can become the major of a location, when you are the one that has checked into that location the most. They also run a score list to compare how often you have checked in to the checkin’s of your friends. But for this article, those games are not that important.

So, why on earth would you want to share with the world where you are at any given time? There are a number of reasons why you might want to do that. For me personally, if I check in somewhere, it is because I want others to know that I am available. Some people check into their supermarket and the local railroad crossing (seriously). However, I believe in using location checkins to show that I am at a place where I would be happy to talk to others. So, if you see me check in to a local bar or restaurant, come up and say hi. I appreciate it.
Another reason to check in is that I want you to know I am there. That is why I check into church on Sundays. And I make a point of checking into another church if I am there on that Sunday. It shows people where I am, but it also shows them I attend church, that I am a Christian and that I care about my church. But I also check into my favorite retailers to show that I shop there.

Obviously, checking into church does not reach people as such. But when combined with other checkins and other things you share online, people will get to know that you are a believer and that you take it seriously. And when you check in to your local gym, you might find that a neighbor goes there as well. And that might be a chance to share a ride to the gym and back and get to know each other better. The same goes for other locations. You might have found someones favorite restaurant and you can ask them what they think is the best thing to eat there. Or their favorite beach hangout. The opportunities are endless. Connect to your friends and their friends. Connect to people in your neighborhood and see what you and they like. That is an easy way to start a conversation. Which in turn might start a friendship.

Lets go out and connect! Tell me what your favorite spots are to meet people in the comments and how you would want to meet people there.

About Connect to others
Reaching out to others can be challenging. Which is why Techpastors is running this “connect to others” series. Because we believe that it is easier to share your faith with others, when you get to know each other. Technology gives us a lot of new opportunities to get to know people and to share with people what you are up to. Remember, this is not about sneaking up on people and hitting them over the head with a bible. This is about building a relationship with people based on something that you and them love doing. And that will allow you to show them your personal relationship with Jesus over time.

Short video examples: tell a full story in 6 seconds

Short video examples: tell a full story in 6 seconds

Screen Shot 2013-06-24 at 11.08.11At Techpastors we want to give you practical applications of technology. So, whenever I write something, I want to give you an idea of how you can use it. Often that will be in words, but in case of short video fragments, that might not come across as well. So, when I came across these short videos, I decided I wanted to share these with you. They illustrate the different things you can do with tools like Vine or the new Instagram Video that I shared with you in a previous post.

Lets start off with a brand. Fashion brand Burberry decided to show their full runway lineup with their audience in a 6 second video. And it was well received. It gives you a quick taste and for fashion fans, that might get them to go to the site and see all of the creations for themselves.

But you can also try to tell a story. You might be able to fit a complete story in, or just a teaser. Here are a couple of Vine users that animated their video to show you a story that would take more than 6 seconds to tell otherwise.

And you can combine the real world and the animated world as well.

Now come Christmas time, or Easter, how would you tell those stories in 6 seconds? Or 15 if you are using Instagram? How can you really get that point across? Or tell about your church, your youth group, that concert etc. in a way that people can enjoy it and be triggered enough to want to come out next time?

Connect to others: fitness apps

Connect to others: fitness apps

endomondo-sports-tracker-iphone-android-symbian-blackberry-logo_0Reaching out to others can be challenging. You might find it incredibly easy to talk to others about your hobbies, but when it comes to your faith, you would rather stay silent. Most of the time, this is because we believe that people will judge us when we openly proclaim to follow Jesus or to go to church. In my personal experience, sharing is a lot easier when you get to know each other. Which is why Techpastors will be running a “connect to others” series. In each of the articles, we will look at how you can easily connect to others to get to know them, to enjoy their company and to open up opportunities to talk to people. Remember, this is not about covert ops and then sneaking up on them and hitting them over the head with the bible. This is about growing a community of people doing something that you and they love. It is about being in a comfortable place to not mumble when they ask you about Sunday morning, but to be able to speak up and just say you went to church. Jesus shared with people over meals, during walks and when he met people wherever they were. Apps can help you hang out with people that you might otherwise not have met. It will allow you to build a community around a subject and perhaps that will allow you to share your hearts desires at some point. In this article, we will be looking at fitness apps.

