Two Takes on Tim

As you saw if you read the piece I linked last week, some folks see Tim Tebow's success on the football field and try to explain it. That New York Times piece credited his success to the confidence he gets from his faith. I've heard others suggest that God rewards Tebow with wins because of his faith. That idea starts to get a little problematic when his team loses to the likes of the Bill Belichick/Tom Brady-led Patriots. Does God prefer Bill and Tom's lifestyles to Tim's?

Today, two articles that are a few weeks old:

Here, sportswriter Chuck Klosterman suggests that we just might not be able to explain Tim's success (even with the loss on Sunday, the Broncos are 7-2 with Tebow starting). And he says the inexplicable nature of it is exactly why some love him and others hate him.

In a brief response to Klosterman's post, Bible professor Denny Burk says the most remarkable thing about Tebow isn't what he does on the field, but how he handles himself off the field.

Klosterman on the polarization of opinions surrounding Tebow:

On one pole, you have people who hate him because he's too much of an in-your-face good person, which makes very little sense; at the other pole, you have people who love him because he succeeds at his job while being uniquely unskilled at its traditional requirements, which seems almost as weird.

 Burk on whether God is rewarding Tebow's faith with football victories:

It is wrong to interpret Tebow’s victories on the field as the reward for his behavior. That could all change at any moment. Tebow’s real moment to shine and to confound his critics will probably come when the victories end.

 Well, Tebow's Broncos suffered a loss this week. Is he still shining? Here's a bonus article from Boston Herald writer Ron Borges, which gives you a sense of how he's responding (please forgive the ridiculous comparison of Tebow to Job).

Once [the game] was finished [prayer] was the first thing Tebow did, just like he does when he wins. He was on one knee in the center of the field with a number of players from both teams, joining hands in a prayer of thanks.

Thanks, Tim. You keep giving me a lot to think about. Have a Merry Christmas, buddy, and we look forward to more to blog about next week!

Monday Mayhem Returns...

Since it was so popular last week, I thought I'd link another video from a fellow mayhem-maker. My only question for you this week: Does Mayhem use a stunt man, or a mannequin of some kind, or does he do all the stunt work himself?

To avoid mayhem like ME, don't get All State. Just stop coming to the blog (yeah, like you're going to do that).

Comment away today, because Tebow Tuesday comes again tomorrow.

Tebow Tuesday Two

As yesterday's post referenced, Tim Tebow (with a lot of help from his teammates, and a little from his opponents) did it again!

There are those who are happy to see him succeed, and those who aren't. And there are a whole lot of theories about why and how he and his teammates have succeeded. An interesting opinion piece in the New York Times is this week's feature focus on Tebow. I have to say I see some things the same way as the author. And some things a bit differently. I'd love to hear your thoughts. Here's Frank Bruni's opening question:

CAN God take credit for the victories of a thick-set N.F.L. quarterback who scrambles in a weirdly jittery fashion, throws one of the ugliest balls in the game, completes fewer than half of his passes and has somehow won six of his team’s last seven games?

Go ahead and read the whole piece, and get back here to let me know what you think! And as an added bonus, courtesy of ESPN's Skip Bayless (who brought us last week's interview) and DJ Steve Porter. A video expressing a different nuance on Bruni's theory.

Monday Mayhem - and a Question

It's been almost a week since my last post. I'm definitely going to have to pull off a clutch Tebow-like comeback in order to get 31 posts in December. Do you think I can pull it off? But that's not the question of the night. 

This is: What company has the best ads on tv? Interpret "best" as most entertaining, most effective, a combination of the two, or however else you might evaluate them. For my part, I think insurance companies are at or near the top when it comes to entertainment. For instance, I love the mayhem that All State has been creating - enough that I'll keep posting one of their videos every Monday for awhile. We'll call it Monday Mayhem. Meanwhile, maybe y'all need to read my confessions again to remember why it's important to leave comments here. :) Enjoy the video, and I'll see you tomorrow for another Tebow Tuesday!

Tebow Tuesday - a Timeless Tradition Takes Off

Note: I set out at the beginning of this busy month of December to post once a day. I've already fallen short. But I can still post as many times as there are days. I just need some creativity, some determination, a little gimmickery (if this was a real word, this is how I'd spell it), and maybe even a lazy link or two. OK, it's not really lazy to link to things others may not have read/heard/watched but might like to if only they were connected (synonymous with linked) to it. And it's especially not lazy to do so in the context of giving one's own take on the linked material. The remainder of this post is an example.

I'm not giving you all of my thoughts on Tim Tebow. Not this week. And I'm not even giving you a description of who he is or what he's been doing. If you know anyone who spends any time around sports, they can tell you the basics if you don't already know. Or you can get a synopsis of his football-related accomplishments from this NFL season in this article from DJ Gallo.

