Look for Strength

Michael Wejchert, a climber and award-winning writer, spoke with me about the perils and thrills of climbing through his experience in the mountains and his stories. 

His book, Hidden Mountains, is about a climbing accident and rescue on an untouched peak in Alaska. He’s also written opinion pieces for the NYT and many other publications.

“I try to write stories that obsess me,” Michael told me.  “That’s what I try to pitch to editors—things that I can’t get out of my head.”

Check out Michael’s blog and what he's obsessed with right now with this link.

Aysha Emmerson didn’t want to be defined by her illness. But she realized that by staying silent, she was fuelling the stigma.

So Aysha shared her story.

She founded the SELF.IE camps to empower young girls, addressed over 18,000 We Day Vancouver participants in 2017, and recently graduated with a degree in resilience studies from Harvard University.

We talked about her recent work in policy-making, and why she decided to share her mental health journey with so many. 

Sean Silcoff is a technology reporter at the Globe and Mail, and Queen’s Comm ’92. He co-authored the book, Losing the Signal with Jacquie McNish.

Losing the Signal is about Blackberry’s rise and fall, and has recently been turned into a movie. Sean was the first reporter to uncover the story of what happened to the company. 

We chatted about how he first formed a relationship with Jim Balsillie to uncover the story, what it was like in the interview room, how he wrote the book on a deadline with young kids, and his advice for lost business students.

Check out Losing the Signal here.

Song from TuneTank.

Taylor Swift fans can ‘Shake It Off’ all night with TSwiftDanceParty Canada. 

Since last summer, Miri Makin and her team at TSwiftDanceParty Canada have raised over $100k for charity. 

Miri came on the Look for Strength podcast to discuss starting the company, mental health, and Taylor Swift's role in her life.

Check them out @tswiftdancepartyca.

Sounds from Zapsplat.com/ music from Tunetank.

Known as the LA Triathlete on Instagram, Carolyn Carter has almost 50k followers.

A professional triathlete based in California, Carolyn has completed over 11 half Ironmans, two full Ironmans, and various other shorter races – all while balancing a full-time marketing career.

We’ll be talking about training, triathlons, grit, and her role as an influencer.

Sounds from Zapsplat.com/ music from Tunetank.

Microsoft Canada’s National Technology Officer John Weigelt speaks on foreign cyber threats, personal security, layoffs in the Tech industry, and Chat-GPT.

You’ll hear about how what he calls a “serendipitous” path to his role, which started with computer engineering at RMC. He’s also worked with various organizations, aiming to eliminate gender-based cybercrime. 

Sounds from Zapsplat.com/ music from Tunetank

In this episode, I’ll speak with Cyndi Teulon, an environmental advisor at RSK. We’ll dive into challenges and environmental trends pertaining to her work in Iraq. 

Cyndi ensures projects stay on track and works with local stakeholders to conduct environmental and social impact assessments, or ESIAs. 

RSK's goal is to help clients re-build Iraq after various wars in a more sustainable and responsible way by keeping the whole community in mind.

Sounds from Zapsplat.com/ music from Tunetank

Donna Abu Nasr, journalist and bureau chief at the Associated Press and for Bloomberg, has been a part of documenting history– as a reporter of some of the Middle East’s crucial news stories.

She writes with humility and altruism, sharing stories that shed light on people's lives in war-torn countries.

From conflict on the ground to the culture and people of the cities hit by war, she's reported on many issues firsthand.

In this podcast, she shares how she unexpectedly fell into journalism, her stance on reporting under media censorship, and the importance of staying balanced and reliable when reporting on sensitive issues.

Check out Donna's Bloomberg articles here.

Sounds from Zapsplat.com/ music from Tunetank

Today I’ll be speaking with professional basketball player, coach, and author, Alex Owumi. 

He wrote his autobiography, Qaddafi’s Point Guard, after playing for Al Nasr, the Libyan basketball team owned by Qaddafi’s family.   

He joined the team right before the Libyan Civil War broke out in 2011. When the conflict escalated right outside, Owumi was forced to stay in his apartment without food or electricity. 

In part 1, we’ll discuss why he started playing basketball, his experience playing in Libya and meeting Qaddafi and how his life changed overnight as a result of the Arab Spring.

In part 2, you’ll hear about how he escaped Libya during the Libyan Civil War, how his relationship with basketball changed and how he told the story of those who helped save his life along the way.

Check out Alex Owumi’s book, Qaddafi’s Point Guard.

Sounds from Zapsplat.com/ Music from Tunetank

Today I’ll be speaking with professional basketball player, coach, and author, Alex Owumi. 

He wrote his autobiography, Qaddafi’s Point Guard, after playing for Al Nasr, the Libyan basketball team owned by Qaddafi’s family.   

He joined the team right before the Libyan Civil War broke out in 2011. When the conflict escalated right outside, Owumi was forced to stay in his apartment without food or electricity. 

In part 1, we’ll discuss why he started playing basketball, his experience playing in Libya and meeting Qaddafi and how his life changed overnight as a result of the Arab Spring.

In part 2, you’ll hear about how he escaped Libya during the Libyan Civil War, how his relationship with basketball changed and how he told the story of those who helped save his life along the way.

Check out Alex Owumi’s book, Qaddafi’s Point Guard.

Sounds from Zapsplat.com/ music from Tunetank