Wednesday, March 28, 2018

"A template for your next impromptu walk"/ Dale Morgan

Nov. 27, 2017 "A template for your next impromptu walk": Today I found this article by Harvey Schachter in the Globe and Mail:


Impromptu speaking is critical to work. So be prepared.

That sounds like a contradiction: How can you be prepared for something impromptu? But Judith Humphrey, founder of the Toronto-based leadership communication consultancy The Humphrey Group, says you can and should be prepared for the many impromptu-speaking opportunities you encounter.

Preparation includes being knowledgeable on subjects you will face, learning how to read an audience, and becoming adept at using her script template that allows you – in five minutes or five seconds – to outline a powerful impromptu pitch. "Impromptu is not winging it. It's preparing yourself to be spontaneous," she says in an interview.

Ms. Humphrey, a former speechwriter, wrote her first book, Speaking as a Leader, about formal speeches in 2012. But these days, she sees the impetus for impromptu speaking growing as organizations flatten. It used to be that top executives set out the key messages, with people in the ranks not having such opportunities or simply echoing the boss.

But today, people at all levels are sending important messages to colleagues and clients, from sales visits to chats with a co-worker walking in from the parking lot, so she tackles that in her latest book, Impromptu. "You need an ability to organize your thoughts in the moment. Often people, when they start speaking, don't know what they want to say.

That's why you hear a lot of 'ahhs' or 'What I meant to say was ...'" she says in an interview.

It starts with knowing your stuff, from subject and product information to general information, to experiential knowledge. In her book, she mentions the viral video of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau explaining quantum computing when he visited the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics in Waterloo, Ont., last year.

Subject knowledge carried that day for him. In the interview, she notes how Robert Kennedy's love of poetry allowed him to quote the Greek poet Aeschylus in his moving tribute after Martin Luther King's assassination. You also should be able to draw from your experiences, such as comments various clients have made about your product.

It's also critical to be able to read your audience – before, during, and after a talk. Who is in the audience, and what are their needs? Are they paying attention as you speak or does their body language suggest they are confused or don't care? How did that talk go?

Her handy script template for you to follow has these components:

Grabber

This is a bridge from the previous speaker or comments to you and your points. It provides some space between speakers, focus and context. Formal speeches can begin with an anecdote or joke but in an impromptu situation it's a short comment, such as, "I agree with the last point."

Message

This is your main point, ideally one idea presented in a single sentence. It should be engaging, carry your convictions, and be positive. "It's so important to know what you're saying and to say it well.

To say it well, you need to get to the point quickly," Ms. Humphrey says. Too often we struggle, taking a number of sentences to find our point. She says in some contexts, such as talking to a client, you should know the message already. If not, sometimes you can delay speaking, while others talk and you figure out your crystallized comment.

If asked a question and you find yourself struggling for the nugget answer, she suggests responding with a grabber and then pausing until you can clarify the exact message. "The pause seems long to the speaker but not the audience.

A pause can make you look thoughtful," Ms. Humphrey says. And on balance, be positive. If the situation you are addressing is negative, slide into the positive aspect: What can be done to improve.

Proof

You now need two to four points that back your main message. They may be reasons why the statement is correct, ways to achieve the course of action you are proposing, or actions that flow from the situation you have outlined. Build your case, but don't go overboard on the number of supporting points you offer.

Ending

A formal speech ends with a summary. But an impromptu speech is short and there is no need to repeat. Instead, you end with a call to action. "If you turn the message into action you will have led. This is essentially leadership – getting people to believe, move, achieve and perform at a higher level. It's about action," Ms Humphrey says.

She believes most people fail at impromptu speaking because they believe they don't have to be scripted. So be prepared for your next impromptu talk, keeping her template in mind. Find the essence of your message, lay out the proof, and take people with you.

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/careers/management/a-template-for-your-next-impromptu-talk/article37080905/

The Ladder: Dale Morgan: Today I found this article in the Globe and Mail:


Dale Morgan, 42, is the CEO of Astound, a design and fabrication company that creates exhibits and experiences for trade shows, brands and live events. Astound has 250 employees, with offices in Toronto, Oakville, Ont., and Las Vegas.

