The Daily Undoing: Recent Episodes
David Gaudet
A 60 second flash of insight and action, to learn, leverage and develop your innate competencies, assisting you in your journey of being better at being human.
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Grateful to all undo-ers who are helping to ignite a movement from within themselves.
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It's easy to go down proven paths, but your value in the workplace will rest upon your ability to innovate.
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The best collaborations remove the dreaded ego element.
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Character building must start from promises made and kept with yourself.
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Humans screw up, but learning from those is our best prevention from unnecessary problem solving.
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You'll make a lot of announcements in 2021. Don't allow them to blend into the abyss.
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As we unwrap gifts we should be reminded of our minority place in a world of less fortunate.
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Planet earth doesn't care about our traditions and sentimentality, making it a role model critical thinker.
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We have never had so much access to so much knowledge. Untapping it is unleashing a sharply curious mind.
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What if you could unknow everything you know about failure?
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We all collaborate with our local community each time we support local businesses.
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Inhibit literally means to be discouraged from proceeding either through internal or external constraints. What would happen if you could literally mute the voices which inhibit you?
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Competencies have three dimensions - attitude, knowledge, skill - but the first one looms as the key to solving problems.
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Playwrights and screenplay writers take painstaking steps to develop characters and storylines. So should you.
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Dr. Seuss's "The Lorax" provides the perfect definition of citizenship.
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Perhaps the real mindset for critical thinking is to unpredict. To first delete the idea that everything must be explainable.
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Engage Curiosity From All Senses
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There's a pay-off to consciously paying attention to your imagination’s pictures.
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Releasing power when it is for the greater good, can only be achieved by those with the greatest sense of self-security.
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"Who Owns This Icehouse", by Clifton Taulbert and Gary Schoeniger, brings forth lessons about entrepreneurship which have to be demonstrated in order to be learned.
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Problem solving is a process requiring each step to be followed.
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Getting attention is hard enough, but it doesn't stop there.
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Your sense of citizenship relies on your taking hold of a cause proactively and moving the needle on your own.
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The value of making sense concisely from the firehose of data.
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It's difficult to force curiosity. You must instead create a mental condition for it to happen.
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Creativity begins with a personal vision, likely spurred from someone or something else.
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Collaboration requires participants to look for ways to relieve one another in the face of exhaustion.
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Angela Duckworth's book, "Grit" supports the theory that perseverance wins, but it's more than never saying never.
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Good is better than perfect.
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Professional communicators need to loosen their grip when it comes to spreading good news.
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With the calendar slowly churning toward the end of this bizarre year, a subtle challenge is placed before us.
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Predictions need not be wrong, provided true critical thinking dominates the prediction process.
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Seminal human behaviour book also features iconic cover art.
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The design thinking process suggests an order and sequence, but reality would suggest otherwise.
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The world needs more "effectors" and less "infectors".
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American Thanksgiving reminds us of all we have, and all we are.
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Problem solving involves getting into the minutia of origin.
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Another nugget from the wisdom of Dale Carnegie, urges praising over flattering.
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Being open to everyone cannot stop at enemies.
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Critical thinking has never been more important than in the landscape of fake news.
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Time on Linkedin is never wasted.
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The conspicuous absence of design thinking's final step.
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Amalgamating is not just for big business, but a mindset for collabs of all kinds.
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The isolation and discomfort of character tests are exactly the point.
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Unlike the problem solvers in movies, who make problems go away and hide evidence, true problem solvers revel in evidence gathering.
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Mixing shock with a clever contradiction can often gain the attention sought without offending.
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Assisting others through disappointment doesn't have to be as awkward as we make it.
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Stringing entities and events together to make sense of them is an effective form of practicing critical thinking.
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The contradicting views on curiosity.
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Accidents lead to creativity and should thus encourage the concept of flipping things once in a while.
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We remember those whose sacrifice on battlefields, makes our Covid sacrifices, on balance, somewhat unbalanced.
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A recent talk with Righteous Gelato's founder, James Boettcher reveals the essence of entrepreneurial resilience.
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In an era where fake news has created a cottage industry of "fact-checking", you still own the power to refute fiction all by yourself.
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While reduced to a second-class citizen by it's more sophisticated "Listen" sibling, there's still a place for hearing as part of your competency pallette.
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Stephen Covey's "7 Effective Habits" is over 30 years old, but still relevant today...with a little updating.
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Removing things from the big picture is as important as seeing it in the first place.
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Curiosity needs manual priming of the pump, through simple acts of mucking.
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The day after the election envelops us in more uncertainty than the day before.
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Presidential Nominee Joe Biden's slogan, "Battle for the soul of the nation" is a message with uncommon gravity in an election uncommon importance.
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Don't leave it to fictitious lawyers to call foul. You need to object to that which is not right.
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Another page is torn off the calendar, reminding us to tear away the burdens of lagging problems.
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Another calendar milestone arrives under the cloud of corona, but revelers say "screw it", and hit the streets.
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Imagine the world in which you wish to live, while focusing your behaviour on future consequences.
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While you're freeing up space in your device, don't forget to give your brain a little of the same treatment.
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You'll never find anything new in the familiar. Snoop in unlikely places.
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Focusing solely on one thing, means eliminating focus on everything else.
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Collaboration is not a skill, but a competency, which means it's a system of attitude and knowledge as well as a demonstrated skill.
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We don't just call upon our character in times of crisis; we need it throughout a day's mundane annoyances as well.
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We lose our fear of failure all too early in life, causing me, as a father to borrow wisdom from Mark Manson's "The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck".
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We can let or emails become swallowed up in the abyss. Or we can attempt to actually gain something from our efforts.
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"The Social Dilemma" has drawn lots of Netflix viewers, and lots of conversation, mostly focusing on our depiction of puppets under the mastery of puppeteer tech firms.
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Pricing is a tricky proposition because it requires getting out of your head as the business owner and REALLY getting into the head of your customer.
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This classic exercise from George Perec is a perfect remedy to boredom and the skill of observation.
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Step two of the five step design thinking model needs a little clarification.
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An uplifting interview with Calgary entrepreneur Jim Button prompts a rare 2-parter, tapping into one man's values and wisdom.
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Calgary entrepreneur and community-building pioneer Jim Button's public battle with cancer is as much a source of support for others as it is for himself.
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Two famous quotes about planning come to mind in the process of problem solving.
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A recent ad in The New York Times, featuring the "Fearless Girl" statue wearing a lace collar, reminds us of the power of mystery in communications.
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Holding guilt over someone's head is a power trip, which we must eventually release.
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Marvin Gaye attributed a lot of his success to a "lust for curiosity" - an attitude from which we can all borrow.
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Canadian Thanksgiving today brings warm and fuzzy fall thoughts of how we feel when acknowledged.
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Gamifying the difficult problem-solving component of creativity can work wonders in productivity and morale.
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Everyone contributes to the chemistry of group work. What are you infusing?
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The losses we cut ultimately define us more than the wins we achieve.
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Calgary film firm turns garage into home studio with amazing results.
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Talented communicators intuitively know when it's time for detail, or time for summary.
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In a year of shouting our opinions over top of one another, a certain peace and sense of citizenship befalls those who go quiet and reflect.
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Critical thinking can be design thinking's greatest foil and friend - at the same time.
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Not all distractions are bad, so allowing curiosity to scout out the wild ones can be a good thing.
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British Petroleum recently predicted the end is near for oil and gas, but they plan on being at the forefront of renewables.
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A chance call from an old colleague taught me a lesson in networking, just for the sake of networking.
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Season's ushering brand new emotions.
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Problem solving is more like a science experiment than a checklist.
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His book, "How to Win Friends and Influence People" is almost 90 years old, and yet Dale Carnegie's wisdom lives on.
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We've regressed enough through covid with the return of single use items, lets make a little greater effort to get more out of our durable products.
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The clunky and flawed return to school for Alberta children is likely not much different than most would have expected. But why did we not catch all of the "unexpected" consequences?
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There's a difference between passive curiosity and "empathetic" curiosity. And that difference will advantage you and those around you.
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Stanford Design School's "30 Circle" activity highlights the value of just doing it.
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The Southern Alberta Institute of Technology recently announced the launch of its School for Advanced Digital Technology, in what will be a total facelift of one of Calgary's iconic heritage buildings. Local tech-preneur Jim Gibson was named "Chief Catalyst" of the school. But any of us can be catalysts. We need only cause change.
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Assertiveness is better demonstrated without the puffed out chests and empty bluster.
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Many things we describe as talents are really choices about how we expend our resources.
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Don't claim better - claim different.
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Critical thinking requires more than just thinking.
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In his book, "Curious", Ian Leslie describes "empathetic curiosity" as the desired state for maximum curiosity effectiveness. Here we provide a simple tactic, not to me overused.
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“If you are not prepared to be wrong, you will never come up with anything original.” Sir Ken Robinson
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The on-off ramps of daily life represent constant need for collaboration with the world around us.
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Seeing the courage in others should give us pause in what we have, as well as what we can give.
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Systemizing that which causes problems, is in itself a form of problem solving.
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Speaking up is not only your personal right, but also your responsibility to yourself, if you'd like to be remembered.
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MacKenzie Scott's wealth makes most of us cringe with envy, but the world would benefit more from following her example.
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We must adjust to the change brought about by covid, the same way we eventually did, the events of 19 years ago today.
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Following your curiosity for mere moments of your life can generate a level of satisfaction often under-estimated.
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Design thinking begins with empathy, and particularly, the goal to determine who has a problem, and specifically what is the problem to be solved.
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Group work theory suggests there's always a "harmonizer" who organically surfaces in group work, when in reality, we are all have a part to play in keeping the group chugging along peacefully.
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Whether or not Ellen Degeneres has any wrongdoing to which to confess, the brushing aside of bad news has predictable impact.
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De-cluttering, minimalizing, re-organizing; or whatever you want to call it, has great benefit to you psychologically, but also to how the world sees you.
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Deepak Chopra's definition of "soul" helps explain why communicating from this metaphysical place, resonates most deeply with our audience.
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Darwin's hypothesis, that smiling actually creates happiness, has been corroborated in recent studies, proving that even fake smiling triggers a release of endorphins.
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We knew that all of the material waste associated with saving ourselves might be harmful to our planet, but perhaps now we need to tighten our gaze at the consequences.
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Mark Twain said, "watch where people are going, and by land there", which pretty much sums up the definition of marketing and business.
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A couple of Stanford profs taught us a lot about the true meaning of trying - even, and especially, in failure.
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We think of collabs from the logic of 2 heads better than one; but it's really about the complimentary strengths of each head.
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We all succumb to sunk cost fallacy, believing that if we just hold on to something just a little longer, it just might work.
