French Connections

Written on February 15, 2012 by in Business, Career, Networking

Pour la version française, cliquez ici

French Affair Hosted Networking Social

Adding Value to Your Business With French-speaking People

Wednesday, June 20th, 2012 (6-9 PM)

at Peridot Resto Lounge – 81 Bloor Street East, Toronto, ON M4W 1A9 (Just East of Yonge St.)

With Great Hosts to Help You Network

Sponsors:

 

Picture of YorkvilleMetroActive and Bilingual Link are organizing the first annual French Affair Hosted Networking Social in Toronto’s Yorkville District at Peridot Resto Lounge - 81 Bloor Street East, Toronto, ON M4W 1A9 (Just East of Yonge St.). The event will bring together French speaking executives, entrepreneurs, and business owners for an evening of networking among Toronto’s most cultured and active French-speaking business professionals.

An event dedicated to the opportunities and pleasures of doing business with French-speaking companies and individuals both within and outside Canada brought to you by MetroActive, Canada’s leading business networking organization and Bilingual Link, Canada’s leading resource for connecting bilingual talent with business human resource needs. This event is in the tradition of MetroActive’s hugely successful proprietary hosted networking social format and leverages Bilingual Link’s established industry relationships and expertise.

Tony Zapacosta (left) and his son Philip (right) owners of Nanni Couture European Fashions at Hazelton Lanes

Tap into Canada’s French business market and leverage Canada’s French heritage to reach French markets in other countries! The event will bring together French-based companies, companies looking to reach French communities (within and outside Canada), organizations looking to hire French-speaking individuals and French-speaking individuals looking for career opportunities for an evening of networking among Toronto’s most active corporate executives, business owners and other business professionals.This is an ideal opportunity for: 1. Individuals looking to expand their professional network, 2. Businesses looking to expand their presence among the French-speaking community and to better understand this community, 3. Organizations servicing the French-speaking community interested in reaching those within the French community in the Greater Toronto Area, and 4. Individuals wanting to do business in French. You don’t need to be fully bilingual to take advantage of the French-speaking community, but you do need to understand the community and to develop the appropriate network, relationships and awareness of your business.

Rose Cathy Handy, CEO, Bilinqual Link.com

Join our MetroActive hosts and members for an evening focused on discovering and discussing the French culture, doing business with the French-speaking community, and exploring related business opportunities. Take advantage of individual business introductions, socializing, and networking with the heads of some of Canada’s French-speaking businesses and organizations.  Enjoy exploring the latest developments, happenings and opportunities among Canada’s French speaking community.

The evening will begin by focusing on business networking and information exchange and will later evolve into a more casual and relaxed atmosphere. 

Reserve your admission today. Most of our events are sold out and we have to turn away dozens of individuals who don’t buy tickets far enough in advance. Don’t delay!

Admission Price Includes: 1. One drink ticket good for house red and white wines, domestic bottled beer or bar rail drinks (vodka, rye, rum, gin).

Draw Prizes: TBA

Hosts:

Baldo Minaudo, President of MetroActive and Author of ‘The Banker Who Saved His Soul’
Helping People and Opportunity Meet

Rose Cathy HANDY, President, www.bilinguallink.com and author of “From homeless to CEO”
Connecting employers and candidates in the Bilingual Market


Dress Code: Business attire or equivalent

Note: You must provide proof of full payment for admission into the event. Purchase is non-refundable, but can be transferred to another individual as long as you provide that person with your proof of payment along with your signature on the bottom and note that says “I transfer my ticket to the bearer of this receipt”. We reserve the right to change event details without notice, so make sure you check event post online before event. We reserve the right to refuse admission to the event or to remove individuals from the event without refund of admission price, for whatever reason, but especially for inappropriate behaviour or complaints from, or harassment of other guests. This event is not appropriate for network marketing or multi-level marketing sales or recruitment. There may be a photographer and film crew present to record parts of the event – if you would like to be omitted from the recordings you must indicate so in writing upon signing in at the event. You’re contact information will be provided to the sponsors of the event unless you indicate in writing upon signing up at the event.

