Posted by Rescue Mission Team on Mon, Jun 25, 2012
Last week I ran across an interesting new technology that can take what you are saying and create trending topics. It seems to be asking the simple question: What if what you said, not what you tweeted or post but your words unfiltered, created a trend that others could see?
I've attached the two videos below, one that explains how it was done, and the other that shows the results. I encourage you to take a couple minutes to watch them.
For me however, the exercise only illustrated the greater truth: What you say ALREADY creates trends, influences attitudes, behavior, beliefs, opportunity and more. Most people seem to feel that they are free to dump negativity, criticism, and despair because it doesn't matter unless their is a wider audience. But it does matter, what you say creates 'trends' in your mind and in the mind of those you interact with daily.
These videos illustrate a timeless truth, what you say matters, and it contributes, so speak truth and life.
David Curry
Read all of David Curry's blogs at
http://blog.rescue-mission.org or visit the Rescue Mission at
http://www.rescue-mission.org
Posted by Rescue Mission Team on Thu, Jun 21, 2012
The Rescue Mission New Life Program helps those that are struggling to be free from the grips of addiction and the lifestyle it produces.
Read all of David Curry's blogs at
http://blog.rescue-mission.org or visit the Rescue Mission at
http://www.rescue-mission.org
Posted by Rescue Mission Team on Wed, Jun 20, 2012
Homelessness is about more than just single men, it's mom and dads, and kids too.
Read all of David Curry's blogs at
http://blog.rescue-mission.org or visit the Rescue Mission at
http://www.rescue-mission.org
Posted by Rescue Mission Team on Tue, Jun 19, 2012
The benefits of volunteering with children in the Rescue Mission
Read all of David Curry's blogs at
http://blog.rescue-mission.org or visit the Rescue Mission at
http://www.rescue-mission.org
Posted by Rescue Mission Team on Mon, Jun 18, 2012
The book One Click:Jeff Bezos and the Rise of Amazon.com gets its title from the process of paying for Amazon.com purchases with just one click. The author Richard Brandt suggests that Jeff Bezos, the CEO of Amazon, has built a powerful juggernaut of Internet retail by being ruthless, detailed and persistent in his pursuit of world domination. According to the author, the creation of a "one click" button and the refusal to let anyone else use this type of simple purchasing process without paying a royalty to Amazon, is predatory and a prime example of how difficult and predatory Amazon has become. The example of the One Click button is both the strength and weakness of the book as a whole, Strength: the story of how Bezos thought to patent the One Click is interesting. Weakness: It hardly rates as dramatic or evil as the author protrays it to be.
This book is no where near the quality of Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson, and the author has a particular perspective that seemed a bit sensational, but I still found it an interesting little read. I'd recommend it, but only to people who enjoy the back-stories of how businesses like Amazon get created.
Here are some take aways from One Click:
Jeff Bezos is smart: Even in school, Jeff was a math and science prodigy, and he learned to take his genius and put it to practical use, first on Wall Street by helping to create some of the first internet trading systems, and then by creating Amazon. However you look at this story, and whatever you think about Amazon, you definitely can see the genius in Jeff Bezos.
Amazon had growing pains: As a leader myself, I enjoy reading how successful business leaders worked through the painful challenges and hurdles they faced in the building of their companies, and this book plenty such stories. That's because Amazon has made a lot of mistakes along the way, some of them funny - early on a computer glitch allowed you to order a negative number of books and Amazon would send you money as a refund - and some of them serious. However I found lots of lessons to be learned from their journey.
Follow you Dream: The most significant take away was that Jeff Bezos accomplished, and is still working on, his dream. Against all odds he's built one of the worlds largest retailers, the largest online retailer, just as he planned to do. There's a lot to be learned from him.
On the whole, this book is a C+, but it's a quick read and if you're interested in Amazon or in business leaders in general, it's probably worth the money.
David Curry
Read all of David Curry's blogs at
http://blog.rescue-mission.org or visit the Rescue Mission at
http://www.rescue-mission.org
Posted by Rescue Mission Team on Fri, Jun 15, 2012
Our Downtown Tacoma Campus is where it all begins for hundreds of men who are escaping homelessness, unemployment and addiction.
Read all of David Curry's blogs at
http://blog.rescue-mission.org or visit the Rescue Mission at
http://www.rescue-mission.org
Posted by Rescue Mission Team on Thu, Jun 14, 2012
When I was a child I would say, "Who says?" to any suggestion from my siblings that I couldn't do something I wanted to do. It mattered if they were saying it, or if my parents had said it. Often enough, it was just my siblings, and not a rule from my parents.
Civil society runs best when citizens respect and honor the laws made to protect them and to manage large groups of people. In addition, there are moral laws which help us to grow in character and integrity. Unless you're living under a tyrannical situation, lawful = good. However, people sometimes become conditioned to accept other people's rules, opinions, and perceptions as law themselves and stiffle their own growth and opportunity.