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We think of automation as a means of speeding things up, but more importantly it allows more effective distribution of resources.
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Articulating means expressing yourself clearly, coherently and effectively, which means getting your point across exactly as you had intended.
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The only way to be altruistic when it comes to corporate goodwill is to say nothing about your goodwill.
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Return to school plans are forging ahead, but with apparent lack of critical thinking around contingency planning.
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Curiosity is a competitive advantage, especially when it leads you down insightful rabbit holes.
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Retargeting is not just a marketing term in the era of digital, it's a natural design thinking reaction to rejection.
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Taking a page from the bee's vital ecological role, we too can pollinate that which we touch with our own unique potion of skills, experience and personality.
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The self-policing of cell-phone use in our household has come full circle, as kids and parents keep watchful eye on one another's screen time.
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Going through a household's expenses can be both depressing, but rewarding, when the investigation exposes things you can do without.
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By pure chance, veteran communications pro, Scott Emmons became our 1000th Instagram follower a month ago. We're humbled that anyone would want to follow us, but citing Scott's portfolio, we were particularly thrilled.
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GAFA (Google, Amazon, Facebook, Apple) have been under scrutiny this summer, all surround antitrust violation, demonstrating again the need to defend against uncontrolled growth in power.
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Joe Biden's running mate Kamala Harris will draw from her experience as a state prosecutor to endure what's hurled at her in coming months, and hopefully demonstrate the focus required to reach the greater goal.
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Summer has a way of turning our minds to auto-pilot. Kindling our curiosity takes effort, but is a required jumpstart.
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Spotify once again proves we're more than happy to have our mind (and mood) read if the results save us time.
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As pro sports leagues continue to stumble and fumble their way in and out of actual competition, the National Hockey League seems to be beating the odds, thanks to unlikely agreement by all involved.
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Bessel Van Der Kolk's work in the interplay between mind and body in dealing with trauma, gives us insight into our physical body's role in rebounding from setbacks
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Accountability partnering has become a thing, primarily because we're more likely to stick to a commitment if we put it out there.
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The euphoric sense of enlightenment we get from learning something new, can also be generated from within and shared with others.
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As more and more regions around the world legislate the wearing of face coverings, what's holding you back?
With back to school scenarios changing daily, parents are forced to deliberate their children's fate with unprecedented weightiness.
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The abrupt onset of the pandemic in March forced us to unlearn, but our yearning for "normal" set us back to troubling old ways.
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Social bubbles may save sanity of some, but if taken too far, will not only cut off some from required social interaction - they could also hinder design thinking.
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Social bubbles, a new term borne out of the pandemic era, help some people satisfy social needs, while cutting others off further from it.
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We tend to white lie, and self-justify minor moral shortcuts, but true character is measured by how we conduct ourselves at all times.
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Problem solvers, true problem solvers, are doomed to be unpopular, because they aren't in it to please everyone.
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Two different approaches to dealing with interacting human activity tells us more about how to be productive and welcoming.
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Inter-provincial travel in Canada is alive and well, no matter what media or politicians say.
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Tech and innovation are evil temptations to critical thinking.
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With one month left before a very non-routine return to school begins, we cannot afford to assume newly created models of teaching are here to stay.
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"Faire Living", a quaint shop in the equally quaint village of Qualicum Beach, BC, demonstrates the value we seek beyond physical products.
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1 community; 2 shops; 4 owners; countless artists. This is not an exhaustive description of Vancouver Island's vibrant creative community, but it is a reflection of its one-for-all vibe.
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You choose what to do with what you are dealt. An irrefutable law, and pillar of the Entrepreneurial Learning Institute's "Ice House" course.
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More takeaways from "Atomic Habits" by James Clear, as we briefly break down his 4-part habit-changing framework.
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In her podcast "Merch Money", host Helen Kinson and guest Dvorah Lansky open up a beautiful can of worms, with the suggestion that keeping your talents to yourself is selfish.
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James Clear's "Atomic Habits" is another one of those self improvement books, that can also be applied to business.
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Every action you take leaves another one untaken, and other babbling stabs of wisdom from a father.
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Creative thinking continues to be a coveted workplace skill, but will also keep you ahead of AI's takeover of the world.
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Altruizing is another made-up word, but it goes to the heart of one of the biggest moral dilemmas in business.
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Much of our shift to virtual communication will stick around forever, thus making it more imperative that we learn to decode nonverbal cues from those with whom we work.
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Bald eagles spend hours just staring out to sea, surveying their environment. We could learn from bald eagles.
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We get carried away with how we look, where we should be concerned with how we perform.
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We fall into habits of comfort like quicksand. The way out is to avoid predictability with words we use in our communication.
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Curiosity is the root of all authentic learning. If you wish to keep pace in the workforce and life, you must embrace the desire to learn.
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In the wake of a pandemic, and the ongoing encroachment of AI on the workplace, the World Economic Forum has deemed critical thinking one of humans' most important skillsets.
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All businesses have had to pivot in 2020, but those who have done so successfully have "tangebelized" their product by giving them more substance.
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Despite the ongoing parade of demonstrations playing out alongside the events so far in 2020, we must not loose our motivation to use this tool to express ourselves.
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When we have received confirmation of the pandemic's passing, business travel will return because of the very thing for which business travel is scrutinized. Fraternization.
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Finding ways to rank in a target market's mind is a goal which long pre-dates the digital era. It exists in our everyday desire to be noticed by others.
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The world famous Calgary Stampede was one of countless events cancelled by Covid, but organizers still managed to stay relevant with fireworks on what would have been opening and closing nights.
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It's amazing how much of a difference a simple reply to an email can make. Probably because it is such an overlooked communications tool.
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Curiosity is an attitude "setting" which must be engaged in order for all portable skills to flourish.
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The etymology of the word debate shows a jaded past which has thankfully evolved.
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Despite our growing consciousness of waste, landfills and the 3 R's, we have a long way to go in cleaning up our personal environmental footprint.
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The sum total of front line workers' sacrifice years away from being fully recognized or appreciated.
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Hilton teams up with Lysol to help offset costs of sterilizing hotels, but also to show source credibility.
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Character is a portable skill which requires conscious activity. You can practice it by being the bigger person, even when that inner voice says it's not up to you.
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While "obey" is a word usually frowned upon within democracies, it is one we must all take up, even during a celebration of personal freedom.
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The communications model, featured in every intro-to-business/marketing/communications/HR textbook the world over...is flawed by its assumption of human behaviour.
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It is already a year like no other. Why not let the summer of Corona become the summer we rediscover the joy of curiosity as well.
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Canada continuously ranks as one of the best countries in the world in which to live. But as we celebrate our centennial today, we must look inside as to how our renowned sense of neutrality still falls short.
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The "I'm not creative" is as misinformed as it is self-deprecating. Everyone possesses creativity, and using it is as easy as simply expanding beyond your comfort zone and trying new things.
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Volunteering should be a part of every business student's resume, because it looks good, does good, and feels good.
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Collaboration means sharing resources including your own intellectual capital. Giving time, treasure, talent and knowledge toward the common goal is where the full benefit of collaboration happens.
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A rising tide floats all boats, is generally used as an economic metaphor, asserting that when the economy is strong, everyone benefits. But it is also a metaphor for societal psychology in general.
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K-12 teachers around the globe encountered the perfect storm problem in 2020, and while technology and camaraderie were there to support them, they relied on their own "teaching intuition" to themselves, and our kids through a year for the ages.
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Communication is often created and executed as a commodity, rather than a treasure. While practically, it is the former, impact comes when it is treated as the latter.
Dina Ottoni Battistessa and Tristan Katz founded Akidemy Early Learning Centre in Calgary in 2014, based upon the pillars of curiosity, creativity and experiential learning...which also happen to be pillars of undoing as well. They are our guests in Episode 19 of our other podcast Background Noise, and inspired today's 60 second takeaway.
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Critical thinking demands a lot from our cognition. Namely an effortful objectivity, which can often be challenged by a strong and effective rant.
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Competency based education addresses a growing chasm in the space between post-secondary education and the workplace....yet it is still a sorely under-emphasized concept.
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Father's Day usually brings me more self questioning than self congratulating. The purpose is there, but is the execution right?
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In a year like know other, this year's summer solstice should be comforting like no other.
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Today's post is a nod to one of the best business books of the last decade, "Play Bigger" (Ramadan, Peterson, Lochhead, Maney). The world is still full of problems waiting to be solved. To become known as the solver, you must own the position.
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Dr. Joe Dispenza is a revered, if not controversial figure in brain research and the metaphysical. His best selling books, international speaking engagements and appearances alongside the likes of Oprah have also given him a podium from which to hand down his instructions. While appearing well researched, achieving them is easier said than done.
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Shauna Vowel of YYC Collab Box is our guest today on Background Noise, our other podcast found on these same platforms. She talks about the care in which she took just in the packaging of the maker boxes she's distributing in Calgary. It teaches us all a lesson in how we present ourselves to the world.
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If you think tinkering is just for the "handy" or artisanally gifted, think again. As a thinker, you too can be a tinkerer...or is that, a thinkerer. Either way, the key is curiosity.
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Despite psychological data asserting that we approach problems according to our personality type, we have to be nimble and flexible enough to adjust from one situation to the next.
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As kids we delight in creativity for creativity's sake. Slowly over time it is squeezed out of us to the point where we have to structure it into our lives in the form of design thinking. We need to jump into more mud puddles.
The fallout from Covid 19 will continue for ages after it has finally been snuffed out. There are simple things we can all do to mitigate environmental impact.
As the fallout of the George Floyd tragedy continues, the backlash toward the concept of the municipally funded police service has come under scrutiny, resulting in a new buzzword. But when did the old one lose its meaning?
We're so busy trying to draw attention to ourselves, it is uncommon to hear someone extend credit to others. And yet, you earn more respect yourself when you're big enough to spread the love.
Bonnie Vandersteen guests on our entrepreneur podcast, "Background Noise", this week. She and her husband boldly launched their healthy snack brand, Happy Fats, in the midst of the Covid 19 pandemic. While the unique food product itself is enticing, the unconventional brand name will be the first lure for consumer attention.
Here in Calgary this time of year, we prepare for an onslaught of thunder, lightning and hailstorms which wreak havoc on home owners and insurance companies. Roofing companies are beneficiaries of this, but one company in particular is leaving nothing to chance.
Ironic how we'll pull out our phone to search for a lower price of a t-shirt we want to buy, but will leave it in our pocket when we don't know the meaning of a food ingredient we're about to put into our body.
You can take a short cut to forming your own personal opinion by hopping on to the nearest bandwagon. But if you really wish to make meaning of the world, and its events, you have to work a little harder.
