The Janet Lewis Show The Janet Lewis Show

EPISODE 18 – MELANIE CRUICKSHANK – ON LIVING YOUR BRAND, CONNECTING WITH YOUR CUSTOMERS AND THE IMPORTANCE OF YOUR SUPPORT SYSTEM AND NETWORKToday we are talking with Melanie Cruickshank, CEO and Founder of Da Lish Cosmetics. Da Lish Cosmetics is all about creating clean luxurious beauty products that are produced with locally sourced, natural, and organic ingredients. They are a pioneer in the clean beauty movement and Da Lish is determined to make a positive impact in the world of beauty. Melanie went from working in advertising and marketing to starting her own cosmetics company. In 2006, she launched Da Lish cosmetics as a side hustle and in three short years made it her full time gig. Melanie started making products in her kitchen and selling them at small local events. Today Da Lish has its own manufacturing facility in Canada, has numerous retailers that stock their products and their own ecommerce store where they ship their products to customers all over the world.So, what inspired Melanie to start a cosmetics business? From a very young age she discovered her love for lipstick and then later when she was a teenager that was struggling with acne, she found that foundation changed her life and helped increase her confidence. Melanie’s personal mission is to help other people feel their absolute best. She lives and breathes her brand. This business is about her beliefs, her lifestyle and finding other people that also want to have an impact and create change in this space.Melanie is a fun and engaging guest that is willing to share her success as well as her struggles. She is vulnerable, honest, and also very entertaining. I love her fresh perspective and how she creates parallels of running a business to other life challenges like dating for example. She is super passionate about what she does and genuinely wants to help people feel their absolute best. Melanie has some great stories to share based on her life experiences. I am sure you will find more than one or two things to take away from this podcast. In this episode, Melanie and I discuss the following:* Adventures of growing up on a farm and living in nature but wanting to be a glamorous big city girl* Discovering, falling in love and becoming obsessed with make up at a young age* Struggles of being a dyslexic, tall, big girl that lacked confidence and what helped increase her confidence as a young girl* Becoming a fanatic about exercise, losing weight, counting calories, and becoming anorexic with the desire to just fit in* Stigmatism of having a disability like dyslexia, how other people treat you and how that makes you feel about yourself* Getting your dream job at an early age and the importance of recognizing where you thrive* Moving into advertising and sales for the Toronto Star, and Now Magazine and enjoying all the perks* Turning a passion for make up into the creation of Dalish and all the work that went into developing, selling and marketing a brand in the beauty industry* Recognizing the importance and correlation of the ingredients of the food you eat and the products you put on your body* The shock of moving from a corporate account and big budget to spending your own money to start and grow a business* Time, passion, and effort that you put into your own business, how it changes the quality of your life and gives you opportunities that you wouldn’t normally have access to* Importance of having a good support system and taking the time to figure out how to do things that help drive you forward* How to find and connect with your customers by meeting with them and listening to what the...

