Author: MH3

I am officially addicted to watching the U.S. elections.

So much, that I need a fact checker to see if I have used that opening line in any of my previous 2016 blog posts. Unfortunately, no fact checkers are available until December as they have been put on 24/7 Melania surveillance. Regardless, my addiction is incessantly increasing its power and has an unshakeable hold on me.

Every waking, and many sleeping, minutes of my day I am reaching for my devices to read the latest twist and turn in the Trump Trainwreck. I have had to exercise unbelievable restraint for not adding to #trumpsacrifices on an hourly basis. Does that constitute a #mh3sacrifice? Park for a minute my fear that he will win, which is dreaded in 19 of the G20 countries, except for Russia (shocking), according to a weekend poll. Park for a minute my disgust at his recent attack on the Khan family. Park for a minute my amazement that America has let this get this far. Park for a minute that Republican after Republican is criticizing Trump’s words, but not the man.

Park all of that and take a look back at the conventions of the past weeks. The practice of the U.S. nomination convention is unique in scale, emotion, breadth, and drama in the world. Dignitaries from around the world who attended the 2016 coronations, as there was no contesting to be held, marvelled at the emotion and boosterism of these events. Shockingly, the substance-thin Republican convention provided Trump with a historically unparalleled boost in the polls. More shockingly, the tremendously flawed Hillary staged a convention that enabled her to soar over Sanders protesters, doubters about her own past, and baggage around her insider status.

As a marketer, I think they are pretty magical affairs. Assemble a cast of well-known speakers. Some who have all the credentials in the world. Others who are on stage purely for their celebrity power (that doesn’t mean you Scott Baio). Prep each of them to say amazing things about you. Or not so amazing things about your opponent. Add in countless parties, dinners, closed door events, receptions, and VIP shakedowns. Emerge from the shadows on a massive national stage to read a speech written for you (or someone else…) by the best writers in the world. Try to ensure you dominate the Twitter and TV feeds during primetime.

What a machine. It’s why live sports and award shows command huge TV audiences. It’s why telethons used to be the most powerful form of fundraising. It’s why the Beatles were introduced to North America on Ed Sullivan.

The conventions then throw their star subjects into heavily branded buses where they will effectively live for the next three months, crisscrossing the continent in the most impactful and riveting experiential marketing tour in the last four years. They will greet crowds armed with branded collateral, they will mount stages branded to a T, and they will feed social media channels to the gunwales.

Selfie counts will reach new records. Word of mouth will leave people breathless. Daily flash reports of their effectiveness will be microanalyzed by tour managers ready to make midnight tweaks to wardrobe, itinerary, key messaging, even destinations.

Few, if any, brands will ever be able to mount a campaign on the scale of a presidential election. But every brand should consider their programs to be at that level. Where no medium is unturned. Where no moment is left under utilized. Where no volunteer is left untapped.

Brand Clinton, Brand Trump.

Those words will be on a thousand resumes come this December. Only time will tell which will be worth hiring in the future.

My 15-year-old is clueless about Pokémon GO.

He is not alone. He and eight other teens his age have been held isolated in an incubator called the Nahanni River for the past month. They paddled 500 kilometres. Hiked a mountain for five days. Managed their food rations to ensure they didn’t starve, yet they were always starving. Braved the elements and cold. It was single digits some days and pouring rain.

Most amazingly they had no connection to civilization. To wireless. To their devices. To video games. To their Xboxes and iPhones.

 

My God, they have no clue about Pokémon GO.

He discovered this by accident the other night. When he finally reached the 80-person town of Nahanni Butte, he was able to access WiFi. Oldest son was able to call home and speak to Mom and then Younger Brother. What news could Younger Brother possibly have that compares with a trip to the Northwest Territories?

“Pokémon GO has crashed the Internet in Japan!” he proclaimed. To which my tripper son replied, “Uh, what is Pokémon GO?!”