I grew up in Burlington [Ont.], the youngest of three brothers. I was class clown all through high school, not really that great of a student. Not because I wasn't capable – it was more that if I didn't have to do something, I wouldn't.

I had one binder and never had a textbook, I always borrowed a pen. I played basketball all through high school, so I was more of a gym rat than a student. But I was an artist. I did a lot of drawing, always had a good eye for detail.

A friend was an installer for a trade show company, and they were sending him all over the world for trade shows. He would send me postcards from Africa or Japan, and I was like, that sounds like a lot of fun. So right out of high school, I started working for the same company.

I ended up meeting a lot of people on the road by walking the show floor, and seeing much larger, more elaborate exhibits. The tipping point – when I realized I could do something better – was when they sent me to a semiconductor show in Taiwan.

I met an experienced guy in the trade-show industry and we came up with this idea that we would serve the Silicon Valley companies exhibiting in Asia, because it was a real struggle to do that at the time. We had two separate companies, but we'd work together and help each other.

I decided it could be a lot more than just consulting for a single industry. I founded Astound on my own in 2001 at my house in Burlington, in my second bedroom.

When the economic downturn of 2008 happened, that was the very worst of times. We were really heavily invested in the semiconductor industry and suddenly, it was gone. Within a period of two weeks, almost all of our clients told us they aren't doing any more shows. And here we are, 40 people at this point, in a big office.

We had to scale back and let most people go. The bright spot was that I was watching the semiconductor industry to see where they were going and they were going into solar. I thought, "This is a global trend we're going to follow."

From there, I thought, "What's hot? What are the global trends?" Mobile phones. So I went to the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona with no clients just to walk the show and check it out. And now it's one of our biggest industries.

I have always been a news junkie and I keep my eye on what's going on in the world. So the company is really built on that idea – digging deep into an industry, understanding it, then becoming an invaluable partner to our clients, rather than a localized vendor.

Now we're at a really exciting transition phase. We're building a 350,000-square-foot facility in Las Vegas, which will make us the largest exhibit builder in Las Vegas. Trade shows and exhibits are 50 per cent of our business, the other side is doing anything from architectural mill-work to interactive engagement pieces to pop-up retail.

The challenge is being able to adapt as the business scales, and being able to step outside designing and building experiences to realize that in order to scale, the business needs proper systems and infrastructure. It needs the right people in all these different positions, and those people need to evolve and change.

To be a good leader, I think you need honesty and transparency. There aren't two sides to me. I'm the same guy drinking beers as giving a speech or talking to the media.

My advice to entrepreneurs is worry about culture first and set the tone for what kind of company you're going to be. Knowing what your values are and communicating that from the get-go is really important.

In the beginning, "Have fun" was in our mission statement. The event industry has to be fun. It's hard work, it's a high-demand industry, so people have to be wired that way. And by presenting our values the way we do, really clearly from the beginning, it acts as a filter for the right people. Without that love of what we do, doing it would not be possible.

This interview has been edited and condensed.

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/careers/career-advice/dale-morgan-to-be-a-good-leader-i-think-you-need-honesty-and-transparency/article37081244/

Pere Santamaria/ Rita-Rose Gagne

Nov. 13, 2017 The Ladder: Pere Santamaria: Today I found this article in the Globe and Mail:


Spanish-born Pere Santamaria, 57, is professor, immunology and infectious diseases, in the University of Calgary's microbiology department, and chief scientific officer with Parvus Therapeutics Inc. He's developed an engineered nanoparticle that changes the way T regulatory cells operate and potentially halt the autoimmune response.

My parents were factory workers who worked for Pirelli Tire in a small town outside Barcelona.

When 15, I became sick. My parents were poor and didn't know what to do. I will never forget the fear in their eyes. I spent half a year in the hospital on high-dose corticosteroids and was finally diagnosed with myasthenia gravis, an autoimmune disease.

