"Doing away with 'dining al desko'"/ "Educational institutions should help prepare students for careers in sales"

May 27, 2017 "Doing away with 'dining al desko'": Today I found this article by Ashley O'Niell in the Globe and Mail.  If you have a lunch break, you can be more productive:

Ashley O’Neill is vice-president of corporate strategy at CBRE.

If you’ve ever worked in an open office environment, you’ve likely found yourself set aback by the overpowering aroma of your colleagues’ food choices as they chow down at their desks. Tyler is digging into a bowl of kimchi and did Lynn just reheat scallops in the communal microwave? With your olfactory sense on high alert, the strong waft has you distracted and your productivity shot. Welcome to “dining al desko”.

This isn’t a new or uncommon phenomenon. Search for #SadDeskLunch on Twitter and you’ll be greeted with picture upon picture of people eating in front of computer screens, and a laundry list of how-to tips on avoiding the practice. It’s so widespread that, according to research from Hartman Consulting Group, 62 per cent of workers report routinely repeating the act.

Every. Single. Day.

And while eating in isolation has been linked to stress and overeating, and obnoxious smells are known to distract, it’s the unwanted crumbs left sitting on the desk and in the equipment that cause bacteria to grow. In fact, countless studies have shown most keyboards to have more bacteria than toilet bowls. A truly delicious stat to contemplate while you tuck into your egg-salad sandwich.

So, when CBRE decided to transform its offices across Canada, the million-dollar question was, “How do we mitigate the sometimes unhealthy relationship employees have with their desks, and promote wellness in the workplace?”

Getting people to eat away from their desks is no small feat and is a fundamental change to the daily habits of many workers. We’re increasingly spending longer hours at work and, if taking a quick bite at the desk means shaving 20 minutes off the day, that’s a trade-off many are willing to make. However, the perceived time-saving is a fallacy.

We are targeting WELL Building Certification in our newly transformed downtown Toronto head office, the first building standard to focus on the health and wellness of the people that work in a space.

We wanted to take this one step further and truly ingrain employee wellness into our culture, so we implemented a healthy desk policy, a Canadian first. The policy prohibits employees from eating at their desks in the interest of promoting physical and mental well-being in the workplace. It’s not meant to be restrictive; rather, it’s about creating an engaged environment where employees are encouraged to connect with colleagues and share ideas over a meal.

When telling people that eating lunch at their desk is “prohibited,” you might expect a revolt, but executing such a large behavioural change requires a strategic approach. For CBRE, that meant regular communication with our people before, during and after the transformation. Effective change-management generates benefits for all parties at the table.

Consistently communicating the thinking and benefits behind the healthy-desk policy through implementation was only one part of the solution. We also had to provide our people a great venue to go have their meals. The cornerstone of the policy’s success has been our RISE Café, strategically positioned on our floor plan to offer direct access to light and views, and a variety of seating options.

The space caters to the mood you are in. If you’re feeling chatty, you can sit at the harvest-style table. If you just want to read the paper or even gaze out onto the streets of Toronto, you can perch at the bar along the windows. The RISE Café also bolsters our culture of openness and transparency, as senior leadership is often found meeting with clients and employees alike, making them more accessible to our younger talent.

Eight months in, employees have wholeheartedly embraced the change. They are taking time away from their workstations to congregate for meals as they share ideas, and build social and business connections. But what about all that productive work time “lost” eating away from the desk? As a recovering sad-desk-lunch junkie, I now believe the question organizations need to ask should be, “Are your employees actually concentrating on work when dining al desko?”

Chances are, probably not, as their attention is being diverted between the task at hand, the meal in hand and an ever-looming emotional spiral of social deprivation. Moreover, a recent University of Illinois study found that prolonged focus on a task can hinder performance, and that taking a break, or even a change in setting, can do wonders for creativity and productivity.

As with any policy, there is the odd infraction and occasional reminders are still sent around, but it has largely become a self-policing policy, as we have created an environment where people understand the benefits and see the value in getting away from their desks. They look forward to being in the RISE Café and connecting with colleagues, especially those they may not sit close to in the office. Corporately speaking, CBRE is reaping the benefits. Since the move, we have recorded substantially more multidiscipline business solutions being successfully executed for our clients – and that is a win on every front.

At the end of the day, we all need a little help to make healthier decisions, and our healthy-desk policy is a nudge in the right direction. Change is never easy, and breaking habits is even harder, but when you take action to improve your staff’s health and wellness, the payoff equation is simple: Always treat employees the way you want them to treat your valued clients.

Executives, educators and human resources experts contribute to the ongoing Leadership Lab series.

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/careers/leadership-lab/doing-away-with-dining-al-desko/article35083814/

Jun. 3, 2017 "Educational institutions should help prepare students for careers in sales": Today I found this article by Sonya Meloff in the Globe and Mail:

Sonya Meloff is co-founder of the Sales Talent Agency.

Canadian university and college students want to be entrepreneurs, marketers, teachers ... the list goes on.

One thing is becoming clearer than ever: If we want the youth unemployment rate in this country to decrease – it’s double the national unemployment rate of 6.2 per cent at 12.4 – we need to realistically prepare students for the job market by opening their eyes to a career that they may never have previously considered.

