bam. crud. I hate it...

My family and I were walking through Big Lots today. We slowly made our way up and down isle after isle filled with nothing but toys. Stopping at a section of girly things, my daughter Jillian (3) spotted a chest full of princess dress-up attire. She said, "I like that... I want that." I thought about how great it would feel to see her open that chest on Christmas morning, but I couldn't help but think something else. My children are 3 and 2. They are still learning about sharing and, more importantly, appreciation. I know they don't fully understand these concepts, so while I want to give them everything, I don't want to spoil them either. They seem to destroy what toys they already have (especial little J) and fight over the stupidest things. I have actually seen them fight over a torn piece of cellophane. Then, it hit me. bam. crud. I hate it when this happens. As I am father to my children, God is Father to me. I see that position at work, a raise, surround sound system, Dodge Charger and say, "I like that... I want that." But, I'm still learning about sharing and more importantly appreciation. My current car has needed washing for about 3 months. My desk at work looks like an Office Depot chucked on it. And, I fight over the stupidest things like credit, recognition, and being "right". Ouch. What is God waiting to see me open? Is He waiting to see some appreciation for what He has already given me? As much as I love my children and want them to make me proud of there behavior, it cannot equal any fraction of God's love, or what expections of greatness He has for me. So, if you will excuse me, I'm going to go wash my Hyundai (and be thankful for it).

The M16, Donald Trump, and the "V" Team

Once upon a time, I watched an interesting program on the History Channel about the Vietnam War. As the history goes, President JFK chose Robert McNamara, former CEO of Ford Motor Company, as Secretary of Defense. A debate raged about replacing the M-14 rifle with something up-to-date that would better compete with the Russian made AK-47. The office responsible for the development of new technology for use by the military was the ARPA (Advance Research Projects Agency), which was made up of Pentagon military veterans. McNamara promptly swept through that office replacing these "Pentagon ordnance experts" with "Ph.D.s", many of which were former members of the Rand Corporation think-tank, lacking real combat experience.
To make a long, convoluted story short, McNamara used bottom line policy in deciding the fate of thousands of soldiers by choosing arms that malfunctioned on the battlefield. The early M-16's given to the front-line men where highly criticized because of there unreliability and were nicknamed "Mattel toys" by the soldiers. What in tarnation does this have to do with church video production? Well, as I watched this show I began to see some similarities in how some churches design a video program. McNamara didn't have the expertise or experience to make effective military decisions. BUT, before you get offended, that is not what lead to the demise of so many in Vietnam. The real crime was that he did not trust those that did, and went as far as to replace the ones he should have trusted with bottom line thinkers like himself, making him looking good on the ledger. He should have taken a page from Henry Ford's philosophy about leadership. On a tour of one of his assembly lines a woman asked him if he could operate any of the machinery on display. To paraphrase the heart of his answer, he said no, it wasn't his job to know, but his job to know who can and keep them employed. I'm grateful to say my boss, Rod Pearcy (www.rodpearcy.com), knows this wisdom. He doesn't know how our Pesa router works. Doesn't care. But, requires us to know what we need, and know how to make it work effectively so that he can deal with larger issues. I've been learning to let go of some matters and leave them in the hands of others too, who quite frankly, are better at it than me anyway.
What would have changed the pages of McNamara's history? Well, he could have brought combat veterans, soldiers from the front lines of Vietnam and arms engineers together and let everyone at the table have the freedom of input. We have to be careful not to make decisions in a vacuum, without the "check" of seasoned video personnel. Why does this sometimes happen? I think it's mostly because churches don't know enough about multimedia and video production to know that there is a lot to know about multimedia and video production. I've got quite a bit of experience in video and realize daily that I have so much more to learn. One wouldn't dare spend 4 months designing an entire sanctuary on napkins, then going to an architect and saying, here, make this work (by Tuesday). But it happens in other areas.
If you have hired a video team, please involve them in every stage of a project. Even if you are using a consultant, let your team be a part of the process because they are going to have the pulse on your churches needs based on experience, and they are the ones that will have to use the system. Believe it or not, Donald Trump actually said something interesting. He said, take advice/ideas from EVERYONE, it doesn't have to mean you implement them all.
The challenge to church leadership: take a soldier out to lunch. One of the guys who push all the buttons and make things happen. Ask them what they think of their job, department, equipment, etc. Ask them what they would do differently or what equipment or organizational changes would make their job easier and more effective. That doesn't mean the sheep should lead the shepherd, but there is a reason great generals, during battle, only eat soldier's rations... to stay in touch with the ones that make things happen. Remember, whether it's video production, literature, or church accounting, it's all about finding the most effect ways of making disciples. Sometimes it's not what you know that makes you valuable, it's knowing what you don't know, finding the people that do, and letting them shine. This will free you as well, letting you shine in your areas of expertise.

