A rookie hit the biggest ninth-inning grand slam of her fledgling career, single-handedly beating a team that included: Beyonc; Steve Jobs (making two appearances at bat -- once when retiring, once while expiring); the Japanese earthquake/tsunami/nuclear meltdown; and Ashton Kutcher's unfortunate mis-tweet.

As the New Year approaches and as we move past the holiday season, the frenzied language of cutting and slashing is fill the air with vows to cut carbs, slash prices, and reduce spending! This season, I'm challenging myself to adopt a rhetoric of sustainable "creation" to accompany a long-standing philosophy to "reduce."

As 2012 approaches, green marketing will be as important as ever for both company image and bottom line. It should come as no surprise that using social media is the most effective way to take advantage of green marketing initiatives and establish a better relationship with the consumer. Unfortunately, some still aren't well versed when it comes to the social media landscape. In 2012, this will not be a good position to be in.

Proclaimed "the biggest wildcard for the future of oil and gas" by The New York Times, shale gas and the controversial process by which it is extracted from the ground, called hydraulic fracturing or "fracking," has captivated a worldwide audience.

Did I read that right? Eighty-two percent of Americans think being environmentally responsible is "feminine?" Let's grab a beer and talk about this.

There are villains in every business sector, but this is particularly disconcerting in organizations that claim to be all about doing good. When I was on the board of directors at a Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) almost 20 years ago, there seemed to be a disproportionate number of womanizers and power-obsessed ladder-climbing politicos within the organization. These vocal and visible personalities overshadowed the important work of a majority of committed individuals, and the supererogatory efforts of some rare superstars. Such type-A activists leave a bad taste about the moral genuineness of purportedly ethical institutions.

Recently, when running a familiar route with a friend, I marveled at her ability to navigate a complicated shortcut that I had never noticed before. I asked her how she had discovered it, and she responded: "Easy. I studied a map long enough until I saw where two roads connected. It was there all along, in plain sight."

As a 21st Century business, the odds are very good that you are, or have considered being, "green." While going green was largely considered nothing more than a trend when it first entered the business scene, studies have shown that being more eco-friendly can have numerous positive effects on any type of business, from economic factors to consumer-related ones.

It's funny what you end up talking about at Hallowe'en parties. A friend dressed as Sasquatch sidled over to me, drink in hand, and let out a pathetic sigh - his shoulders slouched. He looked beat; I wasn't sure if he was playing the part of the dejected man beast, or if he was truly exhausted. It was the latter. Apparently, he'd been losing a lot of sleep because of a late-night rhythmic banging he'd hear through his condo walls at all hours of night. I wasn't sure where this was going.

My dad worked as a director for the largest grocery chain in Canada for most of his life. On our morning commute in the early 1990s, he didn't impose many of his visionary opinions on his impressionable son. Every once and a while though, when he was absolutely confident that he wasn't leading me astray, he'd look me right in the soul, the way only a father can.