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Digital Natives or Combining Imagination and Imitation?

By on October 8, 2011 in Brain Stew, Education with 0 Comments


As we sat around the kitchen table, her 2-year old started moving the magnets around on the refrigerator door. Audible sounds such as “doink” and “shwwsh” came with each move of a magnet.

“She thinks it’s an iPad,” mom looked in amazement. “These kids are so smart.”

I was amused by the child and bemused by mom.

“What did you think the magnets were when you were that age?” I asked.

Didn’t we all do that when we were kids?  Move the magnets, poke the buttons and dials on anything that wore such things? The Dishwasher?  The buttons on the car radio?

Kids poking and sliding things is a combination of imagination and imitation.

And isn’t that part of the genius of smartphones.  Slide. Poke. Even the thumb actions of a video game controller. Designed with simple in mind.

So next time you see the behaviors of a child, don’t knock your self down a notch – rather put on your creative hat and see what comes out of your observations.

Now, where did I put that silly putty . . . or maybe that stress cow I got at the last conference?

Photo on Flickr by M J M

Tablets – Every Shopping Cart Could Have One

By on October 3, 2011 in Brain Stew, Mobile & Local with 0 Comments

Thinking out loud this weekend, I put this up on Google Plus:

Maybe this is a Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s thing, or something for the team at IDEO . . . (and maybe it’s already out there) . . .

What if:  a “tablet” is tethered to a shopping cart so while shoppers load up (tablets only available with a cart), they can check on:

  • Nutritional info
  • Recipes
  • Fooducate comparisons (Eat this Not That kind of thing . . .)
  • Red Laser comparisons
  • Send item requests to the store (I wish my Hy-Vee carried my brand of Brown Rice)
  • Keep a running total of what’s in the cart
  • Access your shopping list (which you either put your login at store’s website)

The Tablet would need a camera and access to Internet (or at least the stores’ customer-side intranet)

Is this already out there?

A few good comments on G+, yet I’d like to extend the thought out. Have you seen anything like this?

UPDATE: I guess it is out there:

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Change: Compost or Creation?

By on September 29, 2011 in Brain Stew with 0 Comments


The sound of fallen leaves circling and blowing across a parking lot.

Almost sounds like applause “we’re free, we’re free”

But what’s that you say?

“Those leaves have no reason to celebrate. They are dead and will become compost soon.”

Listen again, yes – they are free…they celebrate because they are on to their next opportunity…

Working together to create change and start something new…

And how about you?

- -

Written this morning between appointments, I’d usually use pen and paper. Today, I used the Google Plus device on my mobile.

The piece itself is relevant (change your view about change), but I also practiced of Just Spill.

Your turn. There’s Always Room for One More Good One.

Start getting good. ( And feel free to join me on Google Plus)

Photo on Flickr by DrLizBit

I Didn’t Know Trey Pennington

By on September 5, 2011 in Brain Stew with 4 Comments

I didn’t know Trey Pennington, though we’d connected in minor ways via Social Media.

My heart is broken for him, his legacy (still intact if you ask me), his friends and family. I’m sure many of you are wondering why. Some may even be mad at Trey. Please don’t be mad. Remember the good (and there was a lot).

This is not a time for blame. And though this is a time for hurt, there will be a time for healing.

I couldn’t sleep last night.   As I continue to read posts and posts upon posts followed by posts and tweets today about this gentle, giving, loving man . . . I am haunted because I am not far removed from such a time in my own life.

  • I’m open to the possibility that Trey felt betrayed by some close to him.
  • I’m open to the possibility that Trey felt embarrassed, having once shared his soul publicly and not wanting to do it again.
  • I’m open to the possibility that Trey desired more than a friend pointing him to an agency or professional help.
  • I’m open to the possibility that Trey felt like there was no longer hope to regain whatever he lost.
  • I’m open to the possibility that Trey didn’t want you to see him hurt anymore – and he may have felt the hurt would never subside.

I’m open to these possibilities because I was there just two years ago. Doesn’t matter how I got there. And it still hurts, especially after yesterday.

My suggestion, if I may be so bold.  Next time someone cries out for help – give them a hug, not a phone number. And stay close at hand. Love them through their hurt.

I was lucky. And I hope I can be a fraction of the person I knew Trey to be, and what I know of him through all I’ve read.

I’m sorry I didn’t know about your hurt, Trey. If I had, I would’ve shared.

To those reading this, please don’t think less of me (or Trey) – I debated for hours whether to write. I did so that some might . . . I don’t know . . . see something, grab onto some understanding.  I don’t know. A crushing blow.

I applaud his friends for standing by him and beside him even now after he’s gone. Stay that course. And God bless you for your friendship to Trey.

