Unless you have been on another planet or deep in the rain forests of the Amazon, chances are you have seen, read or heard something about Rob Ford over the last few months. This week saw an end to his reign as Toronto Mayor. But his strong brand still saw him elected back to his old council seat in the west of the city. It has been widely offered that… Read More »Would Your Personal Brand Vision Get You Elected?
When I arrived in Canada, 18 years ago today, I did not expect to ever embark on an entrepreneurial journey and roller coaster of life, but would I change it – probably not much of it. Today is Canada Day here and I am grateful for many things that my now adopted home and native land has offered me; C- Children – Two wonderful children and true, caring and… Read More »Oh Canada!
Today saw the launch of Ford Nation’s own TV channel on You Tube. Rob Ford is giving you a lesson in personal branding. By now I cannot believe that Rob Ford needs any introduction. In the last few months he has become a top joke line on nearly all US late night shows, made numerous front pages and generally has been at the centre of controversy after blunder. But the… Read More »What Rob Ford Can Teach You About Personal Branding
Probably one of the most recognised political personal leadership brands, Margaret Thatcher, passed away recently. I grew up in the UK at the time she rose to power and changed the perception of Britain both domestically and internationally. Not universally loved for sure, she may not have been everyone’s favourite person, but she certainly lived up to the key aspects of a strong personal brand; Clarity – even though originally she… Read More »How Strong is Your Leadership – As Strong as The Iron Lady?
Yesterday saw the official end of circulation of the Canadian penny. The coin now costs more to produce than it’s actual face value. Already stores have signs out explaining how they plan to deal with cash purchases in terms of rounding up or down to the nearest nickel. So would you pick one up if you saw it lying on the ground? See a penny, pick it up, all day… Read More »Penny for Your Thoughts?
Through my wife's business I have had the opportunity to be connected to Keith Kochner at Mentorfish.com for the last few months and have found his teaching exactly what we need in the 21st century. Lots of great content, he is prolific with new insights and learnings – even for someone like me who tends to explore and read a lot! Keith is coming to Toronto next week to hold… Read More »What is holding you back from your personal brand?
With consistency and progression comes change. As you spend more time consistently delivering on what you say your brand is and find your career progressing in the right direction, you are going to reach a point where new challenges and opportunities arise. New skills are developed and new ways to communicate your uniqueness present themselves. This week see's the 100th edition of the Tuesday Toonie weekly e-tip, which I feel… Read More »100 Toonies Worth
No doubt the business school case studies in years to come about the sad demise of Kodak and it's brand will raise many questions about the effectiveness of it's leaders. The filing of Chapter 11 bankruptcy by Kodak this week has many lessons for all businesses, but what can you learn from this and be sure that you are not facing the same in your career? 1. Don't underestimate the… Read More »Is your career facing a Kodak moment?
As on all remembrance days I will be remembering the sacrifices and bravery of all and in particular my father (above) who served as an instrument basher in the Royal Air Force for 6 years in WWII and my Grandad who served in both the army and navy in WWI – Lest We Forget This was originally posted in November 2009, but in our busy, ever connected world, felt it… Read More »On the 11th hour, of the 11th day of the 11th month – Remember those who gave and still do
The passing of Steve Jobs resulted in an outpouring of emotion and praise that I would suggest was almost unprecedented. A Google search shows over 234,000,000 web pages – 70,000,000 more than Obama! Now part of that visible reaction was due to the fact that we have so much more ability to communicate to many more people – ironically in many cases using the very tools that Jobs helped develop. … Read More »The Brand That Was Steve Jobs