The Heroic Minds Podcast

Michael Landsberg is a Canadian sports journalist and former host of Off the Record on TSN. Today he still works a full time job while spending 2/3 of every day helping people open-up, share, discuss and find courage in their mental health struggles. In this episode we talk as open as possible about mental health but also in general, chirps were thrown and laughs were had throughout the entire epi...

Nichole is a piano teacher, competitive swimmer, a musician and athlete that has been blind since birth. I prepared for this episode accordingly with questions and ideas that I thought would lead us to discussion of a different approach to life.... that didn't happen... something more incredible did. Nicole explained how she lives alone, she is a university professor and does 99% of everything peo...

So much of what we think we cannot do is in our head. I heard the other day that our body actually stops us before hand as a safety precaution. Ryan Martin Bike Across Canada Update ( Guest on episode #9 ) Donate Here! Is there a God (26:00) Mind is the creator mind is the everything (32:00) Relationship with present moment (37:50) Rephrase suffering (45:00) Nothing is permanent (53:00) Freedom fr...

Dr. Collingridge was recruited from Bristol in the U.K. to be the Senior Investigator at Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute in Toronto. He is also the chair of the Department of Physiology at the University of Toronto. Dr. Collingridge studies brain mechanisms that control the strength of brain cell connections, and how this fundamental property (known as synaptic plasticity) affects brain fun...

Canadian Forces Sargent Major Michael Cotts enlisted at the age of 17. He served overseas six times, in Kuwait, Somalia, Bosnia, and Afghanistan as a master warrant officer and combat engineer. Michael received a medical discharge in 2012 for post-traumatic stress disorder. After returning home Michael has ventured through some dark times to find healthy habits, overcome immense adversity and live...

Camil Dumont is the CEO of Inner City Farms. A company that grows vegetables in the city of Vancouver... yes literally in the city, on the front and back yard of peoples homes. He does this to bring people together and to educate. Camil has accepted the pay cut, the risk and the challenges that come with the business all to make our relationship to food a little healthier. A very heroic journey.  ...

Garret Rank is a full time NHL referee and pro golfer that recently competed in the US Open. He is also a cancer survivor with an incredibly resilient mindset. Rank has his eyes set on reffing the Stanley Cup Finals and competing in the Masters. We talk about how NHL players will actually help him after making a bad call, arguments on the ice with past guests (Scheifele, Landeskog), we walk throug...

Brenna Huckaby is up for Best Female Athlete With a Disability at the 2018 ESPY Awards and is the first Paralympian to be featured in the Sports Illustrated Swim Suit Edition. Brenna was a nationally ranked gymnast when osteosarcoma took her leg and career when she was only 14 years old. Now she is a two-time Paralympic Gold Medalist from the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics. One gold in the snowb...

Gabriel Landeskog was one of the youngest captains in NHL history and Rookie of The Year in the NHL in 2011-2012 season. He moved to Canada from Sweden at 16 years old. He is presently the Captain of the Colorado Avalanche in the NHL. He is having a successful career beyond the NHL with multiple medals on the world stage representing team Sweden. From his bachelor party, to being an NHL captain at...

Mike Laughlin looked death in the eyes twice. He is an above knee amputee full time Fire Fighter with endless resilience and tenacity. We talk about 3 life altering experiences over the course of ten years and how none of them have stopped him from anything in life. From crawling on his knees with a shattered femur and broken arm in minus 28 degrees celsius to having his leg bones stuck in the gro...

Dr. Bob Stevens has been an oncologist for 25 years. He has seen how incredible the human body and mind is first hand.  In this episode Dr. Bob and I not only discuss his mindset in the area of oncology but also the mindset of the patients that he works with everyday. We talk about life, death, breaking edge cancer care and lots more. For those like myself intimidated by the topic of cancer or eve...

Daniel Gallucci has been through brain cancer and is now pushing the envelope of neuroscience to then push the envelope of human performance. After discussing Daniels journey through cancer we then move into how he and his team are testing the human body and mind under stress while recording functional images of the brain.  Daniel and his team with some of the top neuroscientists in the world coul...

