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PROVINCE

@provincebrands

Province is a new kind of luxury FMCG business: Technology driven, on the
bleeding edge of cannabinoid science. Creating valuable and defensible IP and
world class products. The first global luxury brand offering ground breaking
products made from...


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INSIGHT APRIL 22 2018 WHAT MAKES YOU WORK?

INSIGHT April 22, 2018  We've all been working so hard lately.  This is maybe
the hardest I have ever worked in my life.  But the good news is the work is
beginning to pay off.  We've been making real progress. I can't tell you how
proud I am of everything we've accomplished.  This weekend I was out jogging and
listening to business podcasts as usual and I heard one that really made me stop
and think. It was about what motivates people to work.  Here's the link. I
highly recommend listening.  
https://www.npr.org/programs/ted-radio-hour/443411154/the-meaning-of-work   So
obviously no one on Team Province is motivated by the money - because the truth
is, we don't pay that well.  So what is it that's getting us all up in the
morning, and keeping us in the office so late every night?  What is it that
pushes us to keep pushing ourselves past our breaking points?  Well for me it's
really simple/ I'm in this to produce a healthier and safer alternative to
alcohol.  I don't have a problem with alcohol, just like i don't have a problem
with cigarettes.  Anyone who wants to can smoke, but at least these days, people
understand the harms of tobacco. I choose not to smoke because I don't want to
do harm to my health and longevity, and I know the scope and magnitude of that
likely harm.   This information has been made public.  If you went back in time
to the 1960's doctors would be telling you to smoke more when you left their
office.  Back in those days we'd all be smoking because we didn't understand the
harms. Today we're approaching a tipping point.  People are beginning to see
alcohol in the same way we see cigarettes.  Not everyone, not most people, not
even a a lot of people but some people.  I love alcohol, but I've seen how
harmful it can be to people I love.  I've seen the damage it can do, the lives
it can ruin.  Like I said, I don't have a problem with alcohol. I have a problem
with two things 1) the lack of knowledge and information about the harms of
alcohol (if this information was more widespread - as it is with tobacco, more
people could make informed decisions about whether or not and how often to
partake) and 2) the fact that there really is no legal alternative to alcohol.
 There's nothing else that can do anything close to what alcohol does to our
brains which is legal in the same types of situations where alcohol is legal.
 Province can solve both of these problems. That's what motivates me to work
through just about every weekend, and late into the night just about every
night.  But I realized i don't know what motivates most of you.  So today I
wanted to share a video I made - It's me reading my presentation for the Kahner
Global Cannabis Private Investment Summit.  Some of you have seen me pitch
before, but this is a new pitch. I'm just starting to practice my pitch, so I
haven't figured out where to put the emphasis, and my tone of voice is not right
in a lot of parts.  Also in this reading I went a bit over the 7 minute time
limit.  But I'm hoping everyone on this @channel will watch this and ignore all
the flaws.  I'm hoping you'll enjoy the story and find meaning in our mission -
like I do every day.  Comments / feedback welcome. https://vimeo.com/266020048 
(This video is password protected and contains confidential information so I
can’t share it here - when I shared this on my company’s internal slack I shared
the password. if you know me and you want the password send me an email!)


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INSIGHT FEBRUARY 20, 2017:  FOLLOW THE RULES

INSIGHT This past weekend I had a conversation with someone in the cannabis
industry who complained about all the government regulations involved in selling
cannabis.  Whether you’re in Canada, or any state in the USA – or probably
anywhere in the world – if you’re in the cannabis industry, you’re likely
dealing with some really stupid rules.  I know it hurts when they make stupid
rules – it hurts your feelings.  It hurts your intelligence.  Like in Colorado
the rule that requires only 2 year residents of the state to be able to invest
in the cannabis industry.  That’s a stupid rule.  It seems like a good idea at
the time, but it will cripple your industry if it’s not repealed.  It also leads
to lots of problems – as I’ve seen first hand.  It’s annoying when they make
stupid rules.. because stupid rules should only be for stupid people. They
shouldn’t apply to you, right? Because you’re smart. Well I got news for you. If
you don’t follow the rules, what you are is a CRIMINAL.  So instead of bitching
about the stupid rules, may I suggest you shut your mouth and get in line
because these people – the same ones who are writing the stupid rules – these
same people are letting you sell marijuana. Legally. So if they tell you that
every Tuesday you have to stand on your head and sing the national anthem with a
role of quarters in your mouth, you better get some quarters.



There are plenty of things we can do if we don’t agree with the rules.  We can
hire lobbyists, we can work with the government to draft new regulations.  We
can stage protests.  We can work to get new officials elected. We can write
articles.  We can even decide to leave the industry if the rules bother us that
much.  But what we can’t do is break those rules.  Not in this industry. It’s
too young, it’s too fragile.  We have too much to lose.  Remember – if you break
the rules, even a little bit, you are a criminal.  The last thing this industry
– which is still fighting for legitimacy – needs is a scandal with a business
leader or company caught doing something criminal.  That won’t help.