I became a doctor and did a residency in immunology and a PhD in Barcelona. I worked by myself in a lab on artherosclerosis. It was not a very good PhD if I compare it with what my students do now.

I idealized the world of an investigator. You saw a man landing the moon and all these medical discoveries on TV. I thought the United States was the research mecca.

I went to the University of Minnesota as a post doc and worked for a clinician – not a PhD – so I wasn't told what experiments to do. I published. I had a few patents but became frustrated and realized we knew nothing about Type 1 diabetes (an autoimmune disease).

In 1992, I was hired at the University of Calgary. They said: "To come here you have to have funding from the Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research. Oh, for sure, you'll get it." We drove across the country. I called my contact from a pay phone at Market Mall and said, "I'm here. I can start tomorrow." He said, "Sorry Pere, they [the AHFMR] turned you down." My wife was crying, my baby was crying. It was the worst day of my life.

The U of C gave me salary support for two years but said that after two years if I didn't get the grant, I'd be gone. I had no lab. I had no money to buy equipment. Here I was alone again. So I went to my department and [asked for] $10,000.

I developed a mouse with a simplified genetic immune system to study diabetes. That mouse was the best thing I ever did. All the good things in my career were linked to that mouse. I got a Canadian Diabetes Association scholarship that paid my salary.

In 2000, we published in Nature, the best thing you can do as a researcher. But it wasn't a game-changing discovery. It didn't cure anything. Then a radiologist colleague read my paper and wanted to use nanoparticles to visualize diabetes. We started seeing really strange things that made no sense whatsoever. The nanoparticles were having a therapeutic effect. I had potentially an important discovery but very little data.

I get a physical feeling when I'm on the right track … it's like my back brain is overtaking my front brain.

I went to the university and said: "I want to file a patent and build a company around this"… because if you license tech to a company they won't have the stamina or the patience to develop it further. Parvus was started in 2004 and incorporated in 2009.

[The journal] Immunity agreed to publish the research but I had to answer questions within 24 hours including: Explain why no one discovered this before? I said: "A discovery is called a discovery because no one has seen it before. Otherwise why would I send this paper to you?"

We secured a partnership with Novartis, which was a big break for us. They will do the clinical trials (for type 1 Diabetes). Our discovery stands to change medicine altogether in a radical way, and displace current drugs.

There is a possibility we may fail because that's part of the game. By then, this will mean we learned something more about the immune system.

I get many, many, many e-mails from people from all over the world. I can't write to them because I would spend all my day writing. But I am sympathetic. Autoimmune diseases are chronic and the treatments are tough. I've lived it.

My own health is stable. I have had Graves' Disease and had my thyroid irradiated. I've had arthritis that went away after a year.

Looking back, the things that make me a good scientist are the failures, not the successes. There were days when I thought: Maybe they're right, maybe I'm a loser, not working on a fashionable theme.

I enjoy describing the setbacks. Being successful was not my goal. I was curious, like a kid, nothing more than that.

As told to Janice Paskey. This interview has been edited and condensed.


Nov. 20, 2017 The Ladder: Rita- Rose Gagne: Today I found this article in the Globe and Mail:


Rita-Rose Gagné is executive vice-president of growth markets at Ivanhoé Cambridge, a global commercial real estate firm.


I grew up in Quebec City, the seventh kid in a family of eight. I was raised with English as my maternal language. I was in English school up until secondary school, but because schools started closing in Quebec City, I switched to French. Now I'm more French speaking.


I was into competitive sports – a lot of alpine skiing and soccer. But the other side of me was music. I played 12 years of cello very seriously. My career was supposed to be going into music or continuing into alpine skiing. I was very focused, and then had a serious skiing accident when I was about 18 years old. I couldn't ski or play cello for a year. It was a tough year. But I already had the idea of becoming a lawyer in the back of my head.

My father was a very strong figure in my family. He was a lawyer and a businessman, and formed his own law firm in Quebec City. It had a strong influence on the family for sure – six of us studied law and some have practised. It did influence me, although my father always said that I shouldn't do it, that it was a hard profession. It inspired me, looking at him.


