Matt Corker

So You Think You Can Dance (With Your Dog?)

Matt Corker — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 04:36:02 +0000

Sometimes I am amazed, and other times I am AMAZED! This video creates the later:

Pick of the post: Flo Rida – Club Can’t Handle Me (official music video)

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From Victory to Defeat: Get SHIFTED

Matt Corker — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 14:24:36 +0000

Failing is not the problem. Learning nothing from that failure is.

“Learning from other people’s mistakes” is one of the strongest ways to grow. It gives us the opportunity to bypass a potential detour in our own path. This, however, has been traditionally been limited to watching your Dad burn himself on a hot stove or your best friend get stung by a bee after hitting the hive with a rock. (Both, I should note, are good things to avoid!)

But when do we get the opportunity to learn from the mistakes of our role models and community rockstars?
Answer: Now.

Introducing SHIFTED | stories of challenge & choice

5 incredible speakers, including the lovely Danielle LaPorte and influential business leader David Bentall, will share their stories about challenges they’ve faced and the choices they made to achieve success.

Details:
When: Thursday September 9, 2010 – 6 pm
Where: District 319 (319 Main St)
Why: To help people learn. You will learn from the speakers (and other attendees) about different pathways to possibility. Children in Ethiopia will learn through the primary education your FULL ticket price goes to support. Read more about imagine1day and their dream to provide quality primary education to Ethiopian children by 2020.

When you invest in yourself, you are then able to invest in others. This is a perfect example of how that works.

To buy your tickets, check out the SHIFTED website. You can also stay updated on Twitter and Facebook. Can’t wait to see you there!

(PS. Reason #43 for why you should come: I’m the emcee for this event – rocking the mic between the inspirational truth bombs! WOOT!)

Pick of the post: Chromeo – Fancy Footwork (official music video)

Being “Fair” – A Farmer’s Story

Matt Corker — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 14:32:28 +0000

One autumn, an old farmer looked outside at his flourishing crop. With both excitement and despair in his voice he said to his wife “how am I ever going to harvest this all by myself?”

“Why don’t you hire some of those young contractors in town? I’m sure they’d be available and would love to help,” she replied.

So the farmer did just that. He found two young gents who were willing to come work for him for 6 pounds each. Bright and early that coming Saturday morning, the two gents came to his farm before the sun was up and began working away. The farmer’s neighbours saw the contractors working in the field once they awoke and went over to see what was going on. The farmer explained how he had lots to harvest and needed all the help he could get. At noon, three of the neighbours came out to help him too. Later that afternoon, around 3 pm, two more of the farmer’s friends from town stopped in and put on some gloves – helping the crew load the last of the crop onto the farmer’s truck.

The farmer was delighted by everyone’s help! To thank everyone, he asked them to line up to receive their payment for the day. To his friends, who arrived at 3, he handed over 6 pounds. They had expected nothing and were ecstatic to have earned something. To his neighbours, who arrived at noon, he also handed over 6 pounds. They too, were ecstatic.

By this time, the two young contractors were pretty ticked off. They had worked for at least 6 hours longer than the others! When the farmer came to them, and handed them 6 pounds, they were sour and upset.

The farmer looked at them and said: “This is the amount we agreed upon. I am not cheating you out of any money, nor less thankful for the work you have done. I can see you are upset though. However, what I do with my generosity should not affect your gratitude for it.”

When we go the extra mile, we want special recognition. But “sometimes in life, when you’ve given, and given, and given, and given – the reward is knowing that you did.” (John Furlong)

Pick of the post: Fefe Dobson – Ghost (official music video)

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Fierce New Tunes

Matt Corker — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 14:47:55 +0000

This post has been long overdue! It has been waiting in drafts for me for far too long.

I need to share with you these artists: Neu and Two Lions & A Lady.

Neu has been a great addition to my spin class playlists as his beats are deep and melodic. They get me smiling on the bike while my quads are screaming. Plus, who else releases a movie trailer to show-off their new album tunes?!? Rad? Rad! Take a look for yourself:

Neu, Wes, and Lydia also joined forces to create Two Lions & A Lady. They performed live at the Coppertank a couple weeks ago and added so much to the vibe of the night. More on them to come, so keep your eyes peeled for greatness. In the meantime, enjoy their rendition of MGMT’s Kids (with an accordion!):

Evidence or Faith?

Matt Corker — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 14:38:55 +0000

Terces, from Cafe Gratitude, wrote this at the end of last year. After experiencing a weekend of “interruptions,” I just needed to share her insight from this post again:

“I was thinking the other day how often I find myself living by evidence, even when I realize it I can’t always intervene in my evidence way of life. Yet, I know, deep down inside myself that life lived by faith is what really calls to me. I have actually had lots of experiences in my life where I made choices and stepped out of my comfort zone living completely by faith and ALWAYS the outcome was MIRACULOUS. Yet still, here I am looking for evidence anyway.