Wow. Imagine that. I am going to have to explain to my 15-year-old what Pokémon GO is. So let me test out my description on you.

1. It’s not a video game. It’s the world’s largest board game.

2. It’s truly social media, because people are not only making new friends while playing, they are doing it without a headset and even having conversations with human beings!

3. It’s a tourism marketing campaign. Players are visiting parts of their city they have never seen before.

4. It’s the most amazing fitness app ever invented.

5. Local animal shelter pets believe that it was actually invented to get them walked and adopted.

6. Unfortunately, local thieves believe it was created to help them commit more larceny.

7. For all the hyperbole that online ads sell, this is finally an online ad that drives retail foot traffic.

8. It’s too simple to be so addictive. Which is why it’s so addictive. In other words, it has forever validated the Keep It Simple, Stupid axiom.

9. It has made me mad that I didn’t buy stocks in a mobile phone battery booster company three weeks ago.

10. It’s proving that humans can’t walk and talk, or walk and battle at the same time.

11. Momentarily, it had my 85-year-old father convinced that his fishing lure collection was priceless. (Okay I may have made that one up.)

12. It has been the subject of more creative brainstorms in history, where every agency was convinced they would be the first to utilize it in a stunt.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_Zjzk_t6JY

Admittedly, I had no idea what Pokémon GO was until two weeks ago. Nor did I see it coming. Nor am I an expert yet. However, I am thrilled it is here and demonstrating the power of how a great idea can scale internationally.

Because your boss just asked you to take a conference call with a key customer on the Friday of the long weekend. Or because your husband and 11-year-old son were run over by a deranged man in a two-tonne truck on your 40th birthday trip to Nice?

Because you got stuck behind a woman in a minivan turning left into the daycare. Or because your boyfriend had four bullets pumped into him during a routine traffic inspection?

Because the barista at your coffee shop made you repeat your order twice. Or because you were gunned down while on duty in an ambush in Baton Rouge?

Because the wait for your patio table at dinner was ten minutes longer than the hostess promised. Or because your 21-year-old nephew lost his footing while hiking in the B.C. alpine with his friends and fell 200 metres to his death?

Because the air conditioning in your home isn’t working and you’re in the middle of a heat wave. Or because your neighbour was murdered in her own bedroom, along with her nine-year-old granddaughter?

Because the subway was delayed 20 minutes and you got to work late. Or because your uncle, a renowned geologist, was killed by helicopter gunfire commanded by rebel troops while protesting against the attempted 24-hour coup in your nation’s capital?

Because you had to slam your breaks when someone cut you off on the highway to make a quick exit and you spilled your coffee. Or because your dad slipped and fell into Albion Falls and drowned in front of you and your family while hiking?

Because there was a baby two rows behind you on your flight home who cried at least twice. Or because you nosedived into the runway performing for 20,000 air show fans at Cold Lake Alberta?

Because your neighbours had a party and woke you up at 2AM last night. Or because your brother strangled your sister while she was sleeping in her own bed, to protect the family’s honour because she posted something online?

Because I didn’t write an uplifting blog. Or?

Our world is a very messed up place right now.

Terrorism. Racism. Secession. Recession. Brexit. Zika. It’s an easy list to keep adding to. I haven’t even mentioned the U.S. election yet, nor the Fort McMurray recovery process, nor the casualty rate of urban cyclists in Toronto.

There is a lot more going on than Pokémon Go’s virtual world can solve, that’s for sure.

Personally I have been struggling to find my voice. Would adding my commentary to the BLM protest at the Pride parade really help when I am not a member of the LGBT community? Would recalling my tales of being pulled over in Toronto for DWB (Driving While Black) contradict my fundamental respect for the courage of those who choose to protect me and my family? Would beseeching my government to stop terrorism make me any safer at home or abroad? Just because I live in a Commonwealth country, does that justify my having an opinion on Brexit?

