Patrice Hall

One life, well-lived. Business Strategist. Solving problems. Creating experiences. Unlocking leadership potential. (she/her)

[Patrice Hall @hall_way]

This is IT. The kingdom of heaven is here and now. Pay attention. Revel in the ordinary.

[Karun Pal @karunpal]

The older I get, the more I believe happiness lives in the ordinary. Pets. Plants. A quiet morning coffee. Blue sky. Cotton clouds. Birds singing. The gentle breeze through the trees. A clean, cosy house. Good food. Good hearted simple poeple. So much of life’s beauty is quiet, gentle, and already here. And somehow, one of the sweetest feelings is knowing I get to wake up and meet it all again tomorrow.

[Patrice Hall @hall_way]

Why we so often get it wrong. The problem isn’t what we think it is. Addressable market grows by removing friction.

[Startup Archive @StartupArchive_]

Tobi Lutke explains what the VCs who passed on Shopify got wrong

Tobi recounts pitching Shopify to VCs on Sand Hill Road a few years after founding Shopify.

Investors passed because they thought the addressable market was too small. At the time, there were about 40,000-50,000 online stores, and even if Shopify captured 50% of the market, that still wouldn’t be a venture-scale business.

When Tobi ran into the VC partner a few years ago, the partner asked Tobi what he missed (Shopify is valued at almost $100 billion today).

Tobi explained:

“You were actually correct, but what you didn’t realize was that Shopify was the solution to the very problem you identified. The reason there was only 40,000 online stores was because it was hard, expensive, and everyone who tried ran into all these brick walls of complexity, which Shopify, one after another, smoothed over and made simple to do.”

Tobi believes this is a common mistake:

“What a lot of free-market thinkers don’t understand is that between the demand and eventual supply lies friction. And I actually think that friction is probably the most potent force for shaping the planet that people just generally do not acknowledge… That was my theory when I turned my snowboard store into Shopify: there was a lot more people like me except there was too much friction which we needed to solve. And Shopify has proven out that every time we make the process simpler, there’s more consumption. At this point, we have a million merchants on Shopify, which is a mind-blowing number. So friction is a major component, and it’s something that software is uniquely good at reducing.”

Video source: @danmartell (2019)

[Patrice Hall @hall_way]

@FionaMcK @tobi @CDNOlympicFDN Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

[Farhan Thawar @fnthawar]

Bad things can happen quickly, but good things aren’t built in a day, and as they unfold, they will be out of sync with the news cycle. The peace researcher John Galtung pointed out that if a newspaper came out once every fifty years, it would not report half a century of celebrity gossip and political scandals. It would report momentous global changes such as the increase in life expectancy

— Steven Pinker

[Patrice Hall @hall_way]

@carlrivera We are meant to be equal parts mental, physical, and spiritual. We’re out of balance when one is missing. You’re not alone: https://t.co/3AP0dE3YAf

[Patrice Hall @hall_way]

@tobi I wish more serendipity for you.

[Patrice Hall @hall_way]

@Jason_Faber Yep, that checks

[Farhan Thawar @fnthawar]

I think one thing that is a really important thing to strive for is being internally driven, being driven to compete with yourself, not with other people. If you compete with other people, you end up in this mimetic trap, and you sort of play this tournament, and if you win, you lose. But if you’re competing with yourself, and all you’re trying to do is — for the own self-satisfaction and for also the impact you have on the world and the duty you feel to do that — be the best possible version you can, there is no limit to how far that can drive someone to perform

— @sama

[Patrice Hall @hall_way]

@SeanSilcoff @globeandmail Love this co. Let’s go !!!

[Patrice Hall @hall_way]

@Capcity @Crocs Bahahahaha. You’re amazing. Truly.

[Patrice Hall @hall_way]

@RyeMcKenzie @Shopify @harleyf On Shopify, it’s a guarantee

[Patrice Hall @hall_way]

When two big brains collide. And a caution against conformity culture. Interestingly, I didn’t get to experience this way of being on the team I was on during my short time at Shopify. It hugely rewarded for conformity and I paid a high price for divergent thinking.

[tobi lutke @tobi]

One of the most fun things I get to do is host amazing people in our Shopify internal podcast (called Context).

What do we talk about? Things like this with @waitbutwhy.

[Patrice Hall @hall_way]

@jmenzies01 Looks incredible!

[Patrice Hall @hall_way]

@ChivonJohn The best kind of friends. Shine on.

[Patrice Hall @hall_way]

@Jason_Faber Every. Single. Time. 💥

[Steve Paikin @spaikin]

Such sad news to report that Hugh Segal has died at 72. The world has lost a great champion for the basic income program. He was chief of staff to both Premier Bill Davis & PM Brian Mulroney. A truly great and happy political warrior. #onpoli #cdnpoli

[Patrice Hall @hall_way]

A life of service and the funniest of the funny … his laugh … unforgettable.

[Justin Trudeau @JustinTrudeau]

Hugh Segal cared deeply about our country. He dedicated his life to public service. And he brought people together. Canada is a better place because of him. I’m sending my deepest condolences to his loved ones, and everyone who is mourning this loss.

[Patrice Hall @hall_way]

@SeanSilcoff

[Patrice Hall @hall_way]

@jmenzies01 @IcelandinCanada @CanadaIceland @HlynurGudjons Soooooo good !!!!