Starting the year off with a bang! Our impressive list of speakers had a busy first month of the new decade, including being the first inductee of 2020 into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame, breaking world records, starring in new hit TV shows, and, of course, sharing their expertise on leadership strategies, conflict management, disruption, and more.
Here’s a round-up of some select media coverage in January 2020:
Jann Arden | Renowned Musician | Bestselling Author
Jann Arden was named the first inductee of 2020 into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame.
“I am so honoured to be inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame. I’ve spent my career creating and performing music that I hoped would resonate with others,” she said in a statement. “I feel incredibly humbled to be recognized with this award and to join such an esteemed group of past honourees whose art has helped connect us to one another as Canadians.”
Leonard Brody | Business and Technology Visionary
KRCU shared insights from Leonard Brody’s recent presentation on change and how it’s occurring at an unprecedented speed, highlighting how today’s economic drivers will change over the next decade.
Forbes spoke with Liane Davey on how leaders can support the right kind of conflict at work — the kind that encourages productivity, discussion, and diversity of thought.
Metaphor can be very helpful in introducing people to the concept of more comfortable conflict. One of Davey’s most illustrative images involves using a tarp to cover a tent to keep the rain out. All team members need to be involved, but if they all pull in the same direction they’ll uncover the tent, so they all must pull in their different directions.
Gerry Dee | Award-Winning Comedian | Host, CBC’s Family Feud Canada
Comedian Gerry Dee joined Global’s The Morning Show to talk about his new gig hosting Family Feud Canada, pitting hosts Jeff and Carolyn off in a head-to-head match.
Chris Hadfield | Astronaut | First Canadian Commander of the International Space Station
CBC News spoke with medical student Katie Harris on how her speciality in medicine led her to get a stellar careers advisor — astronaut Chris Hadfield.
Hadfield told her they want people who have healthy bodies, people who have advanced technical education that show they have the mental horsepower to keep up with the job, and people with some sort of operational experience where the consequences of their decisions matter.
Hadfield then expanded on that last tip on the list.
“His four examples were becoming a surgeon, learning to fly, learn to scuba dive or sailing across the ocean,” said Harris.
Chris also spoke with the Financial Post on Canada’s place in space this month, taking a historical look as well as his hopes for future space exploration.
Looking at what’s coming next, the technology now is good enough, cheap enough and proven enough that we could go further. We could maybe start to turn Earth’s orbit over much more to actually profitable commercial ventures and not just have it the purview of national space programs.
John Herdman | Head Coach, Canadian Men’s Soccer Team
After speaking at the Grow Canada conference in Calgary, John Herdman joined RealAg Radio to talk about leadership, his move the men’s team, the motivation behind his coaching style, and his work towards raising the profile of soccer in Canada.
Ivan Joseph | Award-Winning Performance Coach | Leadership and Cultural Transformation Expert
Performance coach Ivan Joseph shared some wellness advice to keep leaders at peak performance all year long via University Affairs. From the article:
- Live near your work: at Ryerson, I often spent three hours a day commuting. At Dalhousie, I have a 20-minute walk to work.
- Trust your team: micromanaging limits creativity and confidence, and drags you into things that are not on your list.
- Go offline once a year: every summer, I take two weeks to disappear and go whitewater canoeing. I come back physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually recharged.
- Max out at 80 hours: senior leadership isn’t a 40-hour-a-week job, but if you are exceeding 60 hours during a normal week and 80 hours in peak periods, it’s time to re-evaluate.
- Live like a Haligonian: at Dalhousie, everyone has a “work hard, rest hard” mindset. Get some East Coast in your approach.
Lainey Lui | Co-Host, The Social | Correspondent, etalk | Founder, LaineyGossip
Lainey Lui launched her new show, Cravings: The Aftershow, where she debriefs HBO’s new mystery drama, The Outsider, and offers exclusive content and interviews. It premiered January 12 on Crave and is also available as a podcast on iHeartRadio.
Samantha Nutt | Founder of War Child Canada and War Child USA
In recognition of her work, Dr. Samantha Nutt was a recipient of World Vision Canada’s 2019 Heroes for Children award. They recognize an individual’s efforts toward making the world a better place, especially for children.
Sangita Patel | Entertainment Reporter, ET Canada | Host, Home To Win
2020 Covergirl Sangita Patel brought us behind-the-scenes as she prepared to hit the red carpet at the 2020 Golden Globes Awards for ET Canada.
Post-Golden Globes, Sangita joined Global News to break down what happened at this year’s Golden Globes.
Alyson Schafer | Acclaimed Parenting Expert
Alyson Schafer joined CTV’s Your Morning to help parents learn how to best talk to kids about world issues.
Christine Sinclair | Olympic Medalist | Canadian Women’s Soccer Captain
After making soccer history this month and becoming the world’s all-time leading goal-scorer in soccer, Christine Sinclair sat down with Global News to reflect on her milestone 185th goal and her stunning soccer career.
Sheila Watt-Cloutier | Environmental, Cultural, and Human Rights Advocate
Sheila Watt-Cloutier was announced as the 2019-20 recipient of Simon Fraser University’s Jack P. Blaney Award for Dialogue in recognition of her outstanding global leadership using dialogue in her work as an advocate for Indigenous, environmental, and cultural rights.
Podcasts
Ron Tite | Purpose-Driven Leadership and Marketing Expert
Ron Tite joined “Anatomy of a Strategy” this month to discuss agency life, how he changed the agency model with Church & State, and his latest book, Think. Do. Say.: Building Personal and Organizational Momentum in a Busy, Busy World.
