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During December’s Christmas, Hanukkah and “New Year” celebrations, it is customary to exchange gifts, send good wishes, visit with family and friends and in the business world host an annual dinner for employees and associates. It is not surprising that over the years, Christmas and Hanukkah celebrations have been transformed into secular holidays centered on consumerism. What is surprising to me is diluting the core message of Christmas and Hanukkah to end-up losing the fundamental reason for the celebration!

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People decisions regarding leadership are never easy ones. When results are lacking and you are disappointed with a leader performance, do you apply the phrase “ three chances and you’re out ”? Difficult leadership decisions apply to sport teams, businesses, non-profit organizations, and countries. “Doing the same thing and thinking or expecting to get a different result,” called the insanity quote, frequently misattributed to Albert Einstein,  has become a popular way to describe a flawed or illogical approach. Change is needed OK ... but where do you start? Change the leader or the team? Or both?

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Start with a simple question ...

Canada Post (CP) is again on strike. Recently, the Prime Minister stated that “the Crown Corporation is hemorrhaging money, but plans have been put forward to reduce losses.” Earlier this year, he provided a $ 1B injection.  CP lost $ 407M in just Q2. Surprise? CP has consistently lost money and in greater amounts. Over $ 2B losses, last 4 years and on track this year for $ 1.5B loss. I read that the reasons for the disastrous results are declining use of mail, outdated restrictions, market dynamic changes, and stalled labour relations. So what should Canada do?

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As the Labor Day long weekend approaches, it unofficially tells us that end of summer will soon be here. Many gather for a fun weekend with family and friends, others prepare for schools begin or use the three-day weekend for a last minute catch-up on work and/or personal things “to do’s” before the season concludes.

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Since Donald Trump became the 47th US president on January 20, 2025, we have been living with trade tariffs almost 24/7. Tariffs going up, down, set, reset, extended, lowered, upped... it has not stopped. The continuous media coverage with politicians, lawyers, economists, professors and with everybody explaining, re-explaining, criticizing, defending, rationalizing and more on tariffs ... so here is my take.

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Canada is under attack economically. The timing is delicate as Canada is undergoing a critical change of leadership. Change is good but changing horse in the midst of a battle requires wise planning and smart execution. Survival is not optional. What is optional is how to respondand counter attack. Knowing more about US reasons and objectives should help us better prepare our response.  

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When your best friend turns against you

What do you do when your best friend of many years turns against you abruptly and unexpectedly? He/she suddenly changes from being supportive, encouraging and loyal to uncaring, aggressive and threatening? Your first reaction may be surprised and unbelief. You attempt to discuss... talk ... dialog ... hoping your friend changes behavior ... apologizes or at least respond to your peace offering. To your disappointment you discover he/she is convinced that you have abused of the many years of friendship and continues with more persistent harsh attacks ... your disappointment may turn to anger and now you are in a serious conflict reacting with tit-for-tat.

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Three true stories about Canada

It may be wise and helpful to pause for few minutes from the 24/7 doom and gloom media coverage of the last few weeks. Tariffs are coming ... going ... delayed ... doubled... up... down ... a recession is expected ... a soft landing ... a hard landing ... stock market crash ... correction ... bulls out ... bears in ...and more ...  it has not stopped. A little “time out” may be good. Here are three stories that tell what Canada is all about, especially that we are preparing to elect a new Prime Minister.

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Following up on my last blog “Pruning season for Canada,” I ask today, is it good advice to “ treat others the way we’d like to be treated? Easy to respond yes in general, but difficult when being under attack and indeed, today, Canada is under attack. Let me start by saying that I am not the kind to roll over when attacked. Defending is not a choice; it is vital. Survival is not optional. What is optional is how to respond and counter attack. My experience tells me that knowing more about my attacker’s reasons, behavior, objectives and demands should help me better prepare my response for win-win negotiations. 

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The recent trade tariffs imposed by the US new administration on goods from Canada and Mexico threaten to deliver serious negative economic damage to Canada, Mexico and the US. So why is the US administration imposing these tariffs? What can Canada do to respond and how can we negotiate our way to a win-win solution? To respond to these big questions... let’s just take a moment to go back to basics.

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