There is an old poem, author unknown, which includes a key stanza by which I have always lived my life. It goes like this:
Make new friends,
But keep the old.
One is Silver,
The other Gold.
I have tried to live most of my life and my career this way. Like any principle, it’s easier said than done. But it’s probably the most valuable one I have professionally. Continue reading “Make New Friends, But Keep the Old”
It’s a bit of an oxymoron, but lunching with Andy Nulman is a gas. If you don’t know Andy Nulman, he is the über-charismatic president of the Just for Laughs Festival. It’s his second stint with JFL, the first starting after he was fired as a journalist at 23 and then in 15 meteoric years rose to CEO of JFL. Then left to start Airborne Entertainment, sold it for $110 million, then bought it back for way less, and then returned to JFL in 2010. Wow… And what have YOU done in the last 20 years?
Last week, I jammed a whirlwind dose of Montréal into a 27-hour window. It’s amazing to me that despite the fact I go to the village formerly known as Hochelaga quite often, it never feels often enough. That’s good news for Porter, as I need to go back again soon. What I have realized is that it’s more than the charm of the city and the lure of its events that keeps me coming, but rather it’s the people that provide its spark. Continue reading “Tour de Montréal”
It seems this time of year, journalists get even lazier than normal and run endless versions of Year in Review, Year in Photos, Year in Quotes, Year in Tweets, etc.
So as a casual blogger and wannabe scribe, am I going to hold myself to a higher bar? Heck no. My middle name is “Bandwagon,” so look out because I am jumping on. Continue reading “Not Another “Year in Review””
Tonight marks the official end of Movember, at least in mo’ world, as I head off to the big Gala Parté at Kool Haus.
It’s been a record year. Last I heard, the Canadian fundraising total was over $32 million and I bet by the time you read this, the number will start with a three, and end above a five (Yes, I am predicting at least $35 million, if my bad word puzzle didn’t make sense).
With over 240,000 people supporting Movember, it has to be one of the largest fundraising events in the country, if not one of the greatest movements of our time.
I am very proud of our company team, MojanOne, chasing our $20,000 goal and our current ranking of number 87 in the ‘Top 100’ corporate teams nationally. Unreal. Super heartfelt thanks goes out to Jody Facchini, our MojanOne team captain. She was elected by her MojanOne teammates to lead our internal committee and knocked it out of the park… like with everything she tackles. She even got my family dog on board!
Also, a HUGE thanks to all of you who supported my own fundraising efforts. As of press time, I was at THREE-THOUSAND, THREE-HUNDRED AND SIXTY SMACKERS! Wowee! Thankee!
If you don’t read this until Saturday or later, by that time I will be clean-shaven. I am debating between drunkenly shaving it off myself tonight after the Parté, or waiting till the a.m. to go see Alfred, my trusty barber on Mount Pleasant Road. Any advice amigos?
So now what? It took me a while to get into the swing of things this year, despite my being on the Movember Toronto Committee (Big shout out to Jordan Vader & Casey Rovinelli for their leadership, not to mention Movember Canada national director Pete “Bomber” Bombaci!). In fact, I really didn’t start canvassing hard until mid-month.
Subconsciously, I think I needed to be emboldened by my ‘stache. Once it started to come in… it was almost like I was granted hairy super powers. Because strand by strand, I raised more and more money… to the point where I am now wondering whether this hairy lip was my personal long-lost elixir?
So what’s next? Once my lip turns from black (and grey) to itchy red, what do I do? Can you believe it? Movember has created a new side effect. A post-Movember mood, in the month of December.
What will now galvanize our company? What will dominate water cooler chat? What will we discuss for the first fifteen minutes of every meeting we are in? What will replace the office chirping the growth-challenged have faced?
Perhaps the holidays? Year-end budgets? Office parties? The first sign of snow? School breaks? The race towards NFL playoffs? Boxing Day shopping? New Year’s parties? Resolutions for 2012? All of the above?
Whatever it is… I hope we can all take a wee lesson from Movember. Our time on this earth is precious. Many people will face issues like prostate cancer. Serious, deadly issues. Let’s do our best to conquer these issues. Whether they are personal, physical, or professional.