Now what’s gonna happen is someone’s gonna want to do a type of deal with you
that’s not allowed by the rules. They’re gonna want to get around the rules. And
when this happens to me, here’s what I say.  And you should write this down
because it will get you out of a lot of trouble. say “we’re not in the business
of getting around the rules. We’re in the business of following the rules”.  

And then they’re going to say: “Yeah but there’s got to be a legal way around
the rules. Like we start a shell company in the Cayman Islands and then another
company to hold the IP and then, and then,” And you just get real quiet and you
take a long pause because what you’re about to say is important – AND you say:
“Maybe you didn’t hear me. we’re not in the business of getting around the
rules. We’re in the business of following the rules”.  

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INSIGHT: FEBRUARY 19, 2017

INSIGHT If any of you want to better understand what Caitlin, Kari and I are
going through, here’s a great podcast chronicling the world of fundraising and
venture capital:

http://www.thetwentyminutevc.com

I think everyone on team Province should listen to a few episodes because we are
all entrepreneurs and we’re all in this together.  Each of us is telling
Province’s story with every decision we make.  If we tell the right story,
subsequent funding rounds will be easy. We tell the wrong story, no one will
listen.

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INSIGHT: FEBRUARY 18, 2017:  LIE DETECTOR

INSIGHT.  Maybe it’s everything that’s happening in the US lately, but I’ve been
thinking a lot about the “post-truth society”.  I posted this on my facebook,
but it bears posting here as well.  This dude – Stephen Miller scares the shit
out of me.

https://youtu.be/lHusZDjesr4

it’s a long video, but just watch the first two minutes. If you haven’t been
following the news, the Trump regime has been saying a lot of things which are
not true (for example in a rally in Florida, Trump recently said that there was
a terrorist attack in Sweden – this is the 3rd terrorist attack the
administration has made up.  One in Bowling Green, one in Atlanta and one in
Sweden.  None of them every happened.)  When journalists call them out on it,
they put pitbulls like Stephen Miller on camera to basically say the same false
things over and over again and call the media liars.  They’re effectively
creating an alternate reality and lots of people in America are choosing to
believe in this alternate reality over the other generally agreed upon reality.

Sorry for the political post. I try not to get political, but this idea of a
post-truth-society is very interesting and may become a challenge this business
– and many others will have to deal with. I’ve spoken in previous insights about
bullshit science.  That’s just one of the ways in which untruthfulness plagues
our particular industry.  For so many reasons, the level of bullshit, mistruth
and lies in the cannabis industry is so much greater than in any industry.  For
today’s Insight, I wanted to share this Ted Talk about lie spotting. The good
stuff is about half way through.  Skip ahead if you like.  I hope you enjoy and
can make use of some of the lessons Ms. Miller advocates in terms of spotting
liars. They’\re everywhere!

https://www.ted.com/talks/pamela_meyer_how_to_spot_a_liar#t-517564


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INSIGHT: FEBRUARY 17, 2017: YOU CAN’T HOLD THE BUS FOR EVERYONE

@channel INSIGHT What do you do when someone on your team is not playing by the
same rules as everyone else?  For a team to be effective, everyone on that team
must agree to the rules by which the team or the company will be governed.
 Those rules might involve using certain software – for example productivity
enhancing software, or working collaboratively in a certain way, attending
meetings on time, or even maintaining certain elements of company culture. These
rules are what make a business or a unit within a business function.  Without
the rules, the business would cease to be a business, the team would not
function. In the army there are rules.  You don’t really have a choice. If you
don’t follow the rules in peacetime, you might get court marshaled. If you don’t
follow the rules in the battlefield, you could die, or worse, make others on
your team vulnerable.  I’ve spoken a lot about Ben Horowitzs book The Hard Thing
About Hard Things.  Reid has read it as well now. I’d encourage others on our
team to do the same.  Here’s a link:

https://www.amazon.ca/Hard-Thing-About-Things-Building/dp/0062273205

There’s a chapter where Ben Horowitz discusses what to do when employees won’t
play by the same rules as everyone else. This isn’t the army.  No one’s going to
die, and no one’s going to get court marshaled – but in most cases those who
don’t follow the same rules, or who don’t support the culture don’t belong in
your organization.  What I found interesting about this, however is that is not
ALWAYS the case.  Below is a blog post from Horowitz where he covers the same
topic he covers in the chapter in his book I’m referring to.  In this blog post
he describes the types of problematic team members – and at the end the very
rare cases where exceptions should be made.  You’d better be pretty incredible
if you think any business will hold the bus for you:

http://a16z.com/2011/01/04/when-smart-people-are-bad-employees/


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INSIGHT: FEBRUARY 16, 2017 PODCASTS WE LIKE

INSIGHT  In this insight, I’m going to share a few of the podcasts I listen to.
 I listen to lots of podcasts and audiobooks.  It’s a great way to be efficient
when you’re working out, or driving or doing something that doesn’t require 100%
of your brain.  These are my top picks:

Economics

Exchanges at Goldman Sachs

http://www.goldmansachs.com/our-thinking/podcasts/

Planet Money

http://www.npr.org/sections/money/

Entrepreneurship / Improvement

How I Built This

http://www.npr.org/podcasts/510313/how-i-built-this

Tim Ferris Show

http://tim.blog/podcast/

Rich 20 Something

http://rich20something.com/the-podcast/

Cannabis

Cannainsider

http://www.cannainsider.com/podcast/

Cannabis Economy

http://www.cannabisradio.com/podcasts/cannabis-economy/

The Russ Bellville Show

http://www.cannabisradio.com/podcasts/russ-belville-show/

Entertainment

This American Life

https://www.thisamericanlife.org/podcast

Serial

https://serialpodcast.org


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INSIGHT: FEBRUARY 15, 2017 - MARIHUANA:  THE ASSASSIN OF YOUTH

@channel INSIGHT  If yesterday’s detour into ‘60’s literature was not enough,
today we’ll go a bit further back with two amazing quote by Isador Feinstein
Stone.  If you’re not familiar with him, he’s a famous journalist known for his
political work & even investigated for espionage by the U.S. government.  Here
are two awesome things he said:

“The only kinds of fights worth fighting are those you’re going to lose, because
somebody has to fight them and lose and lose and lose until someday, somebody
who believes as you do wins.”.

You’ll find that pretty easily on the internet.  Here’s the full version:

“The only kinds of fights worth fighting are those you are going to lose,
because somebody has to fight them and lose and lose and lose until someday,
somebody who believes as you do wins. In order for somebody to win an important,
major fight 100 years hence, a lot of other people have got to be willing - for
the sheer fun and joy of it - to go right ahead and fight, knowing you’re going
to lose. You mustn’t feel like a martyr. You’ve got to enjoy it.”

And then there’s this:

“If you expect to see the final results of your work, you simply have not asked
a big enough question.”



What we’re trying to do at Province is hard. Really hard.  Really, really,
really hard.  Our mission is not just to tame a plant with wildly unruly – and
poorly studied chemistry, but to change human behavior and drive adoption of an
entirely new class of product.  Add to that that we will be facing off against
one of the biggest and most powerful industries in the world.  An actual
trillion dollar industry.   In any other industry that would be a near
impossible challenge.  But in this industry you have to also factor in that what
we’re doing is actually illegal in most of the world. It’s not even technically
legal in our own country (Canada) – yet. And because of cannabis’s history there
are many, many out there who believe that it I just as likely to kill you as
crack cocaine or heroin.




There are days when I think our progress at Province is slower than I would have
liked.  But then I remember what we’re up against.  There are never days when I
think the struggle isn’t worth it.  Just by doing what we’re doing – just by
having a dream that something like our products could exist – we’re changing the
conversation. We’re changing it locally, and we’re changing it globally.  Even
if Province were to fail – which it won’t – we would already have succeeded in
changing the industry.  Expanding people’s horizons and alerting the world to
what’s possible. A better, safer healthier future.  It’s not going to be easy
and the change we seek may not transpire in our lifetimes. It’s even possible
that we may not be the ones to bring it about.  But it will happen.  That’s why
we wake up every morning and do what we do.  No one can ever tell me this isn’t
a fight worth fighting.


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INSIGHT: FEBRUARY 14, 2017:  THE MAN WHO HAD 3,859 ROLLS ROYCES

INSIGHT.  Ok This is a very nontraditional insight. It’s also the first and
likely one of very few NSFW insights I’ll ever share.  I love metaphor.  It’s
one of the most powerful ways of impressing an idea upon someone, making
something memorable.  By connecting the concept you’re trying to express with a
visual image or emotion, metaphors excite disparate regions in your brain and
build stronger memories than facts alone or other means of narrative
storytelling. Here are some articles on the importance of metaphor in effective
communication.

http://centerforcoachingexcellence.com/blog/2014/7/23/leadership-conversations

http://www.peterfuda.com/2012/11/06/3-reasons-why-metaphors-are-powerful/

http://www.su.lt/bylos/mokslo_leidiniai/jmd/10_01_27/svaziene.pdf

https://www.pinterest.com/ianwthomson/visual-metaphors-in-advertising/ 

As someone who’s spent a lot of my life studying storytelling, I’ve thought a
lot about metaphor and how it can be used to make something memorable.  But try
as I might, I will never master metaphor like Richard Brautigan.



Richard Brautigan is my favorite author. Unfortunately he took his own life and
only ever published 10 novels. I haven’t read them all but I’ve read quite a few
and love everything I’ve read. Trout Fishing in America is pretty amazing if
you’re looking to learn more about him. It’s just incredible.

 https://www.amazon.com/Trout-Fishing-America-Richard-Brautigan/dp/0547255276/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1487309346&sr=8-1&keywords=trout+fishing+in+america

 I’m going to paste below my favorite chapter from this book.  You don’t need to
have read what comes before for this chapter to make sense. It’s really a
standalone.  I think this single chapter might be my favorite work of fiction
ever. That’s a bold claim. But its true. It’s just phenomenal and there’s a lot
we can learn from him about metaphor.  It’s not very long – just 5 minute read
or less.  But If you’re in a rush or don’t have a lot of time don’t read it now.
Make a mental note and come back later tonight or when you have some time to
digest. You’re going to like this. Let yourself enjoy it. The chapter is called
“Sea Sea Rider”. Here is is:

SEA, SEA RIDER 

The man who owned the bookstore was not magic. He was not a 

three-legged crow on the dandelion side of the mountain. 

