Happy reading all and remember what gets measured, gets managed!

“Ladybug Teknologies, for example, took us by surprise with their hand-held breathalyzers and ‘BAQ-blood alcohol quotient’ smartphone app designed to increase awareness of alcohol consumption. Beyond giving social drinkers (that’s got to be a very large target market!) handy tools to monitor their own level of sobriety, Ladybug’s CEO Sherry Colbourne highlighted the popularity of such solutions among lawyers-about 80% of the Canadian-based company’s clients are law firms/legal professionals (hence, a big reason for exploring the US market). At home, Ladybug has been working with firms who are not only purchasing the devices for staff, but specifically for their clients who might be able to gain leniency with the courts when it comes time to prosecute DUI-related offences. “

On the heels of my return from LegalTech, I had an opportunity to be interviewed by Global Talk Radio. The good folks at GTR just sent this file along to me and I wanted to share it with you.  Feel free to share it with your friends and social network! Enjoy…

Global Talk Radio Interview with Sherry Colbourne

Like 50% of the social drinking population, the participants of the tradeshow we attended were a little unsure of what to make of Ladybug’s participation in their event.  If we heard it once, we heard it a hundred times….“why would anyone buy a breathalyser?”  Now you’d think that the learned folks of the legal community would be quicker to make the connection than the average social drinker, however, the reasons for purchasing a breathalyser are soooo personal that having them publicly displayed as they were was, I’m sure, unsettling.  “What will people think?” is usually the over-riding concern.  Nonetheless, a few brave souls jumped at the opportunity to purchase and, I know, if I reach out to them in a couple of months, will be so thrilled with themselves that they’ll wonder how they ever got along without one.  And, by the time I reach out to them, a couple of their friends will have purchased one as well.  That’s the nature of social change.

If, for just one minute, you let yourself flirt with the idea of buying a breathalyser, what would your reasons be?  I’ve heard things like, “it takes the argument out of whether someone is really okay to drive or not.”  Just as prevalent, “I can’t afford to make a mistake, my career is too important”….the other 50% at the legal conference!  And more recently, “I worry when I entertain in my home that someone is going to leave and be over the limit.”

It doesn’t really matter what your initial motivation is, what’s important is that more and more social drinkers are starting to realize that drinking alcohol puts us in the vulnerable position of having to guess what our, or our friends’, BAC is and make a decision that could change your, or their, life forever.  I’m not talking doom and gloom stuff here; I’m talking about real life.  The kind of real life that happens when you let someone leave your home when they’ve had one too many and the guilt you feel for having done so.  Or even the slightly dizzy feeling you wake up with when you’re blowing high BAC on the morning after the night before….the night before when you did everything right by cabbing out to the bar and home from the bar.  All those good intentions won’t help you the next day.  Of course there’s always getting sucked into that “between friends” argument as you try to talk someone out of driving when there’s a perfectly good bed just waiting for them to fall asleep in.

One of the things that buying a breathalyser will do for you, and has done for all of our clients, is teach you about the things you don’t know.  Yes, I know those of you who don’t believe you need a breathalyser really do believe that you already know.  But you don’t.  And those of us who have made the decision to become “informed drinkers” know that the knowledge you acquire from the simple act of buying a breathalyser, is powerful.   In fact, it’s so powerful, that once you understand what you don’t know…you can’t unknow it!

For example, I now know that I can’t rely on my internal “alcostat” to make good judgements even at low levels of BAC.  I also know that when I don’t have a breathalyser on me to confirm what my BAC is, I always err on getting a cab.  I know that getting a DUI is the only criminal act for which most people don’t have the tools to avoid.  I know that most people don’t even know where to get a good quality unit or why they should care.  Which is why we need you!  Even if you don’t think a breathalyser is for you, share our information with your friends and social networks.

I know that the greatest challenge in transforming social drinkers into informed drinkers comes from the stories in our head.  Stories that tells us that “responsible” drinkers don’t need a breathalyser or people who buy them have a drinking problem.  If you’ve already bought a BAQ Tracker breathalyser, you’ll know that the most responsible social drinkers are the proud owners of this technology.  If you haven’t, just remember that our laws do not require full abstinence and, as long as that is the case, all social drinkers must make a decision when they drink.  “Am I ok to drive or not?”  If you don’t have the tool, how can you know….

