A recent CBC article caught my eye. It referenced a study by researchers at the University of Michigan and the University of Southern California that tried to pin down the modern definition of "cool." According to their findings, the traits that make someone cool today include being extroverted, … [Read more...]
We Were Promised Innovation, But Got Infinite Scroll
In a recent reflection, I wrote about how our ambition seems to have quietly shifted from chasing the impossible to chasing attention. How so many today are “building with their backs to the future, shaping their efforts for today’s applause instead of tomorrow’s legacy.” That piece focused on … [Read more...]
The Quiet Strength of Forward Motion
We often think of leadership as grand gestures or confident speeches. But some of the most powerful leadership moments happen in quieter spaces - in a conversation with someone who’s struggling, in the pause between stories, in the subtle redirection of attention from the weight of what was to … [Read more...]
The Bubble Isn’t the Ocean
We all live in bubbles. Not the fragile kind that float in the air and burst with a touch, but the invisible kind - durable, deeply embedded, and often unexamined. They are formed by what we inherit and what we endure. Our bubbles are filled with our upbringing, our culture, our traumas, our … [Read more...]
Decide or Discover – But Not Both at Once
We spend a large part of our professional lives in meetings. Some are energizing, many are draining, and far too many are just ... confusing. In my current role at the Ottawa Community Foundation and through my years in executive leadership, meetings with different teams, partners, funders, and … [Read more...]
The Leader Who Looks Twice
There’s a moment, often unnoticed, when a piece of work travels from a team member’s hands to their leader’s desk. It could be a memo, a slide deck, a contract, or a campaign draft. That moment may appear routine. But in truth, it is a quiet test of trust. What happens next - what the leader … [Read more...]
The Illusion of Progress and the Discipline of Priority
There’s a strange kind of exhaustion that sets in at the end of the day - not from working hard, but from working on the wrong things. Most people don’t waste their time; they give it away. They wake up, open their inbox, start replying, join the calls, jump between tasks, and try to keep up. By … [Read more...]
The Age of Attention and the Death of Audacity
Last night, I found myself deep in conversation with a dear friend, one of those meandering dialogues that starts with casual reflection and spirals, before you know it, into something far more revealing. We were talking about the world around us, but not in the way headlines do. He was … [Read more...]
Silence of communities ALSO defines them
The Quiet That Speaks: Why Silence Is Never Neutral We’ve come to accept that power lies with those who speak the loudest. The disruptors, the commentators, the trolls. The attention-grabbers and controversy-starters. They flood timelines, dominate headlines, and shape narratives. … [Read more...]