Throughout my 10 years as a sales recruiter, CEOs and business leaders have expressed how eager they are to hire talented, passionate college or university graduates to sales roles. This desire lines up directly with a study from the Conference Board of Canada, which consistently lists sales as one of the top-five highest-in-demand specializations.

So why are we not preparing Canadian students for the jobs that are out there?

Positions in sales at flourishing companies, particularly at up-and-coming technology companies, are not getting filled for two main reasons:

• Not many students dream of being in sales when they grow up, because of misconceptions about the industry (used-car sales, commission-only, door-to-door, etc.).
• Select new grads applying to these roles are not qualified. There is a big gap between what students are learning in the classroom versus the needs of employers.

Sales people are capable of climbing the corporate ladder. My business partner Jamie Scarborough and I have found that about 20 per cent of the CEOs we encounter have come from sales positions.

All of these discoveries inspired us to take on a big project in 2014: the Great Canadian Sales Competition (GCSC), an initiative aimed at shedding light on the opportunities in B2B sales with the help of faculty members at universities and colleges across the country.

We wrapped up the third and largest year GCSC in March, as more than 2,100 students learned about a field that likely never crossed their mind. Of the contestants surveyed, only 11 per cent of them initially wanted to pursue a sales career. After participation in the GCSC, 98 per cent would considering it.

Over the past three years, our program has grown from just 215 submissions to 2,187. Educators are starting to realize that sales is a career that is not being highlighted to students; in turn, they are not being properly prepared for modern job opportunities.

Bruce Anthony is the program head of the Professional Sales program at the British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT), a postsecondary institution offering a Professional Sales Diploma. He says the program originally had 18 students enrolled in 1980, and today graduates an average of 50 students each year, with three companies hiring per one student enrolled. Moreover, they teach selling skills in other programs, including Engineering.

Since 2014, we have built awareness on campuses and spoken with college administrators across Canada. But these efforts would be much more successful if they were mirrored by program directors who can prioritize the creation of programs that focus on sales education.

Another advocate is Linda Traill, a professor and co-ordinator of the B2B Corporate Account Management Graduate Certificate at Centennial College in Toronto. She’s also the brains behind the Marketing: Corporate Account Management program advisory committee (PAC) at the School of Business. She’s aiming to raise the profile of the sales profession through a graduate certificate program and by exposing students to opportunities in the field.

Derek Spence, professor at the School of Business and Management at Niagara College (Ontario), is researching what employers are looking for in future employees and how schools can better prepare students for their future.

He says that once students go through the program, about 60 to 70 per cent of graduates land sales roles. Their opinions about the career shift positively from when they first start because they understand the opportunities. Our goal is to ensure that students across the country are landing jobs right after graduation – jobs they are passionate about, in organizations they can excel in.

Every post-secondary institution, particularly with business courses, should implement some type of B2B sales course or project element to their programs to pull the curtain back on this often misunderstood field.

Executives, educators and human resources experts contribute to the ongoing Leadership Lab series.

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/careers/leadership-lab/educational-institutions-should-help-prepare-students-for-careers-in-sales/article35152235/

" There's a case for humility in high places"/ "Seven career building tips for new graduates"

Jun. 2, 2017 "There’s a case for humility in high places": Today I found this article by Guy Dixon in the Globe and Mail:

Humble leaders are best able to assess the strengths, weaknesses and contributions of the people around them, UBC professor finds

When we think about our bosses, we tend to be hypocrites.

Just as we want bosses to be humble and to be like us, we typically view ample humility in business leaders as a negative. Bosses who like the sound of their own voice turn us off (and those pushing aside Montenegrin leaders during photo ops do little to impress). But those prone to second-guessing and deference, somehow don’t seem to us as being boss material.

Yet, Michael Daniels, an assistant professor at the University of British Columbia’s Sauder School of Business and a specialist in organizational behaviour, says that research shows the opposite: Humility is just as important in bosses as it is in friends and family, partners and parents and, yes, even politicians.

He points to certain leaders in business history widely seen as pillars of consistency and performance, and humility. Of course, they aren’t very well known to the general public.

Darwin Smith turned Kimberly-Clark, the maker of Kleenex, into a consumer-products leader. Colman Mockler did the same at Gillette. There’s even the argument that Steve Jobs had to take on some uncharacteristic humility, at least publicly, later in his career, while introducing iPods and iPhones to the world.

And then there’s Sunny Verghese, co-founder and chief executive of international agribusiness conglomerate Olam, based in Singapore. In a meeting, Mr. Verghese once asked staff to rate their recent performance. “And famously, when he got to himself, he graded himself a D,” Dr. Daniels recounted.

In studying business behaviour, most of Dr. Daniels’s research concerns leaders, “because that’s where humility seems to be needed the most, and where it’s most saliently missing,” he said. “In effect, most of my research ends up revolving around having humble leaders versus, well, whatever the opposite of that is, egotistical, prideful leaders.”

The problem is that humility at work is often seen as a lack of confidence. Yet, figures show the reverse is true.

