BCBusiness

46 BCBusiness NOVEMBER 2015 here's a billion dollars to be made in Canada's medical marijuana business, and companies like Richmond-based MediJean are aiming to take a big slice of that growing pie. The problem with any emerging opportunity, however, is the crowd that often forms at the bu¥et line. "You have to be aware of how many new entrants can make it to the market, especially if it's cheap to get in," says leadership consul- tant Greg Nichvalodo¥. "You need to look at rival ˆrms. Do I have a leg up in terms of a monopoly up front?" Health Canada is weeding out some competitors by requiring that pot producers meet its approval. But while Medijean has applied for a licence, it's also preparing to face o¥ against hundreds of potential rivals who have also submitted applications. The company hopes that by researching and developing more e¥ective strains of pot, it will set itself apart from companies who are just trying to cash in. —Dee Hon engaging by involving art- ists or retooling their story or aligning them with other brands or any number of other strategies that deliver on my corporate call to arms: "let's make things interest- ing." And all this happens a few purposeful strides from the Nespresso machine in my kitchen. According to writer/art- ist Douglas Coupland—who spends a lot of time thinking about the future and how technolo›y is affecting our lives—my desire for a less cor- porate, more self-directed business life won't seem so brave (or foolhardy, depend- ing on your perspective) in a couple of decades' time. "In 20 or 30 years we will look back on 9-to-5 employment for a company in an oŸce as an inhumane thing we did that we can't believe we ever bought into," he says. "It will be thought of the same way we now think of child labour or sweatshops." The executional trade-o¥s of self-employment are imme- diately apparent: in exchange for more freedom and a more creative work/life balance, I now have to buy those sticky notes, schedule the meetings, clean the boardroom, make the co¥ee and book my own ²ights. These are the easiest things to get used to. What's harder is the mental adjust- ment required to pilot your own ship without a co-pilot or without traf'ic control— that infrastructure of experts who were hired because they were better than you at doing very particular things. Here are the three most sig- niˆcant lessons I've learned in the ˆrst few months: Start planning in months instead of weeks. Even bet- ter, think in terms of quar- ters. That internal project that once took a month from start to ˆnish? It will take four months now. Roll with it. Go nuts. Anything you can pay someone else to do so that you can focus on making money—do it. I can't remem- ber the details, but a couple of Ivy League economists did a study that showed that even during their most cash- strapped student days, hir- ing others to do things that were not revenue producing was economically the most proˆtable thing to do, even though it may seem counter- intuitive. I've always lived by this rule. It works. Especially in a company of one. Be brutal if you have to. You will ˆnd a tsunami of poten- tial time-wasting activities that can eat up an entire day. You can't volunteer for every good cause that comes along or talk to every young hopeful looking for a mentorship moment. According to Jean Oplinger, a Seattle-based executive coach with clients through- out the Paci'ic Northwest, sel f- employ ment at t he C-suite level often makes sense for leaders looking for a new challenge. "They can o¥er wisdom and expertise, without the responsibilities of multiple paycheques to sign," she says. That said, Oplinger cautions leaders wanting to go this route to "know your brand, make sure you are having fun, and know where you are going. Clarity of direction equals eŸciency of e¥ort." As I write this—in my bath- robe at 11:16 on a Saturday morning—I am admittedly blurring work and life, as I do now seven days a week. But I do know my brand, and I am having fun. Now, if only somebody would reserve my favourite lunch table and refresh the foyer ²owers, I'd be all set. ■ Lesson 2: outsource everything Lesson 1: nothing happens as fast as you think it will or want it to Lesson 3: Remember how to say no

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