Naturally, I'm attracted to building things up, building up partnerships, building up strategies. I practised law for 16 years. When you're on the legal side, you may achieve that sometimes, but you're in a different mindset – you solve legal problems. I like finance, and that was missing in my legal career. So in my MBA at McGill-HEC, I really got into knowing more deeply the financial side of things.



I'm an ambivert, but I think that it depends on the setting. For example, if you ask me a question, I don't pop up with the answer, which means I'm a bit ambiguous about it. If I'm in a room or meeting, I may be very extroverted. If I'm in a different setting I may intentionally be more introverted. If I am with my team, I often want to listen and take up no space at all. In a negotiation, I might speak less when I want the other party to put it all out before me. So it's a bit of both.


My leadership style has evolved over time. I was naturally very results-driven and thought everything was geared towards getting the result and winning. Now, it's changed a bit more into – yes, the result – but also creating the vision, creating the strategy, thinking more long term, looking forward. An additional layer of the result now is getting a good strategic plan versus just getting stuff done every day.
  
During the week, my focus is on my work. I naturally wake up at about 5 a.m., and since I cover Asia and the Pacific often, sometimes start calls at 6 or 7 a.m. I have long days and it's intense. But then, from Friday night to Sunday morning, I really try to disconnect from work.


When you work around the world, you have to be open and non-judgmental. You have to take a step back. Sometimes they will want to talk a lot before getting into a given topic or negotiation, and things might be slower.


A mentor helps you at critical points to step forward. I've had some mentors in my career, and I tend to do that myself especially with younger people. It's not a matter of being in a constant specific weekly relationship with someone, it's having people who make some key gestures.



I find that young women work hard, but we have to remind them to ask for the promotion or to ask for the salary increase. I find that I had more opportunities to give that type of feedback to younger women than to young men, who seem to more naturally think about that.


The advice that I'd give to younger people is "no pain, no gain." If you want an extraordinary gain, you have to make an extraordinary effort. You need to absolutely work hard. Then you do have to establish, look for, or develop relationships that are meaningful.

 https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/careers/management/rita-rose-gagne-my-advice-for-young-people-is-no-pain-no-gain/article37017072/

Sunday, March 25, 2018

Heroes Reborn/ Channel Zero/ This is Us

Jan. 3, 2017: I'm writing about old TV shows because I don't have a lot of TV shows to watch right now.


Heroes Reborn: I saw the original show Heroes when it first came out.  When the reboot came out in fall 2015,  I had to at least check out the pilot.  I loved the pilot and watched the whole season.


"A year ago, a terrorist attack in Odessa, Texas, left the city decimated. Blamed for the tragic event, those with extraordinary abilities are in hiding or on the run from those with nefarious motives."

Pros:

1. There is the anchor character Noah (Jack Coleman) from the original show.  There are some other characters who make appearances on it.

2. I like how the show has Noah's memory erased and how he has to piece it together.  It's a good mystery.

3. I like even the villians Luke (Zachary Levi) and Joanne (Judith Shekoni) because they are killing all the Evos (evolutions/ mutants) who are why their son died.

4. Noah: Good memories fulfill your life with context, meaning, and clarity.  Others can deceive and make you believe you know the truth.  The ones that hold you hostage.  Look back at all the decisions you made, the 1 thing you don't want to feel is regret.

Casper: A lot of people spend time waiting instead of making things happen.

What good is a hero if he doesn't help people who need him the most?

I'm going to put that in my inspirational quotes.

5. I love all the characters.  It's just like the original with all sorts of characters with different powers and they are all over the world.

There is the teen Tommy (Robbie Kay) in the US who is on the run with his mom.

Carlos (Ryan Guzman) the soldier who comes to the US and adjusts to civilian life.

Miko (Kiki Sukezane) in Japan who enters a video game.


Malina (Danika Yarosh) who is in the artic.