This may be because humility, even when effective, is misunderstood. It isn’t necessarily about withdrawing or self-questioning, but about having “an accurate sense of who you are and your place in the world relative to others,” Dr. Daniels said. Researchers tend to view that as a defining characteristic.

Another is an awareness of the strengths and contribution of others.

“For example, if you win an award, or some new sales data comes out, and you had a really great quarter, rather than basking in the limelight and accepting all the praise, you pass that on to other people who were maybe a little more behind the scenes,” Dr. Daniels said.

This isn’t just about thanking people and copping humility at the awards podium. For truly humble leaders, it’s an ingrained work method. “They are able to pick out who is really capable in their team and capable in what. They have a really good idea of other people’s strengths. Whereas people who are really low on humility, they don’t really have a clue about the people around them and their strengths and abilities,” Dr. Daniels said.

Finally, there is a third characteristic referred to as teachability: How open is the leader to feedback, and does he or she use it to self-assess and improve?

A common approach is to interview middle managers and have them assess their higher-up bosses, yet who have mid-level leadership experience themselves. This avoids the obvious problem of directly asking a leader to self-report their own humility. Imagine the answer: How humble are you? Very.

“You don’t know how to take that. They are kind of bragging about their own humility. Somebody who is truly humble may actually say, I’m moderately humble, but I have some room to grow in that area,” Dr. Daniels said.

Yet, let’s also state the obvious. No one is perfectly humble, nor perfectly arrogant. Humility isn’t an absolute trait, but a muscle within us all, Dr. Daniels said. We can use and develop it, or allow it to atrophy.

Dr. Daniels became interested in the topic when doing postdoctoral work in Singapore, “and there was more of this discussion of humility that’s grounded in Buddhism and Confucian values. So there is a historical, philosophical approach to humility there,” he said.

Although applying tenets of humility to one’s business life of course exists in the West, “it seems to me there’s more of a push for it there in Asia,” he said.

Part of that may have to do with what’s known as power distance. In institutions perceived as highly hierarchical, the distance is large between worker and executives in power, whereas in the West, there’s at least the veneer that hierarchies these days are (or should be) flatter.

When leaders in a setting with rigid hierarchy, or power distance, act more humbly, it has a dramatic effect.

“It’s less expected. You expect your leaders to be at a higher level. They don’t need to be humble and ask for your feedback and opinion. And so when they do, there’s a much stronger effect,” Dr. Daniels said. In environments with a flatter hierarchy and lower power distance, humility in a leader doesn’t seem so extraordinary.

Yet what of false humility? There’s not a lot of research on that so far, but Dr. Daniels has a hunch. False humility likely gets exposed in the end, given the amount of energy the leader has to put into constructing a modest front. Instead, humility has to match competency.

“If you’re not a capable leader, or people are skeptical, what they want to see is that at least you’re humble, and at least willing to grow and develop. Maybe you’ll develop that capability later. But somebody who is really arrogant and incapable, we think they’re a lost cause.”

https://www.pressreader.com/canada/the-globe-and-mail-bc-edition/20170602/282067686896554

"Seven career building tips for new graduates": Today I found this article by Derek Ting in the Globe and Mail:

Derek Ting is co-founder and CEO of TextNow, a mobile phone service with more than 10 million monthly active users.

You’re graduating. Well done. So now what?

Finding a job is probably top of mind, and as you join the throng of graduates looking for that perfect balance of high pay and meaningful work, try not to sweat the long-term.

Instead, focus on the here and now.

And whether you’re thinking of going corporate, joining a startup or starting something on your own, these seven secrets will help set you on the right path.

Don’t over-invest in what may not be the right fit

The Lean Startup principle can work for you too. The Lean Startup principle suggests startups should spend as little time as possible validating what the customer wants and not over-invest in an idea that may not work. In this case, that’s you – you’re the customer.

Think about what you want to validate in terms of fit at a given opportunity. If something doesn’t feel like the right fit, pivot to something else. Don’t invest further when a situation isn’t the right fit for you.

Network

It is important to start building your network early, both professionally and personally. It doesn’t matter if it’s LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or Snapchat, make connections with people and remember the old (but true) saying: it’s not just what you know, but also who you know.

Networking and connections have always mattered, but in a global world fierce with competition, they matter more than ever. Shamelessly tap into your network and see where it leads you.

Always learn

You have learned a lot already, but you have not learned everything. The most successful people know what they don’t know and always continue learning. Just because you’ve finished school doesn’t mean the learning ends. It’s a forever thing.

Use every opportunity and every job you have to learn something new or how to do something better.

Love what you do

A job should never be a means to an end. You should always love what you do, and what you do should always lead you to something else more interesting. That matters more than anything, because if you enjoy what you do, then it no longer is work.

Find what you’re passionate about doing and learning. It makes getting up Monday-to-Friday a lot easier.

Find your perfect fit

Not all companies are created equal. Different companies have different cultures, missions, size, teams, and products. Think about what kind of culture, mission, team and product you want to be part of.

(”You" is key here. Remember lesson 1: You’re the customer). If the company culture isn’t the right fit for you, you’re not going to last. Pick a company where the culture, mission and team are a perfect fit.

