Daniel Im

Pastor + Author

Daniel Im

Stop Chasing the Platform

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“You’re not big enough, smart enough, wealthy enough, strong enough, funny enough, famous enough…”

Ugh, I want to throw up—and it’s not because these messages seem to be everywhere I look. I want to throw up because they’re all true.

It’s true that others are bigger, smarter, richer, stronger, funnier, and more known than you. And it’s also true that you are bigger, smarter, richer, stronger, funnier, and more known than others. But let’s play this out to the end.

Even if you do reach the top and beat out everyone else around you—whatever that looks like—the clouds will eventually clear, only to uncover the fact that there are even higher mountains to climb. And at what loss or expense will you have done this? Only to realize that the success that you apparently achieved is like vapor or a vanishing mist?

Success is like vapor or a vanishing mist. It’s there, but impossible to grasp.

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It.never.ends.

And by “it,” I’m referring to this game of comparison that we always seem to be caught up in. The rat race. And this pursuit for contentment in the very things that never seem to satisfy.

Just consider these words from a famous comedian and actor that seemed to have it all,

I think everybody should get rich and famous and do everything they ever dreamed of so they can see that it’s not the answer.

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(This is from episode 43 of the IMbetween Podcast that I co-host with my wife.)

Wow. I guess Jim Carrey is finished playing games. I wonder if he’s tired of his mask and God persona.

I was recently interviewed on writing in my thirties and what it takes to get published.

Now if this is something you’re aspiring toward, you’ve likely come across the term, “platform.”

These days, it seems like everywhere you turn, you hear about platform this and platform that. Michael Hyatt even wrote a book on platforms to bring clarity to the concept and help you build one.

And it’s true. Without a platform, you won’t get published. But I believe that an over emphasis on building your platform is actually worse than not getting published at all. I’d rather you stay in obscurity than lose your soul to the very thing that brought the devil down.

Better to stay in obscurity than lose your soul to the very thing that brought the devil down.

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Here’s where we get it wrong.

Your platform is not for you. Yes, you definitely need a platform to get published these days, since without one, it’s nearly impossible to break through all the noise and get your message out. But your platform is ultimately not for you.

Your platform is ultimately not for you.

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In addition, no one else is going to build it for you. There’s no such thing as an overnight success or a silver bullet in life, just as I wrote about in my previous book. Others will help—in fact, you need others to help you—but you still need to grind, hustle, and put the work into building a platform.

And once you’ve built something to stand on, you need to keep on working at building it.

But here’s where we get it wrong. If you think the purpose of your platform is for you, then you’re wrong. Yes, you need to stand on it, but it’s not so that others will look at you and lift you up. It’s so that you can help others up onto your platform, in order to help launch them up higher, further, and faster.

If others are looking up at you as the hero and as the blessed one, you’ve got it all wrong. And you need to be careful because pride comes before the fall. However, if others are looking up at you as the guide, since you’re helping them up onto your platform, you will experience one of the greatest joys of life—that of being a blessing.

Here’s my point.

In everything you do, whether it’s writing, speaking, teaching, coaching, parenting, or helping, make sure you’re doing it to serve, rather than to be served (Matthew 20:28). Don’t let the platform change you, and don’t abandon everyone you trust, love, and care about—especially if God so chooses to amplify your platform.

In other words, don’t chase the platform. Because if you do, you’ll lose your soul and eventually everyone around you.

Don’t chase the platform.

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Don’t Do This If You’re a Church of Under 200

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If you’re under 200 as a church, please don’t do THIS

Since my book, No Silver Bullets was published, I’ve received a ton of questions around mid-size communities. And what I’ve come to discover is that they’re not effective if you’re a church of under 200 people.

Mid-Size Communities, or MSCs for short, are critical if you’re over 200, but unnecessary if you’re under 200.

Why?

Well, before I answer why, here are a few bullet points on what they are in the first place:

  • Mid-Size Communities are groups of twenty to fifty people who journey together to celebrate, grow, and be a blessing to those they live, work, and play with.
  • A community that is formed around a common affinity, geography, or societal need—and this gathering point becomes the mission focus of the group. They are a community on mission with one another.
  • A community where you belong before you believe. It’s not just a scheduled meeting, either. Typically, there is a large group gathering every other week, with smaller groups for study and get-togethers in the off weeks.
  • Not a large small group, nor a small weekend gathering.
  • An open, inclusive, and safe environment where friendships are formed and you can discover who you could potentially grow a “deeper” relationship with.

I get that this might be a new concept for you, so be sure to read through chapter 4 of No Silver Bullets to get a fuller grasp of the concept, but here’s why they’re unnecessary if you’re under 200 people.