Maybe it isn’t finding my voice that is the challenge, but rather finding a voice that can contribute to solving these problems. I am sure I am not alone in this quandary. Each of these global flash points are fuelling massive online and offline conversations. Just days ago I was at a party where highly educated people were telling me they have cancelled travel plans this summer for fear of their safety. Their destination? Nashville, Tennessee! They aren’t alone. Look at the unbelievable surge in tourism to places like Cape Breton. Pay attention to the speculation of real estate price surges in countries like Canada that Brexit is causing.

At dinner tables, coffee shops, and offices the discussion about Black Lives versus All Lives versus My Life has taken over. Even the MLB All-Star Game, thanks to the formerly named Canadian Tenors. I am over fifty and rarely have I had more discussion about race with my colleagues, friends, and family than now. Every time I unlock my phone I brace myself for another shooting or protest. My sadness over innocent cops being slaughtered is as profound as a poor guy being killed as a result of a busted taillight. How?

I doubt you will see me protesting. Or wearing an inflammatory shirt. Or writing an op-ed to the nation’s most respected media sources. But I have to do something. I can’t sit idly by. So I will do this.

I will share a message with you. To my colleagues in business. In sport. In philanthropy. In marketing. In entrepreneurship. In advertising. In volunteer coaching. In life.

The World Needs Your Business.

The World Needs Your Business to support equality and inclusiveness.

The World Needs Your Business to support the sharing of resources and the spreading of wealth.

The World Needs Your Business to seek honest leaders who are tolerant and progressive.

The World Needs Your Business to rescue Mideast refugees, fund park rangers defending endangered lands and species in Africa, and to invest in jobs that will get youth out of drug gangs in Mexico.

The World Needs Your Business to dispel propaganda, unwrite years of hatred, and rewire brains schooled to despise their perceived enemies.

We are a planet of wealth, resources, and abundance. Yet it is held hostage by a few, to the detriment of others. I am not a socialist, but I am a humanist. People need help. The world needs to be saved by the people who inhabit it. Hatred stems from not having the basics. Hatred stems from having no hope. Hatred stems from starvation.

Businesses around the world can and must play a role. They must do more than hang rainbow flags in their windows. They must do more than parade out their diversity programs. They must do more than promise ethical sourcing.

Businesses are filled with people. You. Me. Humans. Businesses are not machines. But they are the most significant organizational entities in the world. There are thirty-five million active soldiers in the ten largest armies in the world. That’s just around the population of Canada. It’s time for the rest of the world’s non-combat troops to form an army for change. You can be a leader of those forces.

The World Needs Your Business. The World Needs You. I Need You.

Saturday I got a lesson in how short-sighted I can be.

Do you value your ability to find hidden gems? Whether they be in ideas, people, music, stocks, books, restaurants, bars, parks, running trails or even downtown parking spots. A hidden gem is a triumph of discovery. A hidden gem is a victory of exclusiveness. A hidden gem is a celebration of being the first to know.

Lots of people pride themselves in their ability to discover such gems. It’s what makes for a successful career in the arts or sports. It’s what provides credibility to a reviewer. It’s what positions your friend as the go-to for social or sartorial advice. It’s what makes a great talent manager in the workplace.

I am constantly on the hunt for gems. While decidedly old school I pore over countless hard copy industry magazines looking for emerging strategies, conventions, and ideas. Equally time consuming is my overwhelming feed of online newsletters, tip providers, e-newsletters and blog feeds. Short of sleeping with my iPad, avoiding all meal and related restroom visits, I couldn’t possibly consume every pixel sent my way. But I try.

At work, I constantly pay attention to which young stars are shining with our clients and watching them ascend. At our agency, I love hearing about the star intern who is touted as the one to hire before we lose her to another company’s full-time opportunity. Similarly keeping my ear to the ground for intel on competitor’s talent or a bloom occurring on the property side.

