Month: September 2011

  • It’s time to deliver

    Yesterday was gut check time. 

    I woke up anxious. At 5:00 am I got up to start re-working my WordCamp talk– scheduled for 4:00 pm. I added all new slides, completely reworked the content, and I seriously considered calling the organizer and telling him I was sick. Like all fears it was completely illogical.

    Why was I nervous? I was nervous because I knew that this was a big moment for my fledgling business, McLane Creative. The last thing I wanted was for the Southern California WordPress community to think I was lame or didn’t know what the heck I was talking about.

    It was a risk. And the closer my time got the more it felt like a stupid risk to take. I’d never even been to a WordCamp… much less spoke at one. What the heck was I thinking?

    After lunch I went to my car and went through the talk 2 times all the way through. After the first time I actually started the car to drive home. I had sat in on a couple other sessions and I knew my talk was drastically different from the style of everyone else’s. This compounded the risk. And it felt like a dumb risk to take. My instinct was saying, BAIL, BAIL, BAIL!!! But my integrity would never allow that. That’s not the Adam McLane I want to be.

    4:00 pm arrived. Feeling completely unconfident I stood there and realized that it was time to fake it. My last thought before my talk began was, “Just shut up and deliver.”

    And it went great. The audience was engaged. They asked great questions. And I think that for a few people, those who I was targeting with the talk, were really equipped.

    Last week I talked about jumping out and starting my own thing. And how glorious and scary it was at the same time. Yesterday I felt the amazing joy of free fall! And it was beautiful.

    I walked off that stage proud of myself. I looked a scary moment in the face. Risked it all. And it paid off.

    3 Tips for fellow jumpers

    1. Being afraid – There’s no shame in having fear. Fear is natural. But if you allow fear to drive your decision making you’ll live a life of regret. Learn to look at fear, recognize it for what it is, and push through it.
    2. Being myself– There were elements of my talk that referenced being a youth pastor and even the defining question of my blogging life. I was open about the role of my faith in Christ in my life, the positives and the negatives, and the audience was appreciative of that. (And not shy about affirming my decision to go there.)
    3. Being welcomed- As someone who “is known” within my niche` it was very scary to walk onto a stage as a complete unknown. The organizers knew that and welcomed me into their tribe, my fellow speakers were very gracious, and the audience was amazing in making me feel welcome on their stage.
    “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” ~ Joshua 1:9

  • Teaching Principles vs. Trends

    Today finds me at WordCampLA. WCLA is a one-day conference for WordPress users, developers, and fans.

    Last night I had a great time getting to know some of the speakers and sponsors of the event. If anything, it was a reminder of just how far WordPress/blogging/small business development has gone in the past 5 years. When I first did some meet-ups with WordPress users in the Detroit area it was dominated by amateur bloggers and novice developers (more like modders) who would gather to talk about very basic stuff. Last night, I sat at a dinner table with serious developers, designers, and highly honed entrepreneurs.

    Over and over again I was asked what my talk is about. (Since I’m new to the WordCamp circuit.) My talk is called, “” Typically, when I bring up this topic people will say things like, “Oh, so you tell people what’s hot and what the trends are?” No, actually I teach the opposite of that. Fads fade. Trends change. Tools age. Instead of teaching trendy things that come and go I try to give people a philosophical framework of principles to build and sustain a presence. That way, when something trendy like Google+ or Klout or the next SEM/Affiliate marketing scheme pops up, you know how to frame the trend instead of the trend framing you.

    If you want to be a part of this workshop, I am presenting it next at NYWC.

    Which is more important in your communication? Principles or trends? 

  • San Diego blackout live blog

    4:00ish – they power went out, first we thought it was just a breaker. Ten a neighbor banged on our door.

    4:05 – saw on twitter lots of activity. Hearing it’s out all over San Diego. Crazy!

    4:08 – trolleys are down, people are leaving work. Beer thirty came early! Thankful I didn’t go back downtown after my meeting at Journey.

    4:21 – kids got bored, playing dominos. (lofi fun!)

    4:32 – kids bored again. Goodbye dominos.

    4:44 – hearing sirens on El Cajon Blvd. Eerily quiet out there.

    4:47 – taking bets on when the power comes back on. Paul says dinner, Megan says tomorrow. When do you think? Also seeing on Twitter that parts of Arizona, New Mexico, and Baja are out

    4:55 – filled up a couple jugs with water, just in case.

    4:59 – cell service is completely slammed. I’m not getting anything through now.

    5:04 – just heard that SDGE is reporting power will be out into the night, maybe as late a tomorrow.

    5:09 – off to find ice

    5:15 – Vons is closed, strike 1.

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    5:21 – you can always trust a liquor store to be open. Unfortunately, my favorite one is sold out of ice. (avoided buying booze, tempting)

    5:29 – Paul (age 8) is telling me he thinks this was caused by a solar flare.

    5:37 – everywhere is either closed or out of ice. The upside is that everyone is calm and courteous on the roads. There will be a massive party tonight, you can feel that coming.

