Small numbers, big lessons

Writing this from a refreshingly chill cafe patio, this week’s edition of The Intersection is a collection of things I’ve been learning, sharing, making and listening to over the past week (a little late with an RFP deadline and several shoots, but here we go!)

There’s a bit of a thread running through it all. From talking to international companies about entering Canada, to teaching students to look for future signals, to capturing the stories and perspectives of founders in the studio. It’s a useful collection of notes from a week spent at the intersection of brand, business, content, education and whatever else caught my attention.

Let me know what stood out to you, and what you’re listening to.

Speaking to French tech companies about brand building in Canada

Earlier this week I gave a talk to a delegation of French companies through Business France about entering the Canadian market. We talked about brand positioning, founder visibility and building trust before the sales conversation starts. One of the bigger points was that entering a new market isn’t simply about translating your existing marketing, because the expectations, proof points and even values that resonate can change. I also recommended that these B2B busy leaders start trying to spend 30 minutes capturing ideas, up to 60 minutes turning those ideas into a few pieces of content, and 30 minutes actually participating in the community. You don’t need to become a creator, but you do need to make your expertise visible to grow and build trust.

A Moment of Clarity with my wife

A new episode of our Moment of Clarity series came out this week featuring a very special guest, Dianne B. Francavilla. 24 episodes into the series, Moment of Clarity has given me an excuse to sit down with founders, leaders and people doing interesting work and ask about the experiences that changed how they think. Dianne is one of the most creative and insightful people I know, and came in really early on in the series to support. You can see it below or engage on LinkedIn.

Looking for future signals 

This week we’ve been looking at client and category analysis: understanding the organization, competitors, brand assets, growth strategy and what actually creates an advantage. Because this is my Future Brand strategy class at George Brown’s School of Design, the other layer is signals. What’s changing in technology, culture, consumer behaviour, economics and the category itself? Understanding a brand today is useful, but future brand strategy requires thinking about what could change it tomorrow and in the next 25 years.

If you’re interested in being a guest speaker in my class, let me know!

Five founders, one studio day

On Monday, we spent the day filming customer stories with 5 founders for a company working in Canada’s innovation and government-funding ecosystem. One of the conversations we shared this week explored why Canadian innovators need more than good ideas. They need access to capital and liquidity to keep building. Non-dilutive programs like SR&ED and government grants can help companies fund growth without giving up equity, but navigating them, and managing the timing of that funding, is another challenge entirely. I appreciated the bigger perspective: helping individual companies access funding ultimately contributes to a stronger Canadian innovation ecosystem.

Starting with small numbers

I also joined Daniel Lewis on his new show, Small Numbers. The premise of his show is that, instead of focusing on the big accomplishments, go back to when the numbers were small. We talked about starting a nonprofit, building and eventually selling an agency, entrepreneurship, community… and some of the less-visible costs that can come with building too much at once. Watch my full Small Numbers episode

One clip I posted looks specifically at that tension: entrepreneurship can create freedom, but the way we choose to build can also start taking freedom away.

What if the founder hates making content?

We also looked back at a conversation from our Founder Signal event during Toronto Tech Week. One founder was very open about the fact that he and his co-founder don’t particularly like content or media. They started doing it anyway. Not because they wanted to become creators, but because building a fintech company requires trust. They went from quick phone videos and customer selfies to eventually investing in their own studio… but importantly, only after they could connect the content to more sales conversations and bigger customers. You don’t need to love content. Start with the business problem. Test it. Look for evidence. Then invest more when you know what’s working.

Last week’s listens  

I listen to a lot of podcasts while driving, walking and in between everything else. I’d love to know what you’re listening to, too. A few episodes from my queue this past week:

The A.I. Revolt Is Here — The Ezra Klein Show. Ezra Klein and journalist Jasmine Sun look at growing local opposition to the physical infrastructure behind AI, particularly data centres. An interesting reminder that the AI conversation isn’t only about software — these systems require land, energy, water and communities willing to host them.

I Asked 40 Millionaires Their Biggest Regret — MoneyWise. Forty millionaires were asked about their biggest regrets, which ultimately clustered around missed lives, the person they didn’t become, and believing they had more time. A useful counterweight to the usual conversation about optimizing exclusively for financial success.

Canada’s Right-Wing Meme War — CANADALAND
A look at the “Blame Canada” meme trend and the disagreement it has created within parts of the Canadian conservative movement. More broadly, an interesting example of how memes and internet culture increasingly become part of political communication.

The Investment Summit Gets Underway — The Peak Daily. A quick Canadian business-news update covering the Investment Summit and commitments being made by banks, investors and businesses, alongside the ongoing debate around controlling AI.

David Rubenstein: We took $5M and turned it into $500B — My First Million. David Rubenstein shares the early story of building Carlyle, including fundraising, choosing partners, missed opportunities and lessons from decades around business. I especially like hearing the messy early stages of businesses that look inevitable in hindsight.

On’s 16-year overnight success: Zendaya, Federer, and outrunning Nike — Masters of Scale: Rapid Response. A conversation with On co-founder and co-CEO David Allemann about building the company over 16 years, maintaining a premium position, working with Roger Federer and Zendaya, and continuing to bet on product innovation rather than simply trying to become the biggest.

Why’s everybody going to Japan? — Search Engine. PJ Vogt investigates why Japan has become such a massive destination for travellers. It goes beyond the weak yen into decades of Japanese cultural influence, tourism, fashion, food and pop culture — basically a case study in national soft power.

AI Panic: Dario’s Warning, Trump’s Dismissal, and OpenAI’s IPO Delay — Pivot. Kara Swisher and Scott Galloway unpack competing views around the pace and risks of AI development, along with OpenAI’s plans and some of the broader political and economic implications.

Coach for SpaceX & OpenAI destroys your limiting beliefs for 88 minutes straight — My First Million. Sam Parr and Shaan Puri get coached by Joe Hudson on the mental side of entrepreneurship: limiting beliefs, self-reliance, conflict avoidance, fear and some of the patterns that can make founders successful while also getting in their way.

He Warned AI Could Destroy Us. Now The Industry Is Listening — ft. Nick Bostrom — Prof G Markets. Ed Elson speaks with philosopher Nick Bostrom about AI existential risk, superintelligence and why warnings that once seemed fringe are increasingly being discussed inside the technology industry itself.

A lot of intersections

Sometimes the most interesting ideas don’t start as content.
They start with doing something worth talking about.

On Monday, we’re off to Camp Re:Connect, where I’ll lead a session about leader visibility for fellow marketers and agency owners. Stay tuned for the highlights!