Gladwell is the bomb - I studied his book "The Tipping Point" in-depth at a Group Youth Ministry Summit back in the fall of 2003 with the likes of Doug Fields & Jim Burns - if you haven't read this book, buy it today. His recent New York Times bestseller, "Blink," was equally compelling - it's about how to make the right decision in the blink of an eye and for that decision to have been the correct choice to make. He was a nervous speaker, but very respectful of his audience - even shared his Brethren roots with us!
Malcolm Gladwell - "Social Power"
80 years ago - Fight of the Century with boxer Jack Dempsey. RCA Radio was new; David Sarnoff pushes RCA to do the world's first live radio sports coverage. Huge success - radio takes off. This is a revolutionary change - why did this happen?
1. Dramatic change happens quickly (i.e. 9/11, the Berlin Wall all happened in one day!).
2. Reframing - radio was about classical music & old news before the boxing event. Why buy a 5 foot radio that cost half a month's wages when I can buy a newspaper for 5 cents? After the fight - radio is reframed as being about LIVE news. Movements begin with reframing (i.e. iPod). Biblical example: religion was about rules until Paul reframed it by saying it's about "faith, hope, and love."
3. Social Power - Who was David Sarnoff? New hire to RCA; 22 years old. He had no economic power or resources or political power. But he did have social power - he knows someone who knows someone... eventually pulling off the live broadcast!
Connectors - people with a large social circle who are essential to revolutionary change. Example from "The Tipping Point:" Paul Revere and William Dawes. Revere is a connector and is remembered for stopping the British. Dawes wasn't and is lost to history.
Our society today = Rise of Isolation. We are about circling the wagons (iPod, cell phone, cable tv, internet). Example: Teens today are super-isolated from adults! Connectors are super-important in today's world for this very reason!
Also need Mavens - people with special expertise who help us cope with complexity in order for revolutionary change to occur. When we get overwhelmed by stuff, we call a Maven(plumber). Example: Rick Warren is a Maven. People who didn't understand the Bible were introduced to it's complexity via "The Purpose-Driven Life."