What it takes for me to live by faith is simply trusting, keeping my attention on the perfection of everything and letting go of any and all expectations I might have.

One of the ways I interrupt my search for evidence is shifting my attention to all I have to be grateful for. I am always amazed at how quickly I return to the present moment and once again begin to notice how beautifully and perfectly I am provided for.

I often find myself wondering …. what more evidence do I need?”

To all of those who interrupted my search this weekend to remind me how perfectly provided for we are: thank You.

Pick of the post: Casting Crowns – Until the Whole World Hears

Introducing my 100 before 100

Matt Corker — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 14:41:56 +0000

In January, I created a list of 100 things I want to do before I turn 100. They were not goals (as they didn’t provide direction or a deadline), but experiences I thought would be totally rad to have. Experiences that would create ear-to-ear smiles, belly laughs, tears of joy, nostalgic excitement, or all of the above combined. If my goals created the road I was walking on, my 100 before 100 were designed to remind me to have TONS of fun along the way.

After my sister created her bucket list, she gave me a hard time for keeping my 100 before 100 so close to me (or just away from her … I couldn’t tell). But I felt as though this list o’ good times couldn’t just be released to the world at any old time. It has such excitement in it (for me and others!) that it needed a day that could withstand its presence.

So today, on my birthday, I introduce you to my 100 before 100. [Note: I've also created a 100 BEFORE 100 page on my site so you don't have try to find this blog post again as the years go on.]

Hope today makes you smile.

Eat an avocado smoothie after a morning of surfing with Jason Mraz
Host a talk show
Show up at the airport and buy a ticket for the next flight that day
Attend a 10 day silent meditation retreat
Complete an adventure race
Row a single in False Creek
Be the creative director for a music video
Design a house
Invite my entire family to an all-inclusive vacation/reunion (on me!)
Get married – and throw one heck of a celebration to go with it
Drink tea in Nepal
Bungee jump
Experience the Northern Lights
Learn a dance taught by Mia Michaels (or any SYTYCD choreographer)
Help run an overnight camp for the summer
Eat only raw food for 40 days
Host a Mr. Vanier 10 year reunion
Design a line of vests for men
Ride a camel in Egypt
Complete a Masters degree in change management
Teach my kids to fish
Give a keynote presentation at a leadership conference
Take my nephews on their dream vacation
Release a CD – co-starring my friends and family
Party on a houseboat
Create an inspiring leadership development program for my company’s staff team
Sunbathe naked
Watch the sunrise from the top of a mountain
Eat Dim Sum in Hong Kong completed April, 2010
Author a book
Emcee a friend’s wedding
Take up a sport my kid really loves – just so I can help my kid practice
Bike the Vancouver Ferry loop (North Van – Richmond – Victoria – Nanaimo and back)
Learn to play the ukulele
Sing on a worship team
Dance with Ellen
Be in a “4 generations of Corkers” picture
Take my dog camping
Hike the West Coast Trail
Create a piece of art with Christine Paige
Open my leadership facility – the perfect place for offsite retreats and inspiring foresight
Surf in Hawaii
Make a homemade ice cream cake for a friend’s birthday
Fly in a float plane with my Dad
Raise $3 million for a charity making a difference
Walk the red carpet at a movie premiere with my Mom
Ride an elephant
Name a star for someone
Go white water rafting
Have an art gallery in my house – featuring my friends’ masterpieces
Kiss the Blarney Stone in Cork, Ireland
Drive across Canada in a VW Jetta
Make smores with my sister (and our families) at CampFire Point at Fair Glen
Become a Big Brother
Host a dinner for all my mentors (whoa – talk about a power meal!)
Travel to an Olympic Games as part of the Canadian Olympic Team
Ride in a hot air balloon
Crash a wedding with Andrew Haas
Eat Chinese Food on Christmas Eve with Adam in Calgary
Walk on fire / hot coals
After all these years, have a beer with Mike Bonici
Donate blood
Read my kids my favourite childhood stories (e.g. Robert Munch, Eric Carle)
Milk a cow
Experience St. Patrick’s Day in Ireland
Try my hand (/feet?) at grape-stomping
Sleep outside in a hammock
Go on a bro vacation – just Doug and I
Tour with a band
Create a “Corker Cookbook” filled with family recipes
Write for a collaborative online publication
Scuba-dive in the Great Barrier Reef
Help my sister cross of 10 items on her bucket list
Teach a spin class completed June, 2010
Have a romantic dinner on a rooftop patio – reserved for two
Dine with Seth Godin over breakfast
Find a kangaroo-rat
Be part of a nude photoshoot
Own an entire outfit that was put together by “one for one” businesses. (i.e. Shoes by TOMS, tie by FIGS, etc)
Go on a roadtrip with Wesley George, Ryan Ferguson, and Andrew Haas. (It won’t matter to where)
Get colourful at a Holi festival celebration in India
Cold beer + Sarah Topa + Ontario cottage country. Need I say more? Pull me up some lakeside patio please.
Jump around doing Parkour
Do yoga for 80 consecutive days
Make chocolate by hand
Party in the Greek Islands
Take a tap dance class
Play a full round of golf with my Dad and James
Bike across Confederation Bridge
Experience a zero-gravity flight (on purpose)
Pay for a random couple’s meal. It would make for a great (first) date!
Walk under/shower in a waterfall
Attend at least one high school reunion
Find the Corker totem pole on Vancouver Island
Read the Bible cover to cover
Create a time capsule with my kids and open it 20 years later
Go on a wine tour by scooter
Visit a huge amusement park with my friends
Give out free hugs overseas
Leave the world better than when I found it