Fitness apps on mobile devices are able to do several things. The reason why they were developed is simple. They help you get fit. They might help you while you run, cycle, kayak, jog, walk, lift weight, do pushups or any other sports. They can track where you are, your speed, your route, your distance and all kinds of averages. And that is great. But there are some sports apps that will allow you to do something else. They allow you to connect to others. For instance, sports apps like Runkeeper, Endomondo or even Teemo will allow you to get fit and do that with your friends. Or with people in your neighborhood.

Lets look at Endomondo for a minute. On the Endomondo website, you can connect to your friends through social networks. But you can also look at the routes that people have plotted in your area. That way you can find people in your area that are running and you can pick the ones that fit your fitness best. You can then connect to the people that have set up these routes and see whether they want to run with you. Easy as that. Send out a message, pick a time and date and start running, cycling, kayaking etc. together.

If you feel a bit uneasy, try to gather a group from your church to back you up and just organize a local 5K run for instance. Set a great route, turn it into an event at Endomondo and invite your friends to join you. If you are trying to get in touch with your local community of runners, please keep the following things in mind:
You might not want to call the run after your church
You might not want to have the run leave from the church and lead to the church
These people come in to sport. If they come to run, talk to them about running, don’t hit them over the head with the bible
This is not a covert op, remember? You are here to do sports together. Enjoy it. Be as competitive as they are. But keep it clean and make that part of your testimony.

And most importantly, have fun. Don’t feel like halfway the run you ought to witness on how you found God. If someone asks during that first run, that is great. But it might not happen. That might take three or eight events. Nevertheless, you are building relationships with others and pray that those will allow others to be touched by God. And not necessarily by you.

We need to explore again

We need to explore again

compass-explore-internetTechnology and the internet have become a common good. It has become a steady part of our lives, but has it really reached the potential we have expected it to have? We have enormous potential at our fingertips, but it seems like we are not very interested.

Back in 1994 I got my first internet account. I used a black and white terminal and I used the internet for at least six to eight hours a day. My phone bills were astronomical. But everything was new. Everything was exciting. The internet, though in black and white and text, was this huge new universe that spanned the earth and had an unsaturable urge to grow into all possible directions. Back in 1995 I blagged my way into one of the Netherlands biggest mail order furniture retailers and sat across their marketing director explaining him why they needed to take their business online. Needless to say that he thought I was a lunatic and that people would never buy their couch online. They went bankrupt in 2011.

Today the internet has become a common good. And we notice. Everything seems to be smothered in marketing. Money and opportunities to make money seem to rule the sentiments online. As a result, the internet is seen as a commercial extension of our lives and churches and Christian organizations keep their distance. But should they?

If we look back into history, it was the church that triggered people to travel and reach out beyond the daily boundaries. We still read in awe about Paul’s travels that took him beyond the outer edges of his world. So where are our modern day explorers? The internet has not stopped expanding. It is not like there is nothing new on the horizon. And I strongly believe that there are many things beyond the horizon that will change our world forever.

If I have to summarize the state of exploration at the moment, I can easily draw a picture. All of us are standing on a beach, looking out over the ocean and looking at an island that can be seen half a mile away. We look at it, longing. We know what opportunities are there and some of us talk about conquering the island. And we stand there.
What we need is someone to bang their fist on the table and say: “I am going. But I am not going to that island, because in my heart I know that behind this island is a bigger world. A world of endless opportunities. And I am going to go out and claim that for our Lord!”.

As a kid, I read about the great explorers. I dreamed of sailing those unchartered waters. And now it is our time to get up and be those explorers. Because I believe that there are great resources there, great new opportunities and many people that we can reach out to. The only thing that is keeping us from progressing further is the comfort of the city that we have built around us. And it is time we find our way back to where we can enter the jungle from our paved roads and mirror glass buildings. It is time to go. Lets go and explore and build the future on what we find!

Money can’t buy you love

Money can’t buy you love

Screen-Shot-2012-12-13-at-09.32.27Seriously, the Beatles have sung it so many times that anyone that sees the title can probably hum the tune to it. However, many organizations still do not seem to be able to understand that it is the truth. Especially in this age of social media. Money cannot buy you love. However hard you try. And lately we have seen many trying. Together with you, I would like to take a look at a couple of corporate efforts to buy love and fans by spending money on social media channels. And I want to leave you with some ideas of what you can do to make these channels work for you.

