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Dateline: Charleston, South Carolina.

Does it really take the murder of nine black people to realize that racism still exists?

Why does it take a young white supremacist to get politicians to act?

Why is a white killer labelled crazy and a brown one a terrorist?

Why do Presidential hopefuls wait until the media speaks before they talk?

Why does the flying of a symbol that stands for slavery, bigotry, rape, and the elimination of human decency make sense in a country that stands for the “Land of the Free”?

Why do the supporters of the Confederate flag believe it honours their past, yet somehow doesn’t dishonour the past of their fellow countrymen and women? That’s the argument commonly made for flying this flag over the state capitols in places like South Carolina, witness to the horrific murders of nine black churchgoers a week ago. That’s the argument why it’s part of the state symbol of Mississippi.

Can you imagine how people would feel if parts of Germany still flew the Swastika?

Imagine Canadians reactions if the FLQ flag was raised over parts of Quebec?

Speaking of our homeland, you may think this is an American issue. It is not. I can tell you how nervous I feel when I see a Confederate symbol on someone’s clothing or vehicle.

So much of our culture is influenced by the U.S. Racism is learned. Taught. Bred. Just yesterday my son had an incident with a classmate who wanted to play the white pieces during a chess game. He said, and I quote, he didn’t want to be the “Black N’s”. You can fill in the blank. This wasn’t a joke. It was intended to be as mean as it sounded. But to who? My son, of many bloodlines, looks white to most people. That is what really struck me. It wasn’t meant as a slur to my son, though it upset him greatly, it was this other boy’s view on the world.

Thankfully there are signs of progress. Businesses are condemning politicians for their stances. Media are not hesitating to take candidates to task. Voices, that were often muzzled, are beginning to speak up.

But can you imagine being one of the many black lawmakers in the South Carolina legislature, who enter the daily workplace under the symbol that demonized their ancestors for centuries?

I don’t think removing the Confederate flag would have saved the lives of those none people in that historical church. But it could save the next nine.

TO A GREATER GOAL.

The official slogan for the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup was omnipresent at the Opening Match in Edmonton on Saturday. It’s a great slogan, I love it.

The FIFA Women’s World Cup is more than just a soccer tournament. It will hopefully have a profound impact on women’s sports around the globe. It is a celebration of how far women’s soccer has come in this country and internationally, as the 2015 event represents an expanded field of twenty-four teams. In less than twenty years the tournament has doubled in size to keep pace with the global growth of the women’s game.

Ironically the slogan has an even greater meaning given the unfortunate timing of the FIFA corruption allegations. But even in darkness there is light, as the amazing opening round crowds in Ottawa, Edmonton, Winnipeg, and Vancouver have demonstrated.

For the 53,000 Canadian fans filling grand Commonwealth Stadium on a picture perfect prairie Saturday, the slogan probably meant even more than the tournament organizers intended. In the stadium, the slogan was more than a piece of signage, it was the preoccupation of all of us. For the opening match just wasn’t about our Canadian women taking on China. It was the kickoff to the summit of a very long journey. A journey that last witnessed, had featured the triumph of an amazing Olympic bronze medal, a first in so many decades for a Canadian summer Olympic team in any sport. Yet a moment so emotionally charged, if only we hadn’t been seemingly robbed of a gold medal opportunity, by a devastating officiating call.

So Saturday marked the first step of pent-up redemption. Canada’s own coach had suggested that nothing less than making the Final was acceptable. Oh what a tall order. Oh what a lofty goal. But wait. First there is the task at hand of winning a single round robin game. Something we did not accomplish at the 20111 Cup.

I was very fortunate to be in attendance.