My favourite place to discover tomorrow’s today is on the gridiron. Nothing is more thrilling as a coach than to witness a raw athlete finding their legs. You can attach any flowery metaphor you care to, in describing their growth from shy first-timer to suddenly confident contributor. Mistakenly we credit our whistle-touting selves as the fatherly creator of this arising team saviour, when really the young babe had it in them all along. Win, lose, or draw the emergence of the hidden gem provides countless hours of group congratulatory dialogue for you and your fellow coaches.

Except when the hidden gem is buried right in front of you and you don’t see it. Except when the hidden gem puts their hand up a year ago to play a key position on the team and you say no, we have three experienced team members who can play that spot already. Except when this hidden gem can be so lazy on the practice field, you call him unmotivated. Except you didn’t realize he’s a gamer. Except when you didn’t realize that maybe your 51-year-old mind’s approach to practice is much different than a kid’s approach.

Let’s go full circle to my self-directed anger on Saturday. A crisis had struck our team at this crucial position. Our starter, and star, was away at camp and we needed a replacement. The hidden gem came on the field with only 1-1/2 practices under his belt in this role. Despite the fact he played for me for 12 weeks last spring, and 12 weeks last fall, and we’re already ten weeks into this spring season, just 1-1/2 practices. Because when he asked if he could play this spot, I saw his lazy practice habits and said no. I didn’t look beneath the surface at the gem.

In that short practice time he was a changed man. I still doubted whether he could do it in the game. It wasn’t enough practice time. I was kicking myself. I could have prepped him for a year and a half.

I deserved those kicks. He was outstanding. He played carefree, made several stunning plays on the field, energized his teammates, shook off mistakes and kept on rolling. Every one of our coaches was amazed. Dumbstruck. In awe. You know when you close your eyes to rewind a play in your personal VR mind and you can’t help but smile as you can recall frame by frame every move, deke, and missed tackle. He did do all that you have to tell yourself, with a confident smile on your face.

But he could have been so much more. If I had only listened. I could have had him more ready for today. I could have had him playing this spot last year. I could have, should have, would have.

Instead I judged a book by its cover. Which I usually pride myself in not doing. That’s why my former 255-pound high school centre is now playing pro ball in Germany, as a QUARTERBACK, and lighting it up on the field, to the point where higher division teams are lighting up his phone with contract offers. In today’s case, it’s a lazy practice player, who maybe isn’t lazy. Maybe I am just boring him with my old school practice approach.

Lesson learned for me. Slow down. Eliminate the distractions. Stop my mouth from opening before my ears have. Listen carefully. Someone is trying to tell me something and it doesn’t matter if they are only 12 years old.

They are a gem to be seen.

The Cleveland Cavaliers achieved a lot of things on Sunday.

They won the NBA title.
They became the first team to come back from a 3-1 series deficit.
They won the first pro sports championship for Cleveland since 1964.
They defeated the best Regular Season team in NBA history.
They fulfilled the promise of the greatest hoopster in the game today.
They did the implausible.

Yet they also created a major mess in the world of sports, and perhaps beyond. In fact, I predict it will reach the worlds of politics, business, military encounters, beauty pageants, spelling bees, and cooking shows. They have made extinct a very important species of competitor.

This competitor is one that was universally loved. It was one you could cheer for when your team had already been eliminated. They were a safe bet to whom you, too, temporarily gave your allegiance, because they couldn’t fulfill it anyway.

If you happened to have a permanent attachment to said species, you were in even better shape. This relationship provided you with a lifetime hall pass for you to vent, whine, grumble, and complain. Your excess drinking was tolerated. Your endless belly aching expected. Your embittered tweeting anticipated.

But now? Now you’re screwed.

Your excuse has been extinguished. Your rants have been rejected. Your murmurs have been shut down. For one simple reason.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have killed the Underdog.

By doing the impossible. By conquering the Mighty Warriors on their home court, twice when facing elimination. By bringing joy to Mudville, they have killed the Underdog.