While we usually stay in our lane of providing positive daily tips for self-improvement, the reach, scope and impact of the George Floyd's tragic death 10 days ago, sets us on a path of reflection.
Brodie Thomas, founder of Calgary's Uncommon Cider Co, is steadfast in his resolve to establish the position of Western Canada's only urban cidery, using the traditional English process, while also allowing for innovation. He tells his story on our other podcast "Background Noise" which drops today here and on all podcast channels.
Entrepreneurs are constantly tugged between production and strategic planning. The two do not mix, so quiet time has to be set aside for the latter.
As we enter month 4 of the pandemic, we must continue to repel our selfishness with resiliency.
If critical thinking springs forth effortlessly when we need it, why then do we all make mistakes we should have been able to avoid?
Marketing research companies have made billions of dollars on the back of a flawed interview process. Customer feedback is vital, but you're not going to get it in a conference room behind a one-way mirror.
When you squint, say to focus in on the fine print, it is an automatic reflex that reshapes you eye in order to allow you to see more clearly. Metaphorically, a "mental squint" would do the same if we wanted to know more.
Robyn Taylor jumps into the entrepreneur hot-seat in our Background Noise podcast this week. She's the name and face behind Calgary super-food smoothie and juice co, Raw By Robyn. Beyond her smoothies is a personality built for the toils of entrepreneurship, and realizing that going solo, never means doing so literally.
The character competency is a hard one to action. But it starts with small gestures, like making a commitment and proving you can follow up.
Writing for Instagram goes against the philosophy that "less is more", when it comes to posts. Captions are the length of blog posts, challenging the attention of the average user.
Despite teaching about problem solving, I am somewhat far less than competent at it, sometimes failing step one.
Curiosity, one of our 8 competencies, should not only be enacted from within, but should be teased out of others using your own curiosity-generating ability.
Scrutinizing is often mistaken for nagging. However, strict scrutiny is essential to vet old, outdated, or just plain terrible ideas.
Disruption has lost some of its hutzpah over the years as more and more people, products and things were proclaimed to be disruptive, but really weren't. If disruption is in your path, prepare to break things along the way.
Calgary-based Clothes With Benefits stitches value into its apparel in multiple ways, not the least of which is a feeling of customer and seller satisfaction through the sense of giving.
Collabs were gaining momentum years before Covid. Now they are so common, collaborators must assess whether their dance partners are in it for true mutuality.
Michelle Obama might have the better known book, but the reference here comes from a celebrated youth-targeted title called "Code 7" by Bryan Johnson. In it, "become" earns its place along side 6 other symbolic "code words" toward a more purposeful life.
Dr. Robert Cialdini, like so many other psychologists, has provided the world of marketing with unexpected gifts. His best selling books explore the seemingly irrational sides of human behaviour, only to reveal how rational they really are.
If we continuously view problems through the same lens, we may miss the greater problem that needs solving.
The secret to success pre, during, and post covid is kindness. Want to activate sales? Stop worrying about your bottom line, and focus on improving lives of others.
We all get them from time to time. Problems. Problems that can be solved with a product, but when we go to look, there's nobody solving the problem. Does this mean we're on to something?
Calgary entrepreneurs Faye Warrington and Marty Lastiwka started Skunkworks Distillery because they thought it would be fun to rekindle some of Alberta's moonshine history. What they realized along the way was that an approachable premium alcoholic beverage would not only be a great story, but would create new stories with every sip.
One thing that operating in a pandemic has taught us is that there are a number of ways to do things differently. And our curiosity should be driving ongoing experimentation.
Some things disrupt slowly. Others blow apart on impact with a black swan. When companies realize time and money saved by doing things virtually since mid March, they will re-think every expense saved in doing so.
If we were to be completely honest, those of us who have had the blessing of a mom in our lives, would admit to a sub-conscious visit from our mom's when we are on the verge of doing something not-right. We can disappoint anyone else, and eventually recover. But let down your mother at your own peril.
In our factory-ization of education, everyone is taught to follow the same compositional patterns of communication. Which is fine for efficiency, but terrible for uniqueness. Branding expert, Sally Hogshead, encourages us to fascinate rather than merely communicate.
We equate problem solving with productivity, but this can have a reverse effect. If problems could be solved fast, they really wouldn't be problems.
We've all witnessed heartwarming acts of kindness - perhaps even contributed a few ourselves. As wonderful as kindness is, it lacks the commitment of befriending.
Jess Leblanc, founder of Embodied Adventure and self-described "connection catalyst" joins us on our "Background Noise" podcast today. One of our big takeaways is to use some of her techniques, not only for self-development, but for business as well.
The simplest questions are now complicated. Complicated questions are now hard to even conceptualize. But conceptualize we must.
All the extra time on our hands build in a buffer for exploration, discovery, experimentation, and mistakes. New ways provide new perspective.
Andrew Cuomo's management of the pandemic's deadly impact, in one of the worst hit parts of the world, has been a masterclass in accountability.
Health departments have earned our appreciation in ways which now feel deeper and long overdue. However, despite the mayhem they're dealing with, they are still bound to releasing details to stakeholders.
Saying things once never works. In personal, business or government communications. Messages require repetition to sink in, even in a crisis.
We get into business presumably to solve a problem, but like your customers themselves, their problems are unique. Specifically defining the problem will help you niche down to a particularly small, but manageable, and possibly lucrative, market.
Five'21 Roasters is featured on our "Background Noise" podcast. There, you'll hear how owners Trevor and Carina Huggins are letting their intentional living guides both their lives and business decisions.
Nothing that a little duct tape won't fix. Sometimes, perhaps most of the time, it's more important to get anything to market than nothing at all. Imperfect things into being.
While we at undoing, and society, sing the praises of creativity, sooner or later, we must make sound products that work well. Critical thinking is thus keeps creativity's ego in check.
It's easy to see why we do illogical things as consumers - in hindsight. But predicting this is where the money is. Rory Sutherland points out multiple examples of this in his brilliant book "Alchemy", which we enthusiastically evangelize.
We have nothing from our past to tell us how or when the Covid pandemic ends. The uncertainty can be paralyzing, but it's important to begin thinking about where you want to be, when this is eradicated.
Collaboration has taken on many forms in the face of Covid, but at the heart of this competency is a humility and generosity to give and get mutual value.
My students would be scurrying about this week, looking most out of sorts in business suits, in a normal school year. Classrooms and lecture halls typically buzzing with year-end student presentations, are instead gathering dust in silence. We can't let the same happen to our communication skills.
Positioning a business is a specific strategy requiring a lot of awareness of yourself and the environment around you. Jason Zaran, a Calgary entrepreneur can vouch for the value in defining and earning a place in customers' hearts (and tummies).
The word "unprecedented" has been widely used to describe our evolving covid-constrained world. But that comes with our responsibility to SET the precedent for what humans are capable of in these strange circumstances.
It will not rank as one of the most significant casualties of Covid 19, in fact, for pot-heads, 4:20 Day celebrations will be carried out pretty much as they have any year...or any day.
Brainstorm is a well-known verb describing a creative ideation process we use to solve problems. But it's also the name of an open source app spearheaded by McGill University, but encompassing brains from all over the world.
So many acts of generosity continue to cross our attention, and all of them reason for optimism. The ones done anonymously, however, are the ones at the core of character.
When you have your own daily podcast, you can make up your own words. "Intentivize" is one we came up with recently while trying to describe the act of discovering, delivering, and communicating real value.
Mariya Podeyko took a very different path to create a very different kind of cleaning company/ One in which care for her clients is only surpassed by care for her team.
The Covid19 pandemic has created problems hitherto unimagined. And yet, here we are. The wisdom we gain from this will be of tremendous value in the face of future black swan events.
A Who's-Who of Hollywood and the music biz are rallying their tribes as the pandemic persists.
Easter Sunday will be celebrated in isolation, rendering even the most powerful places of worship utterly quiet. But the eeriness is also a symbol of resiliency.
Keeping perspective on life seemed simple enough in the past, albeit, always easier said than done. But news coverage of the pandemic has made big-picture a very obscure topic.
We're getting more things delivered to our door than ever before, perhaps awakening a child-like sense of curiosity that we have not felt in decades.
We are 100 days into 2020 and anybody who claims they are exactly where they'd thought they'd be at the beginning of the year...is lying. There's no end of advice being dispensed through Covid, but my allied reading material is Viktor Frankl's "Man's Search for Meaning".
After 5 years of collaboration, 3 textbooks, 300+ podcasts, and countless well-intentioned, but tabled ideas, undoing founders Marc Boivin (University of Calgary) and David Gaudet (Southern Alberta Institute of Technology) come to terms with their role in the Covid crisis.
In his excellent book, "Alchemy: The Dark Art and Curious Science of Creating Magic in Brands, Business and Life", Rory Sutherland takes readers on an escapade into the mind of a consumer...in other words - all of us. And in the process explains why "psycho-logic" works better than "logic".
By rushing to make a point, we often don't take the time to properly organize the facts - thereby losing credibility.
Every community has its story. For McKenzie Towne, in Calgary, Canada, that story is particularly tragic, as the seniors residence there has been struck with exponential harshness. But Calgarians have come together with symbols of support in a very moving way.
Everyone's concerned in their own way. All of our graduating students are no different. But now's the time for playing proactively.
The continual disappearance of toilet paper during Covid continues to baffle. And so we look to people smarter than us for answers.
Curiosity is a powerful tool, but it needs to be focused in constructive directions. It can be a positive guide as to how YOU change relative to how the world changed in 2020.
Character comes in many shapes and forms, but it's deepest identity displays a sense of giving for the sake of giving. When that occurs, without expectation, the world usually reciprocates.
Collaboration is not only a core competency for life, it has been a part of the survival of the human race. And, once again, in the face of adversity, it is proving to be not only a requirement in getting things done, but also to motivate co-collaborators.
We are a social species now legislated to stay away from one another as a physical health measure against spread of the covid19 virus. But loneliness is a real threat to our mental health, and thus requires checking in with ourselves, as much as with others.
As we get used to being in a world flipped upside down, personal weaknesses become more exposed. Now's as good a time as any to work on those.
From selfish hording, to selfless supplying, the pandemic has brought out all shades of humanity. Today we celebrate our medical and food supply workers.
From the R&D departments of the world's auto manufacturers, to the production rooms of your local distilleries, tools to combat Covid 19 are being made everywhere. Anyone can join in on the effort.
If you weren't fooled by the fake Bill Gates letter, which spread faster than the coronavirus, you are among the minority. It carried a message we all wanted to believe, and Gates' name was just what we needed to drink it in. It is a lesson on the importance of critical thinking at a time we need it the most.