Find the diamond in the rough

Most people only submit their resumés to the most well-known companies like Google and Facebook. However, the best opportunities lie in companies you have never heard of. The best way to learn is to join a small company where you can do a range of different things and where there’s room to grow.

Look for a company that empowers you to not just do your job but grow into a new one by allowing you to increase your responsibilities and expand your opportunities.

Many doors will shut before one opens

You’ll hear no and no thanks, and you’ll fall, and you’ll fail. That’s okay. Don’t get discouraged. It takes quite a few nos to get a yes. Don’t be afraid to ask for feedback when someone says no. Think of those times as opportunities to learn. Then take those lessons to improve your next attempt. You’ll win. You’ll see.

TextNow a mobile phone services with more than 10-million users and I found success by following these principles, and I am sure you will find success as well if you enjoy what you’re doing and you believe in yourself.

Perseverance, grit, determination and commitment are critical. And whether you’re seeking a job or building a company, remember you have to create or find a mission that makes you feel passionate about your work and a company that cares about its culture and about encouraging you to learn and grow. When you’re feeling valued, you’ll do valuable work.

Executives, educators and human resources experts contribute to the ongoing Leadership Lab series.

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/careers/leadership-lab/seven-career-building-tips-for-new-graduates/article35151425/

Swordfish/ The Punisher/ Paycheck

Jul. 15, 2017 Swordfish: I saw this movie in Aug. 2016.  It was cold outside and I didn't have a lot of TV and movies to watch.  My brother had recorded it.


"A covert counter-terrorist unit called Black Cell led by Gabriel Shear wants the money to help finance their war against international terrorism, but it's all locked away. Gabriel brings in convicted hacker Stanley Jobson to help him. "

This movie came out in 2001.  I will write about it and it's kind of "spoilery" so if you don't want to be spoiled, skip to the next part.

Why?: I like action movies.

Pros:

1. It has big names like John Travolta, Halle Berry, and Hugh Jackman.  Also I see Tate Donovan (he was Marissa's dad on The OC).  I didn't know he was in in this.

Drea De Mateo is in as Stanley's ex-wife.  She is type-cast as harsh and tough.

2. Spoiler alert: It had an interesting start with Gabriel (John Travolta) talking about movies.  A SWAT team is pointing guns at him.  Stanley (Hugh Jackman) is there.  All the hostages are strapped with bombs.  You can't release the hostages because as soon as they leave, it will blow up.

3. Spoiler alert: It is fast-paced.  It then shows 4 days earlier.

4. Car chases and shooting.

5. Spoiler alert: There is a great 3rd act with lots of action.  They're on a bus and the bus goes to the airport.  The helicopter carries the bus and flies off.  Lots of destruction.

6. Good plot twist ending.

Cons:

1. Cliché dialogue.  In a span of a couple of minutes.

Stanley: Nothing's impossible.

Gabriel: Clothes make the man.

Ginger: Ignorance is bliss.

Gabriel: Don't confuse kindness with weakness.

2. It's kind of dated when watching it.  There are 3.5 floppy disks and a CD-Rom.

Would you watch it again?: This is an average movie at best and mediocre at worst.  There is a low chance I would watch this movie again.

Comparisons:

A character does something bad to save a loved one: In this case, Stanley does what he does for his daughter.  

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0244244/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1

The Punisher: I saw this movie in Aug. 2016.  This came out in 2004.  I looked it up and it turns out Netflix made a TV show out of it that will come out this year.  It stars Jon Bernthal (Shane from The Walking Dead) as the lead:

Frank Castle is haunted and hunted after the murder of his family and becomes a vigilante known in the criminal underworld as "the Punisher", who aims to fight crime by any means necessary.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt5675620/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1

Now onto the actual movie:

An undercover FBI agent becomes a vigilante assassin and sets out to unleash his wrath upon the corrupt businessman who slaughtered his entire family at a reunion.

Why?: I like action movies.

I will write about it and it's kind of "spoilery" so if you don't want to be spoiled, skip to the next part.

Pros:

1. Spoiler alert: I like the first scene at the docks.  There is a suitcase of money and they need to scan if it's counterfeit.  It is to buy weapons.  A helicopter comes and there is a SWAT team and shoot out.

2. Spoiler alert: We know why the bad guy Howard Saint (John Travolta) wants to kill Frank, it's because Frank killed his son.  That's a good reason.

3. Spoiler alert: The huge shoot out where the bad guys kill Frank's whole family was a crazy fight scene and car chase.

4.  Thomas Jane: He is the lead Frank Castle and he was good in it.  However, he wasn't really that big after this movie.  

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005048/?ref_=tt_cl_t12

5. The funny neighbors Spacker Dave (Ben Foster), Joan (Rebecca Romjin- Stamos) and Bumpo (John Pinette).

6. Spoiler alert: The funny scene where Frank beats up guys to get into Howard's building.  Then he throws money out and it's raining money.  People grab cash.  

7. Spoiler alert: The funny scene where Joan's ex-boyfriend harasses Joan.  Frank comes and beats up the ex.

Joan: Sorry about your family.  Don't let your memories kill you.
Frank: They won't kill me.

