Anderson Career Training Institute

10/08/2026

🧐 What happens when the ACTI owner, Creative Director, and Strategic Partnerships Specialist walk into a bar?

A lot of laughs, apparently 😂🍻

Because building businesses is serious business… but that doesn’t mean we have to take ourselves too seriously.

Sometimes the best thing you can do for your business is step away from the laptop, swap the strategy talk for some good conversation, and spend a little time with the people you work alongside.

That’s exactly what a few of our ACTI marketing team members did last week — and honestly, we highly recommend it 😉

So, entrepreneurs: how do YOU blow off steam when business gets busy?
Drop your favourite way to unplug 👇

10/06/2026

Got a small business question you’ve been meaning to ask? 👀
For Small Business Week, we’re putting two experts in the hot seat and giving you a chance to ask the questions!

📣 Tuesday, October 20 at 12:00 pm
Media & Marketing with Kaleigh of It's Gold - Art & Design

💻 Wednesday, October 21 at 12:00 pm
Web Design with Jonathan Sanderson of https://smallmodernbusiness.com/

Maybe you’re trying to get more eyes on your business.

Maybe you’re wondering what your website actually needs.

Or maybe you’ve had a question sitting in the back of your mind for months.

Bring it with you. You can tune in, listen, learn, and get some practical advice you can take back to your business. 💙 Details are coming soon, so stay tuned to our social channels for the full schedule!

What would you ask if you had a marketing or web expert in front of you?

10/02/2026

ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT: JENNIFER RADING ✨

From making jewellery as a kid to building Jen Ashley Jewelry into a thriving business, Jennifer Rading has spent years turning creativity into self-employment. 💎

A 2018 ACTI grad and a 7-year vendor at Bountiful Market, Jennifer says some of her biggest ACTI takeaways are things she still uses every single day — from her elevator pitch to accounting and marketing.

But her biggest piece of advice?
JUST START.

Building a business isn’t a straight climb. You’ll take a few steps forward, a step back, maybe even fall off the ladder completely. 😂 But every setback, lesson and attempt is part of the process.

And when you focus on connecting with people authentically, building trust, and creating something that feels right for you, those relationships can become the foundation for referrals, repeat customers and long-term growth.

So if you’ve been waiting for the “right time” to start your business…
This is your sign. Just start. 🚀

Now we want to hear from YOU! 👇

Who has spotted Jen Ashley Jewelry at Bountiful Market?
Give Jennifer some love in the comments! 💎❤️

10/01/2026

The right connection can open a lot of doors. You need people to learn from, connections that open doors, and resources that help you keep moving forward 💙

That’s why we’re excited to partner with the St. Albert & District Chamber of Commerce !

For local businesses, Chamber membership can mean access to:

🤝 Networking and business connections that help you meet other local business owners and build relationships.

📣 Marketing and promotional opportunities to help members get their businesses in front of the community.

💰 ChamberPerks savings programs that can help members save on everyday business expenses.

📚 Business resources and advocacy that keep local businesses informed and give them a voice on issues that matter.

🤖 AI for All learning sessions, offered in partnership with NABI, to help businesses better understand how AI can fit into their work.
And there’s an extra connection we love.

Sherry Harter, the Chamber’s Membership Success Lead, is an ACTI grad! 🎓 We love seeing where our grads go after their time at ACTI, and even more when those connections come back around to strengthen the local business community.

You’re building your business.
The Chamber is building connections.
Together, we’re building community.

St. Albert, we want to get to know you! What’s one local business you think more people should know about?

10/01/2026

Your name on the door. Your first customer. A business that’s yours.

Give that idea a chance.

ACTI offers free business training and coaching for eligible Albertans ready to explore self-employment.

Stop wondering. Find out.
https://acti.org

09/30/2026

You don't know what you don't know... until you're in it 😅

You can plan.
You can prepare.
You can ask all the right questions.
And then you actually start your business.

Suddenly, there are lessons you couldn't have known you needed until you were right in the middle of them.

Maybe it’s about money.
Maybe it’s about customers.
Maybe it’s about setting boundaries.
Or maybe it’s something you never saw coming.

We asked a few entrepreneurs what advice they wish they’d received before starting their businesses. Some answers might make you laugh. Others might hit a little too close to home. 💙

QUESTION: What’s one piece of advice you’d give someone starting their business today?

09/29/2026

Meet Heather Kunst, our new Lethbridge Program Coordinator!

With a background in human services, Heather says she’s always admired entrepreneurs for their courage to take control of their lives and pursue their passions.

She’s looking forward to supporting Lethbridge entrepreneurs as they learn, grow and turn their ideas into viable businesses.

Heather’s advice for aspiring entrepreneurs:

Be coachable, stay open to learning and be willing to pivot. You don’t have to agree with every perspective, but you may discover a new approach that helps your business.

Welcome to ACTI, Heather! 💙

Help us give Heather a warm ACTI welcome! ↓

09/25/2026

You wanted to be your own boss.

Now you’re the boss.
The accountant.
The marketer.
The customer service department.
The IT department.
And somehow... the person who forgot to take lunch 😂

Welcome to entrepreneurship!!

Listen to J. A. Rading when she says it’s hard - but it’s also the best.

QUESTION: What “job” do you have now that you’re the boss - that you never expected to have? 😭😂

09/25/2026

We are looking forward to being at Messed Up Mondays

Come join us!!

Get your tickets at....

https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/messed-up-mondays-featuring-michelle-hordal-tickets-2000259985462

If you are an Anderson Career Training Institute graduate be sure to check out the post on our group!

$2.85 an hour. That's what the work paid in 2004, when Michelle started Adaptabilities as a side project while teaching full time.

Twenty-two years later it's a multi-million dollar organization supporting hundreds of Edmonton children and families, and Michelle is finally out of the day-to-day. Two direct reports. An EA and a CFOO. That's it.

The line between those two points is not straight.

There was the stretch with 25 desks crammed into her house. Closet doors pulled off the hinges to fit more people in. One room doing the work of an office, and she was still eyeing space for three more.

There was shingles at 46, after two decades of carrying it.

Then the part she avoided longest: people. She had genuinely good performers who were quietly costing her the team, and she couldn't picture absorbing the workload if she let them go. So she didn't. Walking through that fear is what finally brought the pressure down, and it took most of those 22 years to learn.

The surprise in all of it was demand. She saw a gap, built for it, and found far more families needing the service than she ever expected.

She's coming to Messed Up Mondays on October 5 to talk about worth.

Specifically, the years she spent running a growing organization while feeling undervalued enough that walking away looked like the easier option.

She leaves us this mindset change that nonprofit leaders should not be expected to do more for less. She wants to do more with more, because better outcomes take talented people and talented people cost money. It's the same conviction behind the Impact Circle she's building now.

And her reason for standing up and saying any of it out loud: it doesn't have to be this hard. Her mistakes might save someone else a few years of finding that out the slow way.

If you want to join us for the next Messed Up Mondays, We have limited spots and already 40% full!

Excited to see you all then.
Happy Monday.