Doug Wagner, Author at Sunwapta Solutions

2 Dec 2014

The True Cost Of Not Having A Clear Business Plan

By Doug Wagner|2017-04-03T11:02:38-06:00December 2nd, 2014|Categories: Business Strategy, Manifast|

As we head into 2015 I’ve been pondering why a lot of small and even mid-sized businesses fail to reach their full potential. Here is one startling fact:

“People who regularly write down their goals earn nine times as much over their lifetimes as people who don’t. Yet less than 4% of people write down their goals and less than 1% of people review them on an ongoing basis.” ~ Dr. David Kohl

That’s right. On average you will earn 9x more over your lifetime.

Business person with no plan, overwhelmed and needs help

If you […]

26 Nov 2014

Giving 110%: Walking the Edge Or Holding Back?

By Doug Wagner|2017-04-04T12:31:15-06:00November 26th, 2014|Categories: Business Strategy, Doug's Blog, Dream Teams, Mindset and Motivation|Tags: business, effort, Give 100 percent, results, success|

I hear a lot of people saying I gave 100%. Some can even apparently give more then everything they have, 110% or 120%.

Physics, economics, logic and math aside, how do you know you are giving it your all?

Effort Or Time

Is it time spent? Are you spending every waking moment dedicated to achieve your goal. Is this effective?

Exertion or Exhaustion

Are you going until you collapse into exhaustion? Are you sprinting or running the marathon?

Brainpower and Smarts

Or maybe you are dedicated to learning everything you can about the subject and succeeding because everyday you out think your competition. At the end of […]

23 Nov 2014

When Your Business Plan Derails

By Doug Wagner|2017-04-03T11:18:42-06:00November 23rd, 2014|Categories: Business Strategy, Current Events, Doug's Blog, Leadership|

Train Late Derailed Business Plans

I was at the office a little late the other night. My plan was to catch the 9:00 p.m. train and head home, relax a bit, and then get a good sleep.

Sometimes plans get derailed.

I got to the train platform and heard the announcement, “Trains are not running in the downtown core. Shuttle buses will be available for passengers at the orange 201/202 stops.”

Crap! I had thought the earlier accident with a pedestrian was cleared. […]

17 Nov 2014

Why Manifast Now? The Official Launch

By Doug Wagner|2017-04-12T12:43:22-06:00November 17th, 2014|Categories: Manifast|Tags: Blog, business, business growth, leadership, Manifast Now, success|

Several months ago (my how time flies), I had decided that we need to launch a blog that was a little different from my personal blog.

That time has come.

Well in reality this blog doesn’t look terribly different from the brand new look on my personal blog.

But looks can be deceiving.

We’ve decided to keep a consistent brand across all of our sites so looks alone are not the difference.

It is the character, format and content that will be a bit different.

My personal blog will keep going as a place for me to write […]

6 Nov 2014

Sorry, I Prefer the Dishonest Feedback

By Doug Wagner|2017-04-12T12:42:45-06:00November 6th, 2014|Categories: Dream Teams, Leadership, Manifast|

Be careful what you ask for. Some folks are way too happy to dish it out!

Most of us crave feedback and validation of ourselves, our work and our art. We seek it out either by overtly asking, or through self-deprecation, and we always hope the response will be, “You rocked it!”

The more we are putting it out there and pushing ourselves out of our comfort zone, the more we crave that validation, and the more it leaves us vulnerable to receiving (and believing) destructive […]

3 Nov 2014

3 Entrepreneurial Skills I Learned From Basic Officer Training

By Doug Wagner|2017-04-03T11:18:49-06:00November 3rd, 2014|Categories: Business Strategy, Doug's Blog, The Good Men Project|

"He never guessed that following his father’s wishes would set him up for the life he loved best – being an entrepreneur."

My high school graduation experience culminated in me losing my long hair and getting paid to get screamed at all summer.

To be honest, I didn’t choose the military on my own.

Basic training was a culture shock. There are plenty of movies that show what it is like. You don’t get to eat popcorn when you are in it.

My father told me that he wasn’t paying for my university and I would have to get a job. Since he was […]

28 Oct 2014

Stop Jumping To Solutions – Why Listening Like a Man Is Killing Your Sales

By Doug Wagner|2017-04-11T13:04:35-06:00October 28th, 2014|Categories: Business Strategy, Doug's Blog, Marketing, Sales, The Good Men Project|

“8 Keys to breaking this habit and improving your sales (and your love life).”

Working on the business man strategy

Sometimes plans don’t unfold as you intended.

An explosion, an underground fire, and a five-day power outage in Calgary recently conspired to alter events for me. Rather than following my intended schedule, I got a chance to conduct some off-site sales training for a couple of days.

And I learned something about yet another male stereotype. We were doing some group role playing around asking […]

16 Oct 2014

The Big Chicken Strategy Will Grow Your Business

By Doug Wagner|2017-04-12T12:35:12-06:00October 16th, 2014|Categories: Business Strategy, Doug's Blog, Leadership|

Chickens are much bigger today than they were 60 years ago.

At first you might think chicken farmers cheated with growth hormones or that they were genetically modified in a lab. That was my initial guess.

According to this study published in the Poultry Science Journal, even after adjusting for chemical cheating, chickens got this this way mostly through selective breeding, a fast reproduction cycle, and genes that reinforce selective breeding.

Farmers only let the biggest hens and roosters produce chicks. When […]

5 Oct 2014

Sorry, I Prefer the Dishonest Feedback

By Doug Wagner|2017-04-03T11:19:17-06:00October 5th, 2014|Categories: Doug's Blog, Leadership, The Good Men Project|

Business Feedback with 2 People 25551919_s

"Be careful what you ask for. Some folks are way too happy to dish it out!"

Feedback is a funny thing. We want validation but some part of us keeps reaching for all of the feedback, good or bad. Does it really help?

My latest article on The Good Men Project.

"Most of us crave feedback and validation of ourselves, our work and our art. We seek it out either by overtly asking, or through self-deprecation, and we always hope […]

29 Sep 2014

5 Reasons You Need to Have a Red Ferrari To Sell

By Doug Wagner|2017-04-03T11:19:27-06:00September 29th, 2014|Categories: Business Strategy, Doug's Blog, Marketing, Sales|

Man Looking at Small Red Sports Car 4569562_s "Because stereotypes and sloppy thinking can be the death of any salesman."

My latest post on The Good Men Project. Two very common sales mistakes are fed by the way our brains latch onto stereotypes.

Learn how to use it to your sales advantage instead.

5 Reasons You Need to Have a Red Ferrari To Sell

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About Doug Wagner

Effort Or Time

Exertion or Exhaustion

Brainpower and Smarts