Blog
Check out my weekly posts (134 and counting) about communications, information, motivation, writing, branding, creativity, media, marketing, persuasion, messages, learning, etc.
If You’re Hungry for News, You Can Have More Than Seconds
Many of the publications I read have never existed anywhere but online. They can be terrific. Others have a physical equivalent. And still others used to be available in paper but are now exclusively digital. How does the way we consume media affect our reading...
Why You Shouldn’t (Just) be Nice
November 13 is World Kindness Day. The annual event was launched in 1998 by a coalition of NGOs, and is observed in more than 25 countries, including Canada. The goal is to celebrate good deeds by individuals or organizations. There are websites devoted to...
Now I Know my ABCs
If I asked you to memorize a set of 26 items, you’d probably find it quite a challenge. And if you had to repeat them all in a specific order, with zero errors, it would be even more difficult. Yet children master that skill when they’re just a few years old. It’s...
As a Treat for Readers, Don’t Trick Up Your Writing
It’s Halloween this week. Costumes and masks may be suitable for kids, but don’t cover up your writing. Too often, people layer their copy with all sorts of adornments. Like lengthy words, sentences and paragraphs. Unnecessary adverbs and adjectives. Dense structures....
Why Does Anyone Like Spoilers?
Spoilers are everywhere, and not just in movie trailers or reviews. This week, hours before the polls closed, I checked the final 338Canada projection regarding the federal election. It turned out to be remarkably prescient regarding seat distributions, and called the...
Feel Your Way to the Top
What will be the last job standing? That’s a real question at a time when AI and automation technologies are disrupting or displacing entire fields. A 2017 study from the McKinsey Global Institute suggested that by 2030 as many as 375 million workers will need to...
When You’re at a Loss for Words, Try Lost Words
Ever run into an ultracrepidarian during a conversation? Or feel the urge to latibulate when approached by one? Bet you have. We’ve all had particular feelings, or observed certain phenomena, and wished there was a perfect word for it. Sometimes there is – it just has...
Keep the Whistles Blowing
Whistleblowing is in the news. In modern usage, the term refers to anonymously or confidentially reporting on misconduct, corruption, waste, health and safety violations, and any other wrongdoing. Across corporations, governments and other institutions, whistleblowers...
For Your Kids, Don’t Practice Shelf Control
What do these titles have in common? Charlotte’s Web, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, James and the Giant Peach, The Giving Tree, Winnie the Pooh, The Lorax and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz? Besides being classic children’s books, all were banned at some point by...
Not in My Front Yard
It’s federal election time in Canada, which means that candidate yard signs are sprouting like weeds. What’s the point? I ask for two reasons. Why do political parties think such signs are effective advertising? And why do homeowners agree to give them a spot on their...