At the campaign launch in Cornwall, Ontario on May 27th, Co-Founder and CEO, Sherry Colbourne addressed media, partners and sponsors with a strong message. “Ladybug’s new BAQ Tracker breathalyser will enable social drinkers to enjoy the full spectrum of their outdoor activities without compromising their safety or the safety of others,” says Colbourne. “Equipping social drinkers with the tools to self manage is the cornerstone of transforming communities through informed consumption”, she adds.

Download the press release here.

Would you be shocked to know that this perception is completely wrong and, worse, subjective?

Real fuel cell devices thrive under frequent use.  So if the unit you bought says “if you use this device every day, you may need to get it calibrated “monthly” or “more frequently” or words to that effect”, you’ve been sold a bill of goods.  A good fuel cell breathalyser, even under frequent use, will only need re-calibration once a year.  If you bought a semiconductor device because you didn’t have $300 to spend on a good quality fuel cell device, you should have invested in cab fare.  There is NO semiconductor device that provides accurate results.  I know, I’ve benchmarked them all.  Nobody more than me would like to find a cheap device that is accurate and can go toe to toe with a police breathalyser.

If you care about your license, your friends or your kids, don’t succumb to buying a “cheap” breathalyser.  Accuracy is everything when it comes to a breathalyser and the only ones that can truly say they’re accurate, are units that use a real enforcement-quality fuel cell.

So, not wishing to paraphrase an already excellent article and only hoping to provide our followers with a third-party look at the work we at Ladybug Teknologies challenge ourselves with every day, I provide the following link.  If you’ve ever pondered why drinking and driving is still an issue decades after we started tackling the problem or how we might solve this pervasive issue, please read this article by Jon Rohr and Paul Knowles of Exchange Magazine.  They, like us, understand the need for a shift in approach and I invite you to read their story….

Download the entire article as a pdf. Or browse the entire issue online.

Does this really seem reasonable to anyone? No probable cause, just being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

A better solution than throwing more enforcement at this problem is to educate social drinkers about their BAC through the use of modern day technology. The likelihood of catching a high BAC driver through random breath testing is a flawed assumption. High BAC drivers demonstrate behavioural impairment ie. erratic driving. The vast majority of people affected by random breath testing will be non-drinkers and low BAC drinkers. There are already plenty of extremely onerous sanctions in place for high BAC drivers and the only thing needed in this domain is an increased rate of conviction…something random breath testing will do nothing to affect.

People should remember that the reason it is not illegal to drink and drive is because there is no evidence to suggest that low levels of BAC impact driving – refer to the Grand Rapids Study that has, incidentally, been conducted and re-conducted several times with the same results…low BAC driving is neither connected to fatalities or even accidents.

The challenge lies in getting social drinkers – given the existing laws – to know, with certainty, what their BAC is when they’re consuming. That is where enforcement quality breathalyzer technology or forensic-quality software applications come into play. In the 21st century, the technology exists and the consumer is savvy enough to figure out how to use these technologies. To suggest otherwise is simply fear mongering.

The time for “informed consumption” is at hand and I hope that these continued discussions about increased sanctions give our society a clear indication of how serious a problem alcohol misuse is and compel social drinkers to solve the problem themselves.

Use the tools people. What gets measured, gets managed!

As St. Patty’s Day 2010 has approached, I’ve noticed that it has become a wide-reaching phenomenon.  Last week I spent a few days in Tampa, Florida.  After that, I boarded a short Royal Caribbean Cruise and sailed across the Gulf to Cozumel.  St. Patty’s Day was a much anticipated theme for this week’s band of tourists.  Another phenomenon I’ve noticed as St. Patty’s Day 2010 has approached is the proliferation of doom and gloom messaging…”Don’t drink and drive or you could use your life, your freedoms and your pride”.   This messaging is getting old and it leaves me in awe that there are still people who believe that if they just repeat this mantra long enough that the carnage of drinking and driving will end.

In honour of St. Patrick, I’d like to suggest a different approach.  In fact, I’d like to borrow from St. Patrick himself…instead of using the shamrock’s three leaves to represent the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, let’s allow them to represent a different trilogy.  For just one day, this St. Patty’s Day 2010, let’s make informed consumption, personal accountability and the love of friends and family, the only message we need in 2010.

Now, raise your glass, make a toast and be good to each other.

Women will need to learn that, in the realm of drinking, we really are the weaker sex. What we should aspire to, however, is to make up for what we lack in brawn with brains.  C’mon ladies, let’s not be followers, let’s show those boys how to do it up right!