Joan: You can make new memories.  Good ones.  Good memories can save your life.

I'll put this in my inspirational quotes.

8. Spoiler alert: The diner scene was creative.  The neighbors are there.  A guy come in and pulls out a guitar and singing to Frank.  It was a threat.

It leads to a car chase and shoot out.

9. Spoiler alert: The scene where the neighbors invite Frank for dinner.

10. Spoiler alert: The crazy fight scene where the Russian is sent to kill Frank.  It was a huge battle in the apartment.  Frank is being thrown around and then the neighbors come and help him out.

11. Interesting line: "When you want peace, prepare for war."

12. Spoiler alert: The interesting way Frank gets back at Howard.  Frank puts a fire hydrant by Mrs. Livia Saint (Howard's wife's) car and she gets a ticket for it.  It's by a hotel.

Frank uses Mrs. S's care phone to call Glass, Howard's friend.

Howard finds Mrs. S's earring at Glass's place.  Howard kills them both.

Frank destroys Howard's club.  Frank shows pictures of how Howard killed his wife and friend over nothing.  Frank gives money to his friends.


Cons:

1. At times I find the movie trying too hard to be cool.

2. It seems a little dated.

Would you watch it again?: This is an average and solid movie.  If you like action movies with lots of fight scenes, car chases, and some comedy, you should check it out.  I might watch it again with someone else.



http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0330793/?ref_=nv_sr_2

Jul. 16, 2017 Paycheck: I watched this movie back in Apr. 2016.

What seemed like a breezy idea for an engineer to net him millions of dollars, leaves him on the run for his life and piecing together why he's being chased.

Why?: I like action movies.

Pros:

1. The story idea was very interesting.  Then  it turns out it was based on a short story by Philip Kindred Dick.  I had to look him up and it turns out a lot of his sci-fi stories have been turned into movies.  This is on Wikipedia:

Philip Kindred Dick (December 16, 1928 – March 2, 1982) was an American writer notable for publishing works of science fiction. Dick explored philosophical, social, and political themes in novels with plots dominated by monopolistic corporations, authoritarian governments, alternate universes, and altered states of consciousness. His work reflected his personal interest in metaphysics and theology, and often drew upon his life experiences in addressing the nature of reality, identity, drug abuse, schizophrenia, and transcendental experiences.

Born in Illinois before moving to California, Dick began publishing science fiction stories in the 1950s, initially finding little commercial success.^[1] His 1962 alternate history novel The Man in the High Castle earned Dick early acclaim, including a Hugo Award for Best Novel.^[2] He followed with science fiction novels such as Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? (1968) and Ubik (1969). His 1974 novel Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said won the John W. Campbell Memorial Award for best novel.^[3] Following a series of religious experiences in February–March 1974, Dick's work engaged more explicitly with issues of theology, philosophy, and the nature of reality, as in such novels as A Scanner Darkly (1977) and VALIS (1981).^[4] A collection of his non-fiction writing on these themes was published posthumously as The Exegesis of Philip K. Dick (2011). He died in 1982 of a stroke, aged 53.

In addition to 44 published novels, Dick wrote approximately 121 short stories, most of which appeared in science fiction magazines during his lifetime.^[5] A variety of popular films based on his works have been produced, including Blade Runner (1982), Total Recall (1990), Minority Report (2002), A Scanner Darkly (2006), Paycheck (2003), Next (2007), and The Adjustment Bureau (2011). In 2005, Time magazine named Ubik one of the hundred greatest English-language novels published since 1923.^[6] In 2007, Dick became the first science fiction writer to be included in The Library of America series.

2. I did like that a character Michael (Ben Affleck) first took a job because it is solely for the money and no deeper reason.  A lot of characters do things have to have a big and deep reason to do something.  This job he does is a big paycheck.

3. Did you know Michael C. Hall (from the TV show Dexter is in it?)  Also Colm Feore (Bon Cop Bad Cop) is in it.

4. It is a creative movie.  There is an envelope that Michael has sent to himself and he has to decipher it.

5. I like "On-the-run" stories like the Jason Bourne movies.

6. It has action scenes like shootouts and car chase scenes.

7. Spoiler alert: The shoot out leads Michael to the subway tunnels.  Then he uses the gel spray and lighter.  He uses a paper clip to fix a box and it stops the train.

8. Spoiler alert: Michael meets up with Rachel.  He tests her by asking what his favorite baseball team is.

9. The dialogue.  Spoiler alert:

"If you only look where you can't go, you will miss the riches below."

Rachel: If I know we wouldn't work out for you and I, would I have done it?  I wouldn't trade our time for anything.  We are all a sum of your experiences.  Besides, some of the best things life are total mistakes.

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

10. Spoiler alert: Michael created predictive technology.  When our future is predicted, we make it happen.  We give our control of lives completely.  Seeing the future will destroy us.

11. The 3rd act has a lot of action in it.  A good and happy ending.

Cons:

1. It does look dated.

Would you watch it again?: This was an average movie.  I might watch it again with someone else.  I was on Wikipedia and there was a lot of criticism on this movie.

