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Will Today be Trump or Clinton’s Best Day at Work?

by paulcopcutt
November 8, 2016November 16, 2016

By the end of the day, one of the candidates may well be looking back to today as one of their best days at work, at least so far. Of course, the work for the successful President of the United States is only just beginning, some future days maybe best days and some may be the worst, it’s not an easy job for sure. The best and worst seems to be how many of you look at your own jobs and careers.

Presenteeism, time spent at the workplace while not productively engaged in work, is the new absenteeism

The conclusion of a 2015 Canadian study, The True Picture of Workplace Absenteeism, with 1,300 people including just over 1,000 employees, found that 80 percent of respondents self-reported experience with presenteeism. 81 percent indicated that they had gone into work while they could not perform as well as they would have liked.

The reasons for doing so included physical sickness (47 percent), stress or anxiety (40 percent) and workplace issues and/or problems with co-workers or managers (22 percent). Depression was specified as the cause by 15 percent of respondents.

A quick Google search of #BestWorkDay uncovers plenty of top 10 lists on ways to ensure you have your best days at work. The common advice to these problems seems to fall into two camps.

Achieve Personal Brand Victory with These Olympics Lessons

by paulcopcutt
August 30, 2016September 1, 2016

With the Olympics, the great thing about living in one country and coming from another is I get to cheer for both, because I have double the chance of celebration. Go Canada, Go Great Britain!

Having worked with a number of former athletes, the Olympics give me the opportunity to witness great triumphs and disappointments that are accompanied by wonderful stories. I appreciate and admire an athlete’s struggles and sacrifices. I am also struck by examples of this year’s younger winners being inspired, even mentored by some of the more established and successful athletes.

Joseph Schooling first met Michael Phelps when he was 13, during the Beijing Olympics when Phelps visited his local swimming club. Eight years later, he beat Phelps in the 100 metre butterfly to win the first ever gold medal for Singapore.

Over the years, the Olympics has become much more of a commercial venture, at least in some aspects. Although host nations seem to be almost guaranteed to lose money, brands like Nike and Under Armour and top athletes usually win. Michael Phelps and Usain Bolt have become huge personal brands, with significant endorsement deals and rewards for winning. Even Joseph Schooling earned $750,000 for his medal.

However, I am sure that most Olympic athletes do not ‘do it’ for the money. The investment in supporting them to get to world-class levels can cost a country’s association way more than the bonus for medaling.

For me, one of the best examples of the win being everything was the sheer surprise and joy on the face of 16 year old Canadian Penny Oleksiak when winning a gold medal. Money was not in that picture.

The Olympic brand and logo does have huge monetary and recognition value and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) is almost manic about its control. This is in part to help protect the sponsors and the huge investments they make in wanting to be recognised and associated with the event.

So what are the Olympics showing us that you can apply to your personal brand?

Lessons From Discover Your Personal Brand Conference – The All Star Panel

by paulcopcutt
August 15, 2016August 15, 2016

This past weekend I had the opportunity to speak again at the Discover Your Personal Brand Conference. DYPB 2016 was different from 2014 in a number of ways.

The focus was more toward small business and the caliber of speaker, panels and attendees was awesome. There were many inspiring young Canadians in attendance that really gave me a lift about the future of our country. All held within the back drop of Telus’ state of the art office in downtown Toronto, an environmental LEED building, bursting with technology and balanced with space and light.

The opportunity to attend conferences is always a big investment, even if its local so it was great to get such a rich experience.

After introductions from the motivating conference organizer and founder Bobby Umar and keynotes from the always excellent Mark Bowden and inspiring Real Food for Real Kids founder Lulu Cohen-Farnell the highlight of the first evening for me was the Personal Brand Leadership All Star Panel. They were;

Cameron Gordon, Head of Communications, Twitter – Moderator
Erin Bury, Managing Director at 88 Creative
Jennifer Ettinger, Founder & President at Fit Your Style
Jagmeet Singh, MPP, ONDP Deputy Leader
Bobby Umar, Founder, Raeallan & DYPB

Full bios and more details on the schedule http://www.dypb.ca/schedule/ and other speakers can be found here http://www.dypb.ca/speakers/

Here is a Summary of the questions and panel answers;

What the LinkedIn Acquisition by Microsoft Might Mean to You

by paulcopcutt
June 14, 2016June 14, 2016

There had been rumours in the past of LinkedIn seeking strategic partners or an acquirer, with several technology companies being the possible ‘one’. Yesterday saw the news that the successful one will be Microsoft.

