I just had another amazing luncheon with two very special young men and leaders in their own right! Richard Loat and Tyrell Mara inspire me in so many ways!
Richard
is the Founder of Five Hole For Food a not-for-profit brain child, now in its 3rd year, that he created to raise food for the food bank but in a whole new creative way: By embracing his love for our favorite national past time – Hockey! Richard and his team (that has now grown to something like 35 just hear in Vancouver and another 2o or so nation wide) have been gearing up to get ready for their Canada wide tour starting July 1, playing street hockey in every major city across the country working their way back home to Vancouver for their final game July 21st 2012. Last year the team raised about 40,000 lbs of food (more than double their goal) and generated all kinds of press and awareness for the Food Bank by asking the question “Will YOU play hockey for food?” An inspiring speaker, Richard regularly shares his story and also recently spoke at TEDx SFU.
Tyrell
is the Social Business Strategist for Tekara Inc. providing consulting, leadership development and coaching services at the individual, team and organizational level as well. Tyrell has done an exceptional job of raising the profile of Tekara overall and guiding their team of Coaches on developing their own digital strategies. Tyrell recently graduated with his Masters Degree in Business Administration from Trinity Western, is an accomplished basketball competitor, and manages a compelling blog for young leaders needing consulting with their online business strategies. He shares “I believe in positive leadership and the ability to influence others through our actions.” AMEN!
I’ll Take Idealism Over Cynicism Any Day Of The Week!
Both Richard and Tyrell are extraordinary young men doing extraordinary things with such high levels of integrity and deep development of character driven by their values and not a stitch of ego between them! I have such fondness for them and marvel at their wisdom at such a young age (both mid 20′s. and light years ahead of where I was at that age!)
We spoke at length today about a word that gets casually tossed around a great deal, but something we’re all passionate about and that’s AUTHENTICITY. Developing REAL Relationships. Dropping the rhetoric. Taking a genuine interest in people and connecting on deeper more meaningful levels. We spoke of ego, values, focus and clarity.
We spoke of Family and the importance of TIME. Richard shared one of his favorite little speeches by Bryan Dyson (CEO of Coca Cola) that has proven as a source of inspiration for him since he was 18:
“Imagine life as a game in which you are juggling some five balls in the air. You name them – Work, Family, Health, Friends and Spirit and you’re keeping all of these in the air.
You will soon understand that work is a rubber ball. If you drop it, it will bounce back.
But the other four Balls – Family, Health, Friends and Spirit – are made of glass. If you drop one of these; they will be irrevocably scuffed, marked, nicked, damaged or even shattered. They will never be the same. You must understand that and strive for it.”
We spoke again of ROI (Return On Investment) and how in our social world the REAL relationships we’ve been able to develop and the access we’ve had to true leaders has been immeasurably valuable to us all. (Tyrell wrote about this very subject here: Defining the Business Value of Social Media through Relationships)
My personal mission is to shepherd these young men along, to encourage their leadership and mentor where I can, but of course I learn as much from them as they do from me ~ probably more. (Let’s be honest!) The world needs these guys! So here’s to #ConversationsThatMatter with Richard and Tyrell! Two AMAZING young men leading the way!
About Teri Conrad