Today we tease out our Background Noise podcast in The Daily Undoing, Covid 19 has decimated the economy and small businesses are most vulnerable. Calgarian entrepreneurs, Simon and Maria Nash give us reason for optimism, and share their childlike curiosity
While the world is in lock-down, Italy is in free-fall. Covid has washed across the planet leaving hardship everywhere and to everyone in its path. Italy has been the worst hit by far, but it suffers alone while every other country scrambles with its own crisis control measures.
In response to Covid negativity, isolation and "scare-mongering", people have set up virtual "care-mongering" sites on facebook, and other virtual hubs, to assist those who need specific items or favors...or just conversation.
When the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology re-opened its doors last week in an all-digital delivery method, I opened the doors beyond the moat of the learning management system, and did my lecture over Instagram live. Surprise, attendance had never been greater.
The updates seem unendingly bleak, but at least they're updates. Alberta's Chief Medical Officer Deena Hinshaw has been addressing Albertans daily since the outbreak hit home in early March. Her transparency, demeanor, and source credibility have been reassuring in the face of a crisis.
Amidst the chaos, heartache and uncertainty that the Covid Pandemic has delivered, a kinder more compassionate world seems to be emerging. True empathy might be giving way to true compassion. We're All In This Together.
"Necessity is the mother of invention", the saying goes. So a crisis like Covid is bringing about creative ways of getting things done.
Calgary's Local Laundry, a community-driven clothing company, made a milestone decision last year to move all of its production from overseas, back to Canada, necessitating significant price increases of its product. But the decision was made easier for the owners when they reflected on their purpose.
It might be the quietest St. Patrick's Day in history thanks to the Covid-related reduction of public gatherings, but we can reflect upon a different side of the Irish, besides "luck" today.
The spread of panic is more out of control than the virus itself. But we can all help curb this with a little more discretion of what we share.
Getting through the Covid 19 pandemic will be slow and difficult. However, it is already spawning new collaborative thinking and community building.
While the only thoughts we might have about travel today, amid Covid-19, have to do with getting money back for cancelled flights, we're confident our wanderlust will return. Today we celebrate the need for new perspectives through change of scenery.
The competency of problem solving relies on an end result of a decision being made. But in living in a world where decisions are so often based upon never-ending mounds of data, we can often get stuck.
The competency of creativity usually emphasizes "new" thinking. Biomimicry is a relatively new design concept, but it is staked in the belief that ancient natural evolution can spur new ways of using very old things.
The character competency is difficult to teach. You don't know how much you have in the tank until your life hits a wall. Crystal Phillips, Calgary-based world-class speed-skater encountered her defining moment when her Olympic dreams were burst, triggering a pivot which changed her life and those of many others.
Students are pretty good at remembering things teachers have committed to, which is a good thing, as recollection is an important component of critical thinking.
Getting people to do something unfamiliar to them usually involves more than compelling words. One way of lessening their unfamiliarity is to give them a taste (literal or otherwise) of what you'd like them to try and adopt. This sampling method often leads to a sense of obligation to reciprocate.
Tulsi Gabbard is no more a household name than was Shirley Chisolm 48 years ago. But they are both women, of colour, who went against the odds to win the Democratic Leaderhsip race in the US. Ms. Gabbard hangs on the brink of dropping out of this year's race, but refuses to let go. Her resolve should be a powerful message to us all, as we celebrate International Women's Day today.
Hubspot came up on top of a survey of thousands regarding their overall happiness at work. Notorious tactics like letting employees choose their own amount of time off, makes for good PR, but it's hard to dispute when mood and productivity track upwards year after year.
While we're told to always keep our head up, and look ahead, sometimes turning our gaze in different directions produces valuable new discovery.
While we'll stick to our guns regarding the value of gut instinct, discussed earlier this week, we're going to make a case that problem solving also involves diligently gathering intel to ensure that the decision made - gut-based or not - is done so with as much knowledge as possible.
Calgary's Rumble Boxing Studio is expanding to Vancouver, with ambitions of being a national brand and leader in that fitness niche. But they're going about it more with community than counter-punching.
Design thinking is not exclusive domain of innovation and technology. Anyone can design think their way into solving human problems in new ways. A local Calgary cleaning company (:AM Cleaning) does this by treating clients' homes as their own.
Critical thinking is both analysis and judgement, but the latter component is under-explained. We assume, after strong analysis, that our choice will be obvious, but it's not. Our assessment skills must then kick in.
As March begins, and our hopes of winter's end become more realistic, we begin to think of beginning. Entrepreneurs don't leave ideas stranded in imagination. They begin exploring the how. They start.
Today we talk about the lost, and rapidly declining, art of communication. And with this extra day on the calendar, we encourage you to take a little extra time to communicate with someone in a meaningful way.
Collabs are all the rage in social media, compelling individuals and brands into an online race to see how many matches can be made, and how many "likes" can result. But "likes" aren't necessarily good for the brand if the match is mismatched, or if there is no significant improvement that results from the match.. Synergies are therefore a desirable trait of working together.
Music: "Let's Work Together"
Artist: Canned Heat
undoing plays music under license by SOCAN
We pack a flashlight whenever we go camping help us see in the dark. We should keep a mental flashlight with us as entrepreneurs, to help us see things that competitors (and customers) may miss.
We visited the newly vibrant and cozy Snowden Buidling to speak with Calgary Heritage Roasting Company founders Mike and Jamie. They taught us about more than just the differences between 1st, 2nd, and 3rd wave coffee. Have a listen to the interview on our weekly podcast "Background Noise".
The Series NY came blasting onto our radar by way of Instagram, where their colourful and unconventional visuals and message compelled us to have a closer look.
If you place a higher value on things you make, as opposed to a pre-made purchased version of the same thing, you may be susceptible to the Ikea effect. A cognitive bias which makes us feel things WE have a hand in, are better than similar alternatives. Fair enough if you're a do-it-yourselfer. But if you're designing solutions to problems that you hope people will buy, you must explore ideas other than the ones you came up with. This is the design world's version of the ikea effect, but it's called "design fixation". Avoid it at all costs.
Critical thinking is not just thinking objectively. You must first collect all data, all opinions, observations, alternatives and so on, so that you can actually insert your objectivity.
Brain science research tells us that we can use one part of our brain (frontal cortex) to control another part of our brain (amygdala) in an conscious effort to proceed through things that frighten us. We're not advocating for foolish behaviour today, but rather, encouraging you to overcome that amygdala signal which has been stopping you from getting something done.
Your style of communications may work brilliantly - until it doesn't work. Because, well, it's your style of communications, and like any style, it becomes predictable. And what happens when we see or hear predictable? We stop paying attention. Our "communications comfort zone" becomes so comfortable, that it starts to blend in. So, change it up. Throw a curve ball into your communications.
Haul someone aside for a person to person, if you usually use text messaging. Write a 10 word email instead of multi-paragraphs. And how about calling someone rather than either of the above. Throw a curve-ball into your communications. Catch your audience off-guard. You'll regain their attention.
As a business educator, entrepreneur, parent, and pretty much all round old guy (ie: one who should know better) I was recently scolded for not communicating my vision. It was a reminder that a prize locked away, will be hard to achieve alone.
Today undoing goes all in on a long-form podcast. It's called "Background Noise", and it amplifies messages from entrepreneurs who have solved old problems in new ways. You can find it wherever you subscribe to podcasts.
Curiosity is perhaps our favorite competency because it not only produces answers, but spurs more inquiry. And inquiry is at the root of learning.
We're not as wise as we think, as parents. Sometimes we need a good swift smack in the ego from our kids to change our behaviour.
Our competency carousel lands back on creativity today, and specifically, the final stage of the design thinking model. "Test" is the literal putting something out there to see if it works, stage. You can only dither around for so long before taking the plunge.
When conducting analysis on a business situation, it's important not to stop asking "why", in order to get to the heart of the matter.
On Valentine's Day we encourage a "two-bird" strategy to demonstrate TRUE love to your life partner as well as to the planet.
Saving time and minimizing misunderstanding through words is a lost art. When it comes to many things, including how-to instructions from Wayfair...less is more.
Abraham Maslow's research into motivation foreshadowed more recent studies, which say we are more inclined to work hard when we've been recognized, than when given financial incentives.
Problem solving can often be like trying to untangle a knot. There's no short cut. All you can do is untangle the mess one knot at a time.
It can be overwhelming as an individual, to feel as though we alone can impact environmental challenges. And so when a company shows us the way, it gives us a sense of hope that we're not alone. Calgary Co-op has shown us this recently in their abolishment of single use plastic bags.
Natural curiosity often takes the form of questioning the way things are done with a "why" question. "Why can't cars fly?" makes for an interesting example, as addressed in the book, "The Future is Faster than You Think", (Diamandis & Kotler), but we don't have to have our sights set that high to engage our curiousness.
The fourth component in Stanford's design thinking model is "prototype". Vital, because, without it nothing actually gets made.
When faced with complex problems, the trick is to not measure options or results against one another, but how they might blend together.
A confessional from your humble narrator to make a case for keeping your cool in the face of adversity (or life's little annoyances).
While speed and efficiency are celebrated in the workplace, effective communications often requires time to find just the right combination of words, which will resonate with your audience. Take the time to do so.
When you have an opportunity to share your knowledge, take it. You'll provide value to someone, and you'll feel the "happiness trifecta" course through your brain.
Goldman Sachs' announcement that it would refuse to take companies public if they did not have a female board member may have been PR posturing. But if it spurs more diversity in the workplace, it should be commended.
In this episode we just listen to how Alicia Keys, charged with the impossible task of opening the 2020 Grammy Awards, hours after Kobe Bryant had been killed, summoned an arena, and a nation together.
2020 is a leap year, so we get an extra day this month (and this year). Undoing has big plans, but before we get there, we need to know how the calendar shift happens every 4 years.
In the workworld we think of creativity in the context of design thinking. But design thinking, which is supposed to be all about thinking without confinements, is proposed as a 5-step process. Ironic. Today we say get rid of the numbered steps, and call them colours. We then celebrate the third "colour" of design thinking - ideate.
Music: "Mellow Yellow"
Artist: Donovan
undoing plays music under license by SOCAN
Critical thinking is a misunderstood, but sought after competency. Your ability to detach your feelings from facts will help you strengthen yours.
Blogger Chris Brogan's "words for 2020" stuck with us in early January. We highlight one in particular today - push - as an invisible display of character.
Hearing the words of Charles Dickens rekindles our appreciation for writing with intention, and becomes a communications tip for us all to work on.
