Spoiler: The future’s still human.
Last week, Team Carmella joined the world’s boldest brand builders in Banff for The Gathering 2025.
A celebration of creativity, culture, and connection. Between the neon lights, big ideas, and bigger personalities, we left the festival feeling recharged and motivated with new ideas on how to serve our clients even better than before.
Here’s what we’re still talking about back at the office:
Libby: “Even in the age of AI, authentic storytelling will always be your best tool.”
- Favourite presentation:
- RightMetric & CULT: Attention is the New Shelf Space
Alie: “Community drives business.”
- Favourite presentation:
- Pinterest: AI is Cheap. Your Audience’s Trust is Expensive
Hayley: “Always make an effort to celebrate niche markets”
Celebrate Your Wins!
Before You Sprint Into Year-End… Pause.
We are entering the season where everyone hits the gas pedal. Hard.
But momentum without reflection = burnout, rushed decisions, and missed growth.
Here is a 2-minute reflection ritual to close out 2024 with clarity (not chaos):
Grab a pen and answer these 3 questions:
- What are three wins you are proud of this year?
- What is one thing you learned that changed how you lead, work, or think?
- What is one thing you want to bring into 2025 and one thing you are leaving behind?
Tiny habit:
Write your answers somewhere you will see again on January 1.
One win we’re celebrating:
Our founder, Steff O’Brien, has been invited to speak on a global stage at WYN Conferences in Paris in 2026. She will be sharing her keynote, The Business Athlete: A Playbook for Clarity, Courage, and Compounding Impact, with leaders and innovators from around the world.
We are celebrating this as a Carmella win because it shows that the work inside the business like discipline, reflection, and intentional leadership creates the magic people see outside the business.
Get Your Sh*t Together: Stop the November Spiral
November hits, and suddenly it feels like you’re behind. On planning, on content, on goals, on life.
A reminder: You’re not late. You’re early enough to choose how the year ends.
Here are 3 grounding moves to keep your head clear this month:
- Pick one priority for the next 30 days (just one).
- Put guardrails around your time. 2 days a week with zero meetings.
- Decide what “enough” looks like for 2024 so you stop moving the finish line.
Your end-of-year success isn’t about doing more — it’s about doing the right things with intention.
Weekly Faves
Read, Watch, Listen
Lest We Forget
On November 11, we honour and remember the courage, sacrifice, and service of those who fought and continue to fight for our freedom.
We are grateful. We will always remember. 🇨🇦
Meet Your Businesses New BFF
The wait is finally over.
A custom-built GPT trained on your brand voice, your strategy, and your way of doing business. It doesn’t replace your people, it supports them, speeds them up, and keeps everything on-brand.
Want the AI advantage without losing the human heartbeat of your brand? This is it.
Carmella Culture: Celebrating the Humans Behind the Magic
This month, we’re raising a glass to Steff and Hayley. Two women who shape Carmella and the work we do each and every day.
They’re the reason our clients feel supported, our team feels inspired, and our ideas keep levelling up. Their passion, grit, humour, and leadership are woven into everything we create.
If you’ve ever been on a call with them, you know:
They don’t show up halfway. They show up with heart.
Thanks so much for everything you do and wishing you both a very Happy Birthday!
“The only way to do great work is to love what you do.”
-Steve Jobs