He was, of course, a Jew, a retired merchant seaman 

who had been torpedoed in the North Atlantic and floated 

there day after day until death did not want him. He had a 

young wife, a heart attack, a Volkswagen and a home in 

Marin County. He liked the works of George Orwell, Richard 

Aldington and Edmund Wilson. 

He learned about life at sixteen, first from Dostoevsky 

and then from the whores of New Orleans. 

The bookstore was a parking lot for used graveyards. 

Thousands of graveyards were parked in rows like cars. 

Most of the kooks were out of print, and no one wanted to 

read them any more and the people who had read the books 

had died or forgotten about them, but through the organic 

process of music the books had become virgins again. They 

wore their ancient copyrights like new maidenheads. 

I went to the bookstore in the afternoons after I got off 

work, during that terrible year of 1959. 

He had a kitchen in the back of the store and he brewed 

cups of thick Turkish coffee in a copper pan. I drank coffee 

and read old books and waited for the year to end. He had a 

small room above the kitchen. 

It looked down on the bookstore and had Chinese screens 

in front of it. The room contained a couch, a glass cabinet 

with Chinese things in it and a table and three chairs. There 

was a tiny bathroom fastened like a watch fob to the room. 

I was sitting on a stool in the bookstore one afternoon 

reading a book that was in the shape of a chalice. The book 

had clear pages like gin, and the first page in the book read: 

Billy 

the Kid 

born 

November 23, 

1859 

in 

New York 

City 

The owner of the bookstore came up to me, and put his 

arm on my shoulder and said, "Would you like to get laid?" 

His voice was very kind. 

"No, " I said. 

"You're wrong, " he said, and then without saying anything 

else, he went out in front of the bookstore, and stopped a pair 

of total strangers, a man and a woman. He talked to them for 

a few moments. I couldn't hear what he was saying. He pointed 

at me in the bookstore. The woman nodded her head and 

then the man nodded his head. 

They came into the bookstore. 

I was embarrassed. I could not leave the bookstore because 

they were entering by the only door, so I decided to go 

upstairs and go to the toilet. I got up abruptly and walked 

to the back of the bookstore and went upstairs to the bathroom, 

and they followed after me. I could hear them on the stairs. 

I waited for a long time in the bathroom and they waited 

an equally long time in the other room. They never spoke. 

When I came out of the bathroom, the woman was lying naked 

on the couch, and the man was sitting in a chair with his 

hat on his lap. 

"Don't worry about him, " the girl said. "These things 

make no difference to him. He's rich. He has 3, 859 Rolls 

Royces." The girl was very pretty and her body was like a 

clear mountain river of skin and muscle flowing over rocks 

of bone and hidden nerves. 

"Come to me, " she said. "And come inside me for we are 

Aquarius and I love you." 

I looked at the man sitting in the chair. He was not smiling 

and he did not look sad. 

I took off my shoes and all my clothes. The man did not 

say a word. 

The girl's body moved ever so slightly from side to side. 

There was nothing else I could do for my body was like 

birds sitting on a telephone wire strung out down the world, 

clouds tossing the wires carefully. 

I laid the girl. 

It was like the eternal 59th second when it becomes a minute 

and then looks kind of sheepish. 

"Good, " the girl said, and kissed me on the face. 

The man sat there without speaking or moving or sending 

out any emotion into the room. I guess he was rich and owned 

3, 859 Rolls Royces. 

Afterwards the girl got dressed and she and the man left. 

They walked down the stairs and on their way out, I heard 

him say his first words. 

"Would you like to go to Emie's for dinner?" 

"I don't know, " the girl said. "It's a little early to think 

about dinner. " 

Then I heard the door close and they were gone. I got 

dressed and went downstairs. The flesh about my body felt 

soft and relaxed like an experiment in functional background 

music. 

The owner of the bookstore was sitting at his desk behind 

the counter. "I'll tell you what happened up there, " he said, 

in a beautiful anti-three-legged-crow voice, in an anti-dandelion 

side of the mountain voice. 

"What?"I said. 

"You fought in the Spanish Civil War. You were a young 

Communist from Cleveland, Ohio. She was a painter. A New 

York Jew who was sightseeing in the Spanish Civil War as if 

it were the Mardi Gras in New Orleans being acted out by 

Greek statues. 

"She was drawing a picture of a dead anarchist when you 

met her. She asked you to stand beside the anarchist and act 

as if you had killed him. You slapped her across the face 

and said something that would be embarrassing for me to 

repeat. 

You both fell very much in love. 

"Once while you were at the front she read Anatomy of 

Melancholy and did 349 drawings of a lemon. 

"Your love for each other was mostly spiritual.Neither 

one of you performed like millionaires in bed. 