EPISODE 17 – BOBBY UMAR – ON FEEDING YOUR SOUL, FIGHTING FOR YOUR LIFE AND BEING A STARToday we are talking with Bobby Umar, President of Raeallan and CEO of DYPB. Raeallan is a transformational training organization whose mission is to discover, inspire and develop leadership. DYPB, or Discover Your Personal Brand helps individuals and organizations use personal branding to create more focus, alignment, and impact with their work.Bobby started out as an Aerospace Design Engineer for Bombardier and has made his way into transformational training and professional speaking. He made some bold moves early in his career to get out of a soul sucking job and move into a career that he loves. Bobby is now one of Inc Magazine’s Top 100 leadership speakers, a five-time TEDx speaker, has been named as the “2nd Best Business Coach to Follow” on Twitter and the “4th Best Leadership Influencer” according to Kred. He has also recently been named a “Top 7 Networking Guru to Follow” and is recognized as a thought leader in networking, social media, and personal branding.Bobby is an engaging professional speaker that is genuine, extremely personable, and willing to share his success as well as his struggles. He is passionate about helping others grow and fully understands what it is like to be in a career that does not allow you to feel like a star. He believes it is important to fight for the life that you want. Bobby has a wealth of knowledge to share based on his real-life experience in the world and I could not wait to sit down and talk with him. In this episode, Bobby and I discuss the following:* The impact of connecting with purpose* Growing up as a first generation Canadian in a small town on the east coast and feeling like you are living a double life* Being a math nerd, skipping grades, and getting ahead at an early age* His love for learning, memorization and reading* Issues around body shaming and feeling embarrassed at a young age* Differences between quitting vs knowing when to let something go* Value of extracurricular experiences that give you the feeling of freedom at a young age* Discovering his love for movies, television, and the theatre* Auditioning for the first time and identifying his love for performing* Developing and discovering your voice* The challenges of university and figuring out what do to when you graduate* Key identifiers to recognize when a job is not the right fit and is not working out* Launching a passion project to feed your soul and recognizing when you want to put time and energy into something you love* Getting fired and figuring out what to do next* How being in the wrong program or job can affect your self confidence and make you believe you are not a smart person or even competent* How your mindset can erode based on your life experience and the value of gaining new experiences to shift your mind set so you can once again thrive* Importance of finding your mojo and being focused on what you really want to do in order to feel fulfilled* The feeling of not “Fitting in” or not being a “star”* Recognizing what allows you to feel empowered and thrive* Value of finding a good manager that recognizes your strengths and that you also value what they have to offer* The impacts of having a stressful job and experiencing an anxiety attack for the first time* Recognizing the signs of serious health issues and figuring out how to get control of them before they become a bigger problem* Recognizing a natural gift, embracing it and moving in that direction* Utilizing a personal council to help validate you...

EPISODE 16 – CHRISTINE KELLY – ON THE IMPORTANCE OF SPORT, STARTING A FRANCHISE AND SELECTING THE RIGHT PEOPLE WITH THE RIGHT EXPERIENCEToday we’re talking with Christine Kelly, Founder and Chairman of Little Kickers, which is an educational soccer – or ‘football’, program designed to provide young children with a fun and positive introduction to sport while also promoting the development of learning color and number recognition, as well as life skills like sharing and taking turns.Christine saw a need in the market in 2002 when she started this program in the UK and since then Little Kickers has expanded to over 330 franchisees across 30+ countries and classes are attended by over 65,000 children each week. Little Kickers has won many awards such as Franchisor of the Year, Top Global Franchise and in 2020 was recognized as “Global Franchise Champion” by Global Franchise Magazine and has been ranked amongst Canada’s fastest growing businesses by PROFIT Magazine.Christine is a forward-thinking entrepreneur that is solutions oriented, all about choosing the right partners and taking time to build relationships. She is super passionate about getting as many kids as possible to participate in sport and has been creative and innovative to get around the various challenges that have tried to block the growth of Little Kickers. Christine is honest, genuine and an absolute delight to talk to. I am excited to share Christine’s story with you because she is so candid, does not take herself too seriously and is brilliant in her approach to getting things done. In this episode, Christine and I discuss the following:* Growing up in the UK in a competitive family and going to boarding school at an early age* Value of work placements, what you can learn and taking advantage of the opportunities that can come along* How a job can have an impact on your development and help you recognize you have more capabilities than you thought you did* Why you need to take risks and put in the work to be successful* Recognizing when you are not passionate about your career choice* Finding a job that works for you based in your natural skill set* Starting a service based business as a side hustle and having to walk away from it* What happens when you start a product based business and discover it is not where you want to spend your time* Recognizing when and why you should change your career* How Little Kickers was created based on a personal need, but the demand was there to start and grow a thriving business* How to set up a franchise business when your business is profitable* Taking advantage of opportunities, figuring out how to meet demand and making it work* Importance and value of people you meet and how they can help you grow your business faster* Knowing when it is the right time to expand globally and making sure you have the right people to work with* Being lucky vs being open to opportunities and making your own luck* Why it is important to think in a different way to overcome challenges* Importance of selecting good partners that you like, want to spend time with and can help grow the business* Harnessing other people’s skills, knowledge, and experience to help you grow* Why you should be continually looking for new ways to innovate or provide participants with more value* Why you should listen to other people’s feedback* Importance of staying true to your mission* How to expand globally and the differences between setting up in developed countries vs countries that are still developing* Running pilots to test a new model or service before full implementation* ...