6. It's also shot in Canada so we see the Canadian actors get small parts.

Peter Mooney (Nick from Rookie Blue) and Aislinn Paul (Claire from Degrassi).

7. Erika (Rya Kihlstedt) is the main bad guy this season and she's got a big mission. 

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3556944/?ref_=nv_sr_1

My opinion: I recommend you watch the pilot.  You don't have to watch the original.  This does stand on it's own very well.

Jan. 17, 2018 Channel Zero: Candle Cove: This show came out in fall 2016 where there is a 6 episode season.

"An anthology series based on popular Internet Creepypastas, including Candle Cove, The No-End House, Butcher's Block and Hidden Door."

The first season Candle Cove is about a TV show that makes kids kill people.

Pros:

1. It was a good start where there is a lot of drama, conflict and tension set in after years  later a massacre happened.  Mike Painter (Paul Schnieder from Parks and Recreation) comes back to town to visit his mom.  His twin brother died when they were 12.

2. Good dialogue when the mom Martha doesn't have family pics up:

"It's a matter of managing intrusive thoughts."

I should put that in my inspirational quotes.  I just did.

3. It's creepy when it seems the TV show Candle Cove is coming back on. 

There are these disturbing images from the show.  It's not all blood and gore, but like a:

-figure that is on fire and walking

-a skeleton in a hood standing there

Cons:

None.  Maybe it's too scary for some people.

My opinion: I watched the first season.  Then I watched the second season No- End House.  It's a different story about a haunted house, but it was still scary and the quality is good.  If you like scary stuff, then watch it.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4820370/?ref_=fn_al_tt_4

This is Us: 

"Follows a unique ensemble, as their paths cross and their life stories interwine, from sharing the same birthday, to so much more than anyone would expect." 

1. Interesting beginning of "18 million people have the same birthday."

2. There are big names like Mandy Moore and Milo Ventimiglia.  Justin Hartley, Chrissy Metz and Sterling K. Brown are good.

3. My favorite is when Randall (Sterling K. Brown) finds his long-lost father who abandoned him at a fire station 36 yrs ago.  They reunite.  

4. Alan Thicke makes an appearance as himself.

5. There was good acting with Kevin (Justin Hartley) getting angry and lashing out at the audience.  I re-watched that part and it should be on his acting reel.

6. There was a great plot twist with all the characters being connected.

Cons: None.

My opinion: I liked the pilot, but was unsure if I really would watch every episode.  I saw the 2nd episode and decided to record all of it.  It's not usually my kind of show.  I like to watch action- drama shows. 

I thought this show may be a bunch of phony sentimentality, but it's really heart-warming.  You should at least check out the pilot.


Mar. 15, 2018 Channel Zero: No- End House: I got the Showcase channel for free preview in Oct. 2017.  I was able to watch this 6 episode season.

Pros: 

1. It's scary with lots of drama, conflict and tension of a creepy house at the end of the street.  It's very creepy.  I feel tense watching it.

2. Good cinematography.

3. Good acting.

Cons: None really.  I don't really care about the characters who are 4 teens Margo, Jules, JD and Seth.  I don't have anything bad to say about them.

Comparisons:

People being trapped in a town: The characters are trapped there.  It was like the other shows called Under the Dome, Wayward Pines, Between and Containment.


My opinion: It's scary so if you like to get scared, go watch it.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4820370/?ref_=nv_sr_1

My week:

Mar. 20, 2018 Design the Life you Desire telesummit: I signed up for this video interview.  You should sign up for it too.  It's going to be inspirational:



Mar. 21, 2018 Lindsay Lohan Lawyer.com commercial: I was at work and the staff room TV was on.  It was on The Talk about Lohan's commercial.  The question is: "Do you find it irresponsible that Lohan his making this light of a serious issue?"  

The audience says yes.

My question is this: You are:

A. This is offensive.

B. This is funny.

C. Both.

D. Neither.

I would say it was light, fun and funny.  She was making fun of herself about how she got DUIs.  She is doing this to be the spokesperson for the company and to make money.  She is not here to offend people.