No longer can Cleveland ask for pity or sympathy. No longer can Ohio claim itself rusty and old. No longer do the Browns have the best excuse in the NFL…we’re from Cleveland. No longer.

But this excuse-free zone isn’t limited to the Forest City. No, it’s going to cut a wide swath across the world.

Quit your whining Toronto Maple Leafs fans. You, too, in St. Louis. Ahem, Vancouver.

Hey Bruins fans, go get your living-with-no-Super-Bowl-wins-ever comrades from Jacksonville, Detroit, and Houston together for your last pity party. Don’t forget to invite some Cardinals fans. At least they won a title when they were in Chicago.

Chicago? Don’t get Cubs fans started. Because this is their year. This is the year that 1908 is soon to be forgotten. This is the year the Cleveland Indians, who haven’t won the Series since 1948, get to return as the holder of the longest drought in baseball. Boy have the Cavs screwed you. No one cares about your losing streak. Underdogs have been obliterated from the Ohio dictionary.

So now what to do? Lots of other teams have the same bleak past as the Cavs. But nobody wants to hear your story anymore. No, ma’am. If the Cavs can win it all, so can you. You can’t keep whining. You just need the best player in your sport to be from your backyard and, through unrestricted free agency, for him to come to your rescue. Oh yeah, he also has to bring in his own hand-picked associates. Get to hire, and fire, his own boss. Devise the game strategies, the practice regimes, the offensive plays, and the layout for the game-day program.

Then sit back and watch him control your every emotion for twenty four months as he wages through ups and downs, adversity, injuries, bickering, and doubters. Watch him get fitter, stronger, and more intense with age. Watch it all unfold until the glittery gold of the championship and playoff MVP trophies are in his arms.

Then sit back with your own smug smile and say to all the rest of us: Get with the program. If Cleveland, yes Cleveland, can win it all. Why can’t you?

Just don’t dare call yourself an Underdog.

Disclaimer 1: I’m a crazy football fan.

Okay, so this isn’t news to anyone who has known me for more than thirty seconds or stepped inside my office or followed me when I’m coaching one of my three teams I lead…a year! I love the CFL, CIS, NCAA, GFL (German Football League), and the NFL. But like most Canadian football fans I have long wished we could tailgate like our pigskin loving cohorts to the South. For a true fan, a three-hour game isn’t long enough. It needs to be primed with three hours of food, suds, and football talk. It needs to be energized by meeting new friends, high fiving strangers, and listening to the tales of the old-timers. Outdoors, in a parking lot or an empty field or wide trekked golf course, your BBQ sizzling, and your beverages flowing. That’s football.

Disclaimer 2: I’m an Argos season ticket holder.

I haven’t been for super long. A few years. But I wanted to support the team despite the fact that football in the Rogers Centre just didn’t work for me. Yes, I was somewhat motivated by the work we do with the CFL and brands such as Nissan, but if your clients can’t rely on your support, then something is really wrong. Even though I didn’t make it to many games, the others were all used by very appreciative recipients of the MH3 ticket fairy. So the money was well spent.

Until this year. I couldn’t believe my eyes as to how quickly the sale of the team to Bell and Larry Tannenbaum resulted in their moving to the marvelous BMO Field. My first and swift reaction was to renew my season tickets for 2016. My patience was about to be rewarded! Football at BMO. Naturally outdoors! Yeah baby!

Disclaimer 3: The Toronto Argonauts are my client.

I wasn’t the only person excited about the Argos sale and move. Newly minted President and CEO, Michael Copeland, deservedly holds the mantle for being most excited. He needs to. He’s in charge of a 100-year-old start-up! One of his first tasks for reinvention was to pursue the tailgating experience he knows so well as a Michigan football goer. Luckily for me, his team reached out to T1 and engaged us to help them turn the fantasy of beer in parking lots into reality.