With the cooperation of Soccer Canada, we had staged the 2015 Canadian Sponsorship Forum in Edmonton, and purchased tickets for all 250 delegates to attend the match. The match was the closing component of three days of workshops, keynotes, research presentations, networking, information sharing, and inspiration. Speakers from the WTA, Mondelez, IMI, FC Barcelona, VISA, X Prize, Canadian Tire, Lagarde, UNICEF and many more, satiated our delegates quest for knowledge. A street soccer tournament with TSN and a Canadian celebration hosted by Canada Place created new business relationships and new friendships for life. Unique sessions, such as Stacey Allaster’s Building the Road to success: The Power of Women in Sport, struck a deeply personal chord with all of those who leaned in. So the stage was set for a dramatic finish to a dramatic conference.

Unfortunately Team China had not received the “memo.”

Didn’t they know the role of the host’s opening opponent is to cooperate? Couldn’t they read the world ranking that said we are #8 and they are # 16? How come they decided to outrun us in the hot Alberta sun? Press the play in our end? Hit a free kick off not one, but both posts?

At halftime they had the crowd concerned. By the 75th minute the tension was palatable. As game time crept through the eighties, sheer panic had silenced us.

Majestically Captain Canada, Christine Sinclair, scored the great goal to win the game 1-0. Majestic. In the 90th minute. One great goal. Canada seems destined for a greater goal.

No Team Canada fan, player, coach, administrator, booster could leave that stadium uninspired. Yes it was just one game, one goal. But I will remember it for a long, long time. It was a goal that rewarded the perseverance of a true superstar. It’s a lesson for us on the pitch and off the pitch.

If Soccer Canada doesn’t mind, I would like to borrow their beautiful slogan. I would like to use it to help motivate me and my team, because it elevates what we do everyday. We don’t just create marketing properties. We are doing something of a higher order. Something greater.

I hope Business Leaders in Canada pay close attention to the FIFA Women’s World Cup. Not just to Team Canada, but to all of the teams and athletes. If you watched the Swiss play on Monday night, not only would Ramona Bachmann wow you, but her entire team left me in awe at their relentlessness in a close defeat to the powerhouse Japanese team. It was their first ever appearance for them in the Cup and they deserved a better outcome. But still they achieved so much. I am sure today they are moving on and pursuing their next goal, motivated by the knowledge of how they have already inspired their country and recruited new fans, such as me.

Sport inspires people. I believe Businesses can as well. Much like Sport, Business has a mandate to do more than win. It can’t be all about profit. Like Sport, Business can create an impact. Business needs to have greater goals.

Go Canada Go.

It would be impossible for me to craft my blog this week and avoid the FIFA corruption scandal.

Especially in light of our staging the Canadian Sponsorship Forum in Edmonton this week, with our host partner Canada Soccer. How do I avoid this topic when I am taking hundreds of delegates to the opening game of the FIFA Women’s World Cup? How do I turn the other way when we have panels dedicated to utilizing soccer as a marketing property? Can I really put my head in the sand when leading soccer organizations, while not part of FIFA, such as FC Barcelona, MLS, and NASL are involved with our conference? What do I say when I introduce speakers from Visa and Kia, whose organizations have spoken out quite loudly about the behaviour of one of the world’s most powerful sports bodies?

It’s not that I am afraid of controversy. There will be no denying this will be major coffee break fodder at CSFX. I have already received calls from journalists asking me to comment. I have had colleagues suggesting we publish an agency POV on the matter. I have personally considered revising my opening speech, Local Plays. Global Champions, to address this issue head on. You probably wouldn’t blame me given that this is potentially the biggest sports business controversy in modern history.

Where I struggle is not with the question of timeliness or relevance. It’s not that I don’t have an opinion on the matter. Of course I do and you can only imagine how strong it is. It is not that I am afraid that I don’t have something to add to the debate. While I am not so cocky to suggest that I have some inside scoop the thousands of professional journalists covering the matter don’t have. But I do have a perspective as a sports marketer on the matter. Regardless, I will share that at another time.

What bothers me the most, and by now you of course can consider this a blog about the scandal despite my earlier provocations, is the impact on the deserving people who now have to share the spotlight. Especially those involved in the Women’s World Cup.

