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By Catherine Lazure 13 Mar, 2023
Just another day at the office for those of us that make the trek from our homes to the downtown core. I’ve been making this journey for almost five months from Ajax to Old Toronto at Queen and Church Street. I’ve often wondered, prior to the last five months, when I occasionally would visit downtown, how people could appear cold, heartless and were able to ignore the hundreds of homeless they pass on the streets as they commute back and forth and go about their daily lives. I’ve always been one that has a strong sense of community, wanting to help those less fortunate than myself. I have often found myself appreciating sidewalk musicians and throwing change into the hat or guitar case as I feel that they should be rewarded for trying to earn money as opposed to just asking for a hand out. The problem is that if I were to help every person I see, I would soon become one of them as I won’t have the means to pay my bills. However it does seem like “Homeless” is now becoming a small entry on our monthly budget. It’s amazing though, if you take the time to talk to some of them as to where they come from, what their lives used to be and what led them to a life on the streets of Toronto. It’s depressing to hear that in some towns/cities they don’t have the resources to help them and they are forced to migrate to the larger city with multiple hostiles, missions and shelters offering assistance.
By Catherine Lazure 13 Mar, 2023
“I’m a Big Kid at Heart.”
By Catherine Lazure 13 Mar, 2023
In our professional careers, especially in marketing, we talk about Influencers, Unboxers, and Bloggers as an essential resource for marketing products. The importance of media and social media to projecting the right image to a mass market will help establishing the Brand, but who helped shape and market our individuality? Who was there to guide, mold, advise, encourage and support? Who was our biggest fan at concerts, soccer games, and was there to see us win every small award we ever got? And who had the biggest sense of pride and accomplishment as we crossed a stage to get our diploma? The answer is probably our moms! “Comb your hair and brush your teeth.” “Tuck in your shirt.” It sounds so basic and simple. Good grooming and personal hygiene are important. As a child depending on your personality you would answer your mom with a simple “Okay mom!” and run towards the bathroom or with an “AWWW, MOM!” and begrudgingly do it. As an adult we have a better understanding of the importance of self care for grooming, paying our bills on time, and taking vitamins. All of them have relevance to how healthy we are and how we portray ourselves to others. We understand the importance of projecting a positive, clean, well-kept image as competent professionals that are capable of a good and lasting impression. This helps us in everyday life as much as our professional careers. “Be true to yourself.” “Looking in the mirror, always be able to say you tried your best.” Growing up, I was always encouraged to believe in and be truthful to myself, always trying to do my best in whatever endeavour I set out to do. I was taught to never be afraid to try new things, and to always set the bar high—regardless of the goal. As a working professional, I’m able to apply this advice in my daily life. I am able to set high goals for myself and project an image of self assurance to my employer and co-workers. This enables me to attain goals at work to the best of my ability. At the end of the day I feel good that I’m giving my job my all and contributing to the team and overall success of the company. “You can do anything you set out to do.” As a child, our mom would help set up school classrooms in the play area, transform our beds into examination tables, turn boxes into rocket ships and shape shift the tablecloths on our heads for veils as we played wedding day. We have all played make believe, pretending to be a teacher, doctor, a store clerk. In high school, whether or not you were on the debate team or had taken a law class or had an encounter with your parents when you broke your curfew, you became a lawyer. When it came time to choose higher education or a career, mom told us we could do anything and be anything, because the possibilities were endless. We were molded and shaped further by professors and guidance counselors, learning and challenging ourselves. In some cases, we end up challenging them, to prove a point that we believed in strongly. Upon graduation, we felt we could get out there and show the world what we are made of with knowledge and professional prowess. 
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