We all love a good idea. But what actually makes something innovative, and who gets to decide? 

In this episode of Momentum, Bonny and Nora go beyond the buzzwords to unpack what innovation really means, and why so many leaders feel stuck between big ideas and real impact. Is creativity enough? What role does culture play? And how can we balance speed with societal impact? 

You’ll hear why innovation is less about finding that one big idea, and more about intentionality, inclusion, and action. From the differences between North American and European models to the role of intrapreneurs and entrepreneurs, we explore how innovation shows up in systems, organizations, teams and leadership. We explore how to move beyond the frustration of stalled ideas, and start building momentum that leads to real impact. 

Key Takeaways: 

➡️ Innovation = idea + action + impact. Creativity sparks ideas, but innovation demands intention, inclusion and follow-through. Without that shift, even the best ideas stay stuck.  

➡️ Innovation is a leadership responsibility. You don’t have to be the ideas person to innovate.  We’ve seen repeated success with perfect pairings of a visionary and an implementer.  As a leader: set the tone, build the system, and surround yourself with the right people.  

➡️ The best innovation makes something possible for others. If your idea only serves you or your bottom line, it’s not innovation, it’s exclusivity. Impact starts with inclusion and leads to collective benefit.  

➡️ Failure fuels the process. If you’re not learning as you go, you’re not innovating. The best ideas often come from the second (or tenth) attempt. Extract the insight and keep going.  

Listener Challenge: 
Take an idea you’ve been sitting on. 
1️⃣ What’s one small action you could take today to move it forward? 
2️⃣ What problem are you solving—and who stands to benefit? 

Because innovation isn’t just about what you create, it’s about the impact you make for the many. 

Our Co-Hosts

Bonny van Rest 

Strategic Thinker. Bold Challenger. Grounded Visionary. 

Bonny is a strategist, facilitator, and co-founder of Sidekick Consulting who believes momentum is built in the middle of the mess. With a background as a CMO and over a decade of experience across startup and corporate environments, she’s known for her sharp thinking, no-nonsense mindset, and ability to turn big ideas into grounded action. Bonny brings a calm presence, clear direction, and just the right amount of edge to move things forward—with intention. 

Nora Griffiths 

People-Centered Leader. Strategic Integrator. Dynamic Optimist. 

Nora is a purpose-driven leader, facilitator, and co-founder of Sidekick Consulting who believes that bold and meaningful impact is accomplished when done together. With deep roots in business development and operations, she’s known for her people-first lens and her talent for uncovering insights and ideas that translate swiftly into action, driving both people and performance. Nora brings a rare blend of energy, empathy, and clarity to build momentum that truly matters. 

Production by ⁠⁠PRCPTN Studio⁠⁠.

Directed by ⁠Giuliana DiBonaventura⁠.

What if high performance wasn’t about hustle, but rather about how you recover? In this episode, Nora and Bonny unpack the powerful connection between recovery, leadership, and performance with two standout guests: former pro-athlete turned Non-Profit leader Micaëlla Riché, and Hugh Lawson a purpose-driven leadership advisor inspired by his athletic experiences. Together, they explore how athletes treat recovery as a strategic edge, and how business leaders can adopt the same mindset to lead with resilience, clarity, and purpose. 

Key Takeaways: 

➡️ Recovery isn’t indulgent, it’s essential. From mental resets and energy audits to failure recovery and daily wellness rituals, intentional recovery fuels long-term growth. 

➡️ It’s not one-size-fits-all. Recovery looks different for everyone, but it always starts with self-awareness, both on a macro and micro level. 

➡️ What you measure, you transform. Organizations should track wellbeing and recovery as rigorously as financial and operational performance. 

➡️ Let go to level up. Knowing your role, and letting your team own theirs, frees you to lead more effectively. As Micaëlla asks, are you in the balcony…or on the floor?  

Listener Challenge: 
You’re in luck, we have two for you to try! 

1️⃣ From Micaëlla: Pause and check in everyday, throughout the day. Ask, “What’s my headspace right now?” 

2️⃣ From Hugh: When everyone else zigs, zag.  

Our Guests 

➡️ Micaëlla Riche is a leading expert in sport for development. Micaëlla has over 15 years of experience in basketball competing and coaching at the provincial, national, NCAA and professional levels.  She is currently the Director of Basketball Operations at Lay-Up Basketball, a charity focused on the future of access to the game through youth programming, coach education and the Culture of Basketball.  Fun fact: Micaëlla is working on her doctorate in Educational Sustainability, where she applies her background as a professional athlete and coach to bring innovative, evidence-based ideas and solutions to the sport sector.  