But along the way, let’s have fun.
I was called out Monday at our company-wide meeting – internally known as ChalkTalk – for not having raised enough money for our MojanOne Movember fundraising efforts. Ouch!
The other day someone said ‘How come you’re not blogging about Movember?’ Double ouch!
Then I looked online at my totals. Oh boy. Triple whammy.
So it’s time to rev up the engines and generate some Mo’ Money!
That’s where you come in. This is the one and only time I will hit you up all year for a direct pitch. But of course, if I want you to open your wallets and share your Front of the Line Amex or your Team Visa or your Priceless MasterCard numbers with me, I need to give you something in return… or at least provide valid reasons why you should donate to the cause.
So here goes… ten reasons for you to donate to my Movember Mo Space page on behalf of my company team. Continue reading “Mo’ Money”
By: Mo’Herschel Harrison
It’s been quite a year for us at TrojanOne in regards to Movember.
This past June, we had Mr. Movember – Adam Garone – bring down the house with his closing keynote at the Canadian Sponsorship Forum. If you didn’t see it, check out this link.
With all due respect to Derek Jeter, I think Adam truly deserves to be called Mr. November… Or maybe Mr. Movember.
This fall, I was asked to join the Movember Toronto Committee, aptly run by sharpshooters Jordan Vader of MLSE and Casey Rovinelli from the NHLPA. One of the initiatives we have created is a Movember Agency Challenge. For all of you in the sector who want to get involved with your own team of Mo Bros and Mo Sistas, check it out and get your team signed up. Andrew Gayle (Andrew.Gayle@mosaic.com) of Mosaic, Nick Karantjas (nkarantjas@boommarketing.ca) of BOOM! Marketing, and TrojanOne’s own Michelle Conte (michelle.conte@trojanone.com) have been doing all the heavy lifting on this one. Contact any one of them for mo’ information. Continue reading “One Mo’ Time!”
We are pitching on a music program right now, perhaps against some of my loyal readers, and I was asked by my staff to provide a favourite music memory.
Mine was J. Giles Band-inspired. Yes, back in grade 10, some girl named Beth dumped my (then) skinny behind, for my best friend Bill. True story. I then proceeded to play the aforementioned “Love Stinks” on my SEARS brand stereo (yes, true story) about twenty times a day for nearly a month. My poor dad threatened to shut off the power if he heard that same beat one more time during his morning coffee.
Love doesn’t actually stink. But jealousy, in a grade 10 sort of way, certainly does.
Yesterday at the Sponsorship Marketing Council of Canada Breakfast Forum, I talked about some of my current jealousies. Specifically, sponsorship programs that I have seen recently, of which I had NO part in, but wish I did. Continue reading “12 Partnerships I Loved in 2011”
Being funny isn’t easy. In fact, trying to be funny can often backfire. Witness my opening at this year’s Canadian Sponsorship Forum?
When I promised some insights on how to rev up your ROI, and my opening slide was entitled “Kick the Bucket” featuring a picture of Michael Jackson, the cricket choir wasn’t what I expected. Or hoped for. Yes, it’s true, MJ is worth more dead than alive. That’s the same for many a celebrity. But I was trying to make a joke.
That’s one advantage comedians have over the rest of us. When you go to a festival, or a show, or an improv night, ostensibly you come in a frame of mind to laugh. If you didn’t, well then you have issues this blog can’t solve.
Secretly, I would have loved to be a comedian. Continue reading “Ha ha ha”
The title to this blog only tells half the story.
The dates reveal that a young man has died. Even without knowing how he died, you sense the tragedy in the situation. Even without knowing the young man, you understand the grief that has struck his family. Even without reading the obituary, you can feel the sorrow amongst his friends.
That tragedy, that grief, that sorrow, has an all too familiar refrain when you start to read some of the tributes posted and received about Matthew Clayton Ludlow. Continue reading “Matthew Clayton Ludlow: September 1, 1988 – July 10, 2011”