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Monopoly for Millennials: Lessons for Boomers, Gen Xers, and Everyone Else

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(C) Hannah Yoest / The Weekly Standard

If you were one of the lucky ones to buy Monopoly for Millennials for MSRP consider yourself blessed.

For the rest of us, it’s nearly 5 times the price of the classic edition of the game. And when you look it up on eBay, I think a lot of people are hoping it becomes the most wanted present this Christmas, much like Tickle Me Elmo, Hatchimals, and BB-8 in previous years.

So what is Monopoly for Millennials and why does it matter?

It’s Hasbro taking a dig at millennials. It’s them putting all the stereotypes of millennials into a box and selling it for a profit. I wonder if any millennials were even on the team creating this, or if it was just a bunch of boomers and Gen Xers?

Let’s try and list all the millennial stereotypes that we find on the box:

  • The tag line is: “Forget real estate. You can’t afford it anyway”
  • The Monopoly man is taking a selfie of himself
  • He’s wearing a medal of participation
  • He has his ear buds in
  • He’s drinking expensive coffee
  • There’s free parking
  • The game pieces are an emoji, camera, bike, hashtag, and a pair of sunglasses
  • Instead of the classic car game piece, you can choose a bike
  • And apparently every millennial is a vegetarian since there’s a picture of a cow crossed out

Inside the box, instead of buying property, you can purchase experiences.

“Money doesn’t always buy a great time, but experiences, whether they’re good—or weird—last forever,” says the description on the box. So forget Boardwalk! On this version of Monopoly you get a week-long meditation retreat instead. And instead of Park Place, you can buy a 3-day music festival.

Who takes the train anyway? On this version, you can use bike share instead. And instead of staying at cheap motels, millennials apparently just live in their parent’s basement or on their friend’s couch.

And let’s not forget that avocado toast that millennials are so famous for. Or that live/work loft that all millennials envy—if they can actually afford it.

I’m a millennial

Does that surprise you? Albeit, I’m an older millennial, but I’m still a millennial—so stereotypes like these are getting pretty old. And knowing how long it takes to create a physical product and then get it out for distribution—this wasn’t someone’s side hustle. Hasbro invested a lot into this, they bet big, and it’s paying off.

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Dealing with Conflict: Boxing Gloves or Broom?

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Conflict is inevitable—in marriage, with your children, at work, and pretty much in all arenas of life.

How do you deal with it when it comes? Do you pick up your boxing gloves or a broom?

On the one hand, if you deal with conflict by picking up your boxing gloves, then you likely face it head on, talk it out, and push through to a resolution—no matter how inconvenient it might be, or how awkward it is to those around you.

On the other hand, if you deal with conflict by picking up your broom, then you might walk out, ignore it, pretend it never happened, change the subject, or tell yourself that it’s not that big of a deal and to stop acting like a baby.

When it comes to conflict, do you pick up your boxing gloves or a broom?

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So how do you deal with conflict when it comes? And have you ever wondered why you deal it with the way you do?

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The Influence of Hugh Hefner and D.L. Moody

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Hugh Hefner and D.L. Moody—these are two names (and pictures) that you don’t typically see side by side.

In a Chicago Sun-Times article on the most influential Illinoisans, Hefner and Moody were listed one after the other. Here was their rationale:

Hugh M. Hefner (1926-2017), publisher and bon vivant. Steinmetz High School graduate Hugh Hefner was a product of the Northwest Side Bungalow Belt. His imagination and drive forged a publishing empire and changed the social and sexual mores of American society in profound ways during the 1950s and 1960s. Whatever else one may think of him, he was one of the most influential people of the mid-to-late-20th Century.

Dwight Lyman Moody (1837-1899), American Christian evangelist, author, publisher and founder of the Moody Bible Institute. Born in Massachusetts, but influential in Minnesota and Illinois. Moody converted to Evangelical Christianity as a 17-year-old in April 1855. During the Civil War, President Lincoln visited and spoke at a Sunday School meeting he sponsored on November 25, 1860. Moody preached on many battlefronts including Shiloh, Stones River and Richmond. After the Civil war he moved to Chicago begin a congregation in the Illinois Street Church. Wiped out by the Chicago Fire, Moody began anew and over the next 20 years he became internationally known, holding many religious revivals in Great Britain and Sweden. Moody led the Chicago Bible Institute, and after his death the Chicago Avenue Church was renamed the Moody Church and the Chicago Bible Church became the Moody Bible Institute we know today.

If influence is measured by your ability to affect someone else—their opinions, character, development, actions, and thoughts—then yes, both Moody and Hefner are influential.

And if influence is what we truly want, then we’re living in the best time of history, since everyone has a voice—all you need is a smartphone or a computer to amplify it. Just take a look at your social media feed and you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about.

However, what we desperately need to understand is that influence is not neutral.

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