"When Barcelona fell, you and she flew to England, and 

then took a ship back to New York. Your love for each other 

remained in Spain. It was only a war love. You loved only 

yourselves, loving each other in Spain during the war. On 

the Atlantic you were different toward each other and became 

every day more and more like people lost from each other. 

"Every wave on the Atlantic was like a dead seagull dragging 

its driftwood artillery from horizon to horizon. 

"When the ship bumped up against America, you departed 

without saying anything and never saw each other again. The 

last I heard of you, you were still living in Philadelphia. " 

"That's what you think happened up there?" I said. 

"Partly, " he said. "Yes, that's part of it. " 

He took out his pipe and filled it with tobacco and lit it. 

"Do you want me to tell you what else happened up there?" 

he said. 

"Go ahead." 

"You crossed the border into Mexico, " he said. "You 

rode your horse into a small town. The people knew who 

you were and they were afraid of you. They knew you had 

killed many men with that gun you wore at your side. The 

town itself was so small that it didn't have a priest. 

"When the rurales saw you, they left the town. Tough as 

they were, they did not want to have anything to do with you. 

The rurales left. 

You became the most powerful man in town. 

You were seduced by a thirteen-year-old girl, and you 

and she lived together in an adobe hut, and practically all 

you did was make love. 

"She was slender and had long dark hair. You made love 

standing, sitting, lying on the dirt floor with pigs and chickens 

around you. The walls, the floor and even the roof of the 

hut were coated with your sperm and her come. 

"You slept on the floor at night and used your sperm for 

a pillow and her come for a blanket. 

"The people in the town were so afraid of you that they 

could do nothing. 

"After a while she started going around town without any 

clothes on, and the people of the town said that it was not a 

good thing, and when you started going around without any 

clothes, and when both of you began making love on the back 

of your horse in the middle of the zocalo, the people of the 

town became so afraid that they abandoned the town. It's 

been abandoned ever since. "People won't live there. 

"Neither of you lived to be twenty-one. It was not neces- 

sary. 

"See, I do know what happened upstairs, " he said. He 

smiled at me kindly. His eyes were like the shoelaces of a 

harpsichord. 

I thought about what happened upstairs. 

"You know what I say is the truth, " he said. "For you 

saw it with your own eyes and traveled it with your own body. 

Finish the book you were reading before you were interrupted. 

I'm glad you got laid. " 

Once resumed the pages of the book began to speed up 

and turn faster and faster until they were spinning like wheels 

in the sea. 


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INSIGHT:  FEBRUARY 13, 2017: CHARISMA

INSIGHT.  I think a lot about charisma.  It’s a trait that so many of the most
successful people have. For a while I thought it was innate. Something you were
born with, but over the years, I’ve discovered it can be learned.  Amy Cuddy’s
TED talk (see my 2nd insight ever) clued me into that.  But a lot of the reason
I’ve learned that is just by seeing the change within myself.  I used to be so
shy and afraid to rock the boat.  I was terrible at capturing people’s
attention.  For better or worse, thanks to the miracle of the internet examples
of this will be saved for all eternity.  Here’s an example of a video interview
I did for Batman Arkham Origins
http://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2013/04/17/the-storyline-of-batman-arkham-origins.aspx

But just two years later I’d learned a lot.  I’m much more comfortable in front
of the camera  Here’s an example:

http://fusion.net/video/188106/investors-pitching-in-millions-pot-but-are-returns-high/

(skip to 2:35)

or this one:
http://fusion.net/video/184393/scientists-not-stoners-behind-marijuana-boom/

Still pretty far from charismatic, but I’m getting better.  There’s a lot I need
to learn and a strong incentive to learn more. Charisma confers great power (and
must be used responsibly).  So naturally I was interested when I saw this
article on Nautilus today.  

http://nautil.us/issue/45/power/the-anatomy-of-charisma

 It’s a great dissection of Charisma from a psychological / neurological
perspective.   I’ll paste below my favorite section:

 By recreating the “awestruck effect” in the laboratory—by inducing subjects to
visualize and write about charismatic figures, and then showing them
emotion-laden video clips—Menges demonstrated something profound. While the
subjects’ external emotional expression may have been subdued, the subjective
emotional experience of those who were “awestruck” was every bit as powerful as
those who were not. Indeed, it was more so, as they simply suppressed it out of
automatic deference. Psychologists have long known that when we suppress the
expression of our emotions, not only do those emotions increase their intensity,
but we suffer a cognitive detriment.

 Menges found that students were far more likely to report they remembered the
exact contents of speeches delivered by individuals who used charismatic
speaking techniques that evoke emotions, than the content of speeches from
individuals using a straightforward, non-charismatic mode of delivery. Yet
written tests revealed those exposed to charismatic speakers remembered far less
than those exposed to the non-charismatic speakers. Even so, when offered the
chance to follow each speaker into a coffee room to discuss the ideas of their
talks, the students almost never followed the boring speaker—and almost always
followed the charismatic one.


