313 | Simon Miller | Powerful Attributes for Leading a Successful Life

In today’s show, Chris interviews Simon Miller, Senior Principal Managing Partner at Workday Canada. Simon shares the most important attributes which enabled him to overcome personal challenges and rise through the corporate ranks.

This show starts with Simon sharing his background information. Growing up in abject poverty and being subjected to emotional and mental abuse by his step-father fueled Simon’s desire for success. Ambition and hard work paid off big time as Simon was awarded a full scholarship to Trent University. In this segment of the show, we learn how to avoid giving in to feeling overwhelmed and anxious and face challenges head-on.

Next, Simon shares why he chose to enroll at Student Works. Simon reveals how he chanced upon Student Works at an opportune time when he had lost his scholarship. Again, with his back to the wall, Simon put in all his efforts to make his painting business a success. Was it difficult for someone with zero business experience to manage a painting business?

After Student Works, Simon became interested in the internet and its immense potential. Starting as a junior salesperson, Simon gradually transitioned to IT consultancy. His first job in IT involved Analytics and he gradually mastered programming, training and project management.

He was thrown into some large analytics implementations where he learned to lead people he had no direct line management over. He was not afraid to move from one job to the next when he saw a dead end. In one case, he was willing to quit a job after recognizing the need for better work-life balance.

Simon shares some interesting anecdotes about his 13 year stint at Oracle. An insider’s account of the work culture at one of the largest software companies in the world is sure to keep you hooked. Here, Simon discusses how continuous learning can help you adapt to new technologies and survive in a tough industry. Specifically, we share how the industry and its employees struggled to adapt to cloud technology in the initial years.

In this segment of the show, listeners will learn how Student Works can equip you with transferable skill sets that can help you immensely in your corporate career.

Along with his corporate career, Simon is also a successful real estate investor, having started with nothing and ending up with a mortgage-free million dollar private cottage island. He shares his experiences and provides a reality check for those who are looking to make a quick buck in real estate. Should you attempt to time the real estate market? Can you generate handsome returns by investing in residential properties? What was the effect of declining interest rates over the years? Whether you are a real estate investor or aspiring to be one, this segment of the show is sure to interest you greatly.

Throughout his journey, Simon has worked to balance the pressures of a 20-year marriage and four children with the pressures of generating a single income needed to simply pay the bills in Oakville, ON. Part of the journey has been from working hard to working smart to learning when and how to back off to enjoy life. While not explicitly discussed, a large part of this journey has been one of faith, volunteering, the importance of friends and mentors, and giving back through charitable donations.

Towards the end of this show, listeners will learn about Simon’s role at Workday, his current employer. A leading provider of enterprise cloud applications, Workday delivers financial management, human capital management, planning, and analytics applications designed for the world’s largest organizations. Simon reveals what he cares about the most at Workday – first his team, and then his customers. Simon has benefitted from world-class management training at