Spark 146 - April 24 & 27, 2011

On this episode of Spark: Joy, Enchantment, and Work. Click below to listen to the whole show, or download the MP3 (runs 54:00).

Download Flash Player to view this content.


You can also listen to individual stories below.

Why Work Doesn't Work

Jason-Fried-giving-a-talk.jpg
Photo by Silicon Prairie News

Ever wonder how much work you actually do in a day? There can be a lot of distractions between meetings, your manager's questions, impromptu pot-lucks and gab fests. Some days it can feel like it's impossible to get anything done. That's because according to Jason Fried it IS. Jason is the co-founder of 37 Signals, a company that builds web-based collaboration tools. He's also the co-author of the bestseller Rework - a book all about how to make work work better. Although he himself is a manager, Jason has no problem blaming workplace inefficiencies on meetings and managers. (Runs 22:49)

Download Flash Player to view this content.


How To Be More Enchanting

Guy-Kawasaki-outside-smiling.jpg
Photo courtesy of guykawasaki.com

Tech guru Guy Kawasaki thinks we all could be a little more enchanting in the workplace. Yeah, enchanting. Just like in fairy tales, except with less pixie-dust and with more mindfulness about the ways we can be more innovative, bold, and persuasive. Guy is the co-founder of Alltop.com and the author of the bestselling book, The Art of the Start. His latest book Enchantment: The Art of Changing Hearts, Minds, and Actions is all about how to create a product, service, or a cause that will charm people and make you a success. (Runs 16:05)

Download Flash Player to view this content.


Designing More Joy

Ingrid-Fetell-More-Joy.jpg
Photo courtesy of Ingrid Fetell

When we think about designing something: a chair, a radio show, a fund raiser for the local school, we think about cost, or popularity or effectiveness, but how about joy? Are there ways we can design for joy in our work and life. Ingrid Fetell thinks so. She calls it The Aesthetics of Joy, and has a blog and a book-in-progress about what neuroscience and psychology can tell us about emotional response, and how it can affect the way we think about design. (Runs 9:32)

Download Flash Player to view this content.


Episode Details

Spark Podcast

You can receive Spark automatically by subscribing to any of our totally free podcast feeds: For more information (and instructions) visit cbc.ca/podcasting