Mitch Joel's Blog: Six Pixels of Separation, page 125

SPOS #720 – Harley Finkelstein On Shopify And The Future of Commerce

Welcome to episode #720 of Six Pixels of Separation.

Here it is: Six Pixels of Separation – Episode #720 – Host: Mitch Joel. The official bio of Harley Finkelstein is beyond impressive. In 2009, Harley went from being one of Shopify‘s first merchants (selling t-shirts) to become their Chief Platform Officer. Now, he is the Chief Operating Officer of Shopify. He is on the board on of the CBC and advisor to Omers Ventures and Felicis Ventures. He is also a Dragon on CBC’s Dragon’s Den – Next Gen Den. He was inducted into the Order of Ottawa in 2016. Shopify is now a beast. What Amazon is to retail, Shopify is to entrepreneurship. To put the magnitude of Shopify into perspective, their stock has shot up over 190% since last year, with over one million merchants using their commerce platform (selling over $160 billion in goods). Even during this pandemic, Shopify’s stock continues to soar (it now has a market cap of over $100 billion – that is double that of eBay‘s, and has the third largest market cap out of all public Canadian companies). The unofficial bio of Harley is a personal one. We have been friends for close to fifteen years, and watching his ascent has been one of the most special moments of my life. I have always wanted to have him as a guest on this show, but didn’t want to bother him with it. Well, we finally made it happen. Shopify, commerce and the future of business. Enjoy the conversation…

Running time: 1:01:19.
Hello from beautiful Montreal.
Subscribe over at iTunes.
Please visit and leave comments on the blog – Six Pixels of Separation.
Feel free to connect to me directly on Facebook here: Mitch Joel on Facebook.
or you can connect on LinkedIn.
…or on Twitter.
Here is my conversation with Harley Finkelstein.
Shopify.
Follow Harley on Instagram.
Follow Harley on Twitter.
This week’s music: David Usher ‘St. Lawrence River’.

Download the Podcast here: Six Pixels of Separation – Episode #720 – Host: Mitch Joel.

Six Links Worthy of Your Attention #513

Is there one link, story, picture or thought that you saw online this week that you think somebody you know must see?

My friends: Alistair Croll (Solve for Interesting, Tilt the Windmill, HBS, chair of Strata, Startupfest, FWD50, and Scaletechconf; author of Lean Analytics and some other books), Hugh McGuire (Rebus Foundation, PressBooks, LibriVox) and I decided that every week the three of us are going to share one link for one another (for a total of six links) that each individual feels the other person “must see.”

Check out these six links that we’re recommending to one another: 

The Danger of Intimate Algorithms – Public Books . “We talk a lot about the ethics of AI, but it’s hard to create a real picture of what being beholden to the whims of an algorithm is like, particularly when facing unavoidable life-or-death choices. We’re going to be dealing with many more of these shortly, as we tackle tough decisions around contact tracing, testing, and immunity ‘passports.’ This heartbreaking piece is a more personal tale—of well-intentioned algorithms wreaking havoc in the life of a diabetic, all under the guise of progress.” (Alistair for Hugh).
Aha! + Aaaah: Creative insight triggers a neural reward signal – Science Daily . “I have a hard time understanding the motivations of people who don’t derive pleasure from learning. I am also convinced that much of humour is based on challenging an assumption. For example, the joke, ‘what time does Sean Connery go to Wimbledon?’ is a good setup. Because your brain tries, and fails, to find a thing that will tie together the Wimbledon tennis tournament with the uniquely-James Bond accent of Mr. Connery. So, when I tell you the answer—‘tennish’—there is a moment of insight. A tension has been released; two neurons slot together in a new pattern. For me, that pattern is pleasure. And it turns out, this is actually a physiological response for some people. Vindicated? Maybe. But I learned a new thing.” (Alistair for Mitch).
The Quarantine Tapes 024: William Gibson . “The great William Gibson (writer of Neuromancer and many more scifi greats) on our current incredible circumstance.” (Hugh for Alistair).
David Hockney on Vincent van Gogh & the Importance of Knowing How to Truly See the World – Open Culture . “Artist David Hockney reminding us to look at the world with wonder. (Remember the world?).” (Hugh for Mitch).  
The first modern pandemic – GatesNotes . “The latest from Bill Gates on our current situation. Put aside the conspiracy theories. Put aside the ‘big tech guy who is not a doctor telling us what to do.’ Put aside what you think you know about Bill Gates. There’s more to him, how he thinks, how he learns, and what he’s trying to do. He’s been in the media a lot over this pandemic. Now, he is laying it out in words, and you really should read this. It is very thorough and takes into account both the economy and the cost of a human life. Then there’s points like this: ‘Schools offer a big benefit and should be a priority. Large sporting and entertainment events probably will not make the cut for a long time; the economic benefit of the live audience doesn’t measure up to the risk of spreading the infection. Other activities fall into a gray area, such as church services or a high school soccer game with a few dozen people on the sidelines. There is one other factor that is hard to account for: human nature. Some people will be naturally reluctant to go out even once the government says it is okay. Others will take the opposite view—they will assume that the government is being overly cautious and start bucking the rules. Leaders will need to think carefully about how to strike the right balance here.’ It makes me wonder when there will be live events… and if I will ever speak on a stage again.” (Mitch for Alistair).
The Five Levels of Remote Work — and why you’re probably at Level 2 – Steve Glaveski – The Startup – Medium . “We have hit critical mass. Now, everyone understands what remote work, WFH (work from home) and more really means. The challenges and the opportunity. Interior designers who focus on home office will have a boon. People who understand how to make video conferences better will as well (see my article: How To Rock Zoom Meetings In 10 Easy Steps). When the pandemic hit, Shopify gave every employee $1000 stipend to purchase whatever they needed for their work from home experience. This is such a great article about how different work from home really is… and the challenge of how to get good (better) at it. Everybody needs to read this and really reflect.” (Mitch for Hugh).   