➡️ Hugh Lawson is the Principal of Lawson Leadership Advisory Ltd., a boutique leadership advisory practice helping social-impact organizations and purpose-driven leaders around the world thrive by providing highly effective Revenue Growth strategies and certified Emotional Intelligence methodologies!  Outside of work, Hugh is very passionate about community investment, volunteerism, mentorship, supporting student-athletics and social justice.    

Our Co-Hosts 

Bonny van Rest 

Strategic Thinker. Bold Challenger. Grounded Visionary. 

Bonny is a strategist, facilitator, and co-founder of Sidekick Consulting who believes momentum is built in the middle of the mess. With a background as a CMO and over a decade of experience across startup and corporate environments, she’s known for her sharp thinking, no-nonsense mindset, and ability to turn big ideas into grounded action. Bonny brings a calm presence, clear direction, and just the right amount of edge to move things forward—with intention. 

Nora Griffiths 

People-Centered Leader. Strategic Integrator. Dynamic Optimist. 

Nora is a purpose-driven leader, facilitator, and co-founder of Sidekick Consulting who believes that bold and meaningful impact is accomplished when done together. With deep roots in business development and operations, she’s known for her people-first lens and her talent for uncovering insights and ideas that translate swiftly into action, driving both people and performance. Nora brings a rare blend of energy, empathy, and clarity to build momentum that truly matters. 

Production by ⁠⁠PRCPTN Studio⁠⁠.

Directed by ⁠Giuliana DiBonaventura⁠. 

In this episode, Bonny and Nora turn the People vs. Purpose vs. Profit conversation on its head, reframing it through the lens of your leadership mindset. They dive into three common leadership styles: command-and-control, servant leadership, and human-centric leadership. Spoiler! It’s not about choosing one. It’s about knowing when to use each, and why your leadership mindset might be the ultimate game-changer. 

Key Takeaways: 

➡️ Mindset first, strategy second. Before refining your business plan, examine how you lead as it could be the real blocker.  

➡️ Sync your mindset and strategy. When your mindset and strategy reinforce each other, this is where the magic happens to unlock culture, growth, and results. 

➡️ Flex your leadership style. Great leaders adapt. They command when needed, serve with purpose, and center humans always.  

➡️ Balance empathy with accountability. Being human-centered doesn’t mean being soft, it means pushing people and supporting them. 

The Challenge: 

Next time you’re facing a tough decision, pause. Instead of jumping straight to solutions or strategy, ask yourself: 

1. ​How do I lead with purpose and stay accountable to what we stand for?
2. ​What is the empathetic, human way to approach this? What do people around me need from me? 
3. ​How do our decisions and actions affect our long-term financial stability? 

Our Co-Hosts

Bonny van Rest

Strategic Thinker. Bold Challenger. Grounded Visionary.

Bonny is a strategist, facilitator, and co-founder of Sidekick Consulting who believes momentum is built in the middle of the mess. With a background as a CMO and over a decade of experience across startup and corporate environments, she’s known for her sharp thinking, no-nonsense mindset, and ability to turn big ideas into grounded action. Bonny brings a calm presence, clear direction, and just the right amount of edge to move things forward—with intention.

Nora Griffiths

People-Centered Leader. Strategic Integrator. Dynamic Optimist.

Nora is a purpose-driven leader, facilitator, and co-founder of Sidekick Consulting who believes that bold and meaningful impact is accomplished when done together. With deep roots in business development and operations, she’s known for her people-first lens and her talent for uncovering insights and ideas that translate swiftly into action, driving both people and performance. Nora brings a rare blend of energy, empathy, and clarity to build momentum that truly matters.

Production by ⁠⁠PRCPTN Studio⁠⁠.

Directed by ⁠Giuliana DiBonaventura⁠.

AI is evolving fast, but is it actually becoming more human? And what does that mean for leadership, decision-making, and how we create momentum in business? 

In this episode, Nora and Bonny explore the fascinating, yet messy, intersection of AI, empathy, and action. With guests Ok Ikejiani and Israel Diaz, they unpack the capabilities, limitations, and leadership implications of AI becoming more and more human. From behavioral models to business strategy, they ask: What happens when tech doesn’t just automate work, but starts to mirror how we think, feel, and decide? And if AI is only as good as the humans behind it, how aligned are we, really? 

Key Takeaways: 

➡️ AI is a powerful amplifier, but only as strong as the humans and systems behind it. 

