A few years ago, in my former life as a travelling keynote speaker, I was invited to speak at the semi-annual sales retreat of a major global company. I was told they were struggling to come up with new ideas, and they needed someone to help them shake things up. When I arrived a few… Continue Reading

In this new series, you’ll be introduced to some of my all-star clients, as they share their story on the journey as a business owner. First up is Kevin Cassidy, President and Founder of Cassidy Corp., a leading commercial asphalt paving company in Haverhill, Massachusetts. Kevin is an entrepreneur at heart, having started his first… Continue Reading

I want to tell you about two wildly different phone calls, each of them having taken place within the last three weeks. Phone call No. 1 was from a major multi-national corporation. They were interested in having me do a presentation within the scope of their global leadership initiative, a program they had been running… Continue Reading

In my previous life as a traveling keynote speaker and corporate trainer, I found myself at a major international conference for a large corporate client on the west coast. In front of hundreds of industry leaders from across North America, I got up on stage and presented. Following the evening’s events, the client was kind… Continue Reading

I want to take a moment and look back 14 months ago, when the pandemic (I know it seems like it has been longer than that). Two weeks into the lock down, I received a phone call from one of my biggest retainer clients. It went something like this: “Shawn, we love you, and this… Continue Reading

Every spring, I take part in an event called ‘Actionable Conversations Summit.’ It’s a three-day summit that brings our community together of business leaders, coaches, and consultants from around the world together. We share best practices, we learn what each other are going through, and we laugh – a lot. I look forward to it… Continue Reading

Every January – when there isn’t a pandemic going on – I run a two-day event in San Diego called the ‘Strategic Focus Program.’ This is a very special event in which business owners and growth minded leaders, have the opportunity to invest in their future vision by planning for the coming year – both… Continue Reading

“Shawn, you have Type 1 diabetes, you will need to take daily insulin injections for the rest of your life, and it will shorten your life expectancy.” Sitting in my doctor’s office in Ottawa, hearing these words for the first time, I was speechless. I was 30 years old, engaged to be married, and working… Continue Reading

“Our work, our relationships, and our lives succeed or fail one conversation at a time” Susan Scott author of Fierce Conversations Often, prospective clients will reach out to me with questions like: ‘Hey, can you do the closing keynote at XYZ conference?’ or ‘Hey, can you work with my sales team? They’re stuck on this one problem.’ Don’t get me wrong:… Continue Reading

A few years ago, I decided to change my business model by moving to an invite- and referral-only system. This meant saying goodbye to some of my biggest clients – some world-renowned brands and big businesses – following some difficult conversations on why we weren’t necessarily the best fit for each other. It also meant… Continue Reading