(Time to read this Blog is about 3 minutes)

Before we get to the main topic, here are a few things to get you thinking or smiling:

1. My Biz Quote of the week:
   “If you’re measuring and evaluating your employees on attendance rather than performance and outcomes delivered, you’re in big trouble.”   
   …Donald Cooper.
    
2. Quick Biz Tip:
    
   How many times have you had to listen to a phone message several times to get the call-back number written down?
    
   When leaving a phone message, say your phone # twice…and say it slowly.  The 1^st time is to give them time to find a pen and the 2^nd time is to let them actually write it down.
    
   While I’m at it, make sure your phone number appears clearly in your email ‘signature’ template on every email.  Make it easy for people to connect with you.
     
3. I’ll help you support the Ukrainian people. Here’s a special offer to the next business or Association that books me to speak at their 2023 Conference.  I’ll speak for ‘no charge’ if you send my $9,800 fee to a Ukrainian Relief Agency.  You cover only my travel expenses from Toronto. 
    
   If you’re interested in making a difference for the Ukrainian people, email me at donald@donaldcooper.com for our list of bottom-line management and marketing topics.
    
4. Fun fact about Canada. 40% of Canada’s land mass and 75% of its coastline is above the Arctic Circle. But, that 40% of Canadian territory has a population of only 140,000, representing 0.3% of Canada’s That’s 1/3 of 1 percent.
     
5. A pricing mystery. I love chocolate milk!  Is it good for me?  I doubt it.  I buy my ‘treat’ at Costco.  Here’s the pricing mystery…
    
   At Costco, regular, boring, 2% milk is $4.99 for 2 litres.
    
   But, delicious 2% chocolate milk (same brand name) is just $4.19 for the same amount.
    
   So, they add all that delicious, chocolatey goodness (value) and then reduce the price by 80¢ or 16%.  Add value and then cut your price.  I don’t get it!
    
   The business question here is, “Are you charging for all the value you deliver?”   Nobody will ever think you’re worth more than you do.

Now, to this week’s important topic:

Taking a wack at radical ‘Wokeness’:

Last week I wrote about two kinds of liars…’delusional liars’ and ‘fully aware liars’.  I upset some of our right-leaning readers by using Trump, George Santos and Fox News as examples of liars, without mentioning any left-leaning liars.  A few irritated readers unsubscribed from my Blog.  Some of them suggested that my list of liars should have been more balanced (I agree with that) and some of them ranted that the three liars I mentioned were not liars and that only Democrats are liars.  Wow, that’s a stretch too far.

Interestingly, this week, Rupert Murdoch, Fox’s Chairman and controlling shareholder stated in court filings that he knew that Fox on-air commentators were lying about the 2020 US election being stolen, but chose to do nothing about it.  But I digress. 

This week it’s time to tick off my some of our left-leaning readers.  I’m an equal opportunity ‘ticker-offer’. 

Wokeness has gotten just plain stupid and out of control.  Most movements are like pendulums.  They swing way to the left, or way to the right and spend very little time in the ‘reasonable middle’ where most folks could actually agree.  

I get it that any movement needs people of strong passion and commitment to energize the movement, but at what point are these people so polarized that they become dangerous to the movement and to society?

If wokeness meant becoming more ‘awakened’, aware, understanding and respectful of other people’s life journey due to race, gender, gender wiring, body type, challenges, abilities, limitations, etc, I’m all for it. 

For example, how do we get to the point of respecting the legitimate variances in ‘gender wiring’ of some folks without going off the deep end into ‘gender identity as a trend, niche market, or fashion choice’? According to this article there are now 72 gender designations in addition to the two biologically obvious options.  That’s ‘gender inflation’ gone wild.   

How do we acknowledge and support the historic and ongoing struggle of black North Americans without acknowledging the obvious reality that all lives matter?   How do we help the less gifted or less fortunate without demonizing those who have worked diligently to create prosperity (and jobs)?  When he was president, Obama lost my respect when he stated that there are only two kinds of people in America, the lucky and the downtrodden.  There’s no truth or integrity in that polarizing statement.

Getting back to gender wokeness that’s such a ‘hot button’ these days, check out this commentary about wokeness gone mad…gender as criminal defence:  CLICK FOR VIDEO

So, how do we energize an idea, a movement and our society?  How do we engage a wider population in finding an enlightened and respectful way forward instead of polarizing, dividing and destroying the fabric of our society?   Radical wokeness does not lead to understanding, respect and support.  It drives us to delusion, division and destruction.

That’s it for this week…

Stay safe…live brilliantly!       

Donald Cooper 

Donald Cooper speaks and coaches internationally on management, marketing, and profitability.  He can be reached by email at donald@donaldcooper.com in Toronto, Canada.