We all feel satisfied in our feeling that we have put forth effort. But doing so without consideration of the good of the team is not collaborative.
With the cororna virus (COVID 19) kicking up no end of media-spurred panic, we are reminded of the need for cooler heads when problem solving.
Today is the beginning of the Chinese New Year, and while many brands and retailers will blindly lunge at the commercial opportunity, hoping to cash in on the event, Nike does so with a sense of citizenship from which we can all learn.
Recently, while wearing our consultant hat, Marc Boivin and I worked with local Calgary business, Sprog and Sprocket. We loved just visiting with them, and were inspired by their insatiable need to know more. Curiosity is our competency featured in this episode of The Daily Undoing.
If design thinking begins with empathy, where we recognized problems that need solving, the define stage helps us validate and clarify the nature of the problem. Skip this step at your peril.
The coveted skill of critical thinking requires the patience of arranging details and facts into basic categories in order to makes sense of more complex problems.
Character is a competency that is seen in subtle ways. Today we take a tip from the penguin, in showing how nurturing can be the most noble habit.
No one is more revered as a public speaker than Dr. Martin Luther King, who's birthday is celebrated today. We celebrate his ability to reach an audience, as we dive into the communications competency.
Hearing Lebron James in a radio ad campaign supporting the meditation and mindfulness app, Calm, tells us many things. New age has come mainstream; audio is growing; and Lebron has something in common with Plato.
Calgary's innovation/investment matchmaking startup, Thin Air Labs is open for business. After a little over a year in relative quiet, behind-the-scenes formation, founders Jim Gibson, Greg Hart, and James Lochrie raised the curtain last night at the historic Grand Theatre in downtown Calgary.
One of the most popular Ted Talks ever was given by Sir Ken Robinson over a decade ago. In it he laments the sense of curiosity as a key to creativity, which is lost shortly after we enter school. We think it can be recovered from within.
Empathy is one of those words which has a "self-help" connotation, as well as a business meaning. The latter asserts seeing customers' collective point of view, and thus their needs as a whole rather than as one. From here profitable design thinking begins.
In a world that gets faster, and demands coming from all directions, patience is often overlooked. Today we celebrate this required skill for critical thinking, problem-solving and inner peace.
The character competency is comprised of all of those intangible human traits that often separate high performers from not-so-much. It is the area which produces compassion, empathy and yes, perseverance. But Dr. Viktor Frankl's work in research into why we persevere reveals a surprising idea.
Today we remember Rush drummer/lyricist Neil Peart, with a challenge to use the power of story in all of your written communication.
Collaboration comes with many contradictions. Lead and follow; control and delegate...but behind them all is an absolute commitment to humility.
We talk a lot about being aware of the world around you, in order to see what customers and competitors are doing. But observation only goes part way. You must make sense of observations, and figure out what, if anything, to do with them.
The world can be an overwhelming place. And the thought of moving the needle in the direction of greater good is downright paralyzing. But, there is action you can take.
As Australia burns before our eyes in the south, and the Arctic ice cap dissolves to the north, the time has passed to hope "others" will solve environmental ruin. The competency of citizenship asserts that we all MUST protect planet in our own way.
While we celebrate creativity, the counter balance to that is trusting proven paths as well. When things have worked well following a process - why not trust them?
As a new semester begins, 4th year business students at Southern Alberta Institute of Technology find themselves in the uncomfortable position of teaming up with strangers, for the first time in 3 years. Supporting those you do not know, pushes the boundaries of collaboration, before demonstrating its true merit.
Communication is a competency often associated with marketing people, and one that we emphasize to our marketing students that they MUST have. However, communication is not merely writing and speaking...it is mostly listening.
Today's not-so-random act of success is one that's bandied around a lot this time of year - COMMIT. The trick to making commitment stick is to make sure that it comes from within. Your commitments have a better chance of survival if they are made FOR you.
Mark Twain said, "Find out where people are traveling, then buy land there". Observation is a crucial but under-valued skill within the critical thinking competency. Today we challenge you to do more of it.
Today the competency of creativity is highlighted. Design Thinking is the proper "buzzword" in academia and entrepreneurial circles, but in the end it's the same thing. Creativity is best achieved when we don't just think outside of the box, but we get lost without a box altogether. So "get lost", and find CREATIVITY.
We're kicking off the New Year with a slightly different approach. Every day we're shining a light on a "not-so-random-act" of successful marketing, brand management and personal development. These are all specific actions or activities which comprise what we call competencies - a combination of attitude, skill and knowledge.
Today we begin a New Year and decade with the activity of "awakening", to spur the competency of CURIOSITY. Happy New Year!
Mariah Carey's "All I Want For Christmas is You" celebrates its 25 anniversary this year, by reaching the top of the Christmas charts AND the Billboard singles chart. It's the gift that keeps giving to us, but especially her and her songwriting partner every year at this time.
Music: "All I Want For Christmas is You"
Artist: Mariah Carey
Some of the songs we hear every Christmas are flukes, some are accidents, and many just endure due to their timelessness. But "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" was designed in every way to become a hit, and rocket Brenda Lee into lifetime fame and adulation.
Music: "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree"
Artist: Brenda Lee
undoing plays music under license by SOCAN
It took Nat King Cole four very different approaches to recording the Christmas song, over a 15 year span, for him to feel he had nailed it just right. The 1961 version, backed up richly by Nelson Riddle's orchestra is the definitive classic, and number 3 on Billboard's Holiday 100 list.
We continue our Top 5 Christmas Song countdown today with number 4, "Jingle Bell Rock". Though covered dozens of times by some pretty big names, the original 1957 version by Bobby Helms is the most popular, receiving tons of airplay and download purchases every year. And yet, Helms, who claims to have written the song with guitarist Hank Garland, never saw a penny in royalties.
In this, our final week of podcasts for 2019, we countdown Billboard's top 5 seasonal songs, and provide a marketing spin to each. The 5th most popular song is the ubiquitous "Feliz Navidad" by Jose Feliciano. But one of the world's most beloved Christmas songs almost never happened.
In this episode, we include an excerpt from an interview with Jim Gibson and Greg Hart, who together with James Lochrie, have co-founded Calgary's Thin Air Labs, a start-up determined to transform Calgary's economy and show the world what the modern urban centre should look like.
If you think you had heard it all from quick service restaurants kicking around the idea of integrating plant-based meat into their menus, think again. Are you ready for Kentucky Fried Soy?
We had a ton of participation as we celebrated our 500th Instagram follower with a week-long mini marketing course. Calgary-based mom and dad kids-play innovators, Sprog and Sprocket, emerged as the winner and will thus receive some one-on-one consultation from Undoing in the New Year.
If you're one of the 120 million Spotify subscribers, the Swedish service has a gift-wrapped collection of your listening habits ready for listening, watching and sharing.
We wrap up our week-long series, "5-for-500" with the final step in the marketing process - BE A STORYTELLER. Marketing starts with identifying, then owning, a problem held by customers. Doing all the work of bringing the solution to market is your value offering, but it is wasted without a memorable story. Don't assume stories tell themselves. YOU must be a storyteller.
With the 4th tip in our "5-for-500" contest, we dig up a little Greek stoicism and use "Know Thyself" to promote the pursuit of self-awareness. This desirable mental state will not only allow you to see more clearly your strengths and weaknesses - it will compel you to spend time on what you do well for your customers.
In this, the second installment of #5for500, our thank you to our first 500 followers on Instagram, we share a tip to understanding your "target market". And the first part is to stop calling them a "target market". They are human beings with tribe-like qualities that make them attracted to your product. But you must be obsessive in your pursuit of knowing them, to truly provide for them.
Today we begin our week-long thankyou to the 500 undo-ers who’ve followed us on Instagram. 5 days, 5 marketing tips.
Tip 1: Own the Problem. Entrepreneurial thinking asserts that we must solve a problem, but really we must take the problem off the hands of our customers. We must OWN IT.
undoing is celebrating its modest milestone of 500 Instagram followers with a contest called "5 For 500". In this episode, we reveal some unknown of undoing, and how we plan to show a little gratitude and Christmas giving all next week.
Like so many trends before them, meal kits were supposed to be the new unicorn category. They arrived with great tail winds this decade, and are all but gone as the decade closes. What went wrong, and is there hope for a recovery?
We use the backdrop of the holiday shopping frenzy to demonstrate the concept of SWOT analysis. Undoing partner Marc Boivin is more detailed and deliberate in his explanation of this fundamental business strategy tool, and how it is easily messed up, in his blogpost today at undoing.ca and Linkedin.
It was a month before Christmas, and all through your life, you'll be tugged and pulled to give. Rabbi Simon Jacobson has some wise words of giving love and kindness to yourself before being there for others.
We're interviewing tons of entrepreneurs every week, collecting insightful takes to bring forward in a new podcast from undoing. In today's episode we hear from Connor Curran, of Calgary's "Local Laundry", about why people are reverting back to a simpler time.
Q3 financials and other metrics did not please Google analysts, but you have to give it credit for pursuit of diverse revenue streams.
In his weekly blogpost today, Marc Boivin comments on the untimely rise of the Linkedin know-it-all.
From Chestnut Praline Lattes to Turkey Stuffing Sandwiches, Starbucks is all in on holiday bingeing. But you don't have to be.
After 5 years, Calgary's healthy-meals-to-go and meal-planning leader, Fit Kitchen was forced to close it's retail store due to market conditions. Undeterred, the fit and nimble brand is braced to re-do its model to serve growing demand, and its legion of fans, in the leaner online world.
undoing founders Marc and Dave hung out at Work Nicer's 8th Avenue location recently. A beehive of gig-economy entrepreneurs, criss-crossing an open workspace, checks off a lot of boxes for those in need of cafe-chill, and quiet productivity.
Don Cherry willingly played Canada's court jester for 37 years in the "Coach's Corner" segment of "Hockey Night in Canada". That is until crossing the line with his intolerant remarks regarding immigrants during the November 9th broadcast. But while we all slay the ousted jester, we should really be self-reflecting on how we guffawed at his behaviour for decades, and how we, ourselves harbour our own intolerances.
Undoing co-founder Marc Boivin is compelled to write a follow up to his blogpost of a week ago, triggered by a comment he received, which criticized internships. This leads Marc and his undoing partner David Gaudet into deep strategic thought around a complex problem.
Over 40% of Canadians participated in some form of Remembrance Day ceremony yesterday. In a surreal moment unseen in this day and age, people left their phones in their pockets and were bound together by something bigger.
Crystal Phillips co-founded alternative brain research foundation Branch Out in 2010 amid personal tragedy. Today, having shepherded the organization to a multi-million dollar a year fund raising machine, she's moving on to new aspirations, while maintaining a role on Branch Out's board.