From athletes to volunteers. From spectators to sponsors. From venue organizers to government officials. From ball kids to broadcasters, this coming weekend’s is the culmination of years of dreams, hard work, goodwill, training, heartbreak, and preparation by so many people.

This weekend kicks off the largest Women’s World Cup in history. Over 500 of the best footballers in the world will invade our country!

It will kick off a media frenzy in women’s soccer loving countries such as the USA, Japan, and of course Canada. It will kick off unbelievable coverage by CTV and TSN. It will kick off the creation of a national profile for sports business whiz Peter Montopoli. It will kick off the hopes and prayers for a Canadian opportunity for revenge of the 2012 Olympic defeat at the hands of the Americans. It will kick off song, dance, cheers, sweat, scoring, pain, victory, and defeat.

It’s a travesty this scandal broke so close to this triumphant event. It’s unfair that coverage that should dedicated to a triumph of women’s sports will be marred by this discussion. Every woman who has ever played soccer in Canada has waited all their lives for this moment. So let’s help them shine a light on it.

The Finals are sold out! The Opening Match in Edmonton will be sold out with over 50,000 screaming fans. Fox Sports in the US is providing more coverage to this event than any World Cup, Men’s or Women’s has ever received from them! This past Friday night in Hamilton, our Canadian women posted a final tune-up victory and my friends in attendance said the atmosphere was electric!

Get out to a game or a viewing party. Tune in to watch as many games as you can. Follow your favourite team online. Dress up in your country’s colours. Support the athletes, thank a volunteer, buy from a sponsor.

Tuesday night I head to Edmonton to put the final prep on our Sponsorship Forum planning. I am so excited to pull on my Team Canada jersey and cheer on our women this Saturday against China.

Join me, join Canada, join the world in supporting these amazing athletes!

The people of Toronto welcomed a new saviour last week. A man chosen to somehow do what his predecessors have been unable to do.

All of his predecessors, like the new man, were smart, well meaning, experienced, and successful in their ascension to the role. Each of them was intensely scrutinized before being chosen. Each was interviewed by an experienced board, comprised of talented and highly successful individuals in their own right. Each was trumpeted as the new hero, the change agent, the newest saviour.

It’s a challenging job. All eyes of the city are upon you. Every person, whether they have relevant expertise or not, has a strong opinion on how you should do your job. The media trails you constantly. Every aspect of your life is uncovered for all to see. Every decision is questioned, challenged, and debated. Every situation you manage has far reaching implications. Every personnel change you make, every strategic shift you plot, every motivational tactic is cause for debate.

Your bosses don’t get along and worse have competing interests on many matters. But they have told you that won’t affect your job. You of course know they have been saying that for years. So what will really happen in a few months when you run headlong into an opponent that you’re having trouble solving?

You get criticized for what you say, and sometimes moreso for what you don’t. You need to surround yourself with talent, but sometimes existing contracts get in the way. You’re being asked to be an overnight success, when the truth is a strong foundation is the only path to success. You understand that Toronto is the most unique challenge in Canada, but saying so too often will only earn you grief.

If you falter, perhaps the guy we kicked to the curb before you will suddenly seem not so bad. The people that supported you might not be there to lean on. Suddenly every finger, camera, and microphone will be pointed at you to hear your replies to the accusations that you messed up.

I can only hope we give you time. I only hope we allow you to do your job. I only hope we grow a collective sense of patience.

I am not talking about the new Head Coach of the Maple Leafs. When you started reading this, you heard Babcock, yet I was talking about Saunders. You put your mind to hockey and I was discussing public safety. You were imagining a Stanley Cup Parade and I was referring to protesters on parade.