Steven Woods is an engineering director at Google Canada leading 500 people. He has a PhD in Computer Science and started the first voice recognition software company in 1999 called Quack.com He fired himself from his own company and then re-hired himself, he went to Hawaii to meet someone in person that wasn't answering his calls. He didn't make the school golf team and was named MVP the followin...

Iain Bigford is a Philosophy major and brand marketer. He has the incredible ability to articulate complex thoughts and ideas. Perfect for this episode. In this episode we work through 3 principles that are consistent across every HeroicMinds guest thus far. We talk through, dissect and debate just exactly what it is that allows each HeroicMinds guest to be the hero of their own story. - Evolution...

Dara Howell is an olympic Gold Medalist, a RedBull Athlete, and an ambassador for Always #LikeAGirl campaign. There is a lot more to Dara's current journey than simply executing on her ski's and stepping onto the podium. At the age of 19, Dara was thrown into a world of fame and success over night. This came with a feeling of shamefulness, anxiety and fatigue. After years of contemplating exit fro...

Darren Van Zandbergen holds the world record in the over 40 division of the Fire Fighter Combat Challenge, also known as the toughest two minutes in sports. Darren and his team finished first in the relay at the same World Championships and shattered two world records in the process. Beyond that Darren is a training officer for the Oakville Fire Department in Oakville, Canada. Darren is in charge...

Heather Moyse has represented Canada professionally in three different sports; Rugby, Cycling, and Bobsleigh. Heather was the leading try scorer in the 2006 and 2010 Women’s Rugby World Cup, she represented Canada in cycling at the Pan-American games in 2012, and won two olympic gold medals in bobsleigh one in 2010 and one in 2014. Outside of sport Heather has a masters degree in occupational ther...

Three time NCAA champion, silver medalist in the 2014 Olympics and gold medalist in this years 2018 Olympics.  She helped lead The University of Minnesota to their first ever-undefeated season and  became the fourth woman in NCAA hockey history to eclipse 100 points. Amanda Kessel is one of the most prolific hockey players today. There is more to Amanda’s story that you may not see. Amanda had to...

Mark Scheifele is an assistant captain of the Winnipeg Jets and one of the most exciting players in the National Hockey League today. After signing a long-term eight-year deal with the Winnipeg Jets he continues to thrive and improve. In this episode we talk about things you don't hear in interviews or in the locker room. How to stay grounded when you are living out your dream, the power of prayer...

Anthony Stewart made it to the NHL with less than a 1% chance. He couldn't afford to play or commute to the rink. That didn't stop Anthony Stewart or his brother from making it. Early exposure to many things in life, walking to the rink with his equipment, striving to support his 6 siblings, all lead to his dream of playing in the NHL. Anthony is the hero of his own story and now a hero for many o...

Karsten Madsen is a professional triathlete. With a heart out of rhythm he was told sports were no longer. He was reluctant to deal with adversities outside of sport, all while competing on the world stage of cross triathlons. Karsten has stepped away from his sport 3 times. His determination and win at all cost mindset is his greatest asset but he also realizes it can be a weakness when not contr...

Ryan Martin is biking across Canada. It took him a long time to figure out what was going on in his head. Time after time he thought his problems were solved. When he finally accepted his bipolar disorder he found the path of resilience. Overtime Ryan has learned how to manage his thoughts and emotions to live a fulfilling life. He is biking 8000km across Canada to instil courage in others dealing...

Marc Savard played 14 seasons in the National Hockey League. He had an obligated yet heroic journey through concussion to finish an incredible career. We discuss how he reached his dream and the moment he realized in the locker room mid-game that it was going to be his last game as a professional hockey player. We finish with a fun discussion about another sport he may play professionally one day....

On the surface people see a young NCAA swimmer, a friend, a sister, a teammate. What you don't see is that Julia ventured through and found control over epilepsy and bipolar disorder, overcoming both challenges to compete in the pool again with her D1 Swim Team at La Salle University in Philadelphia. Julia has since then finished her undergrad degree and is in the process of becoming a lawyer. Jul...

Eric Bolton had the choice; med school or music... safety or passion. He chose passion and hasn't looked back. Eric is a successful business owner and recording artist. He goes to work everyday to create, teach and share his passion with the world. We sit in his loft studio and talk about the inherent adversities and exciting risk in chasing your passion, how to organically grow a sustainable cust...