Best College Football Coach of the Decade

So there's been lots of discussion over the past year regarding my Best College Team of the Decade post. After last year's win by Florida over Oklahoma, I would probably have to add Florida to my mix of USC, Oklahoma, and Ohio State. 

But what about the best coach of the Decade? Well, here is my current top five: 

5. Mack Brown- he leads the big rival school at Texas, but he's a heck of a coach. And probably the best recruiter in the country.

4. Jim Tressel- classy, traditional, and a great fit at Ohio State. He's been a winner everywhere he's coached. 

3. Bob Stoops- even though he's having a hard time winning the big games lately, he's still built a great program at Oklahoma. Top Five team consistently since he started. 

2. Pete Carroll- great leader and probably the best program the last 10 years at USC. Players love to play for him, and he's a guy you'd love to hang with. Love his style. 

1. Urban Meyer- this guy's a winner. Built an amazing program at Utah, and has two championships in the last three years at Florida. And plays in the toughest conference in the country. 

Let the conversation begin. Who you got? Who would you put #1?

To Do's and Not to Do's as an author, blogger and thought leader

A couple of months ago, I had dinner with Jon Acuff, the uber popular blogger and soon to be author of Stuff Christians Like. We had a great conversation on several issues, and Jon asked some great questions- one of which was "what should I be aware of as a soon to be first-time author?" 
I really respect Jon's willingness to learn from others, and to seek out folks in his life that can keep him grounded. 
So here were the five big points I gave him on the issue of becoming an author and being a thought leader. But these points I think are applicable to any of us as leaders. Here you go: 

1. Actively Build a Support Network- Beware of CEO disease, the temptation to surround yourself with people who only tell you what you want to hear. Keep honest people in your life so that you can stay grounded in the reality of your experiences.

2. Don't think You've Arrived- Banish the phrase, "I'm done" from your vocabulary. The best leaders never stop learning and see every opportunity, success or failure, as a learning opportunity.

3. Don't take yourself so seriously. You're not a big deal. Seriously. I don't care who you are. Humility is way more attractive than arrogance. 

4. Celebrate Your Rivals- Jealously is natural, but how you respond to it is not. When you find yourself tempted to speak ill about a rival or secretly wrestle with jealousy, flip that emotion on its head. Find ways to celebrate your rivals and when you run into a new one, let the first question you ask yourself be, "How can I help this person win?"

5. Flow between the five stages of creative development, don't get stuck in one. Taken in concert, these five stages can be healthy, important parts of growing any creative endeavor. Isolated and obsessed on, any one of these stages can cripple your best intentions. Focus on moving between them. The key is to not just hang out in the "caretaker" stage, where you protect and defend everything you've developed, instead of returning to the "craft" stage. 

- Craft – You create something out of passion for the art of it.

- Crowd – An audience discovers you're good at your passion.

- Commission – You earn money for the thing you love to do.

- Career – You turn a passion into your profession.

- Caretaker – You protect and nurture the thing you've created, and do everything you can to "defend" your turf. A dangerous phase.

Interview with Andy Stanley

Recently had the chance to sit down with Andy Stanley, founder of North Point Ministries and Senior Pastor of North Point Community Church. As you probably know, Andy has been involved with Catalyst since the very beginning in 2000, and is one of the greatest communicators on the planet, period. And when it comes to leadership, I don't know anyone else better.

In this interview, we discuss at length his own personal leadership process, talk a bit about North Point Online, and also get a glimpse into a typical day/week for Andy. 

You can listen via the Catalyst website or go to itunes and subscribe/download the interview.

Hanging in Grand Rapids today

Meeting with the team at Zondervan today about the Catalyst Publishing imprint. This is a partnership between Catalyst and Zondervan- we'll be developing a number of products over the next couple of years together. Designed specifically for next generation church leaders. Exciting stuff.  What resources would help you as a leader? Let me know. Be part of the process in helping us determine what we create for our Catalyst community.

Say No to the Good

"Learn to say no to the good so you can say yes to the best."  - John C. Maxwell I love this quote, but I struggle constantly with implementing it. It makes total sense, but as a persuader, my leadership style is to include and to invite more and more into the conversation and the huddle. I have a hard time saying no, because for me that feels like I am excluding someone. I've learned how to do this, but it still goes against my natural leadership style.