Feel free to share these links and add your picks on Twitter, Facebook, in the comments below or wherever you play.

Thursday With Henry Mintzberg

Looking for something to do tomorrow (Thursday, April 23rd, 2020)?

Tomorrow, I will be taking part is a virtual fireside chat with famed educator, management thinker, business author and living legend, Henry Mintzberg.

Here are the details:

Learning for and from the pandemic: Fireside chat with Henry Mintzberg and Mitch Joel about crisis, management and rebalancing the globe from the ground up.

Our globe is in the midst of a pandemic. Our institutions, and their leaders, are struggling to adapt. Can this be the beginning of the broader change that we so desperately require?

In this fireside chat, in conversation with Mitch Joel, Henry Mintzberg will carry his idea of bottom-up management to the major problems we face: from the pandemic to climate change and the demise of democracy, to the imbalance that plagues our societies and our institutions.

The easy fixes are not working: heroic leadership, fixing capitalism, creating 30 year plans by 4 year governments. We need reformation, on a global scale, to rebalance our organizations, our societies, and our own heads.

As we are learning from the Coronavirus pandemic, governments are supposed to protect us, businesses are supposed to supply us, and communities are supposed to engage us, working in cooperation with each other. This happens in the best responses to the crisis, compared with the worst: when governments have been starved, businesses profiteer, and people party in their communities while hoarding at home, all at each other’s expense.

CoachingOurselves is proud to present this “fireside chat” with CoachingOurselves co-founder Henry Mintzberg. We are delighted to have Mitch Joel, founder of the Six Pixels Group and author of Six Pixels of Separation and CTRL ALT Delete, host this conversation. The last time they did a chat, the chemistry was compelling!

Registered attendees can receive a free perusal version of Henry Mintzberg’s latest CoachingOurselves module “Rebalancing Society: Starting Now.”

Henry Mintzberg and me.

I’ve known Henry for as long as I can remember. I went to elementary school with his daughter. You don’t really know (or understand) who or what your friend’s parents are at that age. As I transitioned from post-secondary education into the business world, I was quickly exposed to the writing and thinking of Henry Mintzberg. It didn’t take me long to make the connection back to elementary school, but it did take a while for Henry and I to be connected. We first recorded a podcast about five years ago (Six Pixels of Separation #470 – Henry Mintzberg On Management) and became fast friends. Over the past five years, I’ve had the pleasure of attending events with Henry and meeting with him about his current work/thinking. He’s a genius… and I don’t use that word often (if ever).

If you have the time – and are interested in how we solve for a better world (and community) – please join us tomorrow. It’s free. Just register here: Rebalancing The Globe From The Ground.