EPISODE 15 – JOHN TOWSLEY – ON ENTREPRENEURSHIP, IMPORTANCE OF CASH FLOW AND FIGURING OUT HOW TO MAKE IT WORKToday we are talking with John Towsley, Owner of Bwyze, and until recently also owner of Mindmuze. Bwyze is an IT service management company that offers eLearning products and services for IT Services. Mindmuze is a Learning innovations company that creates powerful learning experiences.John is a leader and an innovator in the IT and eLearning spaces. He started out as a systems analyst and quickly moved up the corporate ladder. John has been the president of 5 different organizations, two of which he was the founder and owner. He has been able to see a need in the market, assess the risk and come up with a business solution that meets the needs of the market in real time.  John has this uncanny ability to get people to think about the big picture and overall goals. He is an out of the box thinker and offers alternatives that people are not even thinking about in the moment. John does not shy away from taking on challenges and is always able to figure out the root cause along with solutions to fix the issue. He believes there is always a way to figure something out to make it work.  John is very stoic under pressure and never seems to let anything rattle his cage – at least that is what I thought until our conversation today. I am excited to share John’s story with you as there are so many wise thoughts and ideas that you might be able to take away and apply to your own life.In this episode, John and I discuss the following:* Growing up in a small community, his love for the outdoors, importance of good mentors and taking action to make things happen* How being involved in Boy Scouts provided him with so many opportunities and new experiences, and how it influenced his view of the world and his desire to contribute and achieve success* Working at an early age to make money to be able to afford what you really want* Differences between theory and reality in a working environment with regards to processes and behaviours* Differences between tropical reality vs western reality and how it helped keep things in perspective* Importance of being disciplined when it matters the most* Challenges of getting a job during a recession* Letting a good advocate help you find your next opportunity* Recognizing when you make mistakes and figuring out how to fix it* The start and evolution of the technology industry* How a leveraged buy out works* Seeing an opportunity and becoming a “low risk” entrepreneur by running a business with other people’s money* What to do when your company runs out of money and what happens when you need to bootstrap your company* Challenges of being a committed leader, managing employees and the stress that comes along with it* Definition of an entrepreneur, what it means, understanding the risks and how it has become trendy* The personal toll on your mental health as an entrepreneur and learning to manage stress* People’s perception of what your life is like vs the reality of what it really is* Importance of recognizing what is important in life* Self identifying when you are not the right person for the job and taking action to move on* Acquiring companies, becoming a deal junky and knowing when it is time to stop* Stigmas associated with mental health issues and finding ways to get manage your mental health* Determination and underlying thoughts of figuring out how to get it done and how to survive* Managing stress by using benchmarks and reframing things to keep everything in perspective* Perception of others and social stigma of failing* ...