It’s unfortunate that our new Police Chief, Michael Saunders, was sworn in the same week that MLSE dropped $ 50 million on a man who will never take the ice. Sure I am as excited as the next fan about Babcock. I once had the unique opportunity to have breakfast with him, six other marketers, and the Stanley Cup. He is super smart, focused, and genuine. His take on leadership I actually have applied to several professional and personal settings.

But as a father, citizen, businessman, and volunteer I wish that Chief Saunders swearing in received the same exhaustive media coverage as Coach B. Toronto is an amazing place to live. But not for everybody. There are areas haunted by violence, fear, economic challenges, and inadequate access to resources.

Chief Saunders replaces Chief Blair, another man whom I have met and was also very very impressed by. One thing that struck me was how much the well-being of this city meant to Chief Blair. But politics did him in. So hear is hoping that a new Chief, coupled with a new Mayor, can rally the city together. To help those who need it the most. To ensure all are treated fairly. To protect the way of life we expect as Canadians.

Despite winning two Super Bowls as a Miami Dolphin, being a Pro Bowl MVP, and a member of the NFL All-Decade Team for the 1970’s, Garo Yepremian is best remembered for one of the greatest bloopers of all time.

Yepremian passed away last week, but will live forever in the minds of football fans of my generation. Let me take the rest of you back in time. The scene was Super Bowl VII and featured the undefeated Miami Dolphins attempting to close out a perfect season against the ageless Washington Redskins. Most football fans know the ending, if for no other reason than the annual perfect season watch that happens in the NFL. When the last undefeated team is vanquished during the season, the surviving Dolphins strike up cigars and the media commemorate the moment.

But back to 1973. The Dolphins had cruised through the ’72 regular season despite the loss of their star QB Bob Griese. His backup (Earl Morall), an unmatched running game featuring Larry Csonka, and a no-name defence featuring….well that would ruin the point… carried the team to a prefect regular season campaign. Sweeping through the playoffs with minutes remaining in the Super Bowl, and the Dokphins leading 14-0, out trotted Yepremian to cap a potential 17-0 season with a three pointer to make the score a highly symbolic 17-0!

Yepremian was a tiny man who was raised in a Cyprus house with no running water. He came to the United States to play soccer but was ruled ineligible. Remarkably he made the Detroit Lions roster without ever having played football before. He so disliked his helmet, he refused a facemask until he was smacked around early in the season. He suffered racism, pounding abuse, and taunting…but withstood the odds to cement an outstanding NFL career.

Now here he was about to make history even more historic. That is until his kick attempt was blocked and the ball sent sailing back into his hands. Here is where the lack of gridiron experience really set in. A seasoned player would have fallen to the ground and allowed the play to end harmlessly. Instead, the eager Yepremian attempted to throw the ball and could only manage to let it squirt straight up in the air. It came right back to him and so, like any seasoned veteran would do, he batted it back into the air. Right into the arms of a Redskins defender who raced down the field for a touchdown.

What should have been 17-0, was now 14-7. Oh, oh.

Blessedly, the Dolphins hung on. Persevered perfection. Bailed Garo out. Created immortality.

The video antics of Garo’s bobbled pass have highlighted every Super Bowl preview ever since. It’s a shame that one goofy play became the hallmark of a man’s career. I’m guilty of it here. Marking his death with a blog about the play.

But it’s not my intention to ridicule Garo or his memory. Instead it’s to encourage you to learn about how Garo recovered from that near disaster. Watch the video replay and you see the 142 pound kicker chasing the Skins player down the field, valiantly trying to make a tackle. Fast forward a season later and he is winning another Super Bowl. Super fast forward years later and you see him chairing a foundation to raise money for brain tumour research after the tragic loss of his daughter-in-law.

One mistake, one as innocent as a bad football play, should not mar a mans life. Yepremian is proof of that. In some ways the play gave him more notoriety than many kickers achieve. Plus he came out a champion. I’m sure “Wide Right” Scott Norwood would have traded places with Garo at the time.

