TRAPPSTR

How I’d spend $1000 at age 23 (pt 1)

Posted on 25. Aug, 2009 by Brett.

I wrote last week about your 20’s being all about personal development. I’m 27, so my 20s are winding down. But if someone handed me $1000 after I graduated at the age of 23, and they told me I had to use it to invest in myself, here’s how I’d spend it:

• $300 – 32 gb Ipod Touch – Most people already have an ipod/iphone, but it’s probably not big enough. And playing music on an ipod is like driving a ferrari in 2nd gear. That’s well and good, but there’s so much more! I’m amazed that most people have no idea about podcasts, short, FREE radio-like shows about different topics. You can find podcasts on ANYTHING and the content is great. I listen to podcasts about business, marketing, entrepreneurship, and God. What makes podcasts great is that you can listen to them while you drive, run, etc. These people become your own personal mentors, and you learn a ton. It’s like an MBA for lazy people. (Sidenote: itunes now has tons of audio books as well)
• $300 – Learning lunch with 3 Christian business leaders. I’ll write later about the art of the learning lunch but it’s basically when you take someone out to lunch to learn as much from them as possible. John Maxwell made this idea famous in his book “The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership.” As a young leader he would identify leaders he wanted to know, call them, and then offer to pay them $100 to eat lunch with him. Usually they’d do it, many times for free because they were so impressed (and flattered) by his initiative. You’ll learn a lot by asking great questions, and you might find a mentor in the process. And that’s the real goal.
• $75 – Three 5k run registrations – Within one year of graduating, my once fiery metabolism froze in a catatonic sludge. I gained 30 pounds and looked like I was wearing a pool noodle for a belt. I haven’t lost all that weight, but I’m getting there. Getting started running has been huge. Most decent-sized cities have 5ks all the time (check out www.active.com). Pick out three and register for them all. Bam. You’re committed now so you can’t back out. Fitness is part of development.
• $100 – Energy/protein/snack bars - This one is random, I know. But this will complement your running well. I’m not exactly the healthiest eater in the world (okay, I eat brownies for breakfast, there, I said it…). I’m a relentless snacker and transitioning to healthy sweet stuff has helped. Energy/protein/snack bars used to taste like chocolate-dipped treebark but they’re a lot better nowadays. I’d go buy a ton of em and build that habit into my life right now. My two favorites are Larabar and the Snickers Marathon series.
• $25 – A couple of magazine subscriptions – I know, print is dying, but I still like magazines. I recommend Fast Company and Inc. Both very engaging and packed full of good information. They’re like Christmas morning for the entrepreneur.
• TOTAL – $800 (To read about the last $200, click HERE)

What have I missed? What would you spend your 1k on?

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You can’t rage against yourself

Posted on 13. Aug, 2009 by Brett.

Democrats rage against Republicans. Fans of Manchester United rage against Liverpool fans. Same with cats & dogs…always at war.

That’s how it goes with rivals.

You don’t see this with bicycle riders and car drivers though. They are forced to share the same turf, and cyclists are the vast minority. Every year, many cyclists are injured and killed by motorists. It’s a tragedy. But there is no hate. No rage. No picketing. Someone might launch a safety campaign. But that’s it. Could you imagine a bunch of cyclists attacking some drivers in retaliation?

Why? Where’s the outrage? Why don’t the cyclists ban together to defeat the drivers?

Because cyclists are drivers. They cycle and they drive. They play both roles, and you can’t rage against yourself.

Same way with family. We have a short fuse if a stranger wrongs us. But we’ll give grace a million times to a family member. Why? Because we are one of them. They are one of us. They are one of me.

If your customers are upset, make them one of you. Make them an insider. Invite them into the conversation, and make them a character in your story. I bet their tune will change.

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RIP: Soloists

Posted on 12. Aug, 2009 by Brett.

In 2009, soloists are at best, ignored. At worst, dying.

Solo leaders. Solo business people. Solo pastors.

There’s just too much noise nowadays. It’s hard to be heard over a thousand other singers.

The market for soloists is dwindling. But the market for conductors has never been better. Conductors are those fine musician-leaders who have a knack for getting the right people in the room and getting them to work together. It’s a beautiful thing when you get the trombones, the flutes, the piccolos, the violins, and the percussions all on the same page. You’ll be amazed at who will listen to that song.

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Church>Fraternity>Business

Posted on 08. Jul, 2009 by Brett.

I knew we had won when they announced Kansas State as first runner-up.

Me and my 15 fraternity brothers, dressed in suits and ties, were nervously sitting around a banquet table at the national awards ceremony for our fraternity. We were surrounded by hundreds of fraternity brothers from across the nation. I had a cell phone pressed to my ear as we sat in the huge conference room at a sweet hotel in downtown Indianapolis. On the other end of the phone were 50 fraternity brothers crammed into our fraternity house in Florence, Alabama. They, like us, quietly waited for the announcement.

Which group of men would be crowned Top Chapter, the best among 130 ATO fraternity chapters?