EPISODE 14 – SHAUNA ARNOTT – ON BEING CREATIVE, SHARING YOUR PASSION AND ASKING FOR HELPToday we’re talking with Shauna Arnott, Founder of Leverage Events, Founder and Producer of Haste and Hustle and most recently Co-Founder and Producer of Listen In. Leverage Events creates unforgettable experiences for their corporate clients that grow their brand and deepen human connections. Haste and Hustle is an annual conference that was created to serve and support entrepreneurs. Listen In is a conference for enterprise level marketing teams looking to better understand and capitalize on the world of podcasting. This lady has a lot on her plate, but she is one determined and passionate person.Shauna is able to take a big idea and bring it to life. She has created some amazing experiences and has worked with some of the biggest names out there to date. The first year of Haste and Hustle featured Gary V as the keynote speaker and in 2020 it is Richard Branson. Shauna is able to capture the attention of these big names and get them involved in her vision. She is super passionate about helping others and I am so excited to hear about her journey.In this episode, Shauna and I discuss the following:* Actions of a young budding entrepreneur and getting your business shut down at your elementary school* Importance of being creative to deliver an experience that will make money and add value to your event* How connecting to nature and playing outdoors helps stimulate creativity and growth* What happens when you choose a traditional career to make money and have a good living* How to listen to your inner voice about what you should really be doing and then taking steps to follow your dream* Importance of staying open to opportunities when they come along and taking action on them* How to change careers, get started in a new industry and launch a new business* Value of connecting with current thought leaders, selling them on your idea and getting them to participate* Not knowing, acknowledging or recognizing when something is hard and just moving forward to get it done* Importance of being passionate about what you are doing, and sharing your passion to get buy in from other people* Developing the right name for a company or brand* Recognizing your own limitations of areas or skills that still need to be further developed or improved* The biggest challenge when it comes to running events* How external factors can impact your business and what you should do when this happens* Value of being a solution-oriented problem solver that is able to identify what is important vs. not important* What you should do when everything seems to be going wrong* How the power of relationships can work for you and how communal entrepreneurs can be with one another* Importance of asking for help so people can rally around and help you* Struggle for female entrepreneurs to ask for help and the negative perceptions associated with asking* Value of recognizing and acknowledging the amazing people that surround you* Importance of being open to asking for and receiving help* How you can put yourself in a great position to help others* Importance and value of your network to share information, to help each other and to not feel alone with your struggles* Why you should help people with the right intention and do things to be a good person not get anything out of it* How different people bring value into your business or life* Struggle of connecting with people in a meaningful way* A model for creating a successful event that will have great takeaways for the audience* Shauna’s dream speaker list* Imp...

EPISODE 13 –TIM LOUKS – ON BEING INSPIRED BY THE PEOPLE AROUND YOU, BEING SELF LESS IN SPORTS, AND USING RECOVERY TIME TO REFLECT, ADAPT & IMPROVE

Tim Louks is Head Coach of the McMaster Marauders Women’s Volleyball Team. Tim has spent over 30 seasons coaching and developing the women’s program and in the 2007-2008 season he led the team to it’s first OUA championship and he has coached his team to capture that title two more times in 2013/14 and 2016/17.

Coach Louks has received the OUA Coach of The Year Award 6 times and under his watch he has had 42 OUA all-stars, four OUA Rookies of the Year and four Marauders have been named CIS All-Canadians.

Tim is passionate about sports and the game of volleyball. He has coached since a young age and his mother was also a coach of youth sports so you might say it is in his blood. His technical expertise of individual skill, and overall game plan strategy is mind blowing. Tim is very pragmatic in his approach to coaching and anyone that has played for him will fondly recall his “Timism’s”, these are phrases he would use to describe a situation in order to get you to think more about what you were really doing or how you were feeling.

Tim believes there is so much value to participating in sports and that sport can teach you many life lessons and visa versa, which I believe as well. I had the pleasure of playing three seasons for coach Louks and I am looking forward to learning more about Tim’s journey to the court and what drives his continued love for this sport.

In this episode, Tim and I discuss the following:



* Differences between old school outdoor creative play and finding trouble vs. the reality today

* Challenges of forming relationships, friendships and finding community in today’s world

* Opportunities of exposure to sport at a young age and how it can help build lifelong relationships

* Similarities and differences of learning in sport vs learning in life

* Difficulties of learning how, where and when to trust

* Value of learning about people and humanity through sports

* Where passion and inspiration can come from

* Difference between being self less vs. selfish and how it relates to sport, passion and drive

* Understanding your leadership style and what you can learn from others

* Importance of leaving something better than you found it

* Difference of being happy to “get there” vs. “wanting to win”

* What “being the best” means and how it influences behaviour and attitude

* Importance of competing to be the best you can be and how far should you go to win

* Avoidance of discipline, punishment and failing and how it affects kids and society

* Information overload and the importance of recovery time to be able to reflect, adapt and improve

* The evolution of the volleyball, why we play it and why the game is played

* Importance of having good support or help in place to allow for recovery and still be able to continue to drive forward

* How outcome can drive passion and knowing that it is OK to be the best

* Importance of losing so you know how to win

* Importance of understanding people and being able to predict their responses to different types of feedback

* How the people that surround you provide fuel for your passion

* Why significant victories are like a hangover and the importance of not getting stuck on the “winning” component

* Importance of implementing change to produce a different result