Calgary-based clothing manufacturer and retailer, Local Laundry follows the 3C's of brand principle perfectly. Their apparel is simple, attractive and Canadian-made, giving them a unique competitive advantage. They contribute 10% of profits to charities AND oversee the deployment of multiple charitable campaigns through the year. Finally, they communicate their story with humility, transparency and empathy.
Today undoing co-founder Marc Boivin blogs about the need for internships for business students. We second that motion here on The Daily Undoing.
Rob Gronkowski recently struck an endorsement deal with Toronto based, Abacus Health, but by default becomes the poster boy for the entire industry.
Apple's audacity that its watch would destroy FitBit, will come back to haunt it, now that Google has purchased the fledgling wearable tech brand. But it's becoming a crowded space with even the most unlikely participants.
As a Calgary-based movement, we'd be remiss not to mention #loveyyc day tomorrow in Calgary, where lots of local vendors are offering amazing deals. But really, the occasion is for us all to pause and appreciate the city or town we call home.
While we spend a lot of time focusing on problems and solutions pertaining to marketing, business and other socially relevant events, we gladly let loose, and embrace the spirit set forth on Halloween.
Music: "The Monster" (Eminem/Rihanna) & "Halloween Theme - Main Title" (John Carpenter
undoing plays music under license by SOCAN
Most people shudder at the thought of having to give a talk. Today Marc Boivin blogs about the topic and the common weakness held by many when it comes to this vital skill. On this episode of The Daily Undoing, we offer one tricky, but successful tactic.
In our continuing series on B Corps, we highlight Patagonia, but challenge all companies to just do the right thing.
The recent, but all to slow, shift to doing well by doing good, is being accelerated by the B Corp movement. Which undoing is firmly behind.
How a simple souvenir shopping trip in SoCal dropped the Apolis brand into our radar screen. And why we love this like-minded movement.
MadeGood snacks are so right in so many ways, except when it comes to telling their story.
In this episode we tease out the valor of bravery. Not the kind which unconsciously makes us jump into a river to save a puppy, but the kind we face everyday - very consciously. There's more on this subject as well in our weekly blogpost at undoing.ca.
While negativity spreads ominously after Canada's federal election, we choose to view from a positive perspective.
You may not be aligned with everything Amazon does, or believe it to be doing, but you use it just the same. The convenience is unparalleled, and the customer service is at a different level.
It's not that Starbucks doesn't gladly take the kids' money, but Gen Z tweens wasn't what it had in mind when it opened its doors nearly two decades ago.
Winding up the NACCE conference in Newport Beach, which I've attended this week, I had dinner with a colleague from Santa Monica College. He was giddy about the takeaways from my session (I spoke about - you got it flash briefings). But in listening to him and his teaching style, I felt like I needed to take a page from him, and just be a little more patient.
Today your humble narrator gets to speak at the National Association of Community Colleges for Entrepreneurship in Newport Beach, California. As marketers, marketing profs and entrepreneurs, Marc Boivin and David Gaudet recognize their role in the entrepreneurial ecosystem, and provide this daily podcast as a regular contribution.
When Car2Go announced it was pulling out of five cities in North America, most were left thinking, "that didn't last long". In Calgary it was a 6 year run, an eternity in an industry undergoing tech-influenced change rapidly.
Marc Boivin's blogpost today on Linkedin and undoing.ca goes a long way in explaining why and how we got on this journey and what we hope to achieve with it.
Though it was not the first, Apple's headstart in the wireless earbud space may be too far, even for Amazon. However, characteristically undeterred, the megabrand jumps in with its Echo Buds, to join Apple and others looking to latch into our ears.
The Trump impeachment inquiry is providing media outlets, like the New York Times, with audience reach and badly needed ad revenue. And like a good marketer, NYT is milking the opportunity. Something all marketers could learn from.
Recreational cannabis has been legal in Canada for almost a year now, but the regulations on how producers and retailers can promote their product is limited...and getting tighter rather than looser.
While perseverance and passion served well as descriptors of "grit", their overuse and somewhat ambiguous meaning leaves an opening for a third descriptor. We think that word is "pain". As in no pain...well, you know.
After proposing Greta Thunberg as a new brand of influencer last week, we took offense to some of the personal attacks aimed her way. Today Marc blogs about it on Linkedin and undoing.ca.
Halloween spending now kicks into high gear and if you buy into the tradition, you'll be buying increasingly to keep up with neighbors.
As restaurants struggle with the percentage charged by meal delivery services, and meal delivery companies struggle with costs, entrepreneurs are coming up with ways of making our penchant for convenience more sustainable as a business model.
The sharp increase in artisinal coffee roasteries and cafes has helped push Canada into the top 10 coffee markets in the world, in consumption per capita. The "craft" coffee market is thriving in all Canadian cities, including our home in Calgary.
She is the name and voice of a movement of which there is no equal. And she cautions us all that our neglect of the planet being left for her and her generation is not a good deal.
At a panel discussion to wrap up Energy Disruptors, in Calgary, AI expert Dr. Vivianne Ming took the unsuspecting audience by storm with life lessons. Our research into her various keynotes revealed further nuggets of wisdom including the mistake marketers make in creating products before first discovering what problem they're solving.
On this first day of fall it is easy to be reduced to a sweater-wearing, pumpkin-spice slurping, nostaligic-waxing, sentimentalist fool. But what it should tell you is the world does not stand still waiting for you to adjust. It's another season passing. What are you doing to move with it?
We all stand in the cafe line-up scrutinizing and analyzing how high profile people misbehave, but rarely reflect upon what we would do in a similar circumstance. The Justin Trudeau black-face ordeal should raise questions for us all.
Marc Boivin, University of Calgary educator and Undoing co-founder posted a blog yesterday about how competency based education forged a relationship and a movement...and it just so happened to run parallel with messages from global thought leaders.
Music: "Believer"
Artist: Imagine Dragons
undoing plays music under license by SOCAN
The partnership only seems a stretch until you witness that a Calgary producer of craft gelato shares the same sense of citizenship as "energyphiles" at the Energy Disruptors Unite Conference in Calgary.
You see it everywhere. The dreaded 3-word tagline. "Live. Laugh. Love." etc. We propose an end to this ridiculous creative cop-out.
Competency Based Education (CBE) is one of Undoing's foundations. We've written textbooks, given talks, and operate as educators on the premise of demonstration of abilities is more important than memorization. But we're still part of a minority in the system.
Music: "Circles"
Artist: Post Malone
undoing plays music under license by SOCAN
We all know we're being watched and used by Google, but the tech/advertising giant is watching us through non-google advertising platforms as well.
The Daily Undoing saw value in the movement inspired by Graeme and Michelle Edge when we were a scrappy little movement ourselves back in November 2018 (listen to episodes 33-34). We're happy to announce the conference September 17 and 18 will be sold out, and we'll be there to report from the vital conversations to take place.
The annual Cupertino Love-in - AKA The Apple Product Launch - played out the usual charade of overhype, including the new phones with all their bells and whistles. All of which to satisfy our need to stand out more on Instagram.
All the buzz in business revolves around design thinking. However, long before design, both historically and in process, there must be the removal of biases and critical thinking.
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After winning the US Women's Open, Bianca Andreescu has sealed her name into Canadian sports lore. But will the Raptors magical run trump her when it comes to Canadian Sports Story of the year voting?
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After seeing "Luzia" by Cirque du Soleil, twice, my daugther finally met her hero from the show...a "ballernia in the sky" named Enya White, from Quebec. The gesture by the star circus performer won a fan for a lifetime.
This year Starbucks released its PSL (Pumpkin Spiced Latte) menu earlier than ever before, shepherding in a slew of new pumpkinized products.
While feeding my dog I noticed what appeared to be mould in the package of Purina Beyond food. After quickly earning my trust with their quick response via Twitter, Purina soon lost it again with its apparent indifference to my curiosity.
The 2019-2020 school year begins like every year prior, despite the constant criticism of the educational system. But rather than always asking what is expected from teachers, what if we asked what was expected from students?
As we prepare for the back to school routine, those of us out of the Gen Z demo must realize that "routine" has changed.
The new Lego catalogue could easily be a Harley Davidson marketing piece, featuring on its cover the new Lego Harley building sets. interesting idea if you're both a Harley guy and an AFOL (Adult Fan of Lego). Otherwise, the partnership springs forth little for core audiences of either.
As sure as your credit card statements will reveal YOUR vulnerability to FOMO, you'd best use this basic human emotion if you're an entrepreneur as well.
McDonalds move to NOT move on plant-based burgers demonstrates a viable option when faced with frenzied fads. Do nothing.
The phenomenal rise of Dr. Sandra Lee, aka Dr. Pimple Popper, is not only a matter of her skill set, charisma and neurology, it's also about our desire for good stories.
After today we take a short break to unwind and regroup. We reflect on some of the entrepreneurs who have helped fill our daily podcast over the last several months, and announce something new coming in the fall.
Today we celebrate the spirit of craft, entrepreneurs and undoers, in the form of Love Shack Libations and Wayward Distillery, makers of beer and spirits respectively. We met the proprietors of these businesses this summer on Vancouver Island, and wanted to share a little love their way, but also toast ALL true craft producers and artisans who toil out of their love for what they do and the fans they serve.
Coca-Cola's decision to replace Dasani's plastic packaging with aluminum is a step in the right direction environmentally and will also increase the financial bottom line.
A recently viewed television spot from a law firm reminded us how bad the fear-appeal can look. We thus felt the need to state the obvious.
Today we compare ponder how whale-watching is a lot like entrepreneurship. Your patience, passion and grit keeps you coming back for the reward of that elusive, magnificent payoff.
Today is the 50th anniversary of the "Abbey Road" album cover photograph, but while most of us cannot aspire to that level of iconic status, author Scott McKain says aiming for iconic is an attainable business pursuit.
Wall Street darling and plant-based protein phenom Beyond Meat is facing some headwinds lately by dieticians who say the product can be harmful.
If you're a Spotify user, you are being used...but that neither surprises nor upsets you because you give up the privacy for convenience.
Do you ever wonder if the author of the self-help book you're reading is really living the life he/she alludes to in the book? Laura Gassner Otting's "Limitless" is a wonderful read (or listen) and while watching her on Instagram this spring/summer, we see her walking the talk.
Our content economy regularly churns out content providers claiming expertise, but have we lost the true meaning of the word? Today's take follows the warnings contained in Tom Nichols' 2017 book, "The Death of Expertise"
The list of the world's most notable inventors includes the likes of Ford, Bell, Pasteur and the Wright brothers - all male. But history shows equally important inventions by women. All of which leads us to celebrate and encourage the inventor within all of us.
