Ethics In General If you understand that ethics is a set of standardized rules for conducting yourself morally, then it’s easy to see that ethics is a lot like the tax code. It’s a system where people are looking for loopholes and shelters. They’re looking to get away with whatever they can while still staying … Read more

You might have noticed a little something going on called the housing boom over the last few years. (Or housing bubble), however you want to see it. It’s been a sellers market. A friend of mine, Richard “The Rocket”, moved out to Calgary for a while. He bought a pretty typical four bedroom  house. After … Read more

Contracts, by their very nature, put people on opposite sides of the table. Friendships and long established relationships of all kinds have been destroyed by bitter contract disputes. But this also happens when there is no contract where there should have been one. The intent of the person or company you’re doing business with is … Read more

Previously, I wrote about a story of industrial espionage in the cola wars. I think everyone knows that large companies like Coke and Pepsi are always engaged in a branding war with their rivals. It’s mostly a game of advertising and it’s waged in front of us everyday on TV, radio, in print, on billboards … Read more

A business plan is a launching point. It’s an idea of which direction to travel in. And it becomes obsolete almost as soon as it is completed. Unforeseen events occur. Assumptions are proved wrong. Markets shift. Financing falls apart. Still, and for all the reasons that render a business plan irrelevant, it is the most … Read more

Or, How Microsoft Almost Didn’t Happen. It’s counterintuitive to sell something you don’t have. Most people start a business by building or buying something, and then they try to bring in sales afterwards. Sometimes they succeed. A lot of times they don’t. To ensure success, you have to sell first, raise capital, and then make … Read more