EPS 45: Staying RELEVANT – Guest Cameron Strang

Welcome!

This episode was originally an audio and visual conversation (on Blab- Cameron’s first!) and you can view that as a REPLAY below.

Cameron Strang is the founder of Relevant magazine and Relevant media group–arguably the most influential media forces for Christians under the age of 30 in the world. This powerhouse reaches over 17 million people per month through their various media efforts of tv streaming, podcasts, books, music, magazines, and more.

How did he do it? Why? What makes it work? What’s the future for Relevant? The answers will surprise you.

cameronstrange


New here? Well, then….Here’s the skinny….

SPARK MY MUSE is a twice-weekly broadcast!

Friday episodes are longer conversational ones with guests. Find the full list here.

Wednesday episodes are shorter, potent ones called “Soul School” with homework for you overachievers–you know who you are. Find the full list here.

Spark-LIVE: Catch some of the Spark LIVE. The LIVE discussions with friends and guests are on interesting topics about 3 times per month and they are great. Catch the Replays you miss here at the website.

• To join in for the LIVE events you Sign up HERE; (YES they are FREE). BUT! follow me on Twitter for links and info too. (This is smart because some discussions are listed elsewhere with with colleagues on their accounts.)


Scroll down for Show notes marked by the minute.

Related links from the episode:

• RELEVANT magazine on twitter
strang• Cameron Strang on Twitter

• RELEVANT Magazine website!

• The STORY of Relevant (Video)

• Reject Apathy

• Rick Warren

• Rick Warren on Twitter


 

SHOW NOTES
MIN 8: writing the business plan in college.

MIN 11: Target demo is a psyco graphic – average reader is 27 years old.

MIN 12: Reorganizing the company in 2012 – pruning process. Cutting 2/3 of staff and going from 750,000 thousand viewers to 17.3 million each million.

MIN 16: Working 8 years to get the 1st issue done. Doing a podcast for 10 years.

MIN 18: What’s next?

MIN 19:30: The surprising November (2015) cover about martyrdom.

MIN 20:30: Reject Apathy themes are not marketable on newsstands

MIN 22: What the name for the magazine “Relevant” means

MIN 24: When the church wanted to be relevant and changed it’s delivery method.

MIN 25:30 Social Justice issues / Reject Apathy, sustainable change and help for the poor, and how that began with Rick Warren.

MIN 30:30 Relevant.tv (since 2006). Moving past print and onto screens and living rooms,

MIN 32:00 Hillsong United

MIN 33:30 on pop music

MIN 35:30 Why they are based in Orlando

MIN 37:30 Where their readers are located and the surprising international readers

MIN 38: Will Relevant be translated into other languages an go into other countries?


 

VIEW THE Original LIVE conversation (replay)

Episode 9 – Wine: moderation vs. medication (The famous HALT method)

Shownotes:
Spark My Muse
Episode 9 – Wine: moderation vs. medication (The famous HALT method)

 

This is a surprise “mid-week” episode. This show normally goes live each Wednesday. Episode 10 and 11 are longer special interview episodes.

Episode 10 (airing May 27th) Emily Miller writer and journalist for the Chicago Sun-Times and Relevant Magazine

Episode 11 (airing June 3rd) Daniel J. Lewis prolific creator of an entire network of podcast programs, including nationally-awarded shows on how to podcast, comedy, and the #1 rating discussion show for ABC’s series “Once Upon a Time”.

Check back for those!


This episode was brought to you by “The Daily Sharpening Ritual”–The perfect way to supercharge and renew personal awareness in your life.
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Wine segment

How much wine is considered “drinking in moderation”?

Rule of thumb: 2, 5oz glasses per day is moderate drinking, and no more than one drink per hour, or four drinks per occasion (like an all-day event like a picnic or wedding)

But if it’s hard to go a day without drinking wine (or wanting to), rethinking your relationship with wine is needed.

The show details some physical repercussions of over-consuming wine, and a practical way to build mindfulness.

• If you unsure that your consumption is healthy, jot down the feelings behind the desire to consume wine so it doesn’t master you.

• Wine can too-quickly be used to medicate ourselves, and this hurts our Souls. Be mindful. :)
(“Soul” meaning what it does in Hebrew: our whole-self, mental, spiritual, creative, relational, etc)


Sparking your muse

Featuring the book by Brennan Manning called, “The Wisdom of Tenderness”.

Explaining “the HALT method” for decision-making:

Brennan Manning died last year, and he is probably best known for writing the Ragamuffin Gospel. He accumulated a lot of wisdom through life, but it didn’t come cheap. Poor choices, wrong turns, and hard lessons molded him, eventually, into a person of great compassion and grace–a sage for the poor in spirit and those smart enough to listen. Many sought him out for his wisdom.

When Manning came into recovery as an alcoholic he learned a buzzword from AA (Alcoholics Anonymous). AA folks use it as a method and smart tool to create greater awareness in those vulnerable to slipping back into alcohol abuse.

• They stay on the lookout for four qualities that make them susceptible to relapse and are encouraged to seek help when they identify them occurring in their life. Before they take a sip they look for the signs and call for backup.

halt

If H.A.L.T., then halt.

Regular internal check for these:

H – Hungry (not just for food, but a longing in general)

A – Angry (or stressed, or frustrated)

L – Lonely (or rejected, or left out, feeling alone in the world)

T – Tired (often tired from helping others or being otherwise overcommitted)

We all need to cultivate an awareness of our vulnerabilities to avoid a slide into poor choices, creative slumps, or dangerous behavior.

Sometimes we don’t even realize our feelings while we are having them or how we are trying to soothe our selves.

Let’s develop the awareness to halt and take an internal inventory or seek help when we get run down, over-extended, or when we find ourselves feeling in some way hungry, angry, lonely, or tired.

 It is awareness which is at the heart of any ingenious creative pursuit, meaningful transformation or spiritual growth.


 

NEW next week (May 27)…A great interview with my friend, Emily Miller (writer and journalist for the Chicago Sun-Times and regular contributor to Relevant Magazine).

JUNE 3rd, comes an interview with expert creative, Daniel J. Lewis!

 

Please take part in this anonymous 30-second listener-survey so I can continue to produce the show.

Spark My Muse

The post-SANDY blog post

UPDATES!

• Storm SANDY is gone. Our cable and internet power is gone too (I’m at a McDonalds today writing this).

• I’m featured on the (Moody Bible Radio’s) Midday Connection blog. I hope you can read it!  ARTICLE

• Soon I’ll be selling my digital book on AMAZON.
Soul Care VOL1-5 (Themes covered in the digital book will soon be featured and summarized at RELEVANT magazine online. WIN! I’ll post the link once I get it.)

• Do you want to write about something similar to the themes you see here? I have two guest post spots up for grabs in November. Do you want to contribute? Drop me a line, and let me know. :)

Thank you ALL so very much for your prayers for us during this monster storm. Please consider donating to the RED CROSS to help the many victims hurt by Sandy. If you can donate blood, they need it very badly. The storm disrupted 100 blood donation drives.