The HNS is managed and hosted by MetroActive (www.MetroActive.org), a GTA leader in business-to-business networking and social interaction. MetroActive is Canada’s premier business networking organization begun in 1997 and with a membership based in the Greater Toronto Area and which is primarily composed of corporate executives, business owners, entrepreneurs, investors and other high net worth, high disposable income individuals. You can see pictures from some of our over 1,000 past events on our facebook group page - http://www.facebook.com/groups/2367429038/. We are also on LinkedIn, twitter, meetup, youtube and yahoogroups. At October’s event we had over 120 people attending and at November’s event we had over 130 and had to turn away people at both events that hadn’t bought or reserved their ticket in advance.

OPTIONS (all options include one drink ticket – Bring your proof of payment for admission):

1. Reserve your spot now for only $10 plus $1.30 HST (Non-refundable) to guarantee your spot and ticket price and pay $35 cash at door ($30.97 plus HST of $4.03).

2. Buy your ticket now for $40.00 (plus $5.20 HST) and guarantee you’ll have your spot.

3. Show up at the event and pay $40 (plus HST) – NOTE: Door price may increase before event.

FOR DETAILS:

MetroActive t: (416) 564-0245

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Be A Networking Pro and “Enlight” Experience

Written on May 1, 2012 by in Business, Career, Career Opportunities, Jim Pagiamtzis, Relationships, Self Growth, Toronto
Thursday March 22,2012 was a great experience to speak  to the Chinese Professionals Association  in Toronto at the Jack Astor’s in Downtown Toronto.
It  was few months ago that I was at the same location attending a social media panel discussion on pros and cons of being on social media with Promod Sharma and Huge Reilly.  It was a evening with interesting discussion and thought provoking  questions on how social media is evolving in the 21st century.
Before and after the event we had opportunity to network and as I always say “be prepared for the opportunity” you never know who you are going to meet. That evening I met Peter Zhou Young Professional Division Chinese Professionals Association of Canada. Peter and I had a great conversation on the art of networking and he was very interested in my book and how to become a networking success.
A few weeks later I got an invitation to speak for Peter’s organization on how they coined “Be A Networking Pro”   -  short, sweet and to the point, I like that!   We had some telephone and email communication with the public relations department of The Chinese Professionals Association to finalize the presentation.  A request for some prizes were made.
It has been a busy week and I’m looking forward to sharing networking insights and experiences with these young professionals.
As I arrived I was greeted by Peter Zou and James Shi, the master of ceremonies for the evening.  They had a theatre style set up and I had contributed a portable screen for the presentation.
They were expecting a solid attendance for the event and they arrived with enthusiasm and excitement. Introductions were made, and I was ready to share my experiences becoming a networking success.
I shared a brief article on “Three Key Task To Success” that I had written for my Alumni Centennial  College, and the impact these strategies can make on their journey.  Then I ventured into the system of becoming a networking success and shared the P-A-R system – simple and effective strategies to follow to create an effective system of communication and getting results in networking conversations (link is below on chapter available online).
I shared insights and experiences of how to use the P-A-R system and ways to create positive engagement, the art of communication language with technology (3-T’s),  and the ability to interpret non-verbal  (handshake) and verbal communication.
Had a special guest speaker in Hyosum Kim  from the Toronto Millionaire Mind Ambassadors  talk about the book Secrets of the Millionaire Mind by T. Harv Eker and the upcoming seminar happening on May 27-29 in Toronto. (see details below)
We had great Q & A session at the event where we talked about body language, how angles are important in networking, and how to deal with different networking situations. (see video link below)
Another great experience I viewed   was a networking  game the audience participated in for 30 minutes – it  gave them the opportunity to learn, do and apply what they had learned.
There was a delicious dinner served at the end by Jack Astor’s with assorted Nacho’s and finger foods. We also had numerous participants approach me individually with comments and questions regarding networking and business, life and success.
The Chinese Professionals Association of Canada has numerous events and initiatives that are promoted and their website is  www.chineseprofessionals.ca  for more information.
                                           Antonio Ding,Michelle Ji and Jim Pagiamtzis
Body Language example and much more.
How to create a network at CPAC
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Journey to Ingersoll