In an unbelievably collegial wave of cooperation that would embarrass the UN, the Argos, the city, Ontario Place, Exhibition Place, MADD, AGCO, and others all worked together to make this thing come to life. They say it takes a village. They are right!

Last weekend we tested the first tailgate event at BMO, and it was magical. The fans knew what to do. They brought foosball tables, mini footballs, full-sized footballs, girlfriends, moms, kids, barbecues, picnic tables, coolers, tablecloths, and music. We brought them sunshine, inexpensive perfectly-chilled beer, marching bands, cheerleaders, and smiles.

It was amazing. I wished I had spent the whole day there.

Disclaimer 4: I’m actually a diehard Ottawa Rough Riders fan.

This is a strange thing to say after declaring that the Argos are my client. Well, it has a purpose in the mix. Ottawa has been successfully reborn. New name (can’t say I like). New stadium (can easily say I love). New team (Grey Cup finalists!)

Now it’s the Argos’ turn.

Disclaimer 5: I became an Argos fan when they traded for Condredge Holloway.

I was crushed when Holloway left the Riders, but he made me cheer for the Argos. He was a dangerous scrambler with a shot-put-like throwing method and a ‘fro that I modelled my hair after.

He was also a pioneer. The first black QB in the SEC and obviously at the University of Tennessee. He was also the school’s first black baseball player. He won a Grey Cup for Ottawa and another for Toronto, so now I had two teams to cheer for!

Disclaimer 6: One of my childhood nicknames was Leon, after Argos RB X-Ray McQuay of the famous 1971 Grey Cup fumble.

If you don’t know who McQuay is, or what the Argo Bounce means, or who Joe Krol or Joe Theismann were, then you need to learn. Because the Argos are a rich, rich, rich part of our city’s history. The infamous Argooooos call is heard at sporting events everywhere. I kid you not, I heard it at the London Olympics.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_oiIASx7Cto

But if history isn’t your favourite subject, then perhaps you prefer Social Studies. If so, then you should get to an Argos game this summer, and get ready to have the best experience. The tailgating zone is only going to get bigger. There will soon be a setup for people who travel by transit or foot, because the Argos want everyone to be able to tailgate. The setting by the lake is magical. The stadium comes alive with every hit and hut.

 

Disclaimer 7: The Argos did not pay me to write this blog.

Every week I do get someone suggesting I blog about their activity or event. Every couple of weeks I get accused of being paid. Or biased. Let’s set things straight. Nobody has offered enough for me to accept payment for writing a blog. Everybody knows I’m biased and I admit to being guilty as charged.

He wasn’t perfect. But the world in which he was born was even less so.

He wasn’t invincible. Though he convinced us all he was. Even when the ring bell said differently.

He wasn’t the greatest. He was the double greatest. That’s what he told us and we believed him.

Cassius Clay, Muhammad Ali, The Greatest. You would have to be under a rock to not know he passed away last Friday. Every morning since, I have awoken with a heavy heart. I am a child of the 70s, and in that era, heavyweight boxing was THE spectacle of the day. The Heavyweight Champion of the World was undisputedly acknowledged as the baddest man on the planet. There was no quibbling. As one reporter said, when Ali lost a fight the entire planet was devastated. Though he only lost five times, and three of them were in his last four unnecessary bouts.

I once dreamt of being a sports reporter. If I was, I would fight hard for the dream assignment of posthumously interviewing Ali today. If I could go 15 rounds with Muhammad, here is what I would want to know:

1. I would ask him how he brought so much love to a world that bestowed upon him so much hate.

2. I would ask him how he brought so much hate to a world that bestowed upon him so much love.

3. I would ask him how old he was when he knew he would someday be The Greatest. I would also want to know if he knew it would last forever.

4. I would ask him whether he forgave Don King. Ali got King his start in boxing as a promoter and King screwed Ali out of money owed to the fighter when his health was plummeting and his earning power eradicated.

