Inspiring True Story: The Author who Wouldn't Quit

Today's Globe and Mail has a story on Mélanie Watt, who "was going to write about Scaredy Squirrel, who is kinda nutty. And she was going to make it good.

Of course, she didn't know how good. She didn't know it would win several awards. She didn't know it would be translated into six languages. Or that Scaredy Squirrel would be so popular, she would write another one, Scaredy Squirrel Makes a Friend, and then another, Scaredy Squirrel at the Beach, due in March, 2008."

These true life stories of success in the face of long odds are so great. Some of the common threads I see in similar tales:

- a passion for something, even though others may not share your perspectives or commitment

- persistence: it really does seem that making good things happen is a longer term process, with first tries, learnings, second tries, more learnings, etc.

- luck: we all need it from time to time, and it seems to come more often at the famed intersection of effort and determination.

So what's your "crazy dream?" What is it you want to do more than anything else, even though it's obviously 'never going to work,' or 'will happen to someone else but not you?'

Maybe 2008 is the year to start thinking about how to tap into your secret obsession.

Toronto Star: "PM sees trouble ahead for economy"

According to a Toronto Star interview with Stephen Harper, he said "There remains very serious economic uncertainty in the United States and in other parts of the world, and it's impossible for me to see how Canada can be entirely immune from those developments." (I address this issue here in Should I worry about the U.S. economy?)

So please don't lambaste me for being the bearer of less-than-glad tidings. There is just no way Canada is going to completely avoid fallout from what's going on just south of the 49th parallel. Check out our auto industry in Ontario as an example. What this means in practical terms is, of course, anyone's guess. And Harper does chime in with the statement so often repeated by the media that we're at a 30 year low in terms of the unemployment rate - a figure so easily misleading in my opinion it is barely worth citing these days. (See why I make this audacious statement here, Lies, Damned Lies, and (Job) Statistics!)

I will definitely keep you posted, and give more detailed analysis of the situation, in the new year. But for now what I suggest is that unless you work in a field that does well when the economy slows, you might want to start thinking about battening down the hatches and restricting any major purchases if these could leave you twisting in the wind should your income be threatened. Though having said this, I might well be ignorant of ways our government can shield us from a slowdown. Here's another headline today, this one from the Globe and Mail: Economic growth tops forecasts.

Any thoughts?

Managing Your Online Reputation

Ever been Googled by an employer or potential customer (or date, for
that matter?) Reputation management is one of the big things in career development. Here's an interesting article on what it's about.

Booming National Economy? Or Maybe Not.

Why Aren't Wages Rising (Except for The West)?

The media is reporting boom times in Canda. The economy is at "full utilization," according to the Bank of Canada. And unemployment overall is at a supposed 30 year low.

So then...why aren't wages rising accordingly? You'd think with this kind of positive situation there'd be signing bonuses and semi-annual raises for all. Except that, outside of Alberta, this just isn't the case.

That's because the reality is somewhat different than what the basic statistics tell us. The fact is that many of the jobs being created nowadays are at the lower levels of pay, are contingent (e.g. non-permanent), and employers are reluctant to build top heavy staffing loads. Especially when the U.S. of A. is teetering on the brink of a,
well, let's call it a fiscal re-adjustment.

Let's just hope that Canada's oil and mineral boom, limited mainly to Alberta and now of the Eastern coast, spills over to the rest of us (figuratively, not literally).

Welcome To My New Blog!

This is my second attempt at Blogging. First time wasn't very good because I wasn't able to maintain it back then. Now I'm hoping to commit some real effort to keeping you current on the latest in:

* Workplace News
* Career and Employment Issues
* Occasional Rants and Praise

I hope that you will come back regularly (or sign up for automatic delivery). Feel free to post your comments too. I promise not to edit them unless they violate general standards in terms of avoiding overly foul language, slander, etc.).

Read on!