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INSIGHT: FEBRUARY 12, 2017: AUDITIONS INSTEAD OF INTERVIEWS

INSIGHT  Automatic is a really interesting company and Matt Mullenweig is a
really interesting guy.  He’s the one who turned me on to “Words that Work”
which I mentioned in my last post.  He also has a very interesting philosophy
when it comes to hiring.  This article in the Harvard Business Review explains
it well.

 https://hbr.org/2014/04/the-ceo-of-automattic-on-holding-auditions-to-build-a-strong-team

 His basic philosophy is that you should hold auditions before hiring anyone –
that way you know what you’re getting. This has worked well for millennia in
entertainment. I don’t understand why it’s not done in the job market more
often.  


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INSIGHT: FEBRUARY 11 2017: WORDS THAT WORK

INSIGHT.  I’m pretty liberal – which in the USA (where I’m from) means I’m
either a democrat or a member of some fringe party like the Green Party.  I
think those fringe people are really nuts, so that basically means I’m a
Democrat. I hate the democratic party, though. I like the ideals and beliefs
they stand for, but I hate how they’re unorganized, and overly principled about
the wrong things and afraid to do what it takes to win.  At the end of the day,
it doesn’t matter how good your ideas are if you don’t win, no one will ever
benefit from them. I see politics the same way I see business. It’s about
winning.  I don’t agree with almost anything the Republicans in the USA say or
do.  I am especially revolted by their stance on environmental issues.  But I
have to say, I really admire how they’re able to win.  They’re better at
organizing than the democrats are.  They’re willing to do things which confer an
unfair advantage, such as gerrymandering (assuming they don’t run afoul of the
Terminator – read the last line:
http://thehill.com/blogs/in-the-know/in-the-know/319678-schwarzenegger-rips-gerrymandering-congress-couldnt-beat-herpes
).  But the thing that impresses me more than anything else about how
Republicans win time after time is how they control the message, frame the
discussion, and influence the outcome of elections by the using the right words.
Since my insights are about how to get ahead in life and business and not
politics, I’m hoping that now you see where I’m going with this.

 The father of Republican-style wordsmithing is Republican strategist Dr. Frank
Luntz.  An Oxford University Ph.D., He was the one who coined many of the phrase
which helped republicans seize and maintain power despite the fact that the
majority of Americans are registered democrats.  I highly recommend his book
“Words that Work”. Here’s a link on Amazon:

 https://www.amazon.ca/Words-That-Work-What-People/dp/1401309291

 Here’s a great summary I found online.  Seriously I recommend everyone read
this. It’s so helpful for everything we do in business, and particularly for our
marketing.

 https://networkgroups.mgmresorts.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Words_that_Work.online.pdf

 I’ll paste below some highlights:

Rule 1. Simplicity: Use Small Words. Avoid words that might force someone to
reach for the dictionary, because most Americans won’t. The average American did
not graduate from college and doesn’t understand the difference between effect
and affect.

Rule 2. Brevity: Use Short Sentences. Be as brief as possible. Never use a
sentence when a phrase will do and never use four words when three can say just
as much.

Rule 3. Credibility Is as Important as Philosophy. People have to believe it to
buy it. If your words lack sincerity or if they contradict accepted facts,
circumstances or perceptions, they will lack impact.

Rule 4. Consistency Matters. Repetition. Repetition. Repetition. Good language
is like the Energizer Bunny. It keeps going … and going … and going.

Rule 5. Novelty: Offer Something New. In plain English, words that work often
involve a new definition of an old idea. At a time when cars and the promotion
of them were expanding in size, Volkswagen took exactly the opposite approach in
design and in message. It worked because it made people think about the product
in a fresh way.

Rule 6. Sound and Texture Matter. The sounds and texture of language should be
just as memorable as the words themselves. A string of words that have the same
first letter, the same sound or the same syllabic cadence is more memorable than
a random collection of sounds.

Rule 7. Speak Aspirationally. Messages need to say what people want to hear. The
key to successful aspirational language for products or politics is to
personalize and humanize the message to trigger an emotional remembrance.

Rule 8. Visualize. Paint a vivid picture. From M&M’s “Melts in your mouth, not
in your hand” to Morton Salt’s “When it rains it pours” to NBC’s “Must See TV,”
the slogans we remember for a lifetime almost always have a strong visual
component, something we can see and almost feel.

Rule 9. Ask a Question. “Got Milk?” may be the most memorable print ad campaign
of the past decade. A statement, when put in the form of a rhetorical question,
can have much greater impact than a plain assertion.

Rule 10. Provide Context and Explain Relevance. You have to give people the
“why” of a message before you tell them the “therefore” and the “so that.”
Without context, you cannot establish a message’s value, its impact or, most
importantly, its relevance. ■

 Or this:

 21 Words and Phrases for the 21st Century The words that follow are not
superficial, timely or contingent on the ephemeral circumstances of the moment.
These words cut to the heart of Americans’ most fundamental beliefs and right to
the core values that do not change.

1. Imagine. This word evokes something different to each person who hears it. No
matter what your company’s product or service, the word “imagine” has the
potential to create and personalize an appeal that is individualized based on
the dreams and desires of the person who hears or reads it.