Written on May 1, 2012 by in Business, Jim Pagiamtzis, Networking, Self Growth, Travel
The Elmhurst Inn  & Spa in beautiful  Ingersoll Ontario-  what a perfect place to share information  with the  Workplace Planning Group board of Directors  of f on a weekend retreat.
I would be going there to explain “How Email and Social Media  Work Hand-in-Hand to Grow Business”, this being a  critical part of my program covering online strategies. The trip would take an hour  and forty-five minutes. It  looked to be a gloomy Saturday morning drive, with rain in the forecast-but at 8 am  there wasn’t  a drop in sight.
 This would be my first visit  to Ingersoll though I have been London for numerous conferences, as well as Woodstock for a wedding. Ingersoll is right in the middle of the two. Getting out of the city is  always a great thrill for me: the new sights and sounds of the world, the expansion o f infrastructure, from roads to new buildings, and transportation trucks going east and west on the 401 with plenty of products headed for various destinations, all showing  that the economy is alive and well.
Whenever  I’m on the road  I like to play a game that involves looking  out for  great licence plates and trying to figure out what they mean. Even though I have a CD playing most of the time my  visual focus is always on the road,  On this trip it was a surprise to see  black Nissan zipping by with the place WUT FUN. He was zipping by too fast to honk! I saw three water towers and lots of horses and truck  carrying new 2012 Mustang GTO’s  (heavy and expensive payload)
Of course I had my trustworthy  GPS system guiding  my every move, but in this case  “Kate” remained silent most of the trip (yes it has name-but that’s a story for another time). However as   I neared my destination increased  Kate’s volume  so she can guide me to the Elm Hurst Inn, and as soon as I had exited the highway she announced “you have arrived”
 “Where?” I asked. But of course , she didn’t answer.
So I continued  straight and stop at a local gas station to look at my back-up map which is when I realized  had just passed the entrance. I went  into  the gas station to find out where the centre of town was  then doubled back to locate the hotel. Since I had arrived bit early I  headed  back centre of Ingersoll to get a coffee, stretch and get mentally prepared for the presentation.
Tim Horton’s was the busiest place in town that morning the drive-thru was busy and walk-in traffic was making  it a hectic place for everyone to get  their  morning breakfasts. But , hey,  I won a free donut, so it was worth it! (Mind you, I had to drive all the way to Ingersoll to win it)
I started back to the  Elm Hurst Inn. This time taking the opposite way, I found the exit easily.
On arrival , I walked to the main desk and was advised  that the meeting  was in the basement in the Heritage door, so I  took a mini elevator one floor down and made my way there.   To my surprise there was huge portable screen and projector  set up with lots of space to speak and move around.
I proceeded to meet some of the board member of the Workforce Planning Group and get  acquainted with  how they wanted to use social media. There group  included a real  cross-section of types: some were social media- savvy users, others were online but very limited experience. At  the table to the  left of where I was standing they all had  blackberry tablets (“tech corner” is what I  called them), few others had Blackberries  many  were comfortable with social media.
Had handed out my business cards and advised everyone that they could connect via LinkedIn (many of them were users) Twitter and Facebook.  At one point one of the participants following me and had one my followers  following them, great to see on –line networking happening quick!
I had 90 minutes to present my material, and my presentation had three parts to it.  After each  section there  was a  brief Q &A regarding the topics and there were some  great questions being  asked.  We got into  how to use :Constant Contact with Social Media”  to do a successful email marketing campaign, and how content is an important  way to engage and interact  with your network. We  shared key strategies , and the   two –way conversation is one  of the  goals  that is crucial to growing and managing your business.
There were also  slides   showing  how populated the social scene is and pointed out that it was not easy to find the top three on the slide (they were there). The  social scene  will become even more populated in the years to come, and it take time to see how effective these new social templates  become.
At the end of the presentation I received  a gift card  for a local restaurant, courtesy of the board;  an add a bonus one of the participants had a referral to give me regarding opportunity to write article on social media for the local paper (awesome).
As I head back to Toronto it was exciting to visit a new place in our great province and to see some new people and admire what a great country we have.
I have loved the journey through  Toronto, Kingston and Ingersoll over the last few months. The moral of the story for me:  enjoy the journey and admire the destination we learn and see new things everyday.
Jim Pagiamtzis sharing insights on raving fans
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Journey to Meditation