5. I would ask him how he, a Black Muslim boxer from the South, and Howard Cosell (nee Cohen), a famed ABC TV broadcaster from Brooklyn, bonded so amazingly on television. Watch this clip to see what I mean.

6. I would ask him how it felt to be robbed of his prime for practicing his Muslim beliefs and objecting to the Vietnam War.

7. I would ask him how he feels about Presidential nominees who want to bar Muslims from America.

8. I wouldn’t ask him about terrorists using Islam as justification for their actions, as I wouldn’t want to see that much sadness in his eyes.

9. I would ask him who his heroes were.

10. I would ask him which of his famous one-liners was his favourite. I would tell him that I love: “Don’t count the days, make the days count.”

11. I would ask him why he couldn’t hang up his gloves and retire before ending his career with embarrassing losses at age 38.

12. I would ask him when he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, did he wish he had never boxed.

13. I would ask him what he wished he could say to us during all those years he suffered from Parkinson’s disease.

14. I would ask him who he wants to follow in his footsteps.

15. I would ask him what it’s like in heaven.

As LeBron said, it was sad yet amazing to be at the ACC Friday night listening to twenty thousand fans chant, “Let’s Go Raptors” even as the clock wound down and we had no hope of a comeback. The team and the organization deserved the support.

What an amazing ride twenty games of playoff basketball turned out to be. So, I have twenty things to thank the Raptors for:

1. Thank you MLSE for making me buy Raptors season tickets when I received the opportunity to buy Leafs season tickets several years ago. At the time it felt like price gouging. Now it feels like a bargain.

2. Thank you for not trading Kyle Lowry.

3. Thank you for not firing Dwane Casey.

4. Thank you for creating the best park in Canada, Parc Jurassique.

5. Thank you for the best marketing slogan in sports. I love the mofo North!

6. Thank you for honouring the Canadian inventor of the game with the hottest NBA All-Star weekend ever, despite the bone-chilling cold.

7. Thank you for making Stephen A. Smith apologize to all of Canada.

8. Thank you for fielding a Canadian, Cory Joseph. Life came full-circle for me as I witnessed the magic of his father, David Joseph, who played one stunning season for the University of Guelph when I covered the team for the campus paper.

9. Thank you for making Bismack Biyombo rich. His next team will surely pay a lot more for the free agent after what he did in the playoffs.

10. Thank you Bis for what you did when Jonas went down.

11. Thank you Jonas Valanciunas for showing us what the future holds as your talents mature.

12. Thank you for making me a hero with my son who got to see the Game 7 victory of the Indiana series.

13. Thank you for making rounds I & II more dramatic than they needed to be.

14. The Canadian Water Cooler Association would like to thank you for keeping them relevant when all of our NHL teams could not.

15. Thank you for the free t-shirts. My car will never look cleaner this summer.

16. Thank you for the kick-ass playoff marketing campaign.

17. Thank you for the countless Drake sightings.

18. Thank you for filling the gap when TFC was away, the Argos were in trading, the Leafs are in rebuilding, and the Jays have been taking it on the chin, literally.

19. Thank you for the economic stimulus for the city.

20. Thank you for TWENTY GAMES of PLAYOFF BASKETBALL.

It seems I’m in the free advice business these days.

Friends starting their own companies. People faced with the opportunity of a new job. People seeking volunteers to help raise funds. Old colleagues looking for a new job. Strangers currently out of a job. Sales people looking for introductions. Clients thinking about a new job.

They all come asking for advice. Free advice.

For years I think I have given more than my fair share. Much more. Why? Because I’m a big believer in what goes around comes around. There are many a days when I need an introduction, a favour, some industry intel, or a referral. Many, many days. I don’t feel guilty about asking, because I feel like I’m good at doing my part. So I give free advice, because I get free advice.

It’s amazing the power of the old adage of it’s not what you know, it’s who you know that drives business success. I tend to edit that saying by suggesting it’s both. Having the contacts affords you the opportunity to demonstrate what you know. But without the contacts, the knowledge size is useless.