But as leaders, we have to be willing to say no in order for our time and energy to be spent on the things that only we can do, as well as the few ideas or projects that will end up being the "best."

Interview with Michael Hyatt

Had the chance recently to interview Michael Hyatt, the CEO of Thomas Nelson Publishers. Mike is a longtime seasoned executive in the publishing business, and also a leading voice and thought leader on the power of social media. His blog and twitter are read by tens of thousands per day. We discussed his approach to leadership, the importance of social media, and the next generation. 

You can listen here, or download from itunes.

Need Your Help on some Catalyst research

We need your help! Head over to Ed Stetzer's blog and help us determine what questions will be used for the research project that Lifeway Research is conducting for the Catalyst Conference coming up in October. The research is being shaped around the idea of "making your mark" as a Christian leader, which is our theme for this year's event. 

Will just take a minute, and anyone who helps out will be paid $100,000 each....... Ed Stetzer is personally paying!!!! J/K.

Thanks!

Who's Your City?

Heard a great talk from Richard Florida earlier this week at the Jim Blanchard Leadership Forum in Columbus, GA.  Richard Florida is the best-selling author of The Rise of the Creative Class, an incredible book outlining the way creatives are currently shaping our culture. His latest book, Who's Your City, is the one I am really intrigued by, focused on why certain people are living in certain places and how that is changing the landscape of business and economics. 

Richard is considered to be one of the world's leading urban theorists. He mentioned in his talk a couple of points that I wanted to highlight:

1. the rise of "megaregions"- there are 40 megaregions in the world. These areas are dominating the global economy and the direction of our culture. For example- Charlanta- the area from Atlanta, GA to Charlotte, NC.- 22 million people, and 750 Billion in economic output. Wow. 8th largest megaregion in the world. These megaregions are a new phenomenon in urban and city development.

2. We are currently living in a great "re-set," not necessarily a recession. Our current climate is one of the most dramatic shifts we've ever experienced in our history. Radical change and radical transformation- similar to what happened in the late 1800's and early 1900's in our country. 

3. This reset is forcing us to go back to our greatest source of capital- our human capital. The real capital we have especially here in the US is our people. We have to tap the creative energy of every human being in this country. We have to harness the ideas of every person. Everyone is creative, and that's our greatest asset. 

4. 40 million Americans who are considered to be the "creative class." 35% of the workforce, but around 60% of salaries. They congregate in the "megaregions." No longer do the influentials and creative class move to where the jobs are. Now companies have to move to where the influentials are. This is a radical shift. Cited several examples of this that were pretty mind-blowing. 

I highly recommend picking up one of Richard's books, and staying up to date with his work through his company, The Creative Class Group.

The Nines- Free Online One Day Leadership event

We (Catalyst) are partnering with Leadership Network on a brand new event they have created called The Nines. You'll definitely want to participate. Here are the details:

Wednesday, September 9 (one week from today), begins at 9:00 am CST. 

The event is free, but you have to pre-register. 

Over 60 presenters, including Mark Driscoll, Perry Noble, Mark Batterson, Ed Stetzer, Reggie McNeal, John Ortberg, Steven Furtick, Greg Surratt, Reggie Joiner and many, many more. 

Each presenter has nine minutes or less to present based on this thought: "If you could sit down one-on-one with a handful of church leaders, what is the one thing you would want to tell them?" 

Over 6,000 leaders have already pre-registered for this one day online event, so make sure you register today.

Interview with Chris Anderson from Wired Magazine

Had the chance recently to interview Chris Anderson, the editor in chief of the wildly popular Wired Magazine, and author of two best-selling books: The Long Tail as well as the more recent release FREE: The Future of a Radical Price. 

Chris is an incredible thinker, innovator, and technology maven, and we talk a lot about his new book FREE and the impact on our culture, plus discussing several other interesting topics, including the reason why Google is the ultimate model of free. 

You can stream live here, or download from itunes here.

Hangin with Brian Houston and Hillsong United

Great time in Miami over the weekend with Brian Houston and Hillsong United.  Spent Thursday evening and most of the day on Friday with Brian Houston and 35 senior pastors from churches around the country. Amazing time of connection and learning. 

Then Friday night with the Hillsong United team and all day Saturday (and late Saturday night!!). Love hanging with these great friends. Joel, Brooke, Luke, Jason, JD, Jad, Scott, Matt, Brad, Sanga, Phil, and several others. Each time I am around the entire team I am more thankful and grateful for their unbelievable global ministry. Impacting millions around the world. Great conversations, and amazing times of worship! 