Legalized Cannabis First Fall
See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
Hearing and seeing many people say they're "humbled", then proceeding to brag, led us on this small rant about sincerity.
Almost a year ago to the day we heard about Alexa Flash Briefings, first while reading Gary Vaynerchuk's book, "Crushing It", and then through Canadian Alexa Skills thought leader, Teri Fisher. This episode is a brief by genuine shout out to them, and our small but growing tribe of listeners.
The Cluetrain Manifesto was first published in 1999, with an update in 2009. In this episode we highlight just one of the 93 theses put forth in this timeless marketing/business guidebook.
The runaway success of the "The Lion King" has no end of cling-ons to the Disney brand through licensing deals. Dole's deal, however, is decidedly one-sided, with Disney, uncharacteristically getting the short end.
In a digital world filled with noise and distraction, cutting through the clutter with an ad is nearly impossible, unless you spark curiosity; a tactic used by Ikea. However, it wasn't an ad for furniture...which in itself was, well, curious.
Equifax first bungled its security systems, then its disclosure of a security breach, and then the word-smithing of its "apology".
Quebec-based Agropur was right in recalling a product with possible contaminants BEFORE being found out the hard way.
Netlfix suffered its first net-loss in quarterly subscriptions since 2011, but brass isn't worried, knowing the wildly successful "Stranger Things" season will reverse its fortunes. But for how long?
On the 13th birthday of Dave's daughter, a new phone is given as a gift, along with some screen smart parenting advice from Dr. Jodi Gold's book, "Screen Smart Parenting".
Tesla has dropped the entry level price of its Model 3 yet again, leading to investor jitters.
Over 1.2 million attended the annual Calgary Stampede this month - a near record - despite the city's sluggish economy. But FOMO, brought about by millions of socially shared selfies, was just what the doctor ordered.
The cost-savings are attractive during Amazon's annual Prime Day sales promotion, but if that doesn't get us then FOMO will. Amazon, in the meantime is laughing all the way to the (data) bank.
Music: "I Will Follow Him"
Artist: Little Peggy March
As Canadians spiral deeper into debt with vacation spending, we shouldn't blame the vendors for taking advantage of our demand.
Instagram is positioned as the "happy" social channel, but its effect on users would suggest otherwise.
When CBC confirmed reports that Bombardier would be laying off hundreds from its Thunder Bay plant, everyone had a comment...except Bombardier.
They were arrogant, obnoxious ...and dominant. But you gotta hand it to the US National Women's Soccer Team, who had much to prove on their way to clinching the World Cup of Soccer.
What Kawhi Leonard's move tells us is that, no matter how wealthy or talented, everybody still possesses the self-esteem need as one of their 5 basic human needs. Serving that need is both your job and your opportunity as an entrepreneur.
A mound of mini-donuts smothered in banana-cream pie filling, peanut butter and bacon tops this year's new food items found at the world-famous Calgary Stampede.
Happy 4th of July to our American friends. Lots of food, drink and fireworks go along with this most cherished US holiday.
Twitter's announcement to hide abusive and/or harassing tweets, particularly from the likes of Trump, grabbed headlines, but has little teeth.
On the eve of Canada Day celebrations, we feel there's no need to explain why we live in and love our home and native country...it's because it's Canada.
Rather than providing an overview of the International Society for Technology in Education conference, Dave spotlights the mindset of many attendees he met.
In the regular weekly installment of undoing education, Marc discusses the merits of competency based education in a grades-obsessed world.
The growing number of AirPods in use ultimately only means a greater net problem for the environment. But we (that is Dave) continue to buy into this "planned obsolescence".
While Dave's presentation at an ed-tech conference in Philadelphia was intended to nudge teachers on board the voice-first bus, the case is made as to why we should ALL have a voice strategy.
With our "Undoing Marketing" online course now live, we thought we'd talk a little bit more about why we did it, and for whom.
A recent visit to the dentist drudges up a whole new area of unease for your humble narrator. And it has nothing to do with the dentist's bill.
Today we make available a small beta offering from our first online course, "Undoing Marketing". This is the first part of a 5-part course, the remainder of which we'll be producing over the summer, based upon audience feedback. And, it's free (for now). So go find it, try it out and get back to us. As always, we appreciate any of your attention we've earned.
While Health Canada's regulations on edible cannabis products will keep commercialization under control, medical users risk falling further behind as a priority of legal producers.
Volvo is (not surprisingly) leading the way in safety tech to reduce our penchant to look at our phones while operating our motor vehicles, but it will never solve the problem which kills over 3000 on North American roads every year.
Comparing the individual behaviour, in victory, of some of the world's most elite athletes this past week, gives us a peak at humility as an essential leadership characteristic.
Unable to keep his promise of reading his students' names as they cross the stage at Convocation Ceremonies at the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology, Calgary, Canada, David Gaudet shines a light their way in this episode.
Marc's trip to the Military Museum in Calgary sheds light on the learning pyramid, prompting his reminder of the most powerful retention tool.
The two best tv ads aired during the Raptors run stand out for what they do not do. Wealth Simple and Tangerine Bank use relate with us rather than attempt to persuade us.
Music: "Everyday People"
Artist: Sly and the Family Stone
undoing plays music under license by SOCAN
Our well-intentioned, but often naive, push to gain social media traction, led to an impromptu Instagram live session by Dave, Here he describes the effects of the event on his brain.
Music: "I Want You to Want Me"
Artist: Cheap Trick
undoing plays music under license by SOCAN
Despite criticism on both her "well-being budget" and the "Christchurch Call", New Zealand PM Jacinda Ardern is unwavering in her vision of a kinder, happier, healthier country (...and planet).
75 years ago, the allied forces of America, Britain and Canada attacked the Germans form air, land and sea in north France, in what has become famously known as D-Day. While changing the course of human history was the most significant outcome, the planning of the invasion left a permanent lesson in project management.
Music: "Shores of Normandy"
Artist: Jim Radford
undoing plays music under license by SOCAN
The rapidly circulating story of a graduate student who successfully sued her Alma Mater, UK-based Anglia Ruskin University over what she claims were "exaggerated prospects (of jobs)" and a "Mickey Mouse" program, is gaining some traction - and should be a concern to any post-secondary institution in the world.
Music: "Mickey Mouse March"
Artist: Mickey Mouse Club
undoing plays music with permission by SOCAN
Much as the Blue Jays back to back World Series victories did for baseball in the '90's, basketball enrollment in Canada is taking off thanks to the Raptors NBA playoff run.
The combination of our penchant to make purchases that make us feel good, and affordable coffee bean roasting machines, have spurred a rapidly increasing gourmet coffee industry.
The continuous sharp growth of the gluten free food category is motivating big brands, like Quaker, to get in on the action.
While no one is giving them much of a chance to win, the Toronto Raptors, the city in which they play, and the country behind the city, will embrace Raptor fever as the NBA Finals come to Canada for the first time.
In this weekly installment of Undoing Education, Marc recalls a field trip with his daughter, and contrasts that experience with a typical post-secondary session.
Studio boxing, or fit-boxing is among a flurry of fitness trends appearing in retail spaces across North America. As usual, we're interested in the "why".
Music: "Seven Nation Army"
Artist: The White Stripes
undoing plays music under license by SOCAN
Watching in disbelief as President Trump has been enabled to bungle his way through half of his presidential term, Nancy Pelosi has proven to be a formidable foe.
Music: "Confident"
Artist: Demi Lovato
undoing plays music under license by SOCAN
The global waste trade continues to run amok, but one of the world's receivers of said waste, the Philippines, is saying no, and making Canada pay to have it shipped back.
Take one part nostalgia, two parts pro sports and swirl in powerful human emotion, desire and a drive to strike it lucky...and you'll get today's sports trading card phenomenon.
Inspired by a night at the symphony, Marc lobs a challenge out to post-secondary educators, to truly blend new teaching approaches and attitudes with some elements of tradition.
Music: "Creep", Radiohead
undoing plays music with permission from SOCAN
The new Heinz condiment, "Mayochup" provides a lesson in branding, which the company should have known.
As Canada celebrates Victoria Day, the May long weekend ritual of commencing the camping season presents studies in human behaviour based as much on psychology as on tradition.
WestJet's recent takeover bid is the product of a 23 year journey following some basic marketing principles.
5,000 members strong and growing, CannaMamas claims the benefits of cannabis during pregnancy.
Despite an education system which seems either invisible or expendable to many politicians, it is collectively a societal responsibility to make it a priority.
The Simply Organic line of Doritos is not a trend-jumping market entry, but rather a symbol of former PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi's insistence upon redirecting the company in the direction people are going.
Maslow's famed Hierarchy of Needs model helps explain every single purchase we make - including the enormous amount of spending for Mother's Day.
The online learning space is a crowded place for content producers and educators, but Undoing is diving in anyway, with soon to be released courses.
Putting our mind and money on a project, brings us serendipitously to a like-minded pair of thinkers (and doers) from Vancouver, with whom we feel collaboration is in our future.
Competencies, the combination of attitude, knowledge and skill, is the future of education, whether traditional school systems wish to come along or not.
Our undoing education week continues with the deconstruction of the misunderstood concept of competencies - a buzz term in education, which only a few of us truly understand.
While "Avengers: The End Game" has quickly become the second highest grossing movie of all time, it is but a well planned installment of Marvel's growing cinematic universe. In total it includes 4 phases, 22 movies, and billions in revenue. To pull this off, Marvel would have had to design a strategy for that 11-year period, which included not only a plan for the movies but the necessary skills and people to pull it all off. While some movie studios have a hard time getting out their planned movies in a given year, Marvel was thinking years, if not decades ahead.
Music: "Dear Mr. Fantasy"; Traffic
undoing plays all the classics under license by SOCAN.
In order to qualify for the Canadian government's electric vehicle rebate program, Tesla dropped its price. However, it cleverly dis-incentivized consumers from buying at the lower price point, while still allowing them to score the rebate.
Music: "Cars"; Gary Numan
undoing plays music under license by SOCAN
Molson Coors says legalized cannabis had no impact on decreased beer profits...but at the same time is fully intending to launch a CBD beverage in the fall. What gives?
Undoing's co-founder Marc Boivin makes his debut on the podcast and announces a new regular feature to the show.
The Apple News app is slick, convenient, and eerily curated to suit your news intake preferences. But are the "editors" behind the curation humans or machines?
With all the subtlety of a Trump tweet, Taylor Swift announced she was coming home to pop music after a foray into a genre that never quite felt like a perfect fit.
The trending of Motley Fool as an academic source for business research leads us to the peril of mistaking strengths for opportunities.
