If you enjoy watching educational videos on TED.com, think about the last five presentations that you watched: Were any of those ideas and presentations memorable? And if so, why did those talks stand out from the crowd? Can you remember the key message and solution of those that were memorable? What were the 1-3 action [...]

Unarmed American with Healthcare. The words were emblazoned on the back of the t-shirt that this lady was wearing at the gym. I had noticed her a few months back. That time the words on her t-shirt were, Wild women weekend. At first glance there’s nothing unusual about. Just a woman with some provocative words [...]

First, kill the employee suggestion box When innovation is not part of the organizational culture, employees who are passionate about their ideas [based on experiences with customers, processes, patients etc.], find that their ideas lose momentum the moment they post their idea into a physical or digital suggestion box. The committee members reviewing suggestions often [...]

The parking meter Next time you want to observe how people interact with technology, hang around the parking meters on Granville Island in Vancouver. You will find that groups of pensioners, tourists and those from ‘away’ will follow a similar pattern: they will peer at the instructions on the parking meter and then attempt to [...]

Body check It’s 8 am and I’m running to the gym. There’s nothing unusual about that except to say, I was running to the gym. In what seems like a slow-motion movie, I realize I’m falling and then I crash, face down on the concrete. My water bottle rolls down someone’s driveway, my sun glasses [...]

I am looking for the toothpaste in the bathroom cabinet. And no, it’s not there. I think to myself, “The toothpaste is usually on the counter or in the cabinet and today, it’s nowhere in sight. Maybe, or most probably, my partner had something to do with its disappearance.” I call out, softening my words [...]

David Hall is an entrepreneur and innovator. His latest project is in the field of robotics and human sensory technologies. David has built a small team of experts around him and the company has just acquired a $2 million dollar venture capital financing boost from a private investor. Things are looking good. A medical consortium [...]

An innovative organizational culture should drive value to the organization by leveraging employee ideas. Ideas that fall through the cracks Thought leaders and intrapreneurs can be found in all workplaces, in the corridors and around the coffee machine – sharing stories, ideas and visions. These conversations usually take place beneath the company radar, outside of [...]

Leaders can expend a lot of energy dealing with people on the team who have a fixed or closed mindset about the need to be innovative and agile. The energy cost Leaders can expend a lot of energy dealing with people on the team who have a fixed or closed mindset about management, the direction [...]

Storytelling is still perceived by a majority of decision-makers as a “nice-to-have” and a “soft skill” that adds some colour commentary but has no real value. Leaders face a constant challenge to keep staff focused on priorities amidst the constant barrage of information. Although there are many advocates for effective storytelling in the workplace, storytelling [...]

Mark Twain, American author and humorist said, “It usually takes me more than three weeks to prepare a good impromptu speech.” Ask any pilot and he or she will tell you that the most critical parts of flying are the flight plan preparation and the actual flight, consisting of three key elements: the take-off, flight [...]