Pick of the Post: Asher Roth – G.R.I.N.D. (Get Ready, It’s a New Day) (unofficial music video)

Using Words That Change Minds

Matt Corker — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 15:03:47 +0000

How you frame your idea is key. By selecting the right words to use, you can either enroll your audience in what you’re saying, or leave them disengaged and unmotivated to take action. In Shelle Rose Charvet’s book “Words That Change Minds: Mastering the language of influence,” she suggests each other of us has motivation traits (how our interest is triggered) and working traits (how we handle information, people, decisions, etc).

One motivation trait that stood out for me was direction. Carvet defines direction as a person’s motivational energy centered on goals or problems to be dealt with or avoided.

Carvet groups people into three categories for this trait: Toward people (40%), Away From people (40%), Equally Toward and Away From people (20%). Towards people are motivated and inspired to achieve or attain goals. They have trouble recognizing problems, but are very good at managing priorities. Away From people, on the other hand, focus on what may be and is going wrong. They are motivated to solve problems and may have difficulty managing priorities because whatever is wrong will attract most of their attention. Note: At the extreme, Away From people are often perceived as jaded or cynical – especially by Toward people, who are perceived as naive by Away From people.

How do you identify a Toward/Away From person? Listen to what they say after the word because. It will either be a Toward or Away From statement.
Example: “I want a promotion because I would get more money and more influential work” (Toward) vs. “I want a promotion because I would not have all this routine work and debt” (Away From).

How do you change their mind? Use specific words that will trigger their Toward or Away From mindset in that context.
Towards people are motivated by words like: gain, attain, have, obtain, include, get, achieve
Away From people are motivated by words like: avoid, steer clear of, not have, get rid of, exclude, away from, unwanted
Example: “This new technology will help us to achieve our goal of being more efficient” (Toward) vs. “This new technology will help us get rid of the inefficiencies we currently have” (Away From).

Same goal. Same problem. Two different directions. Inspiring someone to take action on starts with how you frame it.

Pick of the Post: Brandon Flowers – Crossfire (official music video)

Getting There

Matt Corker — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 15:04:07 +0000

Sometimes it helps to know how to get there:

Safe travels.

Pick of the Post: Maroon 5 – Misery (official music video)

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[Spoiler Alert] Ellen DeGeneres dances on SYTYCD

Matt Corker — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 15:24:48 +0000

For the season’s finale of So You Think You Can Dance, the judges select their favourite dances from the season to be performed one more time. It is amazing to revisit how far the dancers have come and be reminded of how incredibly talented they all are.

The most memorable dance of the season was the hip hop dance between Alex Wong (a ballet dancer) and tWitch (an all-star hip hop dancer). Twitch teaches Alex how to push ballet “outta his mind” as they light up the stage in a NAPPYTAPS routine. Check out the video if you need a reminder of how great it was.

But, the week after this epic dance was performed, Alex injured himself and was sent into surgery and off the show. Devastating! The up-side? For the season’s finale, Ellen DeGeneres decided to step up and take Alex’s place. I have never loved a season’s finale more! Take a look at the video below to have a great start to your day:

Pick of the post: K’Naan – Take a Minute (official music video)

Corporate Culture Too Soft?

Matt Corker — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 14:58:53 +0000

Soft corporate cultures allow you to be mediocre. They coddle and focus on the weakest team members. They put policies before people. Their leaders want people to get the work done the way it’s always been done. They protect inefficiencies. Their visions and strategies are riddled with buzz words that their own employees don’t understand (if they have a vision or strategy at all). People blame others for why they themselves aren’t great. Everyone is welcome.

Hard cultures push you towards greatness. They challenge, challenge, challenge, and then support their people. There is no room for excuses. They encourage the relentless pursuit towards goals (especially BHAGs). Leaders continually look for new creations and re-inventions of processes and products. They are quick, tech-savy, and smart. Their visions are bold and easily understood by all stakeholders. People take responsibility for their own lives and decisions – without any ego. Only those striving to be great are welcome.

Pros and cons exist for both types of cultures, so what is “better” is really what resonates with you more on a personal level. Are you looking to be protected or pushed? Do you want to make a difference or make money, or both? Are you content being in the mundane, or do you feel drawn to people striving for something more?

Pick of the Post: Shawn Desman – Shiver (official music video)

Your Family’s Influence on Your Leadership Style