Canopy Growth's announcement of a possible $3.4B acquisition of a cannabis growth property in New York state did exactly as designed, despite its wildly hypothetical nature.
The National Hockey League (NHL) playoffs have begun, and already the league's top two teams are gone. Is this a learning moment about underestimating the competition? Not exactly.
As final exams begin for another year, a fresh batch of graduates enter the workforce and employers await much needed skilled labor - memorization is not one of those skills.
Music: "You Learn"; Alanis Morissette
undoing plays music under license by SOCAN
How an innocent photograph by Apollo 8 Astronaut William Anders helped lead to the declaration of Earth Day.
If you're a mom full of business ideas, and an entrepreneurial mindset, go to BossMom's facebook group. If the values don't pull you into the tribe, check your pulse.
With a dominating victory by the United Conservative Party yesterday, Albertans must put differences aside and move forward irrespective of how they voted. But we have to hold our leaders in check to develop the province in the way we, the people, want it to be.
The province of Alberta Canada (where we live) has a key election today. We are encouraged to vote, and to vote with our heads - the same ones that drive entrepreneurship in this province - and shed the self-pity emotions which drag us down.
A learning out of class (LOOC) role reversal this week sent us to a place teacher's fear to tread, but where students were thrilled to help.
Iconic IKEA refuses to rest on its strengths - which have now become its weaknesses - and is looking for innovative ways to make money while saving the planet.
We can lament the missed opportunity of not hopping aboard the cannabis gold rush in the last few years, or we can look at the present to detect future opportunities.
While we are now actively, strategically trying to grow the undoing movement, and this podcast, using social media, we DO NOT aspire to be "influencers"...certainly not in the way in which the role is currently perceived.
Undoing co-founders Marc and Dave look to their Gen Z students (self-proclaimed savvy social media experts) to assist in promoting this podcast through social media channels.
Music critics are just discovering something Gen Z has known for a couple years - Billie Eilish is more than a music trend. She is a movement.
The massively successful "Roll Up the Rim" campaign had just finished when Tim Hortons launched another coffee program. Here's why.
Five years into the most recent "bust" in Alberta's economic cycle, many still yearn for a return to the good old days.
In a recent episode of "Social Media Marketing", marketing authority Seth Godin said he dislikes ALL marketing textbooks, citing that they all equate marketing with adverting - which is patently untrue. We, as marketers and authors of textbooks take exception to this assertion, and recruit another marketing influencer, Mark Schaefer, to help support our case.
It may be the cheeziest of all publicity ploys, but April Fool's Day stunts still work...for some.
Despite getting out of the gate first, Apple let Amazon take over the voice-assist/smart speaker category, and now the gap is insurmountable.
It took us a couple years to notice just how big long lashes had become. When we asked why, the answer was predictable.
Student, podcaster, influencer Brock Johnson found his way to our ears in the podcast he co-hosts with his mom Chalene - "Build Your Tribe". His message made sense, so we're going to adopt it...again.
In what is becoming a regular weekly storyline, this week news arrives that higher education, as we know it, may be on the brink.
Ten days after the New Zealand mosque shootings, that country's prime minister continues to role model a rare brand of leadership in a space filled with rhetoric and bravado.
Canada's cannabis legalization is past the half-year mark, and while there is no sign of anarchy in our streets, the costs of ensuring such have been heavy - while subsidies from the federal government have been absent. The reason - producers aren't producing to their promises.
The return of the "chunky sneaker" brings with it a whole fashion movement of a "wider and looser" silhouette. Good news for dads of girls moving into teenagers!
With the Alberta provincial election campaign unofficially underway, new digital ad tactics bullying their way onto phone screens will be seen as annoying even by partisan voters.
The US college admission scandal reveals that while the rich find ways of getting what they want, it's not necessarily what they need - job ready skills for their kids.
The plane crashes involving Boeing Max 8's remind us that assurances of safety as the primary value, can never be guaranteed.
If you spend a single dollar to celebrate St. Patrick's Day this weekend, you can blame marketing for doing its job.
Tesla said we could have a super-cool car, save the planet, and do so for under $40k, thus engineering demand which it could not manage. Now it's hit the repeat button with 6 variations of the Model 3.
When our research leads to an unexpected - even time consuming - detour, we should embrace the mystery and seek out answers.
We live in a society with minds made up and and unwillingness to discuss counter opinions. Empathy may be our only hope.
Canada added 55,000 jobs to the economy in January, most of which had to do with services than goods production. This opens up a great opportunity for a LOOC (Learning Out Of Class) to examine products as services rather than just goods.
Linkedin is riddled with self-proclaimed social media experts. But you're better off looking for a hard-working strategist.
The recent "momochallenge" panic is more about human behaviour than it is about the downside of digital.
Deserving of more attention, EDM DJ Marshmello's recent "concert" inside the virtual reality game "Fortnite" is a peak into what your kids are doing now, and what the future of entertainment looks like.
Calgary Member of Parliament (MP) Michelle Rempel demonstrates the value of a politician, when done right.
After receiving challenges to our undoing of WestJet's new tagline, we offer up a few different ideas...sans the exorbitant fees of an agency. You're welcome.
The much hyped testimonies brought against Donald Trump and Justin Trudeau this week are starkly contrasting in tone, content and source credibility.
WestJet's fast track to undo Air Canada is on schedule, but the ad-copy for the new Dreamliner flights includes a most forgettable tagline.
Like Vanellope Von Scwheetz, Peter B. Parker is a superhero for present day. Flawed, fearful, vulnerable, but good intentioned and resilient.
Sir Richard Branson heard a cry for help from a distant continent, and went into action, putting on an awareness/fund-raising concert for Venezuela relief. The song used for this episode, "Me Rehúso (I Refuse)" was performed by Venezuelan expat Danny Ocean at the concert.
While Queen's surviving members opened the Academy Awards, the performance was no match for memories of a 1977 concert in Calgary, the recollection of which was mightily assisted by Setlist.fm.
When a budding basketball superstar goes down with an injury, involving a blown out Nike shoe, it makes for amazing coffee room banter...but that's about all.
While we binge watch "Tidying Up", then react with a little house purging, we're focusing on a symptom rather than the cause of our clutter.
There are over 75 pages of book titles in Amazon's store which use explicit language in the title. But does this strategy work as an attention grabber anymore?
When Dollar Shave Club was sold to Unilever for $1B the world stood up and recognized value in home delivered personal grooming. Is Quip the next unicorn in this space?
In a longer than usual take, we look at the futility of the valiant effort to jumpstart Alberta's sagging energy industry, and a newer idea, which could do the same.
On this day of niceties, we celebrate Halsey's undoing of love, raw and emotional on Saturday Night Live.
Apple's recent announcement of a new retail boss may finally be the beginning of the end to the worn out genius model.
Jeff Bezos public war against the National Enquirer should raise our awareness of how privacy is compromised...even by Bezos himself.
Donald Trump's state of the union address this week failed to position himself as the saviour he'd like to have American's believe.
Tesla owners in Canada and the US cold belt are complaining of low battery ranges and fancy door handles not opening.
It's time to put a character limit, or all out ban of famous dead people quotes, and think for yourself.
While Maroon 5 gets scathed on social media, and old guys like us yearn for The Who at halftime...undoing the format springs forth new ideas.
Superbowl games, and ads therein, come and go, but once in a while a message sticks and changes a brand's fate forever. Bumble may have done so with the "itsinhercourt spot.
A rainstorm in Calgary, Canada in January is not on its own "proof" of climate change, but if it makes you think of climate change, don't stop there.
While cannabis producers in Canada scramble to meet supply of the legalized recreational market, the medical cannabis space is ripe for a new surge in demand.
The Harlem Globetrotters still deliver value...even if they don't shoot as accurately as you remember.
The notorious Tesla founder/CEO makes waves with all he does/says...especially when the words aren't so rosy.
Simon Sinek says "people don't buy what you do, they buy why you do it." So why do we do the daily undoing?
Former SAIT Student Association President Tegan Cochrane came back to campus to celebrate a precedent setting donation towards a new student centre.
Gillette's viral ad, in the end has generated more attention toward the brand than a traditional media spend could ever achieve. But is it the right attention.
Today we complete the LOOC (Learning out of class) activity on Canadian based "Crickstart", with some small fill in the blanks of a SWOT analysis.
Calling all business students, entrepreneurs and seekers of new food experiences. Today we apply a seminal business tool on a forward thinking Canadian startup.
Plant-based "meat" producer (there, we said it...come get us Nebraska) makes a delicious product while aiming to help the world. But the broken meat industry is digging in its heals.
Rahaf Mohammed's (she's dropped the al-Qunun since we made this) teaches us all a little bit more about grit than we can imagine.
The break up of the century should focus more on the co-entrepreneurialsim and less on the money.
Engaging (or hoping to engage) learning through pure curiosity, and Learning Outside of Classrooms.
The Calgary Zoo shows us how to fill our tummies with a clean conscience, with its LEAF certified food services.
What to do with an icon on a collision course with social pressure? Tim Hortons grapples with this question every February.
Companies across all consumer categories claim to "handcraft" everything from socks to automobiles, the euphemism is lost on those to whom the message is targeted.
Content from thought leaders and experts is great...until it's not. Proceed with caution when giving advice over social channels.
While we like to think "marketing" is to blame for everything that takes money from our pockets, WE brought Cyber Monday upon ourselves.
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While Black Friday shopping often seems to bring out the worst in us, Abraham Maslow's timeless "Hierarchy of Needs" suggests there is hope.
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Part 2 of our two-part series on Energy Disruptors Unite, a gathering of energy transformation thought leaders, now planning its second annual conference in Calgary, AB, for September 2019.
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In this first of a two part series, we introduce Graeme Edge, co-founder of the hugely successful "Energy Disruptors Unite", a conference which brings together experts from energy, finance, technology and policy to discuss, ideate and possibly help shape the future of energy.
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A Student Does Not a Segment Make
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Another Example of Business School Nonsense
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Every Company Needs a Boredom Jar
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Calgary 2026: Catalyst for Change
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The Delight is in the Detail
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Mad Men's Lesson on Positioning
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SWOT and the Opportunity Fallacy
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Wearing Costumes on Linkedin
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Empathy; the service provider's best friend
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My Worst Student is the most Entrepreneurial
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What Kids Indoor Play Parks Know About Parents
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Legal Cannabis - One Week In
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Curiosity - The Entrepreneur's Emotion
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What are You Feeding Your Mind?
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Flo vs the Gecko and the Art of Perception
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Setting Price for Human Behaviour
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What Do You Expect from a Dental Check Up?
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Growth IQ and Customer Experience
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Intro and the True Meaning of Marketing
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