2. Hassle-free. When it comes to how we interact with products, services and
people, “hassle-free” is a top priority.

3. Lifestyle. This word is incredibly powerful because it is at the same time
self-defined and aspirational — everyone defines and aspires to his or her own
unique lifestyle.

4. Accountability. Americans universally want corporations held “accountable”
for their actions as well as their products and how they treat their customers,
their employees and their shareholders.

5. Results and the Can-do spirit. When we buy something, we want to know that
it’s going to provide a tangible benefit — something that we can see, hear, feel
or otherwise quantify. And if results are the goal, the “can-do spirit” is the
effort.

6. Innovation. This word immediately calls to mind pictures of the future. It
leads to products that are smaller or lighter or faster or cheaper … or bigger,
more resilient, stronger and longer lasting.

7. Renew, Revitalize, Rejuvenate, Restore, Rekindle, Reinvent. These are the
so-called “re” words, and they are incredibly powerful because they take the
best elements or ideas from the past and apply them to the present and the
future.

8. Efficient and Efficiency. In the bargain-hungry environment in which we live,
efficiency is a significant product advantage.

9. The right to … Americans have always been committed to the concept of rights.

10. Patient-centered. This concept describes what most people want out of their
health care. It is the most effective umbrella term for anything related to
medicine involving human beings.

11. Investment. “Spending” suggests waste. “Investment” suggests the responsible
handling of resources.

12. Casual elegance. This expression best defines what Americans want when they
travel, more than any other attribute.

13. Independent. This word means having no constricting ties, no conflicts of
interest, nothing to hide. 14. Peace of mind. This term is a kinder, gentler,
softer expression of “security” that is less politicized, more embracing and
all-encompassing.

15. Certified. We want and need ironclad agreements that what we buy won’t fail
us months or even days after our purchase.

16. All-American. America is all about progress and innovation, two ways in
which the third largest distributor of semiconductors and a top-10 supplier of
electronic components, All American, has used its patriotic image to outgrow the
competition and become an industry leader.

17. Prosperity. This word encompasses the idea of more jobs, better careers,
employment security, more takehome pay, a stronger economy and expanded
opportunity.

18. Spirituality. When appealing to a broad audience, evocations of
“spirituality” are more inclusive and therefore more politically effective than
are generic references to “religion,” specific denominations, or even “faith.”

19. Financial security. Sadly, financial freedom is more than most of us are
hoping for at the moment. Financial security is still attainable.

20. Balanced approach. Just as professing your independence from partisanship
and ideology will win you credibility points with the public, so too will
arguing for a balanced approach to our nation’s problems.

21. A culture of … By defining an issue or a cluster of issues as part of a
metaphorical culture, you can lend it new weight and seriousness. Social issues
have been supplanted by cultural issues, which sound less threatening and
judgmental. In the end, how these words are used and delivered is almost as
important as the words themselves. Style is almost as important as substance.


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INSIGHT: FEBRUARY 10, 2017:  WAIT BUT WHY: THE TAIL END

INSIGHT If you’re not familiar with Wait But Why, it’s a fantastic blog which
questions so may of the things we take for granted.  Today’s insight is
basically a repost of one of my favorite Wait But Why blog postings. This one
illustrates how important data visualization is, while also highlighting how
important it is to have clear priorities and spend your time with the people you
value most, doing the things you value most. It’s called “The Tail End”.  Enjoy:

 http://waitbutwhy.com/2015/12/the-tail-end.html


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INSIGHT: FEBRUARY 9, 2017: THE AGILE WORKFLOW

INSIGHT.  While we’ve been fairly rigorous with project management at Province
(as evidenced by our kanban board, and Gantt Chart) but we haven’t gone too far
into managing workflow process the way we should.  I’ve been thinking that now
that we’re a team of 10, it’s about time we adopt a version of the agile
workflow using the Scrum Framework or some hybrid of the various popular Agile
frameworks. At my previous business we used 2 week sprints and burn down / burn
up charts tracking performance.  We also used a Kanban Board.  Importantly,
Province will not give up our Gantt charts.  I realize there are a lot of
problems with waterfall project planning but I believe those problems arise when
the waterfall methodology is used exclusively.  When carrying out a complicated
task fixed ship dates and multiple teams working on multiple projects, a clever
mix of the best attributes from waterfall and agile is the way to go.  This is
how many video games are made, - and video games are similar in complexity to
what we’re doing at Province. Here’s a good article describing how to combine
Agile planning with Gantt scheduling.

https://hansoft.com/blog/scrum-kanban-and-gantt-scheduling-in-one-project-nonsense-or-necessity/

So which is the best method of Agile to incorporate at province?  Wikipedia
lists most of the major Agile methods and practices.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agile_software_development#Agile_methods

I’ll be honest. Most of these I’ve never heard of – so I’m not the best person
to say whether they’re right for us.

