Friday, April 28, 2006

Something Fun for Your Friday



I think this is a great example of "The K.I.S.S. Leadership Principle" = Keep It Simple Stupid. And it's also a great contrast between Apple and Microsoft. Simplify, simplify, simplify ... I think that's the message our generation needs to hear ...

And I'm in the middle of reading the book below ... a few interesting observations ... a lot of stating the obvious ... while some of it has made my eyes roll big time (as in "give me a break!"). My impression so far ... it's just ok - not as "groundbreaking" as advertised IMHO.

Currently Reading
Growing Healthy Asian American Churches
Ministry Insights from Groundbreaking Congregations
Editors: Peter Cha, S. Steve Kang, and Helen Lee

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

hey Eddie~ :)

the video indeed says something~ :) I heard they are releasing like six versions of their next Windows? that really could be a material for someone's stand-up comedy act, it's ridiculous!

Anonymous said...

Hey EBae,

Yeah, I heard about that too. It's sad but I think Microsoft just doesn't "get it" anymore ...

It's amazing how a company can go from being the leader in its field to being left in the dust ... it just goes to show you how crucial vision and knowing your target is for success ... in any field really.

Anonymous said...

Hey Eddie~
Thats soooo true! Apple does a really good job in making things simple, but theres still a difference between simple and simplistic ^^ simplistic is eaaaaaaasy but simple takes alot of effort~ (i think im talking about more about design..life?hmm..thats more complicated..)

Anonymous said...

Hey Eunji :)

If IKEA doesn't work out, maybe you can work for Apple! They seem understand the value of design and marketing more than MS ;)

And yes, the simple vs. simplistic hold true for our faith too. :)

Anonymous said...

Great find! Yes, simple has its own elegance, for sure. Microsoft does still have a majority of the computing public, and the wordiness is a reflection of knowing their customer - the buyers at huge corporation, and most of them do like "wordiness". To contrast, take a look at a Microsoft product that is aimed for the masses, a la XBOX. Simple design for simple people there, eh? :)

As for the GHAAC book, it's still the first time that things have been in print. The obvious needs to be stated and exposed.

Anonymous said...

Hey DJ!

Yes, their XBox was a good attempt to be more like Apple (though last I heard MS is losing money big time because of XBox!) .. but even a side-by-side comparison of their software boxes (e.g. Windows vs. Tiger or Office vs. iLife) shows a very different design philosophy in "reaching the masses".

And I agree also that stating the obvious was needed in a book like GHAAC, but I think because of where I've been (and where I am now), I was longing for the "next stages" type of book in terms of where we go now, esp. for the kind of relationship the 2nd and 3rd generation Asian Americans will have in leading a church ... now, something like *that* would truly have been "ground-breaking".

And maybe I also would have preferred one that didn't present such a polished version of a 1st and 2nd gen relationship, esp. in chapter 7. Because that relationship is one that can be very "messy" in terms of understanding each other, implicit theology, pseudo/confucian/spirituality and even in answering the question WWJD? in a real staff meeting between 1, 1.5, and 2.0 generation pastors(!). :) It just didn't seem "real" in most of the contexts that I'm aware of.

But I guess that's the cost of being pioneers ... you have to deal with a lot of raw dirt ... and a lot of arrows in your back (!) ... ;)