On a recent blog I talked about how important it is for leaders to experiment with technology and innovation “offline”- away from the pressure of observation and fear of failure, so that they can educate themselves on how technology can/will affect the future of their organization.
Here are a few things I’ve been using “offline” that have either become part of my strategic vision for the Rescue Mission or are thus far in the experimentation phases.
1. Twitter/Facebook. For the past 16 months I’ve been publically promoting twitter/facebook as a way to connect with others, but for months previous I was perplexed and bewildered why and how it was important. It seemed to me pointless. I’ve written about this before, so I won’t delve too deep here, but it is now part of how I believe people will connect about the things that are interesting to them.
2. Skype. I used this technology privately for years, first with ichat, and then with skype, but only recently have made it a part of our strategy at the Rescue Mission to have more meaningful interactions with technology. I think many small communications never happen because our staff put them off rather get drive across town to clear up a communication issue. Not for much longer, we’ll just get on video-chat and get it done. Fast, free, interactive.
3. All web-based entertainment. Our family has gone mobile. We shut off our cable TV and signed up to stream Netflix into our home. We just plug the computer into the TV screen and off we go. I wasn’t sure if this would work, but so far it’s been great, and much cheaper too. Netflix is just $9 a month unlimited viewing. In addition, sites like Hulu and others have shows that stream live too, for free. We’ve also shut off our home phones and just use mobile phones now. Some of these things have been done by others long ago, but for us it was hard to cute the cable, literally. I’m experimenting to see what all can be done. This kind of thinking is helping me develop a strategy to stream our recovery content at the Rescue Mission and beyond. Who knows what’s next.
4. IPad/Kindle. In this day and age, every leader needs to be considering how their message will be delivered effectively and widely. The new tools are quickly changing the game. Frankly, I’m stunned by the lackadaisical attitude most leaders have towards these tools.They see them as mindless distractions. I see them as the wave of the future, or at least the forerunners of the way we will need to deliver our message in the years to come. The next book I write may well only be available by ebook, and will most certainly be interactive and involve audio and video content. Perhaps my “book” will just be an enhanced iPhone/Ipad app. Why not? Why be afraid to spend a few hundred dollars in order to get a glimpse of the future on behalf of those you serve? If you don’t have the nerve to pull the trigger on such a purchase, you probably shouldn’t be in the corner office.
What are some of your experiments? I’ve been challenging leaders to get off their collective backsides and experiment. Am I off my rocker? Let me know what you think?
David Curry