Comparisons:

A character has his memory erased: It has been done on the Joss Whedon (Buffy the Vampire Slayer creator) show Dollhouse.  I really like that show.


A futuristic laboratory assigns different tasks to its various residents, who then have their memories erased upon the completion of their assignments.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1135300/?ref_=nv_sr_1

My week:

Jul. 22, 2017 Jada Pinkett- Smith was a drug dealer: I read this in the Edmonton Journal and looked it up:

"One of the things that's very interesting that I've never really said before is that when I first met Pac, I was a drug dealer," Pinkett Smith told Sway (starting around the 17-minute mark). "As I was coming out of the life, he was going more into the life."

She continued, "Pac and I's relationship was about survival ... I know that most people want to always connect it in this romance thing, and that's just because they don't have the story. It was based in survival, how we held each other down and [how] when you have somebody that has your back when you feel like you're nothing, that's everything."

Pinkett Smith suggested she would be more explicit about the details of her relationship with Tupac in a forthcoming book, though she also told Sway, "It's not for me to try to protect his legacy. Whatever Pac's fate has been around his life, around his story, God's got it."

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/jada-pinkett-smith-remembers-meeting-tupac-dealing-drugs-w493311

Jul. 24, 2017 David Ander's ex-gf: I was looking him up on Twitter and she put this little video of them together.

Her name is Meagan Grainger.

sweetvalleyhiRan into my ex boyfriend at brunch and we decided to get back together and break up again for the 5,000th time ❤️ fun times!

https://www.instagram.com/p/BW54683AG8W/

She is an actress, but there's little work for here:

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm4638353/

Pizza Place job interview: I got an email to do a job interview in the morning.  I went to the interview that night.  It recently opened.

Pros: 

1. I first applied as a server, and then they said they needed a kitchen helper too.  I told them I was more of a fit for being a kitchen helper.  

2. It was 2 buses to get there, but it was easy to get to.

3. The tips was 5% of gross sales tips to kitchen.

4. The hours are good like 10am-2pm or earlier or later depending on how busy it is.

5. Free pizza on shift.

Cons: None.

My opinion: I would work there if I got hired.  Prior to it, I was waiting for the bus and this guy comes.  He asks me if I work at the 1st restaurant job.  Then he told me he worked there for 1 week back in 2015.  Then I remembered F.  He now works at construction after he quit that restaurant job.

K-days temp job: I applied to this position to either sell lemonade or sell sunglasses.  I watched the video of the job and filled out the application.  I did a phone interview.  They were going to hire 9 or 10 people.  I didn't get hired.

Taste of Edmonton temp job: I did this interview at that café, and it was for this.  I didn't get hired.

Staffing agency job interview: Last week I applied to one and had an interview.  I'm sure some of you guys are like: "Why?  You have criticized them before."

It was back in 2008, I went to Manpower and passed my resume to them.  I did an interview with the recruiter.  I did get a job interview through them, and I didn't get hired.

I went to Kelly Services and passed my resume to them the same year.  I didn't have an interview with a recruiter and I never got a call from them.  The same with Randstad.  

I went to Spherion in 2007 and passed my resume to them.  I got a test for a call centre.  It was a math test like gr.8-9 math.  I didn't get the required mark of 20/30.  I didn't ask what my mark was.

I applied in 2017, because it wouldn't hurt to try.  I also had more practice in job interviews.  There was a test too.  One page test with math and proofreading.

The Globe and Mail puts up the same articles from months ago: Today I found this article called "Beating the 'between jobs' blues by Gord MacKay in the Globe and Mail.  It seemed familiar and I looked it up.  I had already put up this article on my blog by the title: "How to stay positive during a long job search."  It was originally in the newspaper in Oct. 2016.

This is a mild complaint.  I had seen this newspaper put up the same article in their life section.

http://badcb.blogspot.ca/2016/12/how-to-stay-positive-during-long-job.html

Jul. 25, 2017 Somewhere Between: I recorded and I saw the pilot today:

 A mother tries to change the fate of her 8 year old daughter, as she knows where, when and how she's murdered, but doesn't know who kills her and why.

It was average.  Canadian actor Devon Sawa (Final Destination) is in it.  I will probably watch it every week.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt6467294/?ref_=nv_sr_1

Midnight, Texas: I recorded and I saw the pilot today:

Midnight is a safe haven for those who are different, but with the presence of outsiders, the residents band together and form a strong and unlikely family.

It stars Canadian Francois Arnaud.  I thought he looked familiar, but I didn't know where.  Then I looked him up and he was Oscar from the TV show Blindspot.

John Doyle's TV column in the Globe and Mail criticized Midnight.  This is based on the True Blood author Charlaine Harris's books by the same title.

I only rented the DVD and saw the 1st two eps of True Blood.  It was average.

Midnight is average.  I find it fun to watch and will watch every week.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt5464086/?ref_=nv_sr_1

Jul. 26, 2017: I'm getting kind of desperate for TV like written dramas, so I'm writing some more TV show reviews like the ones above.

Work: Today at work was so crazy busy.

Jul. 28, 2017 Man killed wife because she laughed at him:

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — A Utah man killed his wife aboard an Alaska cruise and told an acquaintance who later walked into the couple's blood-splattered room that he did it because she laughed at him, the FBI said in documents released Thursday.

