yourboss

Getting Along with Leadership

August 13, 2011 — 1 Comment

Have you ever been in a situation where you think you know what’s best for your church or organization tech wise, but your pastor or other leader seems to disagree? I know I’ve been there in the past, and it can be extremely frustrating. I’m lucky to currently serve under a pastor who really understands and gets technology, and constantly pushes me to learn and develop my skills. In the past, I’ve had some drastically different experiences, and I hope I can share a little bit of what I’ve learned so you can avoid some of the frustration and hard feelings.

The problem with the relationship between many technical folks and their leaders is a lack of understanding. Many times the leaders simply don’t understand what we do, and have a hard time making a decision about something they don’t understand. Take the time to walk them through your idea or proposal in plain English. They will appreciate it.

Other times, it helps to try and look at the big picture the way your pastor or leader sees it. Many times what you think is worthy of spending a little money may not be so necessary in the big picture or scheme of things. When someone is responsible for an entire organization, they have to field requests for spending money not only from you, the technical director, but from the personnel folks, building maintenance, music, etc… I think you see my point, that many times it’s better to try and understand your leader’s decision rather than change it.

What are your thoughts? Any more insight you could offer?

[Image via Times Union Blogs]

 

In Church, Leadership, Strategy
Too-Loud-1

Audio Aggravations: Volume

August 12, 2011 — 2 Comments

[Editor's Note: This is part of the Audio Aggravations series of posts.]

I’m sure if you’ve spent any amount of time running audio in a church environment, you’ve heard something similar to, “It’s too loud!” It seems that no matter how hard you try, someone always thinks it’s too loud, even if it appears to be fine for everyone else. I’ve definitely experienced this, and have come up with a few “rules of thumb” for this situation.

1. Evaluate the Source

This may sound rude, or inconsiderate, but I think many times you should simply stop and evaluate who it is that’s complaining about the volume level. You’re never going to be able to please everyone, so if the majority of your audience is fine with it, sometimes you just have to smile and nod towards the ones who aren’t. If you’re in a church that regularly runs 95-100 dB, you might even consider offering earplugs for those who’d rather not “feel” the worship quite so much.

2. Get a Decibel Meter

This is probably obvious, but having an accurate decibel meter on hand can assist you in making sure your volume is consistent. If the band starts getting a little too loud, or the guitarist keeps cranking his amp up during a solo, having a decibel meter to objectively measure this will help you adjust accordingly.

3. Talk With Your Leaders

Once you have your decibel meter, make sure to talk with your leaders and find out if they’re ok with the volume level you think is appropriate. You may have to give them a crash course in how the decibel meter readings correlate to volume level, but the main idea is to show them what that level actually sounds like so they can make a decision.

I think using these tips when mixing in your own environment will help you to make sure everyone has an enjoyable experience, and that the message isn’t colored or hindered in any way.

Stay tuned, next time we’re going to talk about feedback!

What other tips or experiences have you found helpful for volume aggravations?

 

In Audio, Church

Audio Aggravations

August 11, 2011 — 2 Comments

While just about every aspect of church tech fascinates me, my primary area of focus is audio. That’s what I’m studying in school, so it’s what takes up most of my time and energy. I’m going to start a series of posts about some common aggravations with audio I’ve both seen and experienced in a live church setting. Here are some major points I’m going to try to focus on:

  • Volume
  • Feedback
  • EQ
  • Effects

Is there anything else you’d like to see me cover as part of this series?

[Image via Bad Credit Daily]

In Audio, Church

How Does the Church Use Technology Effectively?

August 10, 2011 — 0 Comments

I’ve written previously about churches using technology effectively, but haven’t really defined what I think that means. Bear with me, and I’m going to make an attempt at doing that.

I believe technology should be used to enhance a church service, but not get in the way and cause attendees to focus on the technology rather than the message. The more complicated and advanced you decide to go, the more time you should spend on making sure equipment is functioning correctly, volunteers are trained, and everyone knows what to do in case something does fail so that it doesn’t cause a distraction, and the service can continue without interruption.