And to those that were around me during my own time of concern. . . even those that may have turned against me  and I’m open to the possibility Trey might also say:

“I apologize. Forgive me, please.”

 

Finding Your Game

By on September 2, 2011 in Brain Stew with 0 Comments

For those who know me (or think they do), you probably know I’ve gone through some pretty hefty personal changes these past two years. A lot of it painful (but that’s personal, hmm?), yet the trials have brought blessings.

The journey has afforded me the obligation to reflect and respond. A chance to “find my game” – something like this clip from Seven Days in Utopia:

My “swing” into life was from “back here.” Along about the turn of the calendar year, I realized I had to play in front of the ball.

I used to operate with an “Others First” mentality. Not anymore. I should’ve not ever placed “others” that high. This isn’t to say I’ve traded places with “others” – I just stepped back a bit. And by doing so, I’ve been able to refocus on my target. I’ve been talking about that more on SansoneSpot (Twitter too) than here on ConverStations.

I have a passion to connect people with other people (where it makes sense for both) and see what happens. It is one aspect of what I do as a “conversation conductor.”

There is also a passion within me to be a resource, connecting people with cool tools or information they might find valuable.

I share this because some seem to have said I am not “social” enough – well, they don’t know me too well, because others say I’m too “social” for their liking.

There is a saying I put trust in: Where Expectations are Few, So are Disappointments

Are you good in your box? Your shoes? Your style? Awesome possum. I dig that you do that. Just be.

There is only one Immutable Law in Social Media. And more than one way to drive a car, yo.

How about you? Have you found your game? If you’ve ever lost it – how did you go about finding it?

As an aside: Though I haven’t seen it yet, I believe Seven Days in Utopia may be this year’s The King’s Speech.

Thinking Differently

By on August 25, 2011 in Brain Stew with 0 Comments

Anytime I wonder whether I should step out on a limb or not, I watch this video:

Thank you Steve Jobs – for thinking differently, and leading the teams that give us tools to do likewise.

Success by Emerson

By on August 19, 2011 in Brain Stew, Quotes n Notes with 1 Comment

“To laugh often and much; To win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; To earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; To appreciate beauty, to find the best in others; To leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.”

- Ralph Waldo Emerson

A Global and Gospel Wedding Celebration

By on August 5, 2011 in Brain Stew, Conversations, Cool Tools, Social Media with 1 Comment

Maybe on the surface, but not at the foundation.

I’ve been attracted and focused on an important event recently. Angela Thye and I have been planning a wedding celebration.

We’ve been using quite a few social media tools to enhance the event (and we are just sidebars on this celebration – see the wedding invitation video)

One of the more exciting tools we are using is UStream. Angela and I have both been around the globe and have friends and family all over (Did you know Angela was raised on the mission fields of Indonesia?)

Here’s a video explanation of our thinking.

And please, feel free to tune in to the wedding tomorrow at 11 AM Central.

One Shot

By on June 28, 2011 in Brain Stew with 1 Comment

One Shot
Look, if you had,
one shot,
or one opportunity
To seize everything you ever wanted,
one moment
Would you capture it?

Or just let it slip, yo

- From Lose Yourself

If time and money were no object . . .
If enemies (within or without) couldn’t slow you down . . .
If you could change your world, no matter the size of your “W”

What would you be doing?

Go and do that.

Da da dum, da dum, da da da da

Conception is Messy

By on June 27, 2011 in Brain Stew with 6 Comments

“The hospital room may be spotless and sterile, but birth itself will always take place amid chaos, pain, and blood.”

- Steven Pressfield in Do the Work (Location 222 of 920)

Conception can be a beautiful thing. Its newness. Untested. Plenty of promise, potential, and possibilities. Can you feel the breath of a sigh as we look upon it?

I wonder if the sigh is an “ooh-aah” or a sigh of relief. Maybe it’s a sigh to help brace for what’s to come.

The reality: Conception is Messy

Whether giving birth to a baby or launching a product, writing a book or getting a retail store ready for opening day – conception can be messy. And even after conception, we’re going to have baby messes.

When I moved this site from Typepad to WordPress (this is the first post originating on WP), it had been over a year of waiting for the the right time. When the trigger was being pulled – I was sweating. I had stayed up the night before – all night – making sure everything was perfect (ish). And guess what – even with imperfection all around – there was celebration yesterday when the switch happened. Elation, even.

Maybe you have an idea. For a company. For a book. A blog. Maybe it’s someone you want to meet. Something you want to tell someone. A new mission. A ministry. Whatever it is, put it in motion.

So remember this reality: Conception is Messy.

Now, go do something.

 

 

 

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