➡️ Digital transformation isn’t just about technology. It’s about leadership, ethics, and how we show up. 

➡️ The best leaders will pair emotional intelligence with digital fluency. 

➡️ Sounding human isn’t the same as being human. Know the difference, lead with intention, and  keep a ‘human-in-the-loop’. 

➡️ AI isn't replacing leadership, it's reshaping it. 

Listener Challenge: 

Use an AI tool this week, not to replace your thinking, but to test and stretch it. Feed it a leadership challenge or team dilemma. What surprised you? What felt off? Where did your judgment add value? 

Our Guests

Ok Ikejiani

Ok is a digital strategist and systems thinker who’s spent over a decade at the forefront of AI and digital transformation. As the Founder and CEO of Red Thread Innovations, he helps organizations cut through the noise, see the bigger picture, and builds strategy and applications that actually stick. While many are just beginning to explore AI, OK brings subject matter expertise and a long-range view grounded in experience, not just headlines. 

Israel Diaz

Israel is a creative humanist who believes everyone is a creator. With 30 years of transformational leadership at some of Canada’s top agencies, he’s dedicated his career to helping leaders unlock their genius and leave a bold, meaningful mark on the world. As the Founder of Sunday+Night, he’s now codifying that experience into a radical system for human transformation and recently began exploring how AI can accelerate real-world, real-human impact. 

Our Co-Hosts

Bonny van Rest

Strategic Thinker. Bold Challenger. Grounded Visionary.

Bonny is a strategist, facilitator, and co-founder of Sidekick Consulting who believes momentum is built in the middle of the mess. With a background as a CMO and over a decade of experience across startup and corporate environments, she’s known for her sharp thinking, no-nonsense mindset, and ability to turn big ideas into grounded action. Bonny brings a calm presence, clear direction, and just the right amount of edge to move things forward—with intention.

Nora Griffiths

People-Centered Leader. Strategic Integrator. Dynamic Optimist.

Nora is a purpose-driven leader, facilitator, and co-founder of Sidekick Consulting who believes that bold and meaningful impact is accomplished when done together. With deep roots in business development and operations, she’s known for her people-first lens and her talent for uncovering insights and ideas that translate swiftly into action, driving both people and performance. Nora brings a rare blend of energy, empathy, and clarity to build momentum that truly matters.

Production by ⁠PRCPTN Studio⁠.

Directed by Giuliana DiBonaventura.

Uncertainty isn’t going away—so how do today’s leaders work with it, not against it? 

In our debut episode, we explore how leaders can reframe uncertainty—not as a threat to be avoided, but as an opportunity to be designed for. Drawing on research, real-world examples, and proven leadership principles and frameworks, Nora and Bonny break down why uncertainty feels more intense today and how forward-thinking leaders can use it as fuel for clarity, performance and momentum. 

Key Takeaways: 

➡️ Uncertainty isn’t going away. Your ability to lead through it is your edge.  

➡️ Resilient organizations don’t wait for perfect conditions. They move with purpose in imperfect ones, relentlessly pursuing opportunities in the mess. 

➡️ Adaptability beats control every time.

➡️ Experimentation is the new stability. 

➡️ Risk isn’t something to solve for.  It’s a factor to plan for and move with.

➡️ Mindset is everything. Self-awareness is your superpower to pause, pivot, and lead with intention. 

Listener Challenge: 

Next time uncertainty shows up, ask yourself: “What’s one move I can make today that doesn’t depend on knowing the full picture?”

That’s how momentum is built—in the middle of the mess. 

Bonny van Rest

Strategic Thinker. Bold Challenger. Grounded Visionary.

Bonny is a strategist, facilitator, and co-founder of Sidekick Consulting who believes momentum is built in the middle of the mess. With a background as a CMO and over a decade of experience across startup and corporate environments, she’s known for her sharp thinking, no-nonsense mindset, and ability to turn big ideas into grounded action. Bonny brings a calm presence, clear direction, and just the right amount of edge to move things forward—with intention.

Nora Griffiths

People-Centered Leader. Strategic Integrator. Dynamic Optimist.

Nora is a purpose-driven leader, facilitator, and co-founder of Sidekick Consulting who believes that bold and meaningful impact is accomplished when done together. With deep roots in business development and operations, she’s known for her people-first lens and her talent for uncovering insights and ideas that translate swiftly into action, driving both people and performance. Nora brings a rare blend of energy, empathy, and clarity to build momentum that truly matters. 

Production by PRCPTN Studio.

Directed by Giuliana DiBonaventura.