It's not like Tosh. O TV show where they seem to want to be funny and offend people at the same time.

If you don't like her, don't look at her.
  

The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina: Today I was reading "The master of Vancouver's TV universe" by Ian Bailey in the Globe and Mail.  He profiles Greg Berlanti and it mentions this show.  I will check out the pilot:

A dark coming-of-age tale that follows Sabrina, as she wrestles to reconcile her dual nature as a half-witch, half-mortal while fighting evil forces.


James Patterson donates to charity:
NEW YORK — James Patterson is stepping up his game.
The bestselling author has increased his annual donations for classroom libraries from $1.75 million to $2 million. Scholastic Inc. told The Associated Press on Monday that Patterson is distributing 4,000 gifts of $500 each to teachers around the country, from Mechanic Falls, Maine, to Cheney, Kansas. The so-called “Patterson Pledge” was launched in 2015 and is run in co-ordination with Scholastic Book Clubs, which adds book club points to Patterson’s contribution. More than 80,000 teachers applied for donations.
“I can’t underscore enough how important books and reading are to a child’s development — better readers make better people, and ultimately better citizens,” Patterson said in a statement. “I’m so grateful for the teachers who are doing imperative work with students every day, in every school in the country. These grants are my way of acknowledging their extraordinary efforts.”
“Teachers often have to find their own funds and use their personal money to buy books and build fresh classroom libraries. This is why we at Scholastic Book Clubs are truly inspired by James Patterson’s commitment to offer real help to teachers in this work,” Judy Newman, president of Scholastic Book Clubs, said in a statement.
Over the past few years, Patterson has also given millions of dollars to bookstores and literacy programs and endowed thousands of college scholarships for teachers.


Mar. 23, 2018 "Air Bnb hosts can kick you out after you've checked in": I watched the TV show Adam Ruins Everything and he has mentioned about how hosts have discriminated guests from staying in their home, and also how a guest has damaged a house in thousands of dollars.  Air Bnb then only reimbursed by less than $100:


Last month, Logan Kugler checked into the home of a Los Angeles-based Airbnb host. The plan was to stay there for about one month, but Kugler found himself checking out just three days after checking in. That’s not because he wanted to, but because the host cancelled his reservation.



This story is not about any one party being right or wrong. Instead, let this serve as a reminder that we are living in an age of non-traditional services -- be that via ride-share, home-sharing, bike-sharing and so forth. That means, as it stands now, anyone has the right to kick you out of their car, house or apartment if they feel so inclined. That's essentially what happened with Kugler when he used Airbnb to rent a home in LA last month.


“I woke up to a message on my phone that said Airbnb had changed my reservation and that it ended in 36 hours and I was to leave," Kugler told TechCrunch. “This was a 31-day rental.”

The host asked Kugler to leave because she felt uncomfortable with the amount of requests he was making, such as to change the layout of the refrigerator and install different lights, she told TechCrunch. That's when she contacted Airbnb to let the company know she wasn't going to be able to let him stay there anymore.

The host gave Kugler 48 hours' notice to leave the premises. Kugler, however, said he wouldn't be able to pack up and leave that soon. So he asked for a couple of extra days, which the host declined.

Meanwhile, Kugler was in contact with Airbnb over the course of a couple of days to find a new place to stay with the same nightly rate, according to messages reviewed by TechCrunch. Before Kugler was able to find a new place to stay, the time ran out on his original reservation. Because he hadn't left yet, the host called the police to help her get him off her property. Part of her rationale for calling the police, she said, was because Airbnb wasn't helping her to get him to leave.

"I felt uncomfortable," she said. "I lived in the main house and I wasn't comfortable having this man on my property.
There are 900 comments:
roadscolar
20 hours ago
I've had short term guests (less than a month) ask me to install a ceiling fan, an outside shower for the pool, and buy a garage door opener that works of their phone. The problem with declining such absurd requests is you don't know if this strange person is going to behave vindictively and damage your house when you refuse their request - and that's why you end up evicting them.
https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/airbnb-hosts-kick-apos-ve-163951961.html