Over the past weeks, Shell has often turned up in my Facebook timeline. They are talking about how wonderful they are. How much they care about the world and the environment. And only a day or two ago they posted the oil companies’ equivalent of the macho game “who’s got the biggest”. (See image.) This morning I was greeted by the results of all their money spent. Three of my friends have liked their page. Pathetic.

So, I went to take a look at their Facebook page. It is a site describing Shell in all its glory. Like the sites of so many large companies, you could call it a corporate display of narcissism. The subjects addressed are Shell, and Shell alone. If they address any other subject, it is solely from the Shell point of view. Such as working on a less pollutive environment, which really is all about the Shell eco challenge. And even regular oysters are turned into a Shell product. To be honest, it does not matter how many dollars you spend on Facebook marketing, the general outlook does not trigger me to be a Shell fan. And it shows. For a company with over 90,000 employees and almost 500 billion in revenues, a mere 2.5 million Facebook fans should not be something they ought to be excited about.

I could understand if you, and Shell, would come up with the argument that its business is fuel. Nobody loves fuel. It is something you put in your tank whenever you want, wherever you are. You do not build a relationship with a gallon of petrol. Or even bio-diesel for that matter. That is a reasonable statement to make. And it makes you wonder how this example connects to our organizations and churches. Well, the whole process changes when you put love in it. When you love your audience. When you talk to them. When you address the things that they feel are relevant to them.

Screen-Shot-2012-12-13-at-10.10.03I know the comparison with coffee is going to be a big step. But for many, coffee used to be just like that gallon of petrol. At some point in time you would be craving a cup and you bought it wherever you were. And then Starbucks came along. They made buying coffee a rewarding experience. They put the love in it. And if you go to their Facebook page, you see that they care for their customers. This morning when I went to their page, they had just used a customers’ picture as their cover photo. They talk to their customers and address their issues. They even allow their customers to vent their thoughts towards Starbucks. When I visited their page today, there was someone who posted about how Starbucks does not support the military. And 107 comments below the post where from fans defending their shop and setting the record straight. Why? Because they love their shop and their coffee. The 33 million likes prove that point.

If you want to be on Facebook, remember one thing. It is never about the likes. It is about your attitude towards people. Because your Facebook Page (or your Google+ page, or any other social network page or account) is not about YOU, it is about THEM. And if you remember that, people will come and they will return. Because they care about you, because you care about them.

We need to inspire to get people to solve problems

We need to inspire to get people to solve problems

I love people. I love how the internet has enabled us to connect to people in ways we could not imagine 20 years ago. I love the people I have become friends with through the internet, through social networks and through internet conferences. The people that I have been able to share a part of my life with. I am also enthusiastic about startups. I enjoy seeing people follow their dreams and building startups that make a difference in the world. However, there is a problem. More and more, I meet people who want to get into the internet world to make quick money. They are internet specialists, social media experts or they start a quick startup with the sole purpose of becoming an overnight billionaire after an Instagram-style exit.

What are the posters you had on your wall when you were a kid? What were your dreams about? It seems to me that even as Christians, we are now bringing up a new generation on a money-infused diet of social network founders, rock stars and television personalities. It sometimes seems as if our main purpose is the making of as much money as quickly as you can, to then be able to do whatever you want. And to be honest, that is bad news for the world we live in. After all, neither money nor the internet are problems that we need to solve.

What we do need to solve are problems on a much bigger scale. Things like feeding more and more people in a much better way. Finding solutions for society to live more comfortably while using fewer resources. Lifting worldwide healthcare to a very high standard, while bringing down its cost. Those are the things that will allow us to breathe, eat and sleep every day. And we need to remember that it is not just us. As Christians, we need to look to God for success in that process.

To start the whole process, we need to see how we can inspire people with visions for all kinds of engineering. We need people that can ignore the boxes that we have been in and start fresh. Personally, I feel that we need to inspire our younger generations not just to code, to engineer or specialize in a single field. We need to inspire them to explore the marvels that engineering can offer them. Not to be a cog in the machine of the major engineering firms of the world, but to start anew. To learn what can be learned at school and to draw upon the knowledge and wisdom of our Lord to do things that we thought were impossible before. Things that solve problems. And as Christians, we have the greatest source of creative engineering and real world knowledge at our disposal. We just need to look up to Him more to see what it is that HE wants us to move upon. And then go out and do it.

I will go out and inspire others. Will you?