Written on May 1, 2012 by in Jim Pagiamtzis, Practical Tips, Self Growth
It has been an  interesting journey in learning from various leaders through their books and teachings. -including   “The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari” by world-renowned author and speaker Robin Sharma.
That all changed on April 17th, 2012 when I  got listen to Ajahn Kusalo  on an evening that I will never forget.
 A few weeks ago I was given a CD at my(41 years young) birthday party  by a very good friend  who  admires my energy but was concerned about me having some “slow down”  time as she coined it.
After listening to half way through the audio  and reported back to my friend that “it felt as if  I was walking through the forest with a bow and arrow on my shoulder with  no idea why”
She sounded confused “Were you chasing something or  was something chasing you?”I didn’t because I didn’t really know.
My friend invited me  to participate in a meditation evening. She is a very spiritual individual and  felt this might be of interest to me.
Initially I was non-committal to her offer and decided to wait and ponder it a little further. The day before the event  she sent me an email with the location along with  some special instructions which included to bringing a water bottle and to wearing  comfortable clothing.
Tuesday morning I went  through my own routine of reading morning passages from a book that I keep nearby and did my morning affirmations.
That afternoon I listened to the last half  of  the CD (to my pleasant surprise) by then  I was in the forest with no bow and arrow just walking through. Listening  to the songs I could see a big tree across the street and remembered  vividly 25 years ago when it was first planted in the soil, it has now grown into a huge tree, solid from stump to the end branches. Just like me!
After that took a brief nap to relax  let the music sink in, and woke up and feeling  re-energized.
By late afternoon I had decided that I was ready to go to the meditation and I informed my friend via email. She was pleased and looked  forward to it.
As I neared the location was pleasantly surprised when  I realized that I  pass by this location all the time going to a health club near by. Locked up my mountain bike and followed the signs to  where it said “Everyone is welcome”.
My friend was going to arrive little later so I made my way in and found  a chair off to the side. The room was very quiet as people began to arrive.
Even though I had my business cards with me I made no attempt to interact with anyone, respectful of the environment and the event.Ajahn Kusalo   walked into the room and was greeted by a gentleman who was assisting with the room and event proceedings.
At the entrance there was option to make a donation to the monastery, so I grabbed  an envelope and made a mental note to put one the box on my way out.
We were given two  handouts. The first  was a dedication of offering which was a chant that was made during the session; the second was a  sheet of explanation called Tisarana- an overview of intent and direction
Ajahn Kusalo began with conversation and I was pleasantly surprised that he was very amusing and made a strong effort to connect with everyone. He used many sports analogies to explain life and how we each  go through our journey.
He spoke how we deal with things that we face in our daily lives  and how we can learn to respond better and  better understand that life  is not as complicated as we make it.
We all have weaknesses. but at the end of the day we must  work on our strengths and evolve to improve our  weaknesses.
The room was silent as everyone listened except for the occasional  group laugh. It was a healthy spirit of individuals from all walks of life young and old, gathered together  for a few hours together time to relax and take time to breach and relax from our busy lives.
We chanted for about half an hour and then Ajahn Kusalo  fielded questions for the attendees.
It was a very therapeutic experience and I appreciated my friend inviting me to this event.
Moral of the story: meditation is a great way to relax and release yourself from the busyness of life.
If you wish to attend a future session information is below
For more information:
Address: 60 Lowther Avenue, (close to St George subway station)
Bring: Water bottle & wear comfortable clothing
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LCBO INTRODUCES NEW “SWEETNESS DESCRIPTORS” FOR WINE

Written on April 26, 2012 by in Entertainment, Liz Palmer, News, Toronto

Liz Palmer

LCBO is launching a new “sweetness descriptors” program starting April 29.  This program will provide useful tasting information to assist consumers when purchasing wine.

The new program will replace the current sugar code numbering system, which currently indicates wines as being a “0”, “1” or “2”…

This program, a first for LCBO, will consists of two elements. The first is a science-based descriptor system that reflects on how dry or sweet a wine tastes. There are five sweetness descriptors:

Extra Dry (XD) – No perceived sweetness, clean crisp acidic finish.
Dry (D) – No sweetness perceived, well rounded with balanced acidity
Medium (M) – Slight sweetness perceived
Medium Sweet (MS) – Noticeably sweet
Sweet (S) – Distinctively sweet

The second is a listing of the actual sugar content as  “grams of sugar per litre”. Both of these elements will be displayed on the redesigned bin tags located on store shelves, and in-store signs.

Initially, the sweetness descriptors and sugar content information will be used for all LCBO table wines, however, only the sugar content information will be available for LCBO non-table wines including sparkling, dessert and fortified wines. The program will also be extended to include all VINTAGES and VINTAGES ESSENTIALS wines as new releases are issued.

The sweetness descriptors initiative is part of “Wine Shopping Made Easy”, a promotion designed to help customers shop for wine in new ways and make shopping simpler. This promotion will be in all 622 LCBO stores across the province from April 29 to May 26.

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