Speak Aid 2020 And More On CHOM 97.7 FM

Every Monday morning at 7:10 am, I am on air at CHOM 97.7 FM radio out of Montreal (home base). It’s not a long segment – about 10 minutes every week – about everything that is happening in the world of technology, digital media and culture. The good folks at CHOM 97.7 FM are posting these segments weekly on i Heart Radio, if you’re interested in hearing more of me blathering on about what’s happening in the digital world. I’m really excited about these weekly hits, because this is the radio station that I grew up listening to, and it really is a fun treat to be invited to the Mornings Rock with Terry DiMonte morning show. The segment is called, CTRL ALT Delete with Mitch Joel.

This week we discussed:

Speak Aid 2020. Think of it as the Live Aid from speakers (like me) to the world. Dan Pontefract (former TELUS exec, Victoria, B.C. resident and world renowned author/speaker) pulled this all together. It starts today! It’s to raise money for COVID 19 via the Red Cross and Red Crescent societies. It’s online, and it’s filled with some amazing speakers like: Michael Bungay Stanier, Whitney Johnson, Roger Martin, Stephen Shapiro and yours truly. Just log on, watch some of the best speakers for free and give generously. 
Did you watch the One World – Together At Home concert? What did you think? Was it as compelling as when artists go live on Instagram and connect with their fans? Too over-produced?
Only on the Internet. An animal sanctuary in Silicon Valley called, Sweet Farm, is letting people pay to get llamas, goats, and other farm animals to tune into their video conference calls for under $100. You’ve heard of GoToMeeting? Welcome to Goat 2 Meeting.
App of the Week: There. Know every timezone. All of the time. 

You can also listen in via I Heart Radio.

Ann Handley On Writing, Newsletters And Content – This Week’s Six Pixels of Separation Podcast

Episode #719 of Six Pixels of Separation is now live and ready for you to listen to.

One of my favorite people in the whole wide world is Ann Handley. Brilliant thoughts on content. One of the most insightful writers. An incredible presenter on the concepts of content marketing and storytelling. Successful businessperson. Author of two bestselling books, Everybody Writes and Content Rules (co-authored with C.C. Chapman). Currently, she runs MarketingProfs, which is a training and education company that has helped millions of professionals. Her previous company, ClickZ, was one of the first sources of digital marketing information in the world (which she sold over twenty years ago). Ann is beloved for all of the right reasons. Today, we deep-dive on writing, isolation, working through crisis, and where the best stories come from. Enjoy the conversation…

You can grab the latest episode of Six Pixels of Separation here (or feel free to subscribe via iTunes): Six Pixels of Separation #719.

SPOS #719 – Ann Handley On Writing, Newsletters And Content

Welcome to episode #719 of Six Pixels of Separation.

Here it is: Six Pixels of Separation – Episode #719 – Host: Mitch Joel. One of my favorite people in the whole wide world is Ann Handley. Brilliant thoughts on content. One of the most insightful writers. An incredible presenter on the concepts of content marketing and storytelling. Successful businessperson. Author of two bestselling books, Everybody Writes and Content Rules (co-authored with C.C. Chapman). Currently, she runs MarketingProfs, which is a training and education company that has helped millions of professionals. Her previous company, ClickZ, was one of the first sources of digital marketing information in the world (which she sold over twenty years ago). Ann is beloved for all of the right reasons. Today, we deep-dive on writing, isolation, working through crisis, and where the best stories come from. Enjoy the conversation…

Running time: 1:02:55.
Hello from beautiful Montreal.
Subscribe over at iTunes.
Please visit and leave comments on the blog – Six Pixels of Separation.
Feel free to connect to me directly on Facebook here: Mitch Joel on Facebook.
or you can connect on LinkedIn.
…or on Twitter.
Here is my conversation with Ann Handley.
Everybody Writes.
Content Rules.
MarketingProfs.
Follow Ann on Instagram.
Follow Ann on Twitter.
This week’s music: David Usher ‘St. Lawrence River’.

Download the Podcast here: Six Pixels of Separation – Episode #719 – Host: Mitch Joel.

Six Links Worthy of Your Attention #512

Is there one link, story, picture or thought that you saw online this week that you think somebody you know must see?

My friends: Alistair Croll (Solve for Interesting, Tilt the Windmill, HBS, chair of Strata, Startupfest, FWD50, and Scaletechconf; author of Lean Analytics and some other books), Hugh McGuire (Rebus Foundation, PressBooks, LibriVox) and I decided that every week the three of us are going to share one link for one another (for a total of six links) that each individual feels the other person “must see.”

