I Hope You Were Inspired...I Was

The second season of Inspire: Breaking Down Barriers to Success has come to an end, and what a great run it has been! For those unfamiliar with the Inspire series, I started this partnership last year with the University of Toronto-Scarborough Campus’ The Hub - an incubator program for entrepreneurs. Donovan Dill, Interim Director of The Hub, and Gray Graffam, former Director of The Hub, brought me on board to moderate and produce the hybrid livestream for entrepreneurs and community members interested in the topics. The event was free of charge, and if you came to watch in person, you were also given a delicious meal - much like a lunch and learn, just later in the evening.

Over the past seven months, we have had some high-profile guests who brought a wealth of knowledge, advice and lessons learned to the audience. We kicked off the series in October with artist, activist and visionary entrepreneur Mark Stoddart who shared how he combines his activism for his community with his passion for art. Next was marketing whiz Gavin Mohan, the brains behind Ripe VIP - he showcased an insightful PowerPoint presentation of how he connects with his high-profile clients and raises their brand awareness. In December, HR Specialist Rhonda Britton gave a masterclass in human resources, employee retention and organizational behaviour for entrepreneurs launching their companies. The new year started off with Toni Micelli, CEO/Partner of RTR Media, who shared her experience as a high-level woman in the male-dominated television industry. RTR is a female-owned and operated independent television production company producing unscripted content in the global marketplace, specializing in reality and lifestyle. For Black History Month, we had a special series with two additional episodes, first with artist Robert Small, C.M, who created the Legacy Black History Month poster and talked about the struggles he faced more than 25 years ago when he came up with the concept and how he overcame them to create a successful business. The following week we spoke with hip-hop legend Maestro Fresh Wes; he dropped so much knowledge on the audience. Those too young to know about his impact were schooled on the Canadian pioneer's role in getting the world to respect Canadian rappers. We wrapped up BHM with the fabulous Vivian Kaye, who built a million-dollar hair extension brand - KinkyCurlyYaki. She loves to share her story of triumph in a challenging market, to break through. For International Women’s Month, I knew that Emily Mills, the creator of the brand How She Hustles, would inspire other entrepreneurs when they heard about how she created a niche concept that grew into a movement. Watching our discussion was Joan Pierre, a veteran event planner and mentor to many young entrepreneurs. It was during our Q&A that we convinced Joan to be the next guest on Inspire. She had so much experience and wisdom to share from many high-profile events she has been involved in - from Toronto Caribbean Carnival to an AIDS Benefit featuring Alicia Keys. My final guest is Kristi Herold, who I met a few months ago when she approached me for publicity with her book, It Pays to Play. She is the CEO and Founder of Jam, a company that encourages play at work (I love the concept). If you are reading this on May 10th, it’s not too late to register!

I really enjoyed doing this series, even though it took me out of my comfort zone. I am so used to being the producer - behind the scenes - and now I am in front of the camera, doing the interviewing. I’m looking forward to another year of sharing the interesting stories of entrepreneurs and how they overcame barriers to success. We’ll see you in October!