    5:46 – good news, no problems with water (yet) watering the garden. It’s cooling off rapidly out there.

    5:52 – looks like the gas is out, too. Thankful that our roast was already done for dinner. Weird that the gas is out.

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    6:04 – lots of sirens in the distance, no bueno.

    6:10 – bad news on the roast, we have to eat it all.

    6:21 – Filling up more stuff, the water pressure is noticeably lower. We are also sitting in the back yard now. Going to be a night of community!

    6:33 – sitting outside and playing, “I survived the blackout and all I needed was an Apple, baboon, cotton candy, deer, ear plugs…

    6:39 – the world may end… We have no cell service.

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    6:55 – going to take a walk, might as well be neighborly

    7:15 – rolando community BBQ tonight, awesome. Everyone is out walking and talking. Best night ever!

    7:38 – back from our walk, digging out candles. SDGE is saying maybe no power back until tomorrow. Some area have a water emergency, so far not ours. Have I mentioned how quiet it is? No planes or anything.

    7:48 – darkness is arriving, the kids are pacing in a dark house. They have no idea what to do. How many hours until the sun rises?

    7:56 – with darkness settling in, all I hear is chatter of neighbors, crickets, and a helicopter over City Heights. I hope the helicopter pilot got epic shots of a dark city. Crazy.

    8:01 – on our walk a gas meter looking thing was running, sounded like a generator. Anyone know what that is?

    8:10 – saw on twitter that school was already cancelled for tomorrow. Summer vacations revenge! Thankful our area not under water restrictions yet. Am I obsessing about water or is it just hot?

    8:25 – brought the kids outside to look at the stars. The moon is almost obnoxiously bright.

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    8:29 – forced the children to eat all of the ice cream, also informed them that school closed tomorrow. Best day ever!

    8:48 – listening to am 600. Heard they are restoring power to OC, Tijuana.

    8:58 – KPBS is reporting that the power is back on at SDSU. I guess the giant toga party is ending…

    9:09 – spoke to an AP reporter covering the blackout.

    10:25 – we see lights on far out to the east on the hills. We secretly hate those people.

    10:34 – power is on in La Mesa, just like 2 miles from here. Now I’m just wanting this over.

    10:35 – if the power isn’t on by morning, filet mignon and eggs for breakfast.

    10:48 – power on at SDSU & La Mesa, but Rolando? Nothing. I’m calling Jesse Jackson in the morning.

  • The Community – Individual Continuum

    Theologically, we all know that you can’t experience the fullness of the Gospel of Jesus without community. Jesus invites us not to merely partake in communion but to live in communion with one another. (A throwback to the Garden of Eden)

    Sociologically, we live in society built around the individual. We live in single family dwellings. We have our own rooms and our own stuff. We drive cars instead of taking the bus. We eat in individual pods of friends or by ourselves. (This individualism knows no boundaries and is the opposite of Jesus’ life in community.)

    The way we experience church in our society is intimately and inseparably syncretized to our culture, even in direct opposition to the model given to us in Acts. (See Pate’s Communities of the Last Days & Jones’ Teaching of the Twelve for a scholarly look at the practical implications of life in community for the early church.)

    Plotting my walk with Jesus on the Community – Individual Continuum

    In the last 24 hours I’ve been wrapped up in this simple drawing above. In fairness, it’s just a device to explore some assumptions I have vs. realities I live. So if you stretch it too far it falls apart. At the same time I can’t get away from the teachings of Jesus. Jesus’ very life is an invitation to walk away from Satan’s desire to separate us from communion with God. To walk with Jesus is to walk in communion with his people AND with God.

    Some examples:

    • Daily Bible reading (Mostly individual, though I often share what I’m reading with friends or here on the blog.)
    • Prayer  (90% of the time prayer is individual)
    • Small groups (A few hours per week, and we haven’t met since winter, so I suck at this one)
    • Attending church (I’ll generously put this near the middle. It’s communal, even though there’s almost no interaction with others.)
    • My home (We’ve had people live with us, stay with us, etc. But if I’m honest it’s way more about our family than community living. Nothing like in Acts)
    • My work (This is getting better and worse at the same time. Thus, the life of a freelancer)
    • My service (I do a lot of stuff, but it’s all “what I do” and not “what we do.”)
    • My kids education (I’d love for this to be a community effort, but it’s not. It’s all individualistic.)

    My challenge to you would be to take 30 minutes and plot out your day-to-day life along this continuum for the sake of discovery. If you want to get really dangerous, after you do that read the first 5-6 chapters of the book of Acts.

    I don’t know where this is going. But I do see the need to reject the individualism of my society and further enter into communion both with Jesus & his people.

    What about you? What are practical ways you are living in communion?

  • The Joy of Jumping

    As someone who has just jumped from the known to the great unknown allow me to tell you: It’s exhilarating. 

    Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

    Philippians 3:13-14

    Here’s how I visualize this passage.