This article (written by the US EPA – which may be disbanded under Trump’s
leadership) describes 3 common Agile Frameworks – the best elements of each can
easily be combined. You’ll note we’re already using a modified Kanban Board.

https://developer.epa.gov/guide/templates-guides/agile/agile-frameworks/

The image they borrow to describe the Scrum Framework (pasted below)…



… comes from the company which made this video:

https://youtu.be/_QfFu-YQfK4

Which explains the chart pretty well.

This video isn’t bad either: it’s a lot less boring.

https://youtu.be/XU0llRltyFM

Finally if you want a beginner’s guide / explanation of the benefits of the
Agile Workflow, here’s a great summary.

https://www.airpair.com/agile/posts/guide-to-implementing-agile

I’d like to start implementing a hybrid waterfall / Agile workflow at Province.
This is typically the domain of the Project Manager and COO and I don’t have
time to take lead on this right now – but when I do have time I’ll start this
moving.  In the mean time, if anyone has time to take ownership of this project
on top of everything else they’re doing, please volunteer on our next scrum!


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INSIGHT: FEBRUARY 8, 2017:  THE FOUR AGREEMENTS BY DON MIGUEL RUIZ

@channel INSIGHT: Wow. I skipped 4 days in a row – but my travel schedule was
such that I didn’t have any free time.  So today I post 2 insights. I will post
2 insights for the next 3 days until I’m caught up.   The first is a book called
the four agreements.  It’s by don Miguel Ruiz.  A friend of mine who I respect
greatly said this book was required reading at his company.  I don’t normally
love this super self-helpy bullshit.  But this is pretty good. It’s super basic
and when you read below, it’s such an easy heuristic to follow.

Here’s a link to it on Amazon:
 https://www.amazon.ca/Four-Agreements-Practical-Personal-Freedom/dp/1878424319

It’s also available on Audible.

Below is a summary which I copied from this website

http://www.businessballs.com/thefouragreementsdonmiguelruiz.htm

 Don Miguel Ruiz's book, The Four Agreements was published in 1997. For many,
The Four Agreements is a life-changing book, whose ideas come from the ancient
Toltec wisdom of the native people of Southern Mexico. The Toltec were 'people
of knowledge' - scientists and artists who created a society to explore and
conserve the traditional spiritual knowledge and practices of their ancestors.
The Toltec viewed science and spirit as part of the same entity, believing that
all energy - material or ethereal - is derived from and governed by the
universe. Don Miguel Ruiz, born and raised in rural Mexico, was brought up to
follow his family's Toltec ways by his mother, a Toltec faith healer, and
grandfather, a Toltec 'nagual', a shaman. Despite this, Don Miguel decided to
pursue a conventional education, which led him to qualify and practice for
several years as a surgeon. Following a car crash, Don Miguel Ruiz reverted to
his Toltec roots during the late 1970's, first studying and learning in depth
the Toltec ways, and then healing, teaching, lecturing and writing during the
1980's and 90's, when he wrote The Four Agreements (published in 1997), The
Mastery of Love (1999), The Four Agreements Companion Book (2000), and Prayers
(2001). Don Miguel Ruiz survived a serious heart attack 2002, since when his
teachings have been largely channelled through seminars and classes run by his
followers, notably his sons Don Jose Luis and Don Miguel Ruiz Junior. Like many
gurus and philosophical pioneers, Ruiz has to an extent packaged, promoted and
commercialised his work, nevertheless the simplicity and elegance of his
thinking remains a source of great enlightenment and aspiration. The simple
ideas of The Four Agreements provide an inspirational code for life; a personal
development model, and a template for personal development, behaviour,
communications and relationships. Here is how Don Miguel Ruiz summarises 'The
Four Agreements':

 the four agreements - don miguel ruiz's code for life

agreement 1

Be impeccable with your word - Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean.
Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use
the power of your word in the direction of truth and love.

 agreement 2

Don’t take anything personally - Nothing others do is because of you. What
others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream. When
you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won’t be the victim of
needless suffering.

 agreement 3

Don’t make assumptions - Find the courage to ask questions and to express what
you really want. Communicate with others as clearly as you can to avoid
misunderstandings, sadness and drama. With just this one agreement, you can
completely transform your life.

 agreement 4

Always do your best - Your best is going to change from moment to moment; it
will be different when you are healthy as opposed to sick. Under any
circumstance, simply do your best, and you will avoid self-judgment, self-abuse
and regret.


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INSIGHT: FEBRUARY 7, 2017: BULLSHIT SCIENCE, PART 2

INSIGHT Learning things doesn’t have to be boring.  Today’s insight is a lot of
fun. It’s a video from John Oliver.  As a science based business, I think it’s
important we all understand the scientific process.  We also have to understand
the difference between correlation and causation.  We have to understand the
importance of the peer review system.  We have to understand how the media can
distort science.  We also need to figure out how to distinguish between bullshit
science and real science.  We need to be careful not to spread notions which
have not been proven.  So with that preamble… enjoy’ today’s insight. I really,
really love John Oliver.  If you don’t watch his show LAST WEEK TONIGHT, I
really enjoy it. It’s the perfect mix of educational and entertaining.

 https://youtu.be/0Rnq1NpHdmw





MEHR DAVON

There is a necessity for change in the world of social psychoactive use.