The main point is this: he's the talk of the NFL. The whole sports world, really. But not because he's the best (on the football field) or the worst (in terms of trouble off the field). In fact, though his team has been successful since he's started playing, he hasn't been impressive in any statistical category, with the exception of three. Wins. And talk. I don't mean that he's grabbing for attention. In fact, in some ways he deflects it - to his coaches, his teammates, and his faith. And the attention the media pays to him is anything but reciprocated. He's not worried about what other people are saying. But I should stop. Because this story is still being written, but it's already being evaluated like Shakespeare in AP English class. And I have some fond memories of that class. So, without further ado, here's the first of many installments of Tebow Tuesday, a weekly link to an interview or commentary on this person who's garnered as much love and hate as a presidential candidate. And given the list of candidates on the ballot at this point, it might be worth considering a write-in. I hope you find this story to be as compelling, inspiring, convicting, and fun as I do.

Tebow in Tebow's words:

"I want to be someone that makes a difference, because at the end of the day, if all we're doing is winning and losing football games and scoring touchdowns then we really haven't done a lot with our lives, but if we're in the business of trying to encourage people, bring faith, hope and love to those needing a brighter day in their darkest hour of need...then we're really doing something successful with our lives."

This doesn't sound really controversial, but for reasons many are still trying to grasp, Tim has been the most polarizing player in football this year (and maybe ever?!). Until next Tebow Tuesday...

(click the link above. It's a long video, but worth watching. If you want to skim, check out the 9:00 mark and following for comments about faith, and his perspective on what defines him as a person).

SORRY!

I humbly offer an apology to anyone trying but unable to  Some of you have let me know (through my network of contacts) that you've been trying to comment and have been unable to do so because I had permissions set to allow only google accounts. I think this issue has been resolved. Please forgive me, and comment away.

Also, I apologize for not carefully editing my post last night...thanks to B.E. for catching my spelling mistakes which have been corrected (as of a few seconds into the future). :)

Give it Away - Good Business, and Then Some

In the conclusion of a recent essay posted to his blog, music artist Derek Webb makes a desperate (or is it bold?) plea:

"So please buy my music.  Or take it for free.  I’m honestly just grateful to have your attention."

What would drive a musician to the point of offering up the fruit of his toil without receiving anything in return? Well, nothing. Even Jesus said, "It's more blessed to give than to receive." Meaning there's an incentive to give rather than receive: greater blessing.  Now don't leap to conclusions about what that means without digging into what Jesus (and the rest of the Scriptures) had in mind when they said "blessing."


Back to the matter at hand, Webb's essay was suggesting that the model of giving music away in exchange for some basic contact information can lead to a relationship that cultivates more long-term monetary profit for the artist. The gist of his argument:

"If someone buys my music on iTunes, Amazon, or in a record store (remember those?), let alone streams it on Spotify, it’s all short-term money.  That might be the last interaction I have with that particular fan.  But if I give that fan the same record for free in exchange for a connection (an e-mail and a zip code), I can make that same money, if not double or triple that amount, over time."

He goes on to say that the artist connects with a lot more people by giving away their music (more people will download it free than buy it), and that if even 20% of those downloaders end up coming to a show or buying other music from the artist, they will make 2 or 3 times the money they would by selling their music on iTunes (let alone the pittance they make from streaming services like Spotify). But I think Webb assumes something about an artist in his article, something that I'm going to make explicit here: True artists don't make their art in order to attain fame and fortune. True artists embrace whatever measure of fame or fortune aids them in continuing to make their art.

And that's precisely why the "give it away" model that Webb's music distribution site Noisetrade.com offers is so right for artists. As he argues, it helps them sustain a profit, which helps them sustain their music-making. But beyond finances, it gives them a model that enables their art to connect with more people, because it removes the initial barrier of financial cost from between the consumer and their music. And while many artists would say they make art for themselves, because it's who they are, and because they can't NOT do it, I've heard enough from them to believe that one of the most gratifying experiences any artist has is when someone else benefits from or relates to their music. What an opportunity! Give your music away, let it make that kind of impact, and reap the benefits of that deep connection by receiving promotional value as people pass on their appreciation for the music, as well as financial value as people are more willing to pay for music - live or recorded - now that they've connected with the artist.

One aspect of Webb's essay did strike me as out-of-place, though. He spent a significant amount of time disparaging Spotify (and similar services) for their lack of profitability for the artist. While his points seem valid, (and it's at least interesting to the music consumer), couldn't a better approach be a brainstorm for how the popularity and discovery/distribution of a service like Spotify could enhance the "give-it-away" model. If artists are already willing to give their music away on Noisetrade, couldn't the website partner with (or compete with) other streaming services by offering a direct link from a streaming service to FREE downloads of the artist's music on Noisetrade?

Ok, it's your turn: Comment on Webb's article, or my response, the music industry, Noisetrade, Spotify, or whatever. Also, can you think of other areas of business or life where this sowing freely and reaping freely principle are at work? Or could be?

I've got one for you. Now what do you have? And how are you going to sow generously with your life?