What people also overlooked was the clutch kicking that helped the Dolphins to a perfect season. Like I have said before in this space, nobody’s perfect. Not even a Perfect Champion.

Do you really think all those people who watched the Fight of the Century on Saturday night were boxing fans?

It wasn’t the fight of the century in my mind. But then again I am old enough to have watched Ali-Foreman, Spinks-Tyson, Brown-O’Sullivan. The latter was supposed to be the Canadian Fight of the Century, until O’Sullivan was destroyed by Brown… and his career went in a tailspin. A smart reader will also point out that NONE of my references are from THIS century.

But it was the Fight of the Century on many dimensions. The ten year buildup. The money being wagered. The money being earned. The celebrities in attendance. The criminal charges amassed.

I didn’t want to get caught up in it. Why should I contribute financially to the massive earnings of a domestic abuser and a homophobe?

But how could I avoid it???

This was like the last episode of The Sopranos, Cheers, Seinfeld, and Happy Days all rolled into one. To say nothing of who shot JR? Tony Soprano? JFK? It was the Beatles reunion that never happened.

Olympic 100 metre final, Kentucky Derby, Super Bowl, World Series Game 7. March Madness in May.

The hype won.

I made plans to meet with friends to watch the bout at a new hip downtown sports bar. I got there at 8:30 and was faced with a ninety minute lineup. Are you kidding me?

Wandering West we wound up at the Cadillac Lounge.Couldn’t believe they were showing the fight. Cadillac Lounge is great for live music. Karaoke. People watching. Heated patio. But boxing?

But maybe it wasn’t the boxing.

Maybe it was the prospect of evil being defeated by good. Or perhaps less evil is a better descriptor. They used to call the pro wrestling when I was a kid.

Maybe it was the absurdity of watching someone make $ 200 million dollars for 36 minutes of work. That used to be called the dot com era.

Maybe it was the award show like celebrity watching. They still call that award shows. Hey Denzel, what is with that horrible moustache.

Boxing trumpeted this as the start of the sport’s renaissance. I suggest it’s the end of the line.

It was a crap fight. Why risk injury when you’re guaranteed to be filthier and richer tomorrow whether you win or lose. Yes both filthier and richer.

It was boring. It was over hyped. It was sporadic. It was too old men, by sport standards, posing for the cameras. Afterwards they laughed in each others arms. Like two frat boys who just pulled one over on a new pledge. This is the same pair who a manufactured a decade old rivalry out of thin air?

I felt robbed when it was over. I bought into the hype. I was the pledge. The butt of the joke. The only person who got knocked out was me.

And you.

Imagine you’re the hiring manager of a high profile company.

Your company competes in a unique industry with a limited number of competitors. Over the last several years, your organization has been consistently unsuccessful at becoming one of the top organizations. Your management and ownership is stressed over this lack of success.

It’s a talent based industry. Like many. Not dissimilar to what you face daily at your real world job. It’s a challenge to find and retain good people. There are more approaches than you could possibly digest. An acquaintance of mine uses a two dimensional map to evaluate talent: Skill & Will. Let’s borrow his for our story.

Now back to this fantasyland of industry.

Unlike others, you can’t directly recruit the recent college “graduates” you want to join your firm. Instead you have to wait your turn. The worst company in the industry gets first choice. This is an odd approach. In many industries the best companies get better because star talent wants to work for winning organizations. But alas you operate in a highly regulated industry with all sorts of regulations, protections, and choking jurisdiction. Your industry is ruled like an ancient appointed monarchy by a man with no votes, yet all the power.

The bottom line is your challenges in hiring are unlike any other.

But it gets worse. Your task is compounded. You don’t merely have to assess the incoming talent by their ability to do the job – the SKILL dimension. You have to assess them on their activities away from the job – the WILL dimension. In this case the willingness to be a good corporate citizen.