Of course there will always be times when something catastrophic happens, and things may go haywire, but being able to minimize the distraction caused by such an event is something I believe we all, as technical directors, should strive to be better at.

There are many other aspects of technology that can be used to further the message outside of a normal service. Things such as social media, podcasting, live streaming, etc. These are all things I want to spend some more time talking about here in the future.

Would you add anything to this definition of effective use of technology in church?

 

In Church, Strategy

Is Technology in Church a Necessity or a Safety Net?

August 9, 2011 — 10 Comments

The new buzzword in church growth these days seems to be “relevant.” In order for a church to grow, it’s message and methods need to be relevant to today’s culture. I understand this mindset to some extent, because today’s culture likes to be entertained, and won’t sit through an hour or more of boring teaching and singing. We should make sure we’re engaging the audience we have both in a church service and before and after one. Technology has become a major way of engaging people during a church service. Many times I forget I’m at a church service, and instead feel like I’m at a concert or other large, well produced event.

I applaud churches who can do this effectively, and have nothing against having fun or being entertained in church, it can be a very effective tool, as I said. I do wonder, though, if sometimes we fall back on technology as a crutch, or safety net, thinking that the Gospel alone isn’t enough to change someone’s heart?

I don’t want to come across sounding like I’m against utilizing technology to further the Gospel, because that statement couldn’t be further from the truth. However, I sometimes struggle with whether the technology can get in the way, and bring the focus off of what’s really important.

This is something I’m constantly wrestling with, and don’t know if I’ll ever fully figure out.

What are your thoughts?

 

In Church, Thoughts
bible

Technology and the Church

August 8, 2011 — 0 Comments

If you haven’t noticed, I’m very interested and involved in discovering how technology can be used to advance the Gospel. I think this is a fluid endeavor, with ever-changing rules of engagement. I hope that this blog will develop into a community where we can discuss how technology affects the proclamation of the Gospel, some best practices, and anything else that comes along with the territory.

One of the first things I want to explore is whether technology and the Church should always go hand in hand, or if there are times when technology is better left out. This is something I’m still pondering myself, so I look forward to some discussion.

 

Image via themonastery.org

 

In Church

A New Blogging Effort

August 8, 2011 — 2 Comments

I’ve been really enjoying blogging over at ChurchMag. I love being able to share my thoughts on church tech with a community as large and interactive as ChurchMag’s is. While I’m definitely going to continue to write over there, I want to try and refocus my efforts and focus on my blog here, and begin to share some thoughts I have and have had for a while on technology and the church. I hope you’ll join me for the ride! Stay tuned!

In Blogging

South Carolina Int’l Auto Show

January 17, 2011 — 0 Comments

Here are a few of my favorites from the auto show this weekend.

Chevy Volt

Chevy ZR2 Concept

Lotus Evora

Lexus IS-F

Jeep Wrangler Black Ops Edition

In Uncategorized

Why I’m sticking with AT&T

January 11, 2011 — 3 Comments

I think the Verizon iPhone announcement today is a great thing. Choice, especially in wireless service, is good for consumers. That being said, I have no plans to switch from AT&T to Verizon, and here’s why.

1. Cost. The cost of terminating the current contract and then signing a new one, along with buying a new phone would be crazy. Luckily I have great service everywhere I normally go with my iPhone, so that’s not an issue. Which brings me to my next point.

2. Service. I know many AT&T customers have issues with dropped calls and even no service, but I’ve never experienced those problems enough to make me want to drop my current contract.

3. Simultaneous Voice and Data. Not that I use it that often, but it is good to know that I can if I need to. Sometimes I have my headphones in to talk on the phone while still answering emails, checking Twitter, etc…

4. GSM vs. CDMA. In the US, this isn’t a big problem, but if you travel out of the country, this can become an issue. I don’t have any plans to travel out of the country anytime soon, but I do like the fact that I’m using a device that’s capable of that.

Are you buying an iPhone on Verizon? If so, are you moving over from AT&T?

In Uncategorized

Snow!

January 10, 2011 — 2 Comments

snow_truck

I’m seeing a lot of snow here, do you have any where you are? How much?

In Uncategorized