My Story Started in a Canoe

I began my career as a wilderness canoe guide and Outward Bound instructor. My passion for the outdoors and my experiences in guiding gave me the tools to successfully take people into the wilderness. On one trip, I experienced a defining moment: After a heated exchange, a participant looked at me and asked, “So, what do we do now?” Then I realized that it was my role to guide and facilitate the group by opening up dialogue and discussing ways to improve the situation.

The combination of being outside the usual comfort zones and of being pushed beyond self-perceived limits had naturally induced stress and uninhibited reactions. The real success of that trip depended on how the members of the group cooperated. After we successfully worked through this challenge, I realized I was hooked.

An Idea Emerged

I wanted to learn more. My excitement increased with the discovery of actual approaches to helping people communicate, assert themselves, build confidence, deal with conflict, and manage emotions. I was also amazed that there were reasons behind the way that we behave and that everyone has a different perception of the world.

While I already had an honours bachelor degree from Dalhousie University in Cultural Anthropology with a specialty in Nunavut, I decided to go back to school. So I completed a continuing education diploma in Adult Training and Development and in Alternative Dispute Resolution from the University of Toronto.

From there, my husband and I started a business in conflict management services. We designed conflict training programs as well as offered services in mediation. People told us no market existed for this, but we didn’t seem to have difficulty offering our services. On top of this, I did some work with a training company in Toronto that specialized in leadership and management training. It was all starting to come together.