For more on the M16 and McNamara story, check out these links:
http://www.jouster.com/articles30m1/M16part2.html
http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/encyclopedia/M/M1/M16_(rifle).htm

What's the big idea?

As I was standing in the checkout line at Walmart yesterday, I of course had about 15 minutes to kill. That's when I started thinking about these 32" TV's they have hanging silently all over the store. I have yet to have been wooed by one of these displays, assuming they are there to advertise products in their store. In fact, I have never seen anyone actually watching one of these displays. With satellite, wiring, rigging, TVs, and electricity to run it, I'm guessing they spent a good $50,000 to $100,000 on the system... per store. For what?

I think this was a great idea that wasn't thought out very well. Why didn't they mount them in an area where they knew people would have nothing to do except stand around.... like.... a checkout line! Then, they could advertise products that would be placed within arms reach of the line that I'm in. You would only need to produce 10 minutes of video that could be looped. I'm sure there are flaws with my idea, but at least I put some logical thought into it. I was trying to figure out a way to express the root of the problem I saw at Walmart but was having a hard time expressing it... that is until I talked to Michael Taylor last night.

By the way, Michael Taylor is a great Christian friend, the best jib operator this side of the Mississippi, and knows a great deal about professional video/film production in and outside the church. He phrased it for me. "Good ideas are worth a dollar. A good plan is worth investing in." That's it! Planning.

As Jack Chew and I began to work out the details of our alternate venue, we did what Jack coined forecasting (long-term planning). We tried to our best to look at each aspect of the project from every angle. One of us would come up with an idea, and the other would play devil's advocate and try his best to destroy it, make it sound like a horrible idea. It was great to have egos out of the way, with mutual respect for each other, allowing only the best plans to rise to the top. We used Visio drawings and, with the help of Rich Belgie, used Martin 3D ShowDesigner to visualize what the gym alternate venue would look like. The result is a great HD alternate venue in our gym that everyone is ecstatic about.

Planning should take 50 times longer than implementation... Maybe more. See your ideas through to a comprehensive plan. It will not only serve to impress your bosses, a good plan is evidence of great stewardship.

What do you want to be when you grow up?

Let's buy $100,000 worth of computers and start a computer-based business. Ok, we bought the computers, now what? Let's try being an animation house. Sorry, we didn't buy those kinds of computers. Well, let's try being a software development company. Great, we did that a while now, but it's not working very well, and we are losing money hand over fist. Let's use these computers for, hmm, I got it! Let's be a web server business!

What in the world is going on here? What a lot of churches do with video production. I recently was told a story about a church that invested $100,000 in one used camcorder and a used non-linear editing system. They paid so much for these 2 items that all they could afford for lighting was a small Lowel kit. First of all, they got robbed on the price they paid for this used equipment. Second, this same church has needed a long lens and professional tripod for there sanctuary IMAG for a very long time. So instead of investing in products that would improve the delivery of the hour-long teaching, they invested (poorly) in remote production gear that will be used to make videos that people will watch for 5 minutes. These folks obviously do not know what they want to be when they grow up. Years ago, they started to gear up for good IMAG production, then stopped investing in it. Then recently starting investing in remote production gear. It's like a kid that starts out pre-med, then before he graduates, changes over to pre-law. It's OK to be both, but someone's going to die if you don't complete your pre-med before going on to other endeavors.

I think a lot of churches are blown about by every wind of technology. Folks, we need to stop, pray, and think about what it is we are trying to do. Whatever we are trying to accomplish, we are supposed to do it with our whole heart. Does that mean everyone has to buy HD cameras? No, but you better be putting everything you got into using what you have and always looking ahead to make things better. If we are going to do IMAG, let's do IMAG great. If we are going to make Christian movies, let's do them great. If you can't, God's just waiting to show you His objective for video in your church.