carriesteppgraves

The Trinity – easy as apple pie?

Homily preached on the Feast of Gregory of Nyssa March 10, 2020 They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on the shoulders of others; but they themselves are unwilling to lift a finger to move them. Matthew 23:4 We might call Matthew 23 a chapter of rebukes in the Bible. JesusContinue reading “The Trinity – easy as apple pie?”

Monks in the World

1 John 3:2-3 Beloved, we are God’s children now; what we will be has not yet been revealed. What we do know is this: when he is revealed, we will be like him, for we will see him as he is. And all who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he isContinue reading “Monks in the World”

A prayer for survival

I preached my first-ever sermon at work on Tuesday. I chose to celebrate the feast day of Thomas Cranmer early. (His true feast day is today, March 21.) Cranmer left Anglicans and Episcopalians the gift of our Book of Common Prayer in somewhat of the same way Jesus left us set prayers by which toContinue reading “A prayer for survival”

Monastic eating in the new year

Over the past two years, I’ve done the Whole 30 four times, two of them more completely than others. What I’ve noticed as I continue to go through the program is that it gets easier, more habitual and more instinctual each time. Makes sense. The more you do something the easier and/or better it getsContinue reading “Monastic eating in the new year”

Are you collapsing online? How to navigate context collapse for professional success

Today is Wednesday, October 17, and we are here today on this COM 655 podcast to talk about navigating context collapse in the professional world and how doing so is essential to professional success. For resources related to this podcast and its subject matter, see my annotated bibliography here GravesCarrie_Week6_AnnotatedBibliography_100718.

It’s Complicated: the Social Lives of Networked Teens

by danah boyd a book review An often overheard comment in conversations about parenting or among those who ponder the state of the world is that social media is bad and dangerous. What is so often missing in subjective articles, news stories and other avenues of pop culture is the notion that social media isContinue reading “It’s Complicated: the Social Lives of Networked Teens”

Top Ten Best Practices for Communicating Organizational Identity and Brand

You need some new athletic shoes, what kind are you dying to get? You’re traveling for work, in a hurry, and need to eat? What’s the national fast food chain you’ll be relieved to see in the airport? I love fizzy drinks, but the only soda I ever really want is Coke. I’m in theContinue reading “Top Ten Best Practices for Communicating Organizational Identity and Brand”

Wish me luck!

Applying Goffman to the VW Diesel Crisis of 2015 In preparing the below presentation, Applying Goffman to the VW Diesel Crisis of 2015, I learned that Volkswagen was reluctant to admit their failing at first. Once they did, things got better. What I realized was that if the company would have benefitted from having aContinue reading “Wish me luck!”

A tradition worth fighting for

A tradition worth fighting for: applying a consensus-oriented public relations approach to the New Coke incident of 1985. In the case of post-crisis New Coke, Coca-Cola demonstrated its intention to right its strategic communication error – taking away the people’s Coke and replacing with a new product. When the public protested, they took a consensus-orientedContinue reading “A tradition worth fighting for”

Employees first, customers second

A case of divine reversal? Turning the world of management upside-down. Employees first, customers second. For anyone coming from a retail background such a phrase is a difficult one to swallow. Particularly for a local business, how could one imagine not doing everything possible to keep customers happy, ensuring every possible penny would come one’s way?Continue reading “Employees first, customers second”