Big Idea Big Moves

(Revisit of Recording from Dec 2019) Shawn Matthias played 10 years as a professional hockey player in the  National Hockey League.  He played for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Winnipeg Jets, Florida Panthers, Vancouver Canucks and Colorado Avalanche.   He also played for Canada at the 2008 World Junior Championships and helped his team win the Gold Medal.  A couple of seasons removed from leaving the...

Faith Cooke is one of the elite competitors on the 2020 Spartan Games series where she has showcased her prowess in power events and athletic versatility.  Her infectious personality, enthusiasm and desire to inspire a generation of strong, confident women has quickly made her a viewer favourite.  Although Faith is a multi-sport athlete having competed in the CrossFit Open Regionals, marathons and...

Max Fennell was on the path to professional soccer when he suffered a devastating knee injury that derailed his plans.  That is when he turned to triathlon where he excelled and became the first African American professional athlete in the sport.  He has since been a featured athlete on the CBS game show Million Dollar Mile and is currently one of the twelve male competitors on the 2020 Spartan Ga...

Tia-Clair Toomey was favoured to win the 2020 Crossfit Games.  She did that in dominating fashion as she was again crowned the Fittest Woman on Earth.  She won 9 of 12 events outright and smashed records along the way.  She became the first female competitor to win 4 CrossFit Games titles - she has managed to win every year since 2017.   She has also set new markers of success in her sport with 6...

Annie Thorisdottir is a two time Fittest Woman on Earth - the first woman to accomplish that feat.  She is an 11 time Crossfit Games qualifier with 5 podium finishes.  On top of being one of the most revered and recognizable superstars in her sport, she is now a mother with her eyes on a return to the Games.   "Iceland Annie" is a co-owner of her own Crossfit gym in Reykjavik where she has paved t...

Stacie Mistysyn is best known for her time as the character Caitlin Ryan on Degrassi.  She grew up alongside an entire generation of fans through multiple iterations of the incredibly popular hit show.  Now a mom of two busy kids, Stacie has transitioned her love of learning, fitness and wellness into a coaching and online training business.   In this episode, podcast host Jamie Allison chats with...

From world championship ultra-running and wrestling NFLers in the Spartan Games to representing Team Canada on Amazon Prime's World's Toughest Race: Eco Challenge Fiji, Ryan Atkins does it all in sports.  He is the winningest obstacle racer of all time and is married to another legend in the sport - Lindsay Webster. Ryan is a two-time winner of the Spartan North America Championships and two-time...

Not long before COVID turned the world on its head,  host Jamie Allison sat down with Joe De Sena to  talk about leadership, perseverance, raising resilient kids and achieving BIG goals. Joe de Sena, Founder and CEO of Spartan has appeared with, or been interviewed by, everyone from Joe Rogan, Richard Branson and Tim Ferriss to Grant Cardone and Gary  Vaynerchuk. Joe has demonstrated his entrepren...

Natalie Spooner is a member of the Team Canada National Hockey team and is the first player to compete for the National Women’s Team, the  National Women’s Under-22 Team and the National Women’s Under-18 Team.  She competed in her first Olympic Games at Sochi 2014 where she scored  the first two goals in Canada’s 3-1 semifinal victory over Switzerland  en route to the gold medal. She was also a me...

Wow!  One year already?  Little did we know when this all started what an important and engaging project Big Idea Big Moves would turn out to be. The "destination for high performers" took on new meaning as we all dealt with the changes and challenges of 2020.  The more people had to overcome, the more they leaned on the advice, stories and experiences of our guests.  In our inaugural season we sp...

Sangita Patel an engaging entertainment reporter for ET Canada who has interviewed world-class celebrities from Julia Roberts and George Clooney to Helen Mirron to Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.  She is also the host of HGTV Canada’s high stakes show Home to Win. Whether hosting on-stage, sharing her personal story, or acting as a brand spokesperson, Sangita infuses everything she does with passi...

B. Jeffrey Madoff is a director, photographer, playwright, author and professor in New York City.  He has helped position many major brands such as Ralph Lauren, Victoria's Secret and Radio City Music Hall and himself was chosen as on the of the top 10 designers in the US.  He is Founder and CEO of Madoff Productions, a film production company that creates brand content including commercials, web...

