Currently, I serve as the Senior Pastor of the Mars Hill Baptist Church of Chicago. Contrary to what many believe, pastoring Mars Hill is more than preaching, counseling, and praying. Aside from my pastoral duties, it can be compared to running a small business.
Yesterday, I received a phone call regarding my productivity habits & tools, thoughts on computer hardware, life hacking, and advice for young pastors, entrepreneurs, and leaders. The questions are as follows:
What type of bag do you carry and why?
Currently, I carry a Tumi Laptop Briefcase. It’s the Alpha Expandable Leather Organizer Model. I know this bag is rather expensive, but, after carrying cheaper bags, it’s worth the investment. Tumi bags are always sleek, modern, stylish, and durable. The Alpha model is not exception, with its bold, black, streamlined look. It excelled at each challenge I set for it. Trust me, you’ll enjoy this bag for decades.
What’s In Your Tumi Bag?
- Apple MacBook (That’s right – no PC here)
- BlackBerry Storm (yep, dropped my iPhone until they work out a few kinks OR until it comes to Verizon)
- Amazon Kindle (this is the future of publishing – imagine carrying ONE DEVICE around campus that contains ALL your books. Personally, I like it, but, I don’t see myself giving up books).
- Moleskine Notebook (Journaling, capturing leadership moments, ideas/planning, etc).
- Chicago Tribune To Go (gotta know what’s happening in and around Chicago).
- Wall Street Journal (gotta stay connected with the world – especially the financial world).
- Leadership Journal (The #1 Journal for pastors & church leaders).
- Rev. Magazine (The best magazine for ministry application).
- Homiletics Journal (A must have for those who take preaching seriously).
- Expandable File Folder (My life is compartmentalized so I need folders to reflect that).
- Starbucks Mints (I believe in fresh breath & I carry them especially for others & offer them immediately).
- Levenger True Writer Obsidian Pencil (I use this pencil when I’m suited up & taking notes in professional settings).
- Levenger Executive Rollerball Pen (ditto).
- Levenger Pocket Brief (This time-tested leather notepad is the tool for taking good notes on the run, at presentations, and over lunch)
- G2 Pens (The G2’s are everyday writing pens that don’t bleed – honestly, in my opinion, they are the best writing pens on the market).
- Flip Digital Video Camcorder (You never know when something may happen).
- Reality Check by Guy Kawasaki (This book is a MUST HAVE for leaders – sorta like a desktop reference guide).
What gadgets do you use on a day-to-day basis?
I have such a crowded life and crowded schedule. When people send me a link with a gadget, I’ll look at it and buy it if it looks interesting, but I don’t have time to check out everything I’d like to. Currently, I use the following:
- BlackBerry Storm (I use it as a digital camera & voice recorder)
- Amazon Kindle
- Platronics Discovery 925 (My bluetooth earpiece)
- iPod Classic (My constant companion loaded w/many audiobooks, music, & podcasts)
What are you using to manage your email?
Currently, I use Apple Mail, but, lately I’ve grown fond of Gmail. It has an excellent spam filter and I can access it from any computer anywhere in the world.
What’s your web browser of choice?
My browser of choice is currently Firefox. I do not use Windows Explorer (WE) and may switch to Google Chrome (Mac Version). WE has too many security issues for me and I don’t like its current interface. If they improve WE with Windows 7, I may look at it again.
Great post, bro! This post highlights the need for us to be spiritually aware as well as culturally astute. Also, staying abreast and being sharp intellectually and culturally will cost you. Yes, it will cost you money on the front end, but it will secure opportunity and niche on the back end. If you don't invest resources to remain sharp now, it will cost you on the back end – loss of ministry opportunities, loss of ability to understand and speak to and into the soul of this culture, and even loss of net worth as a leader. The leader who fails to stay sharp through reading, and being mentored and coached runs the risk of oxidating right before our very eyes. Man, thanks a million for speaking into my life and adding value to my ministry. GO BULLS! Rock the Westside for me a little.
Soulman – what's good up in Grand Rapids, MI?
Thanks for your feedback & I'm glad I was able to share something of value. Like you, I take the long term view and view it as an investment that'll pay great dividends. I don't want to be one of those leaders who, as you say, "oxidize right before your eyes."
Currently, I'm looking mentors who can add value and help me get to the next level. Any suggestions?
GO BULLS!!! I'M A BELIEVER!!!
I'm checking out Ministry Coaching International and Building Champions (the business side of Ministry Coaching). Have not committed yet, but I have a friend who recommended them. Have you heard of the organizations? A friend of mine said the Life Plan segment is worth it.
I'm curious about why you carry hard copies of the paper and magazines instead of subscribing to them via your Kindle.
Also, have you done much with PDF's on the Kindle? I'd love to get one but most of what I'd read is in PDF form and I've heard it doesn't work very well.
Hi Chris,
Thanks for your post! I tried subscribing to both newspapers on the Kindle (2-week free trial period) and I guess I'm somewhat old school when it comes to reading the paper. I tried it, but, I didn't like it on the Kindle. I know this is the future of publishing and I will likely try it again.
Like you, most of what I read are PDF's that are converted to Kindle format using Mobi Creator. Currently, I have over 100 PDF's on my Kindle and yes, formatting can be difficult, but, it's not major problem that renders PDF's unreadable.
Regarding magazine subscriptions, currently I subscribe to Newsweek & Fortune, but, the others are not offered by Kindle as of today. When they are, I'll immediately drop my print subscription and go Kindle.
Thanks again for your feedback!
OMG – I love this post. I wanna play – cuz I believe in carrying the right stuff too.
So, let's see. I carry the new Swiss Army Laptop Backpack – I don't know the URL and all that – lol. It has a gazillion pockets though. I'm going to find a use for each one really soon.
It contains my laptop, charger, I-touch, boom noise reducing headphones (I ride the Metra everyday – lol), Orbitz Gum (I too believe in fresh breath and I buy the gazillion pack from Sam's club), Blue Diamond Natural Oven Roasted Cinnamon Brown Sugar Almonds (to hold me over), me eco-friendly water bottle typically filled with ice water, my notepad & pen (just any regular one – nothing fancy) for jotting down recipe idea, my Sprint air card (gotta stay connected) and I carry all the latest magazines with me – Bon Appetit, Cooking Light, Ebony, and Black Enterprise.
I use Google Chrome – it's a beast and I love it. I use Outlook to manage my e-mail. I love it because I have various e-mail accounts going into various folders – plus, it gives me much more of a corporate feel. I also carry my Blackberry Curve everywhere I go. It has my bible and I can use it for quick notes too – plus I love the Twtterberry and Facebook applications which are a must – several times a day. Let's see – I also use Photoshop daily too – gotta take great pictures in high resolution – then need to resize and edit. Other than that – it's my Canon Power Shot camera – and that about covers it.
Loved this post. By the way, I texted Shauntai – I told her, I'll work something out soon for you two.
I forgot something – I use meebo.com to manage my IM. It's a God send – seriously. It takes my yahoo IM, AOL AIM, Facebook, and Google Talk IM's and puts them all in one browser – no more having to run all those applications with varying features…and it's in one window – so no more little boxes popping up all over the place.
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