Check out these six links that we’re recommending to one another: 

Lessig v. NYT: Very. Good. News. – Medium . “In normal times, this would be a big deal. Lawrence Lessig was interviewed about the Epstein MIT donation scandal. The New York Times misrepresented what he said. He was railroaded (for defending accepting donations from Epstein—which he didn’t do, instead defending a colleague, Joi Ito, for following policies enacted by the university). Details matter. But what makes this fascinating is that the NYT had two headlines for the same story: ‘What are the ethics of taking tainted funds,’ for the print edition and ‘A Harvard professor doubles down: If you take Epstein’s money, do it in secret,’ for the online one. This may be the first anti-clickbait case, and it’s a compelling one that will set important precedents before the courts.” (Alistair for Hugh). 
YTMND.com . “Before most of the sites from which modern memes emerge, there was You’re The Man Now Dog. Dozens of messages and images that have become part of our cultural vernacular came from here. It relied on old technologies—Flash, etc.—and didn’t keep up with browsers. It went the way of Myspace and Geocities. But it’s back, using modern design and up-to-date code. Just in time for our collective isolation—watch this space. It’s absurd nonsense, but so is much of TikTok these days. And there are a bunch of us who grew up with this nonsense, and are feeling nostalgic these days.” (Alistair for Mitch).
What Ecstasy Does to Octopuses – The Atlantic . “Octopuses. Ecstasy. I’m not sure the ethics of this, but I guess it beats grilling them and eating them in a salad.” (Hugh for Alistair).
Push Play – Guernica . “In times like these, we need a little more Dolly Parton and a little less of everything else.” (Hugh for Mitch).
‘Q2 will be a blood bath’: Sir Martin Sorrell on Cannes, M&A and the Covid-19 bounceback – The Drum . “Full disclosure: Sir Martin Sorrell acquired my marketing agency many years back. He’s no longer at WPP (he started a competitive holding company called, S4 Capital) and I have been out of the agency business for a few years. I’m still interested in the marketing, communications and advertising space, and I do think that Sorrell is one of the most intelligent leaders out there (and, no, I’m not just saying that because he acquired my company… I was a fan long before that). Please do not read the article. Just watch the video. Listen to his words and his perspective on business today, the economy and how work will change. Fascinating.” (Mitch for Alistair).
Being Broken In Half (But Wanting To Be Whole) – Chuck Wendig – Terribleminds . “Along with David Sedaris and Elizabeth Gilbert, nobody writes better about the art of writing, creativity and feelings than Chuck Wendig. I have shared his content here before. This is his latest piece and it will tear at you (unless you are dead inside). It’s about how we show up when it’s hard to show up. Without faking it. Just love this. A lot.” (Mitch for Hugh).

Feel free to share these links and add your picks on Twitter, Facebook, in the comments below or wherever you play.

Authors In Quarantine Getting Coffee

OK, that’s not the real name.

The real name of the show is Authors In Quarantine Getting Cocktails and the host, Douglas Burdett, describes his new podcast as: 

“a (hopefully) short-lived series of fun conversations with past guests on The Marketing Book Podcast. They’ll share a cocktail and talk about life in isolation, virtual work challenges and the future of sales and marketing in a post-pandemic world.”  

The problem is: I don’t drink. Ever. Not even a glass of wine. Plus, Douglas likes to record this show at night. I go to bed early. This wasn’t going well. I wanted to be on the show (and like Douglas – a lot). He was one of the first people that got behind my first book, Six Pixels of Separation, back before it was even released in 2009. So, we had some back and forth, and agreed that we would record in the morning (and I would be having coffee). That’s the photo you’re seeing above. I laugh every time I see that mug. Someone sent it to my office years ago. I wish I could remember who sent it, why they sent it and more. I’m also wearing a t-shirt from one of my favorite writers, thinkers, spoken word performers, musician and journalist, Henry Rollins (just to stay on the author theme).

We talked business. We talked marketing. We talked books. We talked writing. We talked.

Grab a cup of something and enjoy the listen…

How To Do Nothing (Guilt-Free)

We don’t have to always be on a screen.

We don’t have to always be worried (about everything).
Remember daydreaming?
Remember being bored?
Remember having a hobby without turning it into a side-hustle?
This is where we (may) have lost our path.
This is where we (may) not be helping our children.

