The Passion Project

Sam Davidson a.k.a. Sammy Peppers is a Winnipeg wrestling athlete. Sam joins Eric to explain why he decided to join the Winnipeg wrestling scene, and training for his first event. Eric asks Sam if we should classify wrestling as sport, theatrics, or both, and Eric credits wrestling with creating immersive storylines around events. Then, the two chat about Last Week Tonight's feature on WWE, and the encouraging trend of more proactive care in sports.

Annie Chipman is the founder of Human Kind Book Club, a community dedicated to creating empathy and understanding through shared stories of humanity and kindness. Annie joins Eric to chat about why she decided to start a community reading forum, as opposed to a more traditional book club with friends (20:53). Eric asks Annie if it's important to find an "angle" with a blog or content-related pursuit, and the two chat about their April (virtual) book club collaboration (39:47).

This month Human Kind Book Club is reading The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin, and you can learn more about our April virtual book club here: https://www.humankindbookclub.com/blog/april-book-club-were-going-digital

Stuart Murray is the President & CEO of The City of Human Rights Education (The COHRE), and Co-Chair of Manitoba150. Stuart joins Eric virtually to chat on his diverse career stretching entertainment, business, politics, not-for-profit and more (03:48). Eric asks Stuart the common threads he's brought to these diverse roles, and Stu speaks on his current passion projects: The COHRE, and Manitoba150 celebrations (39:38).

Shannon Birchard is a professional curling athlete. Shannon joins Eric to chat about curlers requiring supplement careers, and balancing her curling pursuit with work. Eric asks Shannon about winning the Scotties Tournament of Hearts, and what it's like to have one's dreams come true. The two explore what free time looks like to each of them, and finally, Shannon talks the World Women's Curling Championship taking place March 14th - 22nd in Prince George.

Julian Rowan is a Winnipeg comedian. Julian and Eric chat about overlapping skillsets between sales and comedy, and the differences in his Twitter vs. stand-up jokes. Julian explains how one of his favourite jokes has evolved from repetition, and the two chat on how they approach sensitive topics in comedy.

Cheryl Zealand is the owner and CEO of Cranked Energy | fresh refrigerated energy bars. Cheryl and Eric chat about the first iterations of Cranked bars, selling one million units, balancing motherhood with starting a business, natural vs. adaptive states, and firing herself from every job at Cranked she doesn't like to do.

Roman Clarke is a Manitoban artist and producer. Roman joins Eric to chat about his recent Canadian tour, and using music to deal with emotions from a young age (4:03). The two discuss Spotify's algorithm, and The Middle Coast finding their way onto a curated playlist with 1,000,000+ followers (19:30). Eric asks Roman about pursuing his solo career, and Eric is amazed at musicians that can easily slot-in to different bands (38:06). Finally, Roman talks what's next for 2020 (56:28).

You can see Roman Clarke live - Thursday, January 30th @ The Good Will.

Josh Olfert is the founder of Haven Wealth Management. Josh joins Eric to chat about the earliest signs of his passion for investing, and turning down volleyball scholarships to get serious with financial planning (02:47). Josh talks about the importance of sincerity in wealth management, and the difference between wealth, money, and status (32:55). Then, Josh forces Eric to get introspective with why he started the podcast, and the two break into a discussion about what invigorates us, and finding deep engagement (47:06).

Amie Seier is the founder of The Community Gym in downtown Winnipeg - four classes under one roof: Cycle, Crush, Camp, and Calm. Amie joins Eric to chat about her time in the corporate world (1:44), and dealing with burnout (17:09). Amie shares what led her to start The Community (35:02), and how the brand allows them to be agile (45:30). The two discuss the difference in business models between traditional gyms and fitness studios, and Eric wonders how fitness facilities earn customer loyalty among so much competition (53:46). Plus, Amie shares a simple philosophy: how your dollar can be your vote (1:04:03).

Artwork: Derek Kitching

Music: "Waiting" by Roman Clarke

Catherine Metrycki is the founder of Callia Flowers. Catherine and Eric chat about Catherine's experience on Dragons' Den, and the process to get on the show (5:19). Catherine explains why she started Callia, their recent growth, and how they're disrupting the floral industry (18:48).