drew gneiser

“Who you hang out with determines what you dream about and what you collide with.” –Seth Godin

This past week, I traveled to Orange County, California for the “Best of Social Media Summit,” a meeting of about 30 of the top social media managers in the country working at Christian nonprofits and church denominations. I somehow snuck into this small and amazing group.

Over the course of a few days, we dove into content management and strategy, crisis communication, creating magic moments for your fans, the power of storytelling, teen engagement in the digital space, and many more topics.

There were several amazing guest speakers including Jeramie McPeek (VP of Digital for Phoenix Suns), Justina Chen (Microsoft executive speechwriter), Mark Burnett & Roma Downey (TV Producers and The Bible Mini-series), and Naghmeh Abedini (#SaveSaeed campaign, fighting for husband’s release from Iranian prison for preaching Gospel). The lineup blew me away.

One thing that gets tiring about social media groups is all the cliché buzzwords and echo-chamber ideas. I thankfully didn’t find that here. We dove deep, tackled our problem areas, challenged each other in big ways, and spoke from personal experience. We also laughed and had fun. It was like meeting old friends.

There’s lots more I could tell you (and probably will in future posts), but let me end with one idea. I met every single one of these people on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Enriching relationships started online. This community communicates online and met offline to build things together. To strengthen friendships and strategic partnerships. To dream about the future. We live in a day when geography doesn’t have to limit growth or community.

To see more from the Best of SMS, check out our hashtag: #BestofSMS

Not “win because you got lucky.” Not “win by waiting for someone to pick you.” Not “win by having low hurdles or no challenges or easy competition.”

Win by focusing on a goal and committing to it. Win by being intentional. Win by knowing your opponent is tough and then working harder. Win by sweating and bleeding and pushing yourself. Win by doing the work.

Bono once said, “This moment in time will be remembered for three things: the war against terror, sure; the Internet, probably; and how we let an entire continent, Africa, burst into flames and stood around with water in cans.”

My version–This generation could be remembered for at least one thing: how we did or did not use the Internet in the face of solvable problems and massive opportunities.

The Internet wasn’t made so you could watch more cat videos.

We live in a moment. Like never before, it’s easy to connect to people with common passions. And I’m not only talking about ending world hunger or preventing the rain forests from disappearing. This moment is for starting things that matter, sharing art that brings joy and connection, and growing closer together as a global community and smaller micro-communities.

(You may be thinking, kumbaya, which could be the fear stalling you from doing something big.)

How we decide to use the Internet each day will shape the future. Will we pick purpose and action or will we let this slip by?

Do not waste this great opportunity.

I was watching Shark Tank. Two guys were pitching an action movie about motorcycle racing and were seeking funding from five big-time investors.

The film makers wanted $5 million in funding. They had no script, no producer, no actors, and no footage to put in a trailer.

When asked why there wasn’t anything to show yet, they said that it was on purpose – by design. It was something about it actually helping the Sharks have less risk and more say in the creative process. I didn’t really get it.

All five Sharks turned down the offer.

If you aren’t doing the work, why would you expect people to get behind you or get excited?

Doing the work of art means picking yourself first. Before anyone can approve (or even disapprove) of what you’re doing, you have to do start doing it. Yes, it would be absurd to expect someone would give you $5 million based on doing nothing.

Please, paint your vision, but please start moving towards it as well.

So stop looking for one and get to it.

Reading is important. It expands the mind, opens new perspectives, brings ideas to life, gives clues on how to create carefully crafted communication, and brings joy and surprise. Every one should read more.

I’m doing my best to read more this year. Lots more. So far in 2013, I’ve read 18 books and re-read 3 or 4 others. (It’s a little short of where I’d like to be.) Here are a few of my favorites so far:

The Icarus Deception by Seth Godin. Fly closer to the sun. Art is about making a map and not following one. Connect and be human.

The War of Art by Steven Pressfield. Fight the Resistance. Do the work and show up. Important work will never be easy, but it’s always worth it.

Wrecked by Jeff Goins. Traveling to other places opens your worldview and wrecks you, in a good way. Once you see the world bigger, you can’t unsee it.

Steal Like an Artist by Austin Keon. We are a sum of our influences, so embracing this fact frees us to remix and create “new” things.

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Classics are still around for a reason. Read one.

Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller. The best way to communicate a truth is a story.

What books have you enjoyed lately?

I’ve never liked job interview questions. They feel too safe and stale. Most questions prompt answers with phrases like “optimized productivity” or “reorganized and restructured” or “increased efficiency.” Resume speak. Business school language. Boring.

I want to hear a story. I want to get a glimpse behind the resume and see the person–full of flaws, quirks, fears, unique-eyes, and passions.

So, if you could interview your favorite author, artist, leader, speaker, or interesting figure, what you ask him or her?

“I’m loyal to this auto shop because their fourth tire is free (on select models).”

“It’s so great that all of these phone menus make my bank more efficient.”

“I shop at this grocery store because they save me money by having fewer employees.”

“I found my real estate agent on a bus bench.”

“It makes me happy that my favorite snack food is a sponsor of the PGA tournament.”

“I can’t wait to read my presorted mail from credit card companies and insurance agents.”

In the summer of 2005, Apple announced they would be transitioning all of their products from PowerPC microprocessors (an IBM & Motorola product) to Intel-based microprocessors.

Steve Jobs was unsatisfied with the speed at which Motorola was manufacturing the chips and believed Apple’s future was with Intel. The possible transition was debated for 18 months before the directors decided.

Apple was a 16,000 employee, $1.33 billion company in 2005. This was no small company and no small feat.

The transition of all Apple products to Intel was completed over one year ahead of schedule. Apple’s stock during the period increased tenfold. The transition was seamless and Apple didn’t miss a beat. Even Bill Gates was impressed.

Citing why Jobs really wanted to make the change, he said, “Our goal is to provide our customers with the best personal computers in the world.”

Change, even a big change, is always possible if you’re ferociously focused on your mission.

I write every day. While I don’t publish something on this site each day, between here, here, and here, I rarely miss a day.

People sometimes ask, “What should I write about?” or “what kinds of stuff should I post?” or even “I’m not really a writer, I don’t know much about this or that, and it’s hard” (spoiler alert: The last one’s not really a question. It’s an excuse).

Here are some tips:

Write about what interests you.
Write about what you’ve learned so far.
Explore something you’re curious about.
Write what you know.
Write what you don’t know.
(Don’t be afraid to) write about what excites you.
Explain how you solved a problem or found an answer.
Tell a story.
Write about someone you look up to.
Share something hard you went through.

Be honest. Be generous (I sometimes ask myself, “what can I write that will give to someone else?”). In the end, just write a lot. And then write some more.

There’s no magic formula. I don’t always know what to write about either. I show up and get to work and write every day.

The most important part is to care. In the words of Steve Jobs, “The only way to do great work is to love what you do.” If you keep working hard at what you love, the words will come. And we need more people who love what they do.