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The Sharing Economy is about Sharing Connections

INSIGHTS
ENTREPRENEUR

Buzzwords come and go; terms that described some emerging field or venture from years ago now seem dated; fads are laid to rest cyclically as the next big thing takes over. But this isn’t the case with what is known as ‘Collaborative Consumption’, as it is an age-old idea that has made a reappearance in modern markets – and it’s shaking things up all over the globe.

The Sharing Economy is about Sharing Connections

Buzzwords come and go; terms that described some emerging field or venture from years ago now seem dated; fads are laid to rest cyclically as the next big thing takes over. But this isn’t the case with what is known as ‘Collaborative Consumption’, as it is an age-old idea that has made a reappearance in modern markets – and it’s shaking things up all over the globe.

Collaborative consumption is a model that is based on sharing, trading and bartering for services, skills and goods. A main fountainhead of collaborative consumption is its creation of access to ownership. But while this access to ownership is the burgeoning cloud behind the success of current Collaborative Consumption models, access to the idea of these economic trends are still limited in the cold north that is Canada where AskforTask, the Sharing Economy platform I am reporting from, was founded. 


With our economic trends since the 2008, collaborative consumption and sharing economies are ideologies that have found room to flourish. Where there has been a need for communities to engage with local resources for goods, services and jobs, collaborative consumption and similar models have answered and put market control in the hands of people and communities. Canada has been no exception to the economic dip of 2008 and the domino effect it has had on our markets; our job market is still currently the worst it has been in decades while we are seemingly approaching another housing bubble and student debt is in the billions. 

AskforTask is pushing boundaries to make the Sharing Economy a lived reality all across Canada with its innovative social platform that lives in the digital world of markets and connectivity. The first challenge of connecting communities to one another is connecting to the community itself. AskforTask aims to do this by integrating different communities with one another, inspired by our online popularity and bringing people together in real time. We let the community dictate what it is we do, both online and in real time.

Just this past weekend, AskforTask brought busy moms from all over Toronto from all different backgrounds to an event hosted in our very own headquarters. These women brought their children and bonded over sharing stories about what it’s like to be a busy and ambitious woman with children and a family to care for. We offer a simple concept: time and sharing. These women use our site regularly and have found it beneficial to their lives for it gives them opportunities they once may not have had to spend a little extra time with their children, their partners, or building their million-dollar empire. When we brought these women together to show them what the Sharing Economy is really doing, we knew we had something magical; we cried, we laughed and we shared. 


In Canada and at AskforTask we have noticed that there is a disconnect between the concept of Sharing Economies and showcasing the lived experiences of engaging with this changing market. The truth can be found in the connections people establish in finding each other in similar situations, honoring each others needs and abilities and talents, and working together to support each other locally and nationally. Sharing Economies are about sharing connections, and AskforTask will do whatever it can to create passageways to connection and sharing.

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