Look for Strength: Recent Episodes
Aimée Look
Look for Strength tells short stories about strong individuals from around the world. It’s on-the-move journalism, squishing in powerful stories into 15-minute (ish!) segments. I’ll be talking to individuals who started companies, who have saved lives, who have overcome adversity. Why? Maybe you feel like me, like our world has been turned upside down in the last few years, and sometimes, just need a little bit of strength. Maybe it’s early, before your cup of coffee, and you need a story of strength to get out of bed. Maybe today’s just not your day- and you need a story that will get you out of a rut, inspire you, help you finish that paper. Whatever reason you’re tuning in for, you’ll hear each person share their story and meaning of strength. And maybe, in this, you’ll find your own answer to the question “what makes you strong”- and believe that you are, and can be more exceptional than you think.
Climber and award-winning writer Michael Wejchert 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 said. “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
Eleni Giokos is a CNN anchor and correspondent, based in Dubai.
Born in Greece and raised in South Africa, she has more than 15 years' experience working across TV, digital, radio and print media. One of CNN's most versatile correspondents, she joined the network in 2015.
Giokos has interviewed heads of state including former South African President, Jacob Zuma and former Nigerian President, Goodluck Jonathan. Her list of business and economic interviews includes the likes of International Monetary Fund Managing Director, Kristalina Georgieva; ECB president, Christine Lagarde; and Virgin founder, Richard Branson; as well as a 'who's who?' of Africa's most prominent business leaders, including Aliko Dangote, Tony Elumelu, Patrice Motsepe, and the late Bob Collymore.
She has highlighted the growing links between Africa and Asia, reporting from South Korea and Kazakhstan, traveled to the United States to report from Washington DC, and anchored shows from the network's London, New York and Atlanta hubs.
Giokos began her career at CNBC Africa in 2005, before joining 24-hour news channel, eNCA, as an anchor and correspondent. There she covered business stories as well as breaking news -- including the killing of Reeva Steenkamp by Oscar Pistorius and the Westgate Mall attack.
She has reported from key global events such as the World Economic Forum in Davos and the United Nations General Assembly, and chaired debates at Davos, WEF Africa, the IMF, African Finance Corporation and the Africa CEO Forum.
In this podcast, she shares her experience as a young journalist growing up in South Africa and making her way from radio to broadcast journalism. Eleni offers insights as to how she navigated professional relationships through positivity, and what her commitment to mentoring the next generation of journalists looks like.
On today’s podcast, you’ll hear from Michael Bonacini. Michael is an icon in the culinary world- as a world-renowned chef, the co-founder of the Oliver & Bonacini Restaurants across Canada, and a judge on MasterChef Canada.
The Oliver & Bonacini restaurants are stylish, innovative and the epitome of fine dining. Michael is head of the culinary program and is at the forefront of developing new projects. I am so thrilled to be speaking with Michael about his international upbringing, challenges he faced as a judge for MasterChef, founding a series of high-end restaurants, what he looks for in his team, and misconceptions that people might have about the restaurant industry.
This is part 2: Michael will focus on key skills of leaders and the journey to become one, his thoughts on social media for recipe sharing and marketing, misconceptions you may have about the restaurant industry, and advice for those breaking into entrepreneurship.
On today’s podcast, you’ll hear from Michael Bonacini. Michael is an icon in the culinary world- as a world-renowned chef, the co-founder of the Oliver & Bonacini Restaurants across Canada, and a judge on MasterChef Canada.
The Oliver & Bonacini restaurants are stylish, innovative and the epitome of fine dining. Michael is head of the culinary program and is at the forefront of developing new projects. I am so thrilled to be speaking with Michael about his international upbringing, challenges he faced as a judge for MasterChef, founding a series of high-end restaurants, what he looks for in his team, and misconceptions that people might have about the restaurant industry.
This is part 1: Michael will focus on his journey in becoming a chef, the restaurant business, and as a celebrity chef in the TV world, as well as some challenges he faced.
In this episode, I spoke with William Keliehor, the Chief Commercial Officer of Interac Corporation! He has diverse experience across the globe, and in leading teams, as he leverages innovative thinking and problem-solving skills and is a catalyst for evoking transformational change.