    • Yes, it’s scary.
    • Yes, I’ve heard rumors of a recession.
    • Yes, I know I have a family to support.
    • Yes, I know I could get hurt. (The parachute might not deploy)
    • Yes, I know you aren’t supposed to jump out of a perfectly safe thing for an unsafe thing.
    • Yes, I know all of the “buts” and “whatifs” about jumping.

    The flip side? Jumping is way cool. It’s crazy fun. And I’ve learned that the safe way will almost never get you to where you want to go in life.

    In my eyes– there are many more dangers in playing it safe than taking a big risk every once in a while.

    • Playing it safe is… as good for your heart as eating McDonald’s french fries every day.
    • Playing it safe is… like rust on your soul.
    • Playing it safe is… so 2000.
    • Playing it safe is… a pathway to regret.
    • Playing it safe is… cementing a future you might not want.

    For discussion: Tell me about a time you jumped. 

    photo credit: kait jarbeau via Flickr (Creative Commons)

  • @mclanea vs. @dougfields

  • You change your passion for glory


    So many times, it happens too fast 
    You change your passion for glory 
    Don’t lose your grip on the dreams of the past 
    You must fight just to keep them alive 

    Eye of the Tiger – by Frankie Sullivan and Jim Peterik, 1982

    The other day I was jogging when this song came on. I’ve probably heard this song 500 times and the second verse never stuck out to me.

    Not only does verse two of Eye of the Tiger foreshadow the plot of Rocky movies 2, 3, 4, and 5– in many ways it captures the dichotomy many in leadership feel.

    We are driven by passion. And in the course of becoming proficient and gaining expertise towards that passion we receive a certain level of recognition… what Sullivan/Peterik label “glory.” Conversely, once you achieve “glory” the role changes unexpectedly. You stop pursuing the goal and start defending your place. It’s one thing to be the punk kid pursuing the dream. It’s another role altogether to be the defending champion.

    Getting there and staying there are two different fights. Passion and glory are a two-way street. Both have their perks, but you can’t exchange one for the other.

    Here’s what I know: The pursuit of a goal and the moment of achieving the goal are actually way more fun than having to defend your position. Like Rocky Balboa, if you stop pursuing your next goal the two-way street get out-of-whack and you end up old and cranky towards your wife.

  • Love God, Hate People

    In 2003, on my last day attending the first church I ever worked at, an elder cornered me in the parking lot in an attempt to affirm me. “Adam, one thing I really like about you is that you seem to really love all different types of people. Where did you learn to do that?” 

    Stunned, I didn’t know another way to say it. “I learned that from Jesus in the Gospels.”

    Sadly, in the 18 years I’ve been involved in church life, I’ve learned that there are far more Christians defined by their hatred for people than there are those defined by their love for all people.

    Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. Matthew 7:1

    God is bigger than my opinion

    We live in an age of opinions. Everyone has something to say about everything. And since we live in a reactionary society with an instant ability to speak our mind to thousands of people via Twitter, Facebook, and the like. This means we live in rude, violent times where the tongue is not tamed. (James 1)

    To make matters worse, we live in a time of great pressure. When people are under pressure they reveal their weaknesses. Money is causing some of this pressure. But so is an open acknowledgement that some of the stuff we’ve done successfully in the past is failing today. And while that pressure, in community, should fuse us together to make a diamond it is too often burning away and leaving worthless coke.

    As I read Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount this morning one thing stuck out to me: I can’t love God and hate people. It’s impossible.

    I don’t have the right to hate a single person. I’m not the judge of anyone. I’m not better than my neighbor. Instead, the Gospel lives through me when I practically acknowledge with my actions that my neighbor is worthy of my love and service. To hate my neighbor would be to hate the God who created my neighbor.

    My opinions aren’t really that important to God. I won’t one day get a pat on the back from my Heavenly Father for having a great apologetic for the matters of the day. I won’t impress Jesus with my ability to divide people over things that don’t really matter.

    But if I love my neighbor. But if I serve my neighbor. Then what? 

  • Keeping San Diego State classy, one lawn at a time.

    Megan’s comment: “Their grass is greener than ours.”

  • SDSU vs. Cal Poly

    Had a great time with Megan last night. Good to hear the cannon go off a lot.

    I think they proved that they could move the ball last night. 49 points with 42 of them coming from the offense. Ronnie Hillman is an amazing running back, 189 yards on 27 carries and 2 TDs. Ryan Lindley didn’t make many mistake with 4 TDs and a little over 200 yards. And while no star emerged among the receiving corp there were signs that they could get things done.

    Looking forward to Army: The Aztec defense had little problem with the triple option last night. There were a couple long plays… one particularly on an option pass, but overall the defense held its ground against a fast-paced, hurry-up, triple option. They should give Army a run for their money.

    Ticket sales! The ticket office has to be very happy. 34,000 for a home opener vs. a Football Championship team? Fantastic. And with the next home game against Washington State of the Pac-12, that might be 40,000+.

    I was especially happy to see the student section packed. They even opened up 3 sections of overflow for all of the students.