Here's a list of things people say and hear every day that are other people's rules, but not laws, and therefore can and often should be ignored:
You can't do that: What people say when they reflexively react to what you dream to do, but haven't any authority to stop you.
That's not possible: What people say when they don't want you to attempt something.
It will not work: What people say when they want to scare you from trying.
That is dumb: What people say to make you feel inferior so you'll give up.
I'm not worthy: What we say to ourselves when we are afraid to grow.
I can't do it: What we say to ourselves when we are afraid to try.
I can't stop: What we say to ourselves when we are in a rut or addiction and believe our chemistry rules our lives.
You'll never do it: What people say to us when they think we are stuck in a rut.
There are nearly endless such rules, opinions, memes and ideas that people create and use against others and themselves. It's dangerous to accept other people's rules without asking under what authority and expertise they are trying to keep us from doing what we dream to do. We also must challenge our own rules, often just rules we've adopted from others without first checking to see if they are legitimate, if we are to grow beyond our borders and live our dreams.
Dream Big.
David Curry
Read all of David Curry's blogs at
http://blog.rescue-mission.org or visit the Rescue Mission at
http://www.rescue-mission.org
Posted by Rescue Mission Team on Mon, Jun 11, 2012
Our Adams St. Family Campus is a safe home for homeless parents and children who are rebuilding their life.
Read all of David Curry's blogs at
http://blog.rescue-mission.org or visit the Rescue Mission at
http://www.rescue-mission.org
Posted by Rescue Mission Team on Thu, Jun 07, 2012
Education is a big key to our success in opening up the possiblities and potential for the homeless that we serve. Our Challenge Learning Center is one of the finest and most effective programs around. Read all of David Curry's blogs at
http://blog.rescue-mission.org or visit the Rescue Mission at
http://www.rescue-mission.org
Posted by Rescue Mission Team on Wed, Jun 06, 2012
Thomas Edison kept a to-do list that was impressive and extensive. Essentially a list of inventions and potential solutions, he wrote down the things he hoped to accomplish and get done before he died.
Leonardo Da Vinci likewise kept a notebook full of scribblings and jots of genius. He was creating on paper, writing down ideas that occurred to him, and teasing out ideas on the page.
There is power in writing, in having a place to write down your thoughts, feelings, ideas, inspirations and to-do's. While I appreciate good technology, the discipline of writing, and the benefit fo free-flow mental brainstorming is sometimes best done writing on paper.
When asked recently where I keep my to-do tasks, I shared that I like to keep a simple moleskin notebook to jot down things I need to do, people I need to call, and the write down ideas that occur to me. It's a great reference for me to go back and look over when I'm needing inspiration, keeping myself on track, or needing ideas for my writing or speaking.
Do you keep a to-do list? If so, where do you keep it and how does your system work? If upon reflection it doesn't work, how could you improve upon what you are currently doing?
David Curry
Read all of David Curry's blogs at
http://blog.rescue-mission.org or visit the Rescue Mission at
http://www.rescue-mission.org
Posted by Rescue Mission Team on Tue, Jun 05, 2012
The goal of every social service, whether governmental or private, ministry or secular, should be to help improve the life of another.
Don't just help someone with their job, help them with their life.
Don't just help someone find a home, help them with their family.
Don't just feed them a meal, give them something that will nourish them.
Don't give teach a class, inspire a desire to learn.
Don't just preach a lesson, inspire spiritual growth.
Don't just babysit kids, interact with them.
If the goal is to do a task, that will leave people with the root cause of their pain. If your goal is to make a lasting difference, you will help solve their most entrenched problems.
David Curry
Read all of David Curry's blogs at
http://blog.rescue-mission.org or visit the Rescue Mission at
http://www.rescue-mission.org
Posted by Rescue Mission Team on Mon, Jun 04, 2012
"Let other people live small lives, not you." Jim Rohn
Most of us learn by watching others. Without knowing how to do something, we resort to mimicking how someone else is seen to have done it. Often this is helpful, but there are occasions when it becomes detrimental. What is most of the people you observe are living below their highest potential? What is those you mimic are on the wrong track and headed no where? What if the way they live, the habits you are shadowing, are going to lead them to an unhealthy and difficult season in their life?
Who you choose to learn from matters. Others can choose to live in crisis, stress, sickness, and anger. You choose to go another way. People may choose not to dream big, but instead decide to try to simply survive. You decide to go for it, to shoot for your biggest dreams.
There is a tyranny of expectations, a pressure to live up to what the group is doing. If the group is headed nowhere, cut loose from the pack and head for the mountaintop.
What keeps you tied to others expectations?
David Curry
Read all of David Curry's blogs at
http://blog.rescue-mission.org or visit the Rescue Mission at
http://www.rescue-mission.org