Behind Greatness by Inspire North

We sit down with Marc today and talk about his journey from his native of Minneapolis to law school and then to living out a professional coaching career in 14 different cities in the US and Canada. We discuss how he viewed himself and his accomplishments until he hit an inflection point at 50. We discuss his thoughts on the importance of humility and self-awareness. He shares his thoughts on lead...

We speak this week with Steve Lichtman in California, a veteran TV series writer and producer. A deep thinker and excellent conversationalist, Steve brings us through his journey and his own philosophies on what really matters. He reminisces with us on his Long Island upbringing and his time as a young academic and lawyer grinding in NYC. Then his story takes a turn upon his decision to leave NYC...

Today we sit down with Gunnar Peterson in Beverly Hills. Gunnar is one of the most highly respected Personal Training & Fitness entrepreneurs in North America, a former Director of Strength & Endurance for the LA Lakers and a "go-to" personal trainer for Hollywood celebs. We discuss his entrepreneurial path - from selling ice in New Orleans to setting up his nerve center in Beverly Hills. More imp...

Adrian is the CEO and Co-Founder of MOSHN.fit, an on-demand streaming fitness platform that connects trainees with world-class coaches. A long time friend to Inspire, Adrian has worked as a top Digital Marketing and Advertising Exec (and Agency Owner) for the better part of 20 years. We chat about his take on life, the value of his experiences and how they serve him with his new chapter in his lif...

We spent some time with PJ Byrne: a veteran film, TV and voice actor, living in California. In college, he was preparing for a career in high finance. Having already secured a job on Wall St before he graduated, he started to discover (by chance) his thespian talents. With family roots in business and politics, young PJ never imagined acting as a life-long pursuit. But with good mentors early on,...

In this episode, we spend some time with John S. Couch, who lives and works – and plays – in California. He is also currently VP, Product Design at Hulu. We dive immediately into discussing themes of life, work and the creative process. He brings us briefly through his experience in building teams and what philosophy he employs in building positive culture. He also warns about certain pitfalls in...

Today we sit down and have a camp fire chat with Tyson Yunkaporta. With origins from the Apalech tribe in Northern Australia, Tyson is a Best Selling Author, an Artist and a Senior Lecturer at Deakin University, living in Melbourne Australia. We have an insightful conversation on First People's philosophy of thinking, perceiving and exploring the world. We discuss how the world might benefit from...

We sit down with Matt Larochelle, an entrepreneur and co-founder of Matt & Steve's in Toronto. Matt charms us with his down-to-earth approach to life and how his small town roots have been important to him in his path of self-discovery. He brings us through some of his adventures in starting his business with his partner Steve: from jars exploding in his apartment to trying to make ends meet while...

Giacomo Gianniotti spends some time on Behind Greatness to discuss and explore his thoughts on driving change and making impact. We learn how a young Giacomo felt the need to fit in and blend in as an "outsider" for years after he moved from his native Italy. But when his parents saw that he had to free himself from this debilitation, they took action. And this is when his real growth began to tak...

Eric San (aka "Kid Koala") sits down with us to talk about his take on success. He grew up both in the US and in Canada with hard-skilled, no-nonsense immigrant parents who also had an appreciation for music. They started little Eric training as a classical piano player until his piano teacher became annoyed by his experimentation with notes to spin his own musical experience. And spinning he did....

We are joined by Mary Dalimonte, a 40-year veteran of food retailing and distribution and a venerated industry trail-blazer in Canada. Recently stepping down from her SVP role at Sobeys – the country's 2nd largest retailer – Mary shares with us the pivotal lessons she learned throughout her career. The daughter of immigrant parents, she learned very early the wisdom of working hard and showing up...

We sit down with Brian, currently a Founder and Managing Director of Play4Tomorrow – a leading design academy and tech accelerator for positive youth development. Brian brings us through his own challenges as a youth growing up fascinated by games and fantastical fictional worlds. He was soon encouraged to take a different, more athletically-centered career as he grew in physical stature and showe...

