Adam McLane

Tag: ideas

  • How to talk to parents about parenting

    Over the past year or so I’ve had the opportunity to lead an hour-long seminars for parents. In fact, earlier this year partnered with Simply Youth Ministry & Marko to turn the content of my seminar into a book that comes out in a few weeks, A Parent’s Guide to Understanding Social Media. For me,…

  • Join us for Open Seattle

    I’m getting really pumped for Open Seattle next week. If you live in the Pacific Northwest we’d love to have you. Yesterday, we extended the regular registration deadline until next Monday– so you can still get in for $25! What’s Open Seattle? Open is an experiment. It’s asking the the youth ministry world the question……

  • How to buy a used car for way below Kelly Blue Book, Part 1

    After a couple months of research we were finally able to purchase a great used minivan while getting a good deal from a reputable dealer. General used car buying advice Preface — Download the free Kelly Blue Book app for your phone. In order to beat the dealer in real time, you’ll want to have…

  • I need your camping advice!

    Next weekend the McLane family is going camping. (A non-digital adventure!) Specifically, we’re going to Idyllwild, CA for 3 days and 2 nights. We need this Summer 2011 has been the lost summer. Especially for me. Leaving YS and starting up 2 businesses meant that we didn’t take a vacation over the summer and I’m…

  • How we got here is not how we get out of here

    In 1995, I got a job running some machinery on nights and weekends for a large health care company. I was a college student and it was a perfect job for me. It was boring and I could do my homework.  I had free reign to the 29th floor of a Chicago skyscraper until 6:00…

  • Three Ways to Reach More Teenagers Starting this Fall

    In your community less than 10% of 6-12th graders are a part of a youth ministry. In most communities 2%-3% of eligible teenagers are involved on a good week. Ouch. Here’s a strategic reality check for you: Tweaking your mid-week program or plugging in a new communications tool or even working harder isn’t going to…

  • The Innovation Gap

    “The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails.” ~ William Arthur Ward “A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.” ~ Sir Winston Churchill “Sometimes when you innovate, you make mistakes. It is best to admit them quickly,…

  • Do Good Ideas

    Last night I was riding my bike home and my head was full of ideas. I actually pulled over, whipped out my iPhone, and jotted 3 of them down so I wouldn’t lose them. That lead me to post on Twitter: “I really wish I had 4-5 people to sit around with regularly and share…

  • Beg, Borrow, and Steal our Retreat!

    That’s the goal of our high school ministries Winter retreat. I’m not talking about a cash neutral event to the youth budget. I’m talking about… we’ve got no money so we need to do this retreat for free. We don’t have budget money and our students literally have no cash to offset expenses. Here’s what…

  • 10 Ways Your Church Can Be Good News to Public Schools

    I have a fervent belief that if we want to reach a post-Christian society, we have to be Good News before someone will listen to Good News. I asked some teachers, “How could a local church be Good News to your public school?” Here are 10 of their ideas. Create a team that participates at…