Dani Doucette is a rising star on the pop and R&B scene.  Her sound is all her own, but she has drawn comparisons to artists like Halsey.  She is a proud songwriter, has recently recorded new music, is in the middle of producing an international music video and been featured in a unique "quarantine" drive-in concert event. Dani is also an international fashion and fitness model and has worked with...

Mario Rigby is a modern day explorer that's not afraid to push physical and mental limits all while addressing the issues of diversity, poverty and sustainability. Mario has completed an astonishing 12,000 km trek northward across eight African countries, entirely by foot and kayak. He was tested physically and emotionally in ways that would make anyone stop short. He contracted malaria, kayaked 5...

Long before “social networking” became a buzzword, Bruce made his mark as a digital pioneer by co-founding Lavalife in 1988. Under his  direction, this early tech start-up grew into the marquee brand in online dating with over 2,000,000 users (and countless successful  marriages!). After its spectacular rise and with the support of his  partners, he led the sale of the company for a stunning 180 m...

Hannah Huesman is a Mental Skills Coach in the Philadelphia Phillies Major League Baseball organization where she works with their athletes on improving performance using evidence-based techniques.  She has worked with business executives, firefighters and first responders, actors and athletes of all ages.  She has a social media series called Mental Sweat Mondays with a one minute weekly session...

Samanah Duran is a successful fashion entrepreneur, a Forbes 30 under 30 most influential individual in retail and e-commerce as well as a digital media powerhouse.  She built and leads the highly successful "indulgent streetwear" brand Critics Clothing and has branched out to launch the media and news company Be Your Own.  The #BeYourOwnUK brand is focused heavily on supporting, empowering and hi...

Bridget Case is a sports journalist, the host of the popular After Orange Slices and Turbo Talk podcasts, a retired NFL Cheerleader and former NBC and CBS sports anchor.  In this episode, host Jamie Allison talks with Bridget about her varied career and journey into digital sports media, how she found confidence in her abilities, and the challenges and biases women in male-dominated professions de...

Nicole Pollock and Jorie Brown are the co-founders of Cotton Candy Event Staffing , a promotional staffing, event management and creative concept company that has worked with top brands like Nike, Canada Goose, MLSE and Google.  Nicole and Jorie both began their journeys as young competitive dancers, followed by many years as ambassadors and performers for the Toronto Raptors Dance Pak and the Tor...

Tim Shauf is the President and CEO of The Commonwell Mutual Insurance Group.  Tim started his career with Algoma Mutual Insurance Company in 1992. In 1999 Tim took a position  with the former Farmers’ Mutual Insurance Company and was thrust into senior leadership early in his career . His 23 year involvement in the mutual insurance industry has also included sitting on a variety of Committees and...

As sports leagues open up, sanitation and safety will be key factors in keeping athletes, coaches and staff safe.   Ryan Silver is the Director of Global Operations for Sani Sport.  That is an organization that is heavily involved in the the Health and Safety protocols for return to play in the NHL, NFL and MLB.   Sani Sport uses ozone technology to clean equipment and shared-space...

Pooja Handa is an award-winning broadcaster who most people would recognize as the co-host of Toronto's #1 morning show, CP24 Breakfast. Pooja has been a news anchor,  reporter, traffic reporter and entertainment host.  She has covered everything from politics to entertainment and hosted many large events ranging from the Toronto International Film Festival and Toronto Pride Parade to the Toronto...

“It’s not rocket science”. 🚀 In the case of Bianca Cefalo it actually is! Aside from working on cool projects like the NASA/JPL InSight Mars Mission and working on Next Generation Telecommunication Spacecraft for Airbus Defence and Space, Bianca is on a personal and professional mission to smash barriers and long-held stereotypes around rocket science and STEM. Bianca Cefalo is a Space Systems Th...

For the past four years, Lauren Johnson has been a Mental Conditioning Coordinator for the New York Yankees.  She has consistently focused on pushing the limits of high performance.  Lauren herself is an experienced University soccer player and she has used that athletic experience, her schooling and a passion to improve performance through mental toughness to build her own rewarding career path....

Monika Kretshmer is the CEO and Founder of The Universal Womens Network™ , a global platform committed to  gender equality by raising the bar to advance women in their networks,  communities, and workplaces.  The organization connects, celebrates and recognizes women along with men who  SupportHER™ to empower women to succeed personally  and professionally. In six short years, Monica has built a r...