Fortune Cookie Says...

No offense to my Chinese friends, but I think Confucius got it wrong! My fortune cookie the other night said, "Pray for what you want, but work for the things you need."

I think he more accurately could have said, "Trust the Lord with your needs and your wants, and be diligent."

Technology's Future-- It's Pretty Cool!

Here's an 8-minute video that's worth watching. It starts cool and continues to build... and it's where technology's going... very cool stuff... (just ignore the sixth sense references).

Managing Your Outlook Mailbox-- Part 2

I took Tuesday's blog, developed it little further into an article, and gave it to one of my puiblishers to print. If you'd like to download a free PDF advance copy, click here!

Managing Your Outlook Mailbox

While talking with a colleague this afternoon I realized that many don't have a good email storage strategy. While mine is not necessarily the best, it is a strategy that keeps my mailbox fairly lean. And it helps me be more productive... maybe it'll help you too!

Inbox
I try to keep my Inbox pretty clean. My goal is to have it only contain those new emails I need to respond to but haven't yet. Once I respond to an email (and I always include the original in my response), I delete the one I received. So even though I manage between 100 and 225 emails on any given workday, my Inbox is focused. In fact, right now it only has 8 items in it!

Sent Items
I use my Sent Items folder as a follow-up tickler file. Once I receive some kind of acknowledgment of an email that I sent, I delete the one I sent (especially since all that I said is likely contained in the response!). Emails I send that I don't need a response to either get deleted or filed away (more on that in a moment). The result is that the only items in my Sent Items folder are those for which I'm still awaiting a response. And if I don't get one in a reasonable period time (varies based on the email content), I resend it and add at the top something like "Resending from 2/21..." My Sent Items folder currently has 30 items in it.

Deleted Items
Just like the kitchen trash, I empty my trash at the end of every day. This also gives me a sense of how many emails I touch in a given day, which is kind of fun to know! My count so far today is 266.

Filing Emails for Future Reference
Some emails need to be kept in case I need to refer to them in the future. For these I create a folder that's on the same level as my Inbox called Cabinet (think of it as a filing cabinet). I do this by right-clicking my name at the top of the folder structure and telling Outlook I want to create a new folder. Then I create new folders under Cabinet that help me categorize those emails I want to save. I name them after clients or events, etc to make finding things easy. Then, after receiving an acknowledgement from someone of an email I sent, for example, I just drag it into an appropriate folder in my Cabinet!

There you have it! Nick's tricks to managing email and keeping the mailbox database efficient! I hope you find it helpful!

Clover-- A Great Website Resource for Churches

I was talking with Ian Utile with Trinet, a web solution and development company that helps many large ministries. I like Ian; he's Kingdom-minded, and it shows.

We were talking about the need many churches have for a less expensive solution, and he told me about Clover. Clover has an amazing set of tools for churches for an amazingly low price. If you're thinking of changing where you church is hosted and want a new website for very little $$ (only $1000 plus $20/month for hosting!), check them out.

Ian's also in a terrific Christian band called Take No Glory. I just listened to their music, and it's very good... check 'em out!

Eye Exam Surprise!

Today I had my eyes checked for the first time in five years. The result was wonderfully surprising! My left eye, which is naturally nearsighted, is now less so. My right eye, which is naturally farsighted and has an astigmatism, is now less farsighted and no longer has an astigmatism! The bottom line: my eyes are healthier and I don't need glasses!

Some Perspective, Please!
When I was in college, I wore trifocals full time. That means each eye needed a different prescription for close up, near, and distance vision. By the time I was thirty, I was not only no longer wearing trifocals, I no longer needed bifocals!

After my last eye exam I got some glasses that were blended bifocals. The idea was that if both of my eyes were corrected to see well at all distances, I would see better. But I couldn't get used to the blended lenses, so I probably wore them less than three hours total! Thus, not wearing glasses for the last five years has helped my eyes get better! Go figure.

Benjamin Buttons?
Grace has taken to calling me Ben, after the movie character Benjamin Buttons, because it's as though I'm getting younger! We'll see.

O'Reilly @ Reagan Presidential Library

My family and I got to enjoy a special treat yesterday. We drove an hour up to the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library after church and got to see a bunch of things that most don't ever see up close and personal. Some of those were:

• The Oval Office
• The Magna Carta (the original is on loan there!)
• Air Force One (this picture is me and Grace as we're entering Air Force One)
  
• President Reagan's Tomb
• A large section of the Berlin wall

As if that wouldn't be enough, we also got to hear one of our favorite commentators speak live! Bill O'Reilly spoke extemporaneously to a sold out theater for about an hour. He was entertaining, provocative, insightful, and just plain awesome! We were in the front of the room and sat just a few seats over from Mr. J.D. Powers! Our 17yo daughter and her boyfriend were with us and also greatly enjoyed it.