K State’s chapter had won it 4 out of the last 5 years. They were the big dog—twice as many members, a million dollar endowment, and a glorious chapter house that slept 50 (ours slept 4). Their bulky annual report was legendary. It read like a how-to manual on building a powerhouse fraternity that schooled other chapters in academics, bulldozed rivals in intramurals, shunned hazing, dazzled the community with social service, and embarrassed other chapters with the best parties. But now, the room was buzzing that Kansas State was announced as the SECOND place chapter.

Then it came…

“The ATO Top Chapter for 2003 is…”

I stretched my cell phone towards the stage.

“Theta Eta, the University of North Alabama.”

The room exploded. I shot out of my chair like a bottle rocket, arms raised. I hugged a couple of randoms and made my way to the stage. As chapter president, I got to receive the shiny golden cup on behalf of my chapter.

…….

That night was a turning point for me—the mountaintop after three years of climbing. The chapter I was initiated into in 2000 was hardly tops in any category. Our recruitment sucked, we were smoked in intramurals, our GPA was mediocre, and we threw lame parties in our lame garage that smelled like sticky floors and body odor. We couldn’t be dominant at our own university, much less nationally.

But there were rumblings amongst the brothers…..

Rumblings of a desire to be better. Rumblings of a desire to be the best. And so we set out to build an organization that was number one. We set crazy goals. We had loud debates til 3 in the morning. We challenged each other to dump the frat-guy lifestyle and be men—men who stood for something, men who conquered, men who wanted to be different. I was hooked–hooked on dreaming big, hooked on teams, hooked on chasing after something bigger than myself.

We were all hooked. After being named ATO’s best chapter, we were given the Award of Distinction from the North American Inter-fraternity Conference. This placed us as one of the top 6 chapters among thousands of fraternity chapters nationwide.

……

This was miles away from where I started. My dad was the pastor of a large Southern Baptist church in Alabama. I was the preachers’ kid and the youngest of three sons. I got fired up about God in high school and felt sure God wanted me in the ministry. I even walked to the front of the church to “surrender” to church work. They patted me on the back and said I’d be great at it.

But that all changed in college. Gospel-driven discipleship found me, and I learned in my fraternity that you could set an organization on fire with good leadership while still having a ministry. Impact could happen outside the church…hmmm.

I graduated in 2005 and had the opportunity to link up with the founders of a new startup in Atlanta. It was a couple of guys with a remarkable idea. Their enthusiasm was electric. Their vision was volcanic. I had to get on board. I worked out in the field for four years until I took over as Lead Innovator in 2009. I now get to sit around all day and think of better ways to tell our story. I work with people who are so much more talented than me it’s not even funny! I am unbelievably blessed.

To watch a video of Brett receiving the Thomas Arkle Clark award in 2005, see below

Brett Trapp – TAC Award Winner, Alpha Tau Omega Fraternity (ATO) from Brett Trapp on Vimeo.

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About TRAPPSTR.com

Posted on 08. Jul, 2009 by Brett.

TRAPPSTR.com is the homebase for writer Brett Trapp. Brett blogs from the frontlines of a fast-growing, for-profit company that merges business and world-change with an obsession to turn our clients into raving fans. Brett focuses his writing on Capitalism (business, leadership, marketing, etc) and Grace (Christianity, Gospel, God, etc.). He grew up in Alabama, lived in Nashville and has recently made his home in Atlanta. Brett loves having a foot in two worlds as a student of fine business and a clumsy follower of Christ. By day, Brett serves as the Lead Innovator for a world-changing, Atlanta-based company that does financial development for schools & leadership development for organizations.

I am a child of Oregon Trail, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Saved by the Bell. When I was a kid I wanted to be an archaeologist. I was the 1994 Lauderdale County, Ala. Spelling Bee champion.  I have a mild obsession with college football. I excessively use a Blackberry, an iPod, a 55-inch television, satellite radio, GPS, and 3 computers. I still eat Lucky Charms, am a slow reader, and I procrastinate…bad.

I don’t believe in ghosts or making your bed. I’m a republican, but I don’t think God is. I’m not super “green” but I do try to be lime. I’ve seen three people and a dog die (my dad died when I was 19). I believe Spiderman is better than Batman and Superman. I don’t mind eating by myself in restaurants. When I go to Wal-mart, I don’t push the buggy, I drag it. I like movies where something is attacking earth, and earth has to ban together to fight it off. I believe all trilogies pale in comparison to LOTR. One time, when I was in high school, I put gasoline into a styrofoam cup…really dumb.

I believe in the Bible and Jim Collins’ book “Good to Great.” In a perfect world, I would be a super-Christian. Unfortunately, I’m not. I have ego sitting on one shoulder and insecurity sitting on the other. I believe that if you could only listen to one song every day for the rest of your life it should be Chris Rice’s “Life Means so Much.” I believe that if you do nothing more than smile a lot and ask others questions about themselves, you will go far in life.

The perfect day for me would be rounding up all the cheesy church signs and dropping them in the ocean. I think God loved us so he sent Jesus. But to show he likes us, he sent Mexican food. I believe the Gospel is the A to Z of Christianity, not the ABCs (thank you T. Keller). I believe the most dangerous belief you can hold is that you can earn God’s love or acceptance. That only comes through Jesus.

And with everything in me, I want to know that my life counted for something.

Thanks for reading my blog. :)

To watch a video of Brett receiving the 2005 Thomas Arkle Clark Award, click here

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