My initial thought is I hope this has positive results for many of the areas that LinkedIn seems to be falling short on with technology and that Microsoft does not allow this purchase to squander or suffer like it has with Skype and other poor past acquisitions.

The challenge with any merger, big or small is the merging of leadership styles and cultures. Everything said initially is for the benefit of the stakeholders – investors, employees and users. The reality rolls out differently over the coming months, after all the deal does not close until the end of 2016, so don’t expect any wholesale changes until well in to 2017.

Naturally this was big news in the business world and a lot has been said, with much more to be said over the coming days and weeks. I have collected a few thoughts from the main parties involved as well as some social media, social selling and LinkedIn experts, here is what they had to say;

Lead, Be Free, Find Success at Work

by paulcopcutt
June 14, 2016June 14, 2016

If you feel like a square peg in a round hole at the office, like the person who believes collaboration will lead to more success than competition, like people and passion come before transactions, and that your experience at the office can be different, then keep reading.

I’ve been invited to join an amazing lineup of experts who have come together to share their knowledge and strategies for how work can be done differently – both for you as an individual and for your company.

The Corporate Rebel Series is free interview training series for professionals who want to lead, be free, and find success at work – all at the same time.

It all kicks off tomorrow (June 15th) And guess what? (This is the awesome part!)

It’s free to join. Grab your spot here.

This training series is for you if…..

Do You Connect Like a Real Human Being?

by paulcopcutt
May 27, 2016June 1, 2016

It was at a senior executives networking event a number of years ago that I first heard Dave Howlett speak. His subject and approach intrigued me and even now I can clearly remember his power of 3 philosophy.

What was interesting to me, before that day, on three separate occasions from three different people I had been recommended to hear his talk. This is at the heart of what Dave talks about, the value of someone recommending you, talking highly of you when you are not in the room. As he says “Remember you can’t call yourself a good guy or an amazing woman (only other people can) but you can always act like one.“

5 Steps to Staying Relevant at Work after 50

by paulcopcutt
October 14, 2015May 10, 2016

With the different approaches to work, baby boomers could be forgiven for believing that their relevance in the workplace is disappearing faster than the seemingly daily advances in technology. It is why I find many clients questioning their work and the bigger picture of their overall life. Often we end up exploring a deeper meaning to it all and land in the areas of mindfulness and purpose. But a report… Read More »5 Steps to Staying Relevant at Work after 50

Finally building your personal brand through great recommendations. Problem solved

by paulcopcutt
September 15, 2015May 10, 2016

“92% of respondents reported that a positive recommendation from a friend, family member, or someone they trust is the biggest influence on whether they buy a product or service.” Paul Rand Online reviews are becoming the default place for us to check up on a hotel, airline or new restaurant. When we travel, we first check to see what others have experienced . Several surveys identify that almost 9 out of 10 of… Read More »Finally building your personal brand through great recommendations. Problem solved

Are You Worried About What You Do On Weekends Will Affect Your Personal Brand?

by paulcopcutt
August 3, 2015May 10, 2016

A week ago you had most likely never heard of Cecil the Lion. Now there are over 40 million web page references, a petition with over a quarter of a million signatures and the animal’s own Wikipedia entry. If you happen to have missed the highest trending story in the news and on social media this week, Cecil the lion was a protected animal on a game reserve in Zimbabwe. … Read More »Are You Worried About What You Do On Weekends Will Affect Your Personal Brand?

Reinventing Your Brand to Relevance

by paulcopcutt
February 20, 2015May 10, 2016

My Dad was a huge newspaper reader. If we had a blue recycling box back in my childhood, we would have needed at least two just for all the newspapers we used to get each week. The weekends we had 5-7 to read, depending on when the local and free editions arrived! Naturally it became a bit a family trait and tradition. I still struggle with the electronic versions or… Read More »Reinventing Your Brand to Relevance