As a young boy, Merv and his siblings moved from a comfortable life in sunny, tropical Jamaica to Toronto. We learn about the strongest influences in his life: his polymath father and his fiercely dedicated mother. For them, high educational achievement for their kids was a basic expectation. But we also learn about Merv's persistent pursuit of a career in elite track & field – and his love of lan...

Growing up in a loving, hardworking immigrant family in Youngstown, Ohio, Michael was a natural athlete gravitating to competitive team sports at an early age. When an injury put the brakes on a potential career in football he found that one passion never left him: story-telling. Armed with both the love of reading and creating stories and the support of strong mentors, Michael decided to strike o...

Mark joins us from Silicon Valley where he served as Partner at his firm until early 2020. A Princeton grad, he worked his way through a career of gruelling and stressful working environments in order to achieve his material goals. Until he didn't. He brings us through his former life as a high-achieving and high-performing athlete, investment banker and IP strategist. In 2016, Mark decided to res...

Today, we spend some time with Chris Duffin, in Portland, Oregon. During our discussion, we learn about a boy who endured extreme hardships growing up in the remote mountains of California. Barely out of his adolescence, he took custody of his younger siblings while working full-time, running a business on the weekends and completing his engineering degree. He is a father and a husband, an entrepr...

We join in conversation this week with one of the most influential women in the world of AI & AI Ethics. Dr. Sateli brings us through her journey as a young girl in Tehran to a high-octane phd student, developer and entrepreneur in Montreal to a renowned globe trotting AI Analytics and Ethics specialist. We discuss her professional quest to view automation as a help to her fellow humans for explor...

We sit down with our friend Alex Rechichi, another long time Advisor to Inspire and an accomplished, seasoned entrepreneur - and podcaster too. Listen to his thoughts on the importance of "visible leadership" and working shoulder to shoulder with your team. He has run his own businesses (with his two partners) since graduating from university and has never looked back. Having always been consumed...

Speaking with power couple Jennifer and Sudz, we get a glimpse of two different paths - until they fused into one. Facing naysayers all along from an early age, both learned that defining their capabilities for themselves was key in their own pursuit of purpose. Navigating this way by the time they found each other, their passions wove together and only amplified their intensity in mission to spre...

Growing up in the US Midwest in a strong family unit with an eye for business, John felt destined to join his father and older brother when he embarked on his post-secondary years. But his path changed on his 1st day of university. Armed with a passion to pursue his authentic self John provides a glimpse on how he discovered that it was his passion to tell a good story and create a unique experien...

Having grown up in a quiet, calm Prairie life with a loving family, Brice decided at an early age to pursue his life path in larger settings with the goal of making a larger impact. With his partner Anthony Lacavera, he spent many long grinding years building Wind Mobile within a fierce, unforgiving and oligopolistic space. After finally selling the company with his partner for well over $1 billio...

This week we are hosting Daniele Bolelli. Originally from Milan, Italy, Daniele has been calling California home for almost 30 years. A man who strives to be good at many things so that he's never bored, Daniele also hosts two widely popular podcasts, including History on Fire - one of the most successful history podcasts on Earth. In our discussion, Daniele shares his thoughts on working to find...

Engrained with the entrepreneurial spirit, Mark Joseph takes us on his journey of family, perseverance and faith. He speaks to the importance of learning from others and finding his leadership style, especially during unprecedented times. A man of honesty, transparency, and integrity, Mark tells us how he manages to keep his team's spirits' up when succumbing to fear in challenging times would be...

We are host this week to a very charismatic guest in Alex King. He's not an Engineer, nor an Architect, nor a Mechanic - and yet he organizes builds of custom vehicles for many Hollywood blockbuster films. How? Listen to how his fascination and passion (for vehicles) became an inspirational source for a renewed dedication to creative thinking, problem-solving, and learning from his fellow human be...

Today we listen to a captivating story about a fiercely independent professional who grew up toughened by circumstances out of his control. Fern discusses how his personal adversity taught him an early perspective on the meaning of sacrifice and the importance of carving out his own path. Once he made the decision to explore his imagination full time, he found himself on a path where learning and...