So get off your butts, and get out to network.

Oh, I’m serious. Very serious. The number-one mistake I see is people don’t network until it’s too late. They wait until they lost the sale or their job, or their investors fell through, before they network aggressively. Many times an unemployed person tells me they were too busy to network when they had a job. Many times a small business owner will claim they were fully occupied servicing their major client or retailer to look for new business. Many times an entrepreneur will believe they were being unfaithful to look for other investors while their father-in-law claimed to be standing by with a cheque in hand. Believe it all, until reality hits. Sales dry up. You’re laid off. The major sponsor prospect backs out last minute. Your father-in-law didn’t realize you weren’t able to guarantee his loan. Now you need help. Now you start networking. Now it’s too late.

Why? Well, beyond the obvious of your back being up against the wall, networking is a background activity, not a centre stage one. It’s like consensus building or grassroots politics. It takes time, patience, and persistence. But it doesn’t work when it’s rushed or forced. Because the art of networking is to secure a meeting where it’s clearly declared there is no tolerance for selling, pitching, interviewing. In reality, it’s just that. Both sides know it on some level. But the closer the agenda is to being transactional versus relational, the less likely you are to secure a networking meeting.

So I have some tips. Both as a giver and a taker of networking benefits.

1. Don’t Be a Stranger: Even if I wasn’t making a numbered advice list, this would be my number-one rule of all time. I’m happy to network with people, and, like most, I prioritize the people I know. But you know who I prioritize last? The Stranger! That’s a person who I have known for years, who goes AWOL for a variety of reasons, usually because they deem me to be of no value to them in their current stage. Miraculously they contact me when their circumstances have changed, turned for the worse, and now not only am I their new BFF, but I am somehow supposed to drop everything to meet with them and provide advice/direction/contacts. Rant is over. Don’t be a stranger. Invest a little. It goes a long way.

2. Don’t Be a Whiner: If you read my first tip, you can now call me a massive hypocrite. But let’s face it, how many times have you networked with someone who spent most of the meeting whining about their past business partners, employer, or clients. Nothing is worse. Instantly you have lost all desire to help this person. Frantically you want to escape this chat. That’s why when I predict this is going to happen to me, I use blind date principles in organizing the meet. Bright, open, public space. Coffee, not lunch. Never a drink. Late afternoon where the list of time-related excuses are air-tight and valid. I don’t care about your problems, which usually are more your fault than the accusers you mention anyway. I am providing you my time, so make it enjoyable.

3. Don’t Be a Bragger: Maybe it’s a defence mechanism, but we are meeting because you want something from me. When I’m networking it may be because I want to understand industry trends, or find out about a hot speaker, or learn what agency got hired for what, or keep our relationship warm for the future. Yes, I admit, there is a reason I asked you out for lunch. Is that so bad? It would be if all I did was brag to you about me, my life, my work, and my new car (though it’s pretty awesome!). Network with humility. Find out what’s going on in my life. We will eventually get around to talking about you. And when we do, keep it real. More importantly, when I ask you what you’re great at, or what your company is great at, or what is amazing about this investment, don’t say everything. No one is great at everything. Be honest and candid so we can focus the chat.

4. Don’t Be a Stranger: Had to stick this in again. Besides, I like odd-numbered lists, so I needed a filler.

5. Don’t Forget to Say Thanks: It’s amazing, but true. More than half the times I network with someone, I never hear a word after. No thanks. No update. Not even a note telling me to shut up about my car. Nothing. The best networkers follow up with a thank you, a plan, and an easy request. I gave you my time to help you. I’m willing to give you more. Make me feel good about it and make it easy for me to help, and I am all yours.

Networking helps the world go round. It’s timeless. It’s invaluable. It will never be replaced by social media or augmented reality. Never. Until bots become better at common courtesy than we are.