Bob Got a Microphone

Darlene Tonelli started Inter Alia Law, a unique legal advisory firm, and co-hosts the Lawyer Life Podcast where she and co-host Mike Anderson help lawyers navigate their days with a little less stress and, ideally, a lot more fulfillment. Darlene and I talk about getting her foot in the door at a record company, what she finds attractive about philosophical Stoicism and... well, we end up spending a bunch of time talking about music - what it meant to us growing up, what it means to us now, and the timeless value of hair metal ballads.

Make sure you check out the podcast that Darlene co-hosts: https://www.interalia-law.com/podcast/

Some of the music that Darlene mentioned:

Art d'Ecco - https://music.apple.com/ca/album/head-rush/1542256065?i=1542256238

Michael Kiwanuka - https://music.apple.com/ca/album/solid-ground/1474357932?i=1474358133 and https://music.apple.com/ca/album/love-hate/1440832200?i=1440832821

Hair Metal Ballad Essentials - https://music.apple.com/ca/playlist/hair-metal-ballad-essentials/pl.67a42c9d42354f8aa1948ff0183f3e6c

What can lawyers learn from stand-up and improv comedy? Are comedians just engaging in "therapy, but with an audience" when they're on stage? What the hell was the "skin baby" joke? Learn the answers to these questions - and more! - in this conversation with Peter Henein, litigator and procurer of laughs.

To me, it's no surprise that Anne Driscoll is where she is: the CEO of Launch Pad - a company on a mission to catalyze the growth of entrepreneurship ecosystems in cities across the United States - and a veteran of Silicon Valley who has embraced a life of accomplishment, risk-taking, and engagement with opportunity in whatever form it presents itself. Anne and I have known each other since we were kids, and it was a real treat to catch up with her - we talk about how she successfully navigates running a business with her spouse, overcoming the challenges COVID presented to a business model premised on in-person community-building, the upside of divorce, and how she managed to get her career to the point where she can say she's the happiest she's ever been.

Brian L. Frye is a law professor and filmmaker - and somewhere along the way, he decided to draw on the most interesting bits of both those endeavours and come up with an entirely different approach to his engagement with the law. He describes his work as "conceptual art in the medium of legal scholarship", wherein he challenges some of the most dearly-held commitments of the academy, including arguing that norms against plagiarism are illegitimate (indeed, he specifically encourages and authorizes people to plagiarize his work). Lately, he's taken to successfully selling his law review article art projects as NFTs. We talk about imagining Sergei Eisenstein, what he lifted from Isaiah Berlin, why law students say they don't like math but actually do, and what's been inspiring his most recent run of publications and interventions. You can follow Brian on Twitter @brianlfrye, check out some of his scholarship at SSRN, and listen to his podcast, Ipse Dixit, at https://shows.acast.com/ipse-dixit.

Author and academic Andrew Potter's most recent book is On Decline - Stagnation, Nostalgia, and Why Every Year is the Worst One Ever. We discuss why everything seems to be going to sh*t, the casinofication of life, the seeming inversion of political left and right on issues of decline, and whether there's any way out of a lapse into unreason. You can find On Decline at http://biblioasis.com/shop/forthcoming/on-decline/

By any measure, Michael Rossi had a noteworthy career in the corporate world, culminating in more than five years as president of adidas Canada. In 2021, he did something perhaps even more remarkable: he decided to step off that track, and re-orient his life around one of his passions - coaching. He founded Voce Leadership, where, by guiding people to discover and cultivate their voice, he helps emerging leaders realize their full potential. We talk about how he ended up making such a big change, what he finds so fulfilling about coaching, and how he's navigated some seismic shifts in his professional life over the last 18 months. Find out more about Michael and Voce Leadership at https://voceleadership.com/

About a decade ago, Norman Bacal was the managing partner of one of Canada's premier law firms - but when things fell apart and the firm collapsed, he turned to writing in order to process his resulting anger. That lead to the widely read non-fiction book "Breakdown", and he's gone on to write two novels, as well as his most recent book "Take Charge: The Skills That Drive Professional Success". He's still writing and he's also mentoring young professionals - we talk about what motivates him, his process, where he gets his best advice, and the satisfaction he's getting in helping others advance their careers. You can find Norm at https://normanbacal.com/

Serial entrepreneur, innovation guru, observer, commentator - Aron Solomon is, as a lawyer might say, sui generis. We talk about intentionally constructing your career, leaving Berlin, the advantages of being an outsider... and the audacity of starting a watch company motivated by making something you love. 

Check out Mission Watch Co. - https://www.missionwatchco.com/

After spending a few years in bands bouncing between Toronto and Los Angeles, in 1981 David Quinton released a solo album of punk-inflected power pop. He then spent a few decades raising a family and practising law. And then, in 2018 and 2019, he found himself playing his songs for appreciative audiences... in Japan. As if that weren't peculiar enough, in 2021 he's playing drums on new music released by iconic Rush guitarist Alex Lifeson. We chat about strange trips, looking back on the art you created in your twenties, and talking drums with Neil Peart.

He's a comic book writer, cartoonist, professional wrestler, and podcaster - among many other things. We talk about which is skeezier, independent comics or independent wrestling; the time a drunk publisher swore at him; what happened when he met Ontario premier Doug Ford; his "101 Things in 1001 Days" project; and who Anthony dreams of telling to "f**k off".

Check out his various endeavours at:

https://ruttgaizer.com/

http://www.handsomegeniusclub.com

http://www.1001days.ca