This second dimension really complicates things. In the past few years your industry has been marred by significant scandals. Spousal Abuse, Drug Abuse, Alcohol Abuse, Child Abuse. Injuries. Suicide. Murder. Theft. Prostitution. Rape. Blatant disregard of the rules by your industry leading organization. Bounties to injure employees of other organizations, also by a former industry leader. Vicious bullying among employees. Accidental self-inflicted gunshot wounds.

This year’s recruitment process provides no less concerns. There have been recruits busted for marijuana use, allegations of PED’s, potential of illegal benefits. To cap it off, the consensus best new hire has a track record that concerns everyone involved, including his own lawyer.

Imagine the dilemma is yours. You have an outstanding young recruit staring you in the face. His talent and abilities shine bright. But his personal conduct and allegations cloud the horizon, like a thunderstorm. Your industry is very image conscious. Success is important, but your brand is also very important. How do you decide.

Imagine it. On the new recruit’s first day of work you introduce him to a senior female colleague. She knows the new recruit is an alleged, yet uncharged, sexual assailant. You argue that the claims were unfounded and he wasn’t charged. His innocence should be accepted. Still, she wonders… did we have to hire him? Was there no one else?

Then you introduce him to another colleague who is an alumnus of the same college as the new recruit. This colleague has heard about the new hire jumping up on a campus cafeteria table and shouting lewd comments, at female diners, while grabbing his jewels. This colleague is immediately worried about what’s going to happen at the company’s next corporate off-site.

Next you introduce him to a junior female colleague. She too is quite new and from the same hometown as the new recruit. In fact she used to work at the grocery store from which the new hire was charged with theft. The new hire now claims that staff gave him free stuff because of his celebrity. Which effectively means he accused her of being the thief. She walks away praying that she isn’t on the same project team as him.

Lastly you introduce him to another new associate, who just joined after being with a competitor. At his previous firm they hired a new recruit last year to do the same job as your new protege. That recruit had a very similar track record, could not do his job, was always out partying, missed meetings, was allegedly involved in late night fights, and then had to check himself into rehab. Wow the new associate thinks, do I have to go through this again?

You have some big decisions to make. Amazing talent is hard to find. Your customers expect it. But a bad character can be fatal to your organization and your career.

It’s a very hard decision. Maybe the recruit has changed. Maybe he will mature. Maybe he will behave.

Maybe.

In twenty years will anyone remember the name Odin Lloyd? Perhaps you have forgotten already.

In twenty years Ursula Ward won’t forget Llyod’s name.
If he survives twenty or more years of prison, either should Aaron Hernandez.

Ward was Lloyds’s mother.
According to a Massachusetts’ jury, Hernandez was his killer.

Unbelievably there could be two more people that Hernandez has killed. That’s the next trial he faces, after being sentenced to life with no parole in the Lloyd case. It makes you wonder how many other victims there are.

If you are unfamiliar with this trial, get up to date on the facts. Hernandez was a $ 40 million tight end for the New England Patriots. Lloyd was effectively his quasi brother-in-law. Over some dispute potentially related to the other murders, Hernandez took Lloyd’s life.

Senseless.

Despite a lack of clear motive and only circumstantial evidence, the jurors convicted Hernandez. Pundits say he was doomed when his own lawyers inexplicably admitted Hernandez was present when Lloyd was shot. They asserted that Hernandez’s drugged out friends did the deed in an unplanned and random incident. Hmm.

The jury didn’t buy it and last week, Hernandez was declared guilty as sin. The verdict was shocking. First because most people expected it, but hearing it made it real. Secondly, because many people expected a rich NFL star to evade prosecution. Cue the OJ Simpson tapes now. It didn’t happen.

So Hernandez is following the Rae Carruth bus to jail and not the OJ Bronco to freedom. Although OJ’s freedom didn’t last forever…

But the shocking aspects of this sad affair didn’t end there. That was yet to come.