Kenneth Manzanares was charged with murder after he was found with blood on his hands and clothes and blood spread throughout the cabin on the Princess Cruises ship Tuesday night, according to a criminal complaint by FBI Special Agent Michael L. Watson.

Kristy Manzanares, 39, had a severe head wound, but authorities have declined to release other details in the case, including how many people were traveling with the couple on the 3,400-passenger Emerald Princess that left Sunday from Seattle.

A man and others went into the room before medical workers and security officers had arrived and saw the woman on the floor covered in blood, according to court documents. The man asked Manzanares what happened, and the suspect said, "She would not stop laughing at me."


http://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/world/fbi-utah-man-says-he-killed-wife-because-she-laughed-at-him/ar-AAoWhiu?li=AAadgLE&ocid=spartandhp


My opinion: The lesson is learn how to control your anger.  Or leave the room, and come back way later to cool off.

You can come back hours later and you're still angry.  That's fine.  But don't kill anyone.

Or you can yell at her and maybe throw a glass of water in her face.  I don't know.

Jul. 30, 2017 21 Thunder: This new Canadian TV show is coming out tomorrow night at 9pm on CBC.  I'm definitely going to watch it because Edmonton actor Kyle Mac (from Between) is going to be in it.

It's about under- 21 soccer team who try to get into the professional soccer. 

I have known about this show since Apr. 2017 because I check out his Twitter account.  He has put up a lot of screenshots of the show.  You should all watch the show, or at least the pilot.

https://twitter.com/kylemachere

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt6145878/?ref_=nv_sr_1

"Technology's global spread"/ "Art in the garden"

Jul. 20, 2017 "Technology's global spread": Today I found this article by Matthew Hague in the Globe and Mail:





Computer-aided design, or CAD, programs are as new to the world as bell-bottom pants and disco. Architects and designers started trading in their mechanical pencils and drafting tables in the 1970s – around the same time computerized dating started to vie for the place traditionally held by boozy nightclubs and well-meaning matchmakers (hi, grandma).

These days, though, the technology has been updated so drastically that it would be hard to compare the current incarnations to its predecessors (it would be a bit like putting a Tesla next to a Pinto). More than merely assisting creative professionals draw out their ideas, software programs are now helping generate the very ideas and products themselves. Computers are coming up with building layouts, package designs and furniture that are as creative or better than what humans can envision on their own.

“It’s a radical departure from what we’ve been using for the last 40 years,” says Francesco Iorio, director of computational science research at Autodesk, which develops CAD software. Later this year, a program that Iorio has been working on called Generative Design will hit the market, and, according to him, will act more like “an actual partner” in the design process rather than a passive tool. In effect, designers will be able to ask the software questions and get optimal answers back.

The program has already produced a muscular, Gaudi-esque chair called the Elbo.

Rather than coming up with the shape of the seat themselves, a design team used the software to determine the best structure given certain parameters – height, material, loads.

The legs and arms mimic forms found in nature, such as bones, which have been optimized through evolution to withstand the forces of the world. In essence, the program came up with a design “that was most fit to survive,” says Iorio, by learning from the world around it.

“The results can be surprising,” says Iorio, “because the program isn’t constrained by biases.”

Such algorithm-based software is also a way of developing mass-customized goods – broadly available items that are uniquely different for each shopper.

For example, Nutella, in partnership with HP, recently used an algorithm to generate more than seven million unique package designs to be sold across Italy.

Each one is singular, though they share a similarly jubilant aesthetic – a bit like someone has taken close-up photos of confetti as it has fallen through the sky.

It would have taken a massive team of designers an impossible amount of time and mental energy to achieve the feat.

But “the program has no limit,” according to Lavinia Francia, client creative director at Nutella’s ad agency, Ogilvy & Mather, Italy, which oversaw the project.

“It starts choosing one out of four different textures and it zooms in on it or out and/or rotates. Then it crops the selection and creates a unique sleeve. So the number of unique labels is technically infinite.”

That said, there’s still a place for people in the process.

To ensure that no meme-worthy, phallic shapes unintentionally made it onto a child’s sandwich spread, “a Nutella employee checked on every jar,” Francia says.

And a “check was made on every pattern that was mixed by the algorithm to make sure the final result would be appropriate.” (The program was so popular that all seven million jars sold out within a month).

Architect Alexis Rivas also believes there is an important, enduring role for people to play in algorithm-generated designs. He’s the co-founder of Cover, a Los Angeles-based company that builds custom backyard studios, cottages and pool houses using algorithms and robots.

“Many people’s first instinct is the fear of computers taking over all of our jobs,” he says. “But the software we use helps our team put all our time and effort into well-considered details, and the touch and feel of our spaces.”

Rivas, along with his lead designer Thomas Heyer, have devised a way, using a proprietary software, to take the desires of their clients (captured in a questionnaire) and generate a fully articulated plan in as little as three days. “We have worked closely with the guys optimizing the software,” Heyer says, “to design a set of building blocks – fixed details, how corners come together and integrated storage. Those details are taken by the software as Lego blocks and assembled into a custom design."

