February wasn't all candy and roses for the staff here at SignUpGenius. We've been working hard on a number of fun upgrades! Check out some of these recently added items:
Planning Resources: A new site section with helpful tips and articles for group organizers
Community Features: You can now add your comments to any article and join the conversation!
The Genius Blog: News and advice from yours truly, Dan Rutledge, co-founder of SignUpGenius
Revised Privacy Policy: We decided to make this more clear to assure even the most skeptical users
We've also added a bunch of themes in the last month or so. Click on the thumnails below for a preview.
I've been involved in leading church groups for about fifteen years. Whether you lead a Sunday School class, community group, or men's study... finding the right study for your group is always a challenge. You want to find a study that is appealing to your group (so that people show up!), that has the right amount of prep work to fit your group's commitment level (again... so that people show up!), and of course, one that is spiritually significant (so that people actually GROW up!).
Personally, I am not a big fan of "taking a poll" to discuss what the group should study. I find that this can backfire and people start debating what study to the point that you cannot pick something without people being upset. Also, I heard a great tip one time that basically went like this: "The shepherd does not ask the sheep where they want to go to pasture." If you are the leader, then God has entrusted you with the responsibility of helping guide the spiritual growth of your group. Get suggestions if you'd like, but then pray and try to determine what you think God wants your group to be learning.
My last tip... is to purposely choose variety in the type of studies that you do over time. God designs us differently and no study is going to engage everyone. By varying the studies each time, you can minister to everybody. So one time, choose an in-depth Bible study that requires a lot of prep.... then read a popular Christian topical book on something like marriage... and follow that with a Christian Life DVD series, etc.
If you're interested in some recommendations, check out my reviews of 3 Great Small Group Studies that I've used with my church groups!
Lots of great changes coming for SignUpGenius in 2010. It can be a tricky thing orchestrating the direction of a web property. There are a lot of possibilities and the challenge is prioritizing and creating a singular vision. Here’s a little debate that I’ve been having with myself lately… community or utility?
Everywhere you turn these days, community is the buzzword on the web. Though some people insist that we are transitioning into a new 3.0 age... to me it seems like the concept of web 2.0 (interactive communities and user-generated content) is really just starting to hit its stride with the masses. Grandma and grandpa now have Facebook accounts, your pastor and boss now have blogs, and pro athletes hire their own social media consultants.
As I mentioned in my last post, I’ve been a bit behind. It’s not because I’m not tech-savvy. I’ve been building web applications for 15 years. No… I think it’s a birth order thing… because honestly I was never much into the whole web 2.0 idea. To me, the web was all about productivity. Utility. It was a tool, not a playground. I visited websites that helped me get work done … like book an airplane flight, or manage my photos, or let me buy something 20% cheaper and 50% faster than I could do locally. As a job, I built corporate web applications that earned people real money rather than helping them reconnect with their high school sweetheart.
Like I’ve said, I’m a firstborn, type-A planner. I always thought I’d leave the Tweeting to those 3rd children in the family that just want to interact with people all day. SignUpGenius, up until recently, has reflected a bit of that thinking. It’s a productivity application designed to save time and avoid headaches.
However, in the last couple months, I’ve finally been realizing the advantages of the web for community. Yes, I’ll grudgingly admit that I’m actually enjoying Facebook. And I’ve been exploring ways that SignUpGenius could be more than a utility, but also a community of people that can help each other with their planning/scheduling/leadership responsibilities. Thus… we’ve recently added the blog and the resources tab with helpful tips and interactive commenting features.
But… I don’t want to get sidetracked from perfecting the useful functionality of SignUpGenius. That is still our priority. And with all the gobs of community sites out there… do you really even need any community features as part of SignUpGenius? What do you think? And be sure to say where you are in the birth order when you answer.
I know. I know. If there’s one thing the world doesn’t need, it’s another blog, right? Your sister has one… your best friend has one… your kid has one… even your pet hamster has one. Enough already.
I can relate. I confess that I’ve been a bit of a “blog-basher” in the past… and when it comes to blogs, I’ve definitely been out of the loop (or do you say “bloop”?). One time I was leading a church prayer group and I asked our members to share prayer requests. We were going around the room sharing requests and one woman actually said to me, “Just check my blog.” I nodded politely… and then immediately wrote “blog addiction” down on the prayer request sheet.
After that night, I went out and bought a T-shirt to wear to church. It read: “More people have read this t-shirt than have read your blog.” I thought it was hilarious. And then I gave it to my wife to wear…. cause I was a little scared of what Miss Blog Addiction might do to me… even at church. Never mess with a mom and her blog.
Anyway… so why bother with this particular blog?
Well… a year and a half ago, I helped launch this fun little site SignUpGenius.com. It was birthed out of my own frustration in trying to plan, organize, and coordinate groups and events. I built the site primarily because I desperately needed a tool like this so I didn’t lose my own mind! But after it was built, a funny thing happened. People all over the country started using it… a lot.
It’s been fun to see it grow. And it’s been really neat to interact with users all over the country – organizing Type-A Planners, just like me – who are looking for a better way to organize their church, school, family, or sports group. I’ve enjoyed great email dialogues about possible SignUpGenius enhancements, had people ask me about sign up and event related resources, and even been sent fun stories of what people have used SignUpGenius for. The users of SignUpGenius have become a little “community of planners” to me – a brotherhood of in-the-trenches people dedicated to organizing the world.
So… Planners of the World, Unite! This blog is for you. I’ll be keeping you up to date on the latest SignUpGenius upgrades, sharing thoughts related to leading groups & events… and occasionally just rambling on technology and family-life topics that crack me up.
So check back when you can. If you’re anything like me… you’ll probably end up reading the blog on your phone while simultaneously eating dinner, driving to a church event, quizzing your kids on their homework, listening to the radio, and writing out a to-do list on the steering wheel.
And… I promise to be more interesting than your hamster.
ABOUT THIS BLOG
Like you need another blog to read, right? Well this one is completely different than anything you've ever read before!! Um... not really. But you can read it if you want to keep up on the latest SignUpGenius news and the off-beat thoughts of our co-founder Dan Rutledge.
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