During the sentencing, Ward’s mother was given a chance to speak. This woman has endured a two year tortuous path since her son died up until this verdict. Everyday she showed up in court wearing her sons favourite colour. Everyday she was within first down yardage of her son’s killer. A multimillionaire who took the life of her blue collar son, who played semi-professional football entirely for his love of the game.

When it was her turn to rise and address the court, rise she did. This was her opportunity to share her feelings. Her despair over her loss. What it felt to lose your first born.

Ward spoke with conviction, power, love, and forgiveness. The latter shocked me. It startled the courtroom. It confounded the media covering the trial. Ward actually forgave Hernandez and begged all others to eventually forgive him as well.

She did this as she recalled being both mother and father to Lloyd, whom she raised on her own. She did this as she talked about what a great brother he was. What a doting uncle he was. What a lover of the gridiron he was.

Lloyd knew that his NFL friend meant him harm on that fateful evening. He alerted his sister by text. But maybe he was courageous and accepted his fate or perhaps he was disbelieving that a man with $ 40 million would risk it all, by hurting him. We will never know.

But now the killer no longer has $ 40 million, or thousands of adoring fans, or kids wearing his jersey. Now he has a lifetime of confinement to face. Plus the the challenge of being a famous man in a very scary place.

He also has the words of Ursula Ward. Her forgiveness. Her strength. I could not imagine being able to do what she did. Perhaps someday Hernandez will recognize the gift she gave him. Perhaps he someday he will use her forgiveness to do some sort of good.

Lest he forget.

It will be interesting to see if Brendan Shanahan can summon his inner Bill Gregson.

Gregson is the Fairfax Holdings appointed turnaround artist, who made headlines on the weekend for his potential $ 60-90 million payout, from the Cara IPO last week. Like Shanahan, Gregson has only been at the helm of his enterprise for a short while. But unlike his sports counterpart, he has quickly shown results with sales increasing, costs decreasing, and a renewed emphasis on hiring top talent.

While Cara and Gregson were dominating the business pages over the weekend, Shanahan’s housekeeping was almost as topical in the sports pages as Speith’s Masters mastery. At least to Torontonians. Pretty sure the rest of Canada is more focused on their team’s playoff potential, than the never ending suffering we experience here in the 416/647.

Fairly doubtful that Shanahan has the same financial windfall. as Gregson’s, awaiting him if he is successful. But settling for the sainthood, that locals will bestow upon him if he builds a winner, may be a pretty close second.

Now the fun and games will start. Every amateur, and professional, hockey commentator in the land will be contributing their thoughts on how the franchise should be rebuilt. Who should be traded. Who should be drafted. Who should be hired. Who (if anyone!) should be retained.

I’m not going to add to the list of alleged hockey experts with my thoughts. Somehow my eight goals against average as a houseleague pee-wee goalie doesn’t qualify me! But as fan (who is off the bandwagon), a season ticket holder, and an industry practitioner I do have a wishlist for Mr. Shanahan.

1. Please share with us your vision. I assume you have one and that it’s probably pretty good. But right now I don’t know what it is. In order to rally my support, provide me something to buy into.

2. Stick to the vision. I am so confused as why, in 2014, the Leafs extended the contract of a coach that reportedly was the barrier to the team’s success, only to fire him mid-season when they were in play-off contention. That last act precipitated a downwards slide to oblivion that was as ugly as the Ottawa Senator’s rise from the ashes was beautiful.

3. Talk to me. Not at me. Not around me. Not over or beneath me. Me. I am right here. Talk to me, to all the fans, young, old, loyal, and losing their loyalty. We want to hear from you. Not a script. No need for a podium. No massaged messages. If we miss out on a free agent or a high potential trade, don’t worry about spinning it. Just share.

4. Deal from strength. That is one of my personal mottoes. The Leafs have been one of the richest teams for as long as I can remember. Let’s use our resource advantages to the fullest. Look no further to Canada’s Olympic Teams for a 3D case study as to how the right investments, in the right areas, can power a sporting entity from obscurity to the podium.