We need more ways to do nothing.

There are ways to do nothing (oh, the irony).

Here are some ways to do nothing:

Don’t set the alarm.
Take a walk for no reason (and with no destination).
Go for a drive.
Go for a bike ride.
Walk in nature (if you can).
Walk someone else’s dog (if you don’t have one of your own).
Read something unrelated to anything (try this: Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert).
Read something funny (try this: Calypso by David Sedaris).
Make lists of weird things (Top 10 Places I’d Never Like To Visit).
Watch strangers (just don’t let them catch you… weirdo).
Take notes in a notebook (weird things people say and do). Get some Field Notes.
Stare out of the window.
Close your eyes. Breath. Focus on your breath.
Doodle.
Learn to play the guitar (bass guitar is better).
Write poetry (in that notebook).
Make coffee. Sip it. Stare at nothing. Tea works fine too.
Make your shower five minutes longer and a little warmer (or colder) than usual (apologies to the environmentalists).
Talk to elderly people (ask them how they first fell in love… what they most regret… do they have a lost love…).
Make a fanzine (Austin Kleon can help).
Watch a documentary about a topic you never considered (try this: Helvetica).
Start reading comic books.
Start using pens and pencils more.
Start collecting notebooks (Field Notes, Moleskine, etc…).
Notice typography.
Look through art books (don’t read them).
Think about someone that you know who is going through something much worse than you are. Sit in that for a while. Really feel it. 
Send a note (handwritten… email is fine to) to someone from high school that you haven’t seen (but miss).
Close your eyes and just listen to the quiet of the earth. 
Listen to jazz music (no vocals) (try this: Bill Evans – Coffee and Cigarettes).
Listen to classical music.
Sit in the park and watch the kids play (don’t be a creep).
Do your morning pages (Julie Cameron can help).

Remember that not everything has to be productive.

Remember that not everything has to be about improving your current situation.
Remember that dreaming is good. Even in dark times.
Remember that the clouds may be dark (and there may be many clouds), but there is always blue sky just a little bit further up from those clouds.
Focus on nothing.

See, there’s plenty to do when you do nothing.

Business As Usual?

When will we be open for business?

This seems to be one of the bigger questions that we’re asking these days.
When will people go back to work?
When will life return to normal?
When will we start traveling again?
When will people feel good about sitting in a restaurant (or cafe) again?
Will people have PTSD symptoms as we try to return to normal?
When will the office be able to open up?
When will the kids go back to school?
When will the markets return?
Will the people who were furloughed really get their jobs back?
What will the unemployment rate be?
Will we ever shake hands again (what about hugs)?

All normal questions.

Normal questions for abnormal times.
These questions concern me, but it’s not THE questions that is on my mind.

The real question about the economy is this:

Will people spend (like they did) again?

It’s tax season (up here in Canada).
We’ve had more time than usual to review our bills.
We’ve had more time than usual to review our subscription services.
We’ve had more time than usual to be home (and not out or active) as consumers.
We’ve had more time than usual to order and buy things online.
What do your bills look like?
Are you spending more or less since being (mostly) home?
This could be a “market of one” scenario, but my own experience seems reflective of my friends and colleagues.

We’re spending less.

A lot less.
Productivity experts believe that a habit (good or bad) takes about thirty days to become a habit.
What happens when we go back to work?
I’m guessing that consumers will realize that they managed just fine without much of the things that they were keen to purchase before this pandemic hit.
I’m guessing that consumers will be tightening their belts in an effort to recover (quicker) from their professional losses.
I’m guessing that consumers won’t even think twice about this, because they had many weeks of not spending and (more importantly) are becoming that much more aware of what they truly want and need.

This will be the truest test of the economy.

Will consumers spend?
We will want to socialize, head back to our favorite restaurants, see our family and friends, buy each other gifts, travel and more.
But will we want to keep buying “stuff” the way that we did before?
I believe that many families will have a surplus of their daily food and home needs leftover from this mess (if they were able to shop regularly).
The businesses that were booming during this pandemic might experience as a small vacuum of revenue because of this.

It’s a question of looking at things differently.

Everyone is looking to see what the government will do.
Everyone is looking to see what the businesses will do.
I’d be looking at what the consumers will do.
That’s not just a lesson during a pandemic.

That’s a lesson for every day… business as usual.