On the last page of every issue of Industry West, we find a Saskatchewan business person or leader to answer our version of the Proust Questionnaire. Marcel Proust made the questionnaire famous, believing that 35 specific questions could reveal a person’s true nature. We grabbed this idea—you’ve probably seen it in Vanity Fair—and made our own version. The first five questions are ours, and then we ask our subject to pick their favourite Proust questions to answer.
Meet Daria Malin, owner of Boost Strategic Coaching and author of the newly released book, Hands-On Marketing; The Complete Business Owner’s Guide to Advertising & Branding. Here’s what she had to say.
- Where are you from? Saskatoon
- Where did you attend school and what did you study? At the U of S – I received my B.Comm with a major in marketing
- What is your career history? I started working at DQ which gave me a taste of business and customer service. I spent some time working in the financial service industries, moved into advertising, then started my firm a couple of years ago.
- What’s the best piece of business or career advice you have or have been given? You always have to invest in yourself. You are your most valuable commodity so you have to invest in your health, time, and continued learning in order to grow.
- What’s your favourite thing about Saskatchewan? Saskatchewan is a unique place where an enormous amount of high level business happens with exceptional entrepreneurs, but without the ego you would see in other markets.
- What is the trait you most deplore in others? When people don’t follow through on what they say they’re going to do.
- What do you consider your greatest achievement? Establishing a national clientele with businesses of all sizes, and releasing my first book.
- Where would you most like to live? Saskatoon because I think it’s the best place to be in Canada. If I couldn’t live here it would probably be New York City because I’m kind of a musical theatre geek, and I like the energy there.
- Who are your favorite writers? Tim Ferris, Roy Williams, Jeffrey Gitomer, and Christopher Moore
- What is it that you most dislike? When people drive slowly in the left lane.
