Thursday, June 23, 2011

TEDx Waterloo

I am thrilled to be included in the list of amazing speakers and speeches on the TED.com website!
Thank you to Matt Gorbet and the team in Waterloo who all made it happen.

If you haven't seen the talk, please check it out along with the lifetime's worth of inspiration at
http://tedxtalks.ted.com

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Collaboration

Collaboration is my mantra for this quarter. Everything on which I have been dragging my heels has remarkably moved forward under collaboration.

What If's new brand had been mired in development for almost 18 months. While browsing in a local bookstore, I see some greeting cards which remind me of a friend's artwork and think, "I'd like to work with her on a project." I call her up, we meet, and I find the momentum to evolve the brand.

Working with the local artist then leads me to my favourite art gallery where her husband works. I drop in to say Hi but he's not there. Instead I get talking with the gallery owner about her upcoming show--it's brilliant and exciting. We brainstorm how to capture the essence of the exhibit for posterity. She's delighted with the enthusiasm and ideas. Later, I ask her to advise me on my brand. "Poof!" She comes up with an enlightened perspective that will take the visual brand from simply decorative to enriching narrative--completely in alignment with the experience we are shooting for with the evolved brand.

My friend Grace and I have been speaking each week to move my passion projects forward a little more each week. I would be nowhere without her keen mind, fresh ideas,enthusiasm and regular check ins.

For 5-6 years I've been stuck with too many ideas for books I'd like to write. I've developed 5 outlines over the years and committed to none. Then I read a friend's wife's blog and thought "she's the perfect one to write a book with". We're 3 weeks in and have already created an incredible amount (more on the book later). Collaborating with Laura is WAY better than starting a writing club which is what I was thinking about doing. More writing and less organizing of others this way. Plus we laugh a lot.

Same with my fitness-collaboration is golden there too. Working out or exercising on my own is soooo uninspiring. I spend hours by myself already and for an extrovert, too much alone time is enervating. Since January I have P90X'd with my friend Vicki, kayaked with my friend Barb, cycled with Heather and Martha, hiked with Doon (who is training for Kilimanjaro) and all of a sudden, I'm fitter, lighter, happier, and more energetic all from collaborating with friends on exercise that brings as all closer to our goals. Fantastic!

So my mantra will continue as my operating principle into this next quarter. It seems to be working for me. What's your mantra for this quarter? Or even today?