More in the next several days regarding the November 4th release of the feature documentary film "We're All in this Together" from Hillsong. Will be in 500 theaters around the US. You'll definitely want to attend. 

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Young Influencers List- August edition

Here you go, the August edition of the Young Influencers List. You can see all the past editions here. 1. Joel Houston- creative director and producer for Hillsong and worship leader for Hillsong United. Force behind the upcoming "We're All in This Together" film which will release in US Theaters in November.

2.Josh Shipp- speaker, author and emcee. Impacting teens in a major way. FOX has called him the Dr. Phil for teenagers.

3. Naomi Zacharias- founder of Wellspring International, an organization helping women and children in need around the world.

4. Zach Hunter- teenage abolitionist, activist, and author. Started the movement Loose Change to Loosen Chains.

5. Blair Wingo- model, actress, and spoken word artist. Known best for this spoken word version.

Today is last chance to save on Catalyst tickets

Today (Thursday, August 27th) is the last day to save big on Catalyst Conference tickets. The early bird deadline day as we call it around here.... wonder what famous animals or celebrities will show up at the Catalyst offices today??? So, make sure to register today for Catalyst. It's going to be an amazing leadership experience. I know I am biased... but look at the speaker lineup. Seriously!

All your friends will be there. And I will be there. And Andy will be there. And Lanny will be there. 

Speaking of Lanny..... as we prepare for October, Lanny thought it would be wise to help all of us better understand the real meaning of our theme "On Your Mark." In his own style and in his own words......

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Books I am currently reading

The Hole in our Gospel by Richard Stearns. Let me just say that the first chapter made me cry like a baby. Needless to say, the book is good. Think Orange by Reggie Joiner. If you are a church leader, you need to read this book. Period. 

The Principle of the Path by Andy Stanley. Required if you are currently breathing. 

How the Mighty Fall by Jim Collins. Reading this book for a second time. 

Too Small to Ignore by Wess Stafford. President of Compassion International.

One of the Keys to Creativity

So, one of my keys to creativity is pretty simple: Find others who are more creative than me and figure out a way to make them a part of my team.

Evidenced by the last couple of days. This morning was Carlos and Jeff in the office thinking through experiential elements, opening session, transitions, Red Carpet, and theme for West Coast. 

This afternoon was Jonathan meeting about bumpers, title treatments, opening video, staging, and creative technical production ideas. 

Also this afternoon was Jason thinking through West Coast theme, design, website, brochure, and branding. 

Monday afternoon was Brian in the office going over program, minute by minute, and creative direction. 

Tomorrow is Lanny and Reggie and Ken going over program and transitions and fun stuff. 

Earlier this week was Tripp working on a great video series for the event. Tyler writing great copy and adding creative energy as well.

All of these talented folks are part of our team, but none of them are "full-time." Would love to hire them full-time, but probably not going to happen. The great thing is, I can tap into their creative energy and talent as is. 

The key is simple- find others around you who are talented, and get them involved in what you are doing. Your creativity and talent ratio will increase exponentially.

Leadership from Little Leaguers

I love watching the Little League World Series. What a great picture of what sports is all about. A few leadership lessons and observations I've noticed from the Little Leaguers:

1. It's not just about the destination, but also the journey in getting there. These 12 and 13 year olds have fun in every game, regardless of where and when.

2. It's about the team, and not individual players. No one player is bigger or more important than the team.

3. There is complete trust in the coach as the leader of the team. Seems like this should be a no-brainer, but not the case anymore, whether a CEO, head coach, or project manager. 

4. Every player still wants to learn- there is a hunger to constantly get better.

5. Sportsmanship is not just a requirement, it is an identity. These kids are competitive, but understand the legacy and responsibility of being good sportsmen. Now if we can just keep the parents in line in the stands!

Catalyst Voices- Heartland Community Church

LV Hanson, smack dab in the middle of the Catalyst National Tour, recently caught up with Mark Bankord and team at Heartland Community Church in Rockford, IL, about 90 minutes west of Chicago.  The Heartland team shares how their leadership culture and structure has created a great environment for attracting and retaining young leaders. They discuss their flattened leadership hierarchy and how the team approach works.

Check it out.

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