One of the benefits of this kind of technology-enabled standardization is that it brings the price of the design down. Cover’s initial consultations cost less than the price of an iPhone and the structures start in the low six figures, despite the sharp, California aesthetic more commonly associated with million-dollar homes in the Hollywood Hills.

“That’s the beauty of the tech available to us today,” Heyer says. “It makes high-quality design accessible to a lot more people.”

Dutch designer Merel Bekking isn’t just interested in using technology to make high-quality design, but design that is “technically perfect.” And instead of algorithms, she uses machines that help her get directly into the minds of those she is designing for – literally.

She uses MRI scanners to access the desires that are trapped deep within our brains.

“The reason I use MRIs is because I wanted to know what people really think,” Bekking says. “I know that if you ask people questions they are always prone to give socially desirable answers or maybe they don’t really know what they like, and so on. But if you put people in MRI scanners, you look at how their brain reacts,” without a filter.

For a recent project, she used MRIs of one of the world’s top design editors – Marcus Fairs, who founded the popular website Dezeen – to create a chair that was perfect for him.
“Marcus was shown pictures of different materials, shapes, objects and colours,” Bekking says, “while his brain activation was measured using a 3 Tesla MRI-scanner.”

From the experiment, Bekking learned that Fairs’ brain “had a preference for orange, for closed, round shapes, for plastic and for chairs,” Bekking says. “But these ingredients were all loose ingredients. They still had to be put together.” So Bekking put together what looks like a giant, orange pill pierced on a stick, cracked open so Fairs could perch in the middle.

Curiously, though, Fairs did not like the chair, asking Bekking to take it away from his house shortly after she delivered it to his London home. “The research results were completely solid,” she said, but “as soon as he realized he had to defend to others that this is what his subconscious likes, he really started to hate it. I think this is really fascinating.”

For Bekking, using technology to create a scientifically perfect design process has also left her with a curious reaction: “Forget all the target groups, forget numbers, scientific research and big data,” she says. “I think you should trust your designer’s instinct and make beautiful things because you really feel your ideas, not because you think it will please most people.”

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/home-and-garden/design/how-design-technology-is-shaping-the-world-aroundus/article35721796/

"Art in the garden: placing the right work in the right spot": Today I found this article by Katherine Kono in the Globe and Mail:

For many landscape designers and homeowners, a garden isn't complete without the right art. But how do you find the right spot for a piece of outdoor art and choose the plants to complement it?

The first step is finding a work that really speaks to you, and then "allow the art to help define the landscape," says landscape architect Edmund Hollander. He recommends working with an artist or gallery, when possible, to create a relationship between artwork and garden.

"It's really not so different from the relationship between a house and its surrounding landscape," he says.

Susan Lowry, coauthor with Nancy Berner of "Private Gardens of the Bay Area" (The Monacelli Press, October 2017), says art in a garden should enhance its surroundings.

"Scale, texture and light all play off the object, and there is also an emotional content that influences how we see the garden itself," she says.

Less is more, she cautions: "We have seen many a garden ruined by too many extraneous voices jumbled into the frame."

The most common mistake when placing art in gardens, Hollander warns, is "sticking a work where there's too much other stuff. It's as if a museum hung a painting on a wallpapered wall instead of on a white one."

So experts recommend that works be placed against quiet backdrops like evergreens, hedges or lawns.

Karen Daubmann, associate vice president for exhibitions and public engagement at the New York Botanical Garden, has helped design plantings around works by glass artist Dale Chihuly and others. The principles for selecting and showing art in a home garden are similar, she says.

"It's nice to go for something as a larger focal point — something you can see from your window and enjoy all year round, and then some smaller works that you only discover up close," she says.

"And when you're decided where to place something, don't forget to look up. It's a nice surprise to look up and see a pergola, chandelier or lantern."

Most important, Daubmann says, is to choose art you really love. "Chances are, if you're placing it in a garden you have designed and planted yourself, it will work, because it's the same aesthetic," she says.

Keep in mind when and from where the work will be viewed. From the kitchen window? The living room? If you'll be viewing it at night, consider lighter colors, she says.

"White glass or white flowers make for a great moonlight garden, while dark blues will tend to get lost in the evening," Daubmann says. "A mossy, shaded garden can be spiced up quite a lot with light colored art."

And the artwork doesn't have to be expensive. "I sometimes find wonderful pieces in antique shops or at barn sales that really spark my imagination," Daubmann says.

Hilary Lewis, chief curator and creative director at The Glass House, Philip Johnson's iconic house and surrounding landscape and structures in New Canaan, Connecticut, helps plan the installations there.She says works should be visible from various parts of the property, should feel like an extension of the landscape, and should draw people in.

For inspiration, experts suggest visiting sculpture gardens, museums or botanical gardens.

"There are lots of sculpture gardens of all kinds around these days, and the combination of landscape and art, when done right, can be very inspiring," Hollander says.

http://www.stltoday.com/lifestyles/home-and-garden/art-in-the-garden-placing-the-right-work-in-the/article_9f3196fc-9b4c-51f9-b97e-62cf48d911cd.html