Will’s international perspective and experience will be a central theme of our discussion, from how he navigated at the start of his career, the challenges he faced, and the key steps that he takes to make decisions and mitigate risk.
Will has taken on extensive roles throughout the critical developmental stages of the FinTech industry, as is an uplifting and cutting-edge leader. He speaks about the importance of being a solution finder rather than a problem-identifier in propelling your career forward. Will constructs and leads a team of passionate individuals who can adapt to our rapidly changing world, and this Podcast shares his thoughts on leadership and a career in the FinTech industry.
This podcast features SHINE Strength and Confidence Inc., which aims to “redefine what it means to be a fitness company, and what it means to exercise”.
With classes streamed online and held in Kingston, Toronto, and the GTA, SHINE aims to create a community of acceptance and take a stand against the unrealistic standards promoted by the Fitness Industry.
I have the privilege of speaking with Jessica Takimoto, who is the founder and CEO of SHINE, and a Queen’s Commerce ‘21 Alumn.
Jessica is a Personal Trainer and Fitness Instruction specialist who started SHINE in March 2020, but has been instructing since 2018. Since then, SHINE’s accessible Online Classes and monthly membership program flourished, with classes effortlessly moving between virtual and in-person formats. SHINE fosters a community and their classes aim to improve strength and self-confidence, with challenging yet fun dance workouts (and when I have participated in the past, been a sweaty happy mess by the end!)
Part 1 of the talk focuses on her personal journey with dance, fitness, and starting SHINE, and Part 2 gives us insight into life as an Entrepreneur!
Today’s podcast features SHINE Strength and Confidence Inc., which aims to “redefine what it means to be a fitness company, and what it means to exercise”.
With classes streamed online and held in Kingston, Toronto, and the GTA, SHINE aims to create a community of acceptance and take a stand against the unrealistic standards promoted by the Fitness Industry.
I have the privilege of speaking with Jessica Takimoto today, who is the founder and CEO of SHINE, and a Queen’s Commerce ‘21 Alumn.
Jessica is a Personal Trainer and Fitness Instruction specialist who started SHINE in March 2020, but has been instructing since 2018. Since then, SHINE’s accessible Online Classes and monthly membership program flourished, with classes effortlessly moving between virtual and in-person formats. SHINE fosters a community and their classes aim to improve strength and self-confidence, with challenging yet fun dance workouts (and when I have participated in the past, been a sweaty happy mess by the end!)
Part 1 of the talk focuses on her personal journey with dance, fitness, and starting SHINE, and Part 2 gives us insight into life as an Entrepreneur!
In Karen Adams' experience working in C-Suite positions across industries and countries, she consistently constructs dynamic teams by inspiring employees and developing leaders.
Having spent the majority of her career internationally in the Middle East, Asia, and Europe, her first role as a CEO was with HSBC in Jordan and Palestine. She's currently the President and CEO of Fundserv, a technology platform in the Canadian investment fund industry that increases the efficiency and effectiveness of business operations. Her accomplishments were recognized as the 2017 winner of Canada’s 100 Most Powerful Women award from the Women’s Executive Network.
I had the privilege of hearing Karen speak at the Queen’s Conference on International Business about her adaptable leadership philosophy; which is rooted in forming one-on-one relationships, collaboration and communication.
In this podcast, I’m thrilled to be speaking with Karen about her secret to strong leadership, advice she has for aspiring leaders, and how she tackles challenges.
Today’s podcast shows how the strength of taking social responsibility, can save a life. I’ll be speaking with Marcus Schmidt, an Austrian Physiotherapist and Osteopath at Praxis-13 in Vienna.
It happened on the 20th of January, at around 11:15 am when he was taking the U-bahn, or underground train to a client.
The train was one minute away, and he was the only one on his platform. He turned around to see someone who had fallen on the track- and then he saved their life.
Here's his story.
Welcome to the Look for Strength podcast, where we share exceptional stories from around the world, to exceptional listeners. It’s on-the-move journalism, squishing in powerful stories into under 15-minute segments. I’ll be talking to individuals who started companies, who have saved lives, and who have overcome adversity. Today’s podcast is just a bite-sized minicast, where I’ll explain what Look for Strength is, who I am, why I started it and why exceptional people, like you, should listen in.