5. Turn your weaknesses into assets. I don’t understand the cliches about pressure for coaches and players in dealing with the Toronto media. Let alone the pressure from fans and sponsors. Really? Really? How about leveraging all that passion and harnessing it’s energy. The fans want a winner. The sponsors want a winner. I really think even the media wants a winner. Felt that way in the early 90’s.

So while I said I had no advice on the ice, it seems I have plenty for off it. It comes from the right place.

Besides if a guy can make sixty million dollars serving quarter-chicken dinners, with that yummy Chalet sauce, anything is possible right?

Even a Leafs turnaround!

Of course it’s true that nobody’s perfect.

The sports world knows that especially well after Kentucky laid an egg in the NCAA Men’s Final Four this past Saturday. Their coach, John Calipari, had repeatedly stated his team wasn’t perfect, that they were merely unbeaten. Well now they aren’t even that.

Perfection is a lofty goal that can present more challenges than momentum in its pursuit. It’s an objective that few sports teams ever pursue, because it creates pitfalls and landmines that lay in wait to trip you up.

The goal should be to attain greatness at the right time, which often conflicts with perfection. I don’t know if a CFL team has ever achieved a perfect season. It’s over forty years since an NFL team has and forty since an NCAA basketball team has. It’s not even conceivable in most other sports.

Unfortunately the pursuit of perfection is something that haunts many of us in the workplace.

We expect every meeting with our bosses or clients to be perfect. We expect every document we draft to be returned by internal reviewers without a red mark. We expect every performance review to sing our praises.

It’s just not realistic. But it’s what we expect.

I am a major contributor to this evilness. My drive for perfection often gets in the way of the pursuit of greatness. Pursuing perfection creates unnecessary tension and clouds perception.

Think about it when you’re hiring. How often have you doggedly pursued the perfect candidate? How often have you heralded their coming arrival with trumpets, pageantry, and a feast? How often have you been so blinded by their perfection, you forgot to see their flaws. I am guilty as charged.

It’s the same when crafting a new initiative or product. Perfection is positioned as the only acceptable benchmark. That expectation puts you in the deceptive position of concealing flaws that another set of eyes would quickly identify as fatal. All because we want to make it perfect.

I’m attempting to revamp my own pursuit of greatness to not include the pursuit of perfection. It’s important as I want to create a culture in all my endeavours of endless creation. Which naturally requires that all contributors share their ongoing work-in-progress, without concern. In turn that requires me to not isolate every word and subject it to a needless attack.

Think of the intense scrutiny that the young men on the near-perfect, but unable to achieve greatness, Kentucky basketball team had to endure. Under a less bright spotlight, I am sure that at least once last week, you felt the same way.

I have found that one way for me to learn how to pursue greatness is through networking. I don’t network for the sole purpose of schmoozing or making new contacts. My preferred, and hopefully my best, networking is with people who can add to my body of knowledge. It’s where I formulate my best ideas. From others.

Who I haven’t met in all this networking is the perfect person. But I do regularly meet great people. Motivated people. People on their way up. People who are up. People who have been up, down, and now heading up again.

They have made me realize two things. 1. John Calipari was right, his team wasn’t perfect. 2. Perfection is in the eye of the beholder.

I really wanted Kentucky to have the perfect season because a perfect record is something to behold. I am a Kentucky basketball fan, but not a nut about them. Still I felt badly for their players Saturday night who hadn’t tasted defeat. I was emotional, wrongly, because of my own fundamental attraction to perfection. Plus I have a real affection for dynasties, outside of those involving Tom Brady.

In sport and in life, there are lessons in losing, in having flaws, and admitting some weakness. Calipari said he just hoped his team would play well. They didn’t. They lost. They deserved to be out.

Tomorrow I am going to saddle up at work and strive for greatness. But I am not going to let perfection get in my way.