I’ve had 30 different addresses throughout my life; most of them before the age of 35. My dad was a University professor, and it began when we moved to Canada in 1985 and moved around extensively.
It was not until I was a teenager that I realized the toll that the constant uprooting of different homes and schools took: it left me with a profound sense of chaos. On the upside, I coped with this instability by becoming very focused on organization from a young age.
By the age of 8 my mom was asking me to organize dinner parties, and by the age of 15, she asked me to organize her work desk. At university, I was class president for two years, and students consistently wanted me as their project leader because I streamlined their workflow and dissertations for them. I received my business degree in logistics and worked in sales and marketing within the transportation industry for the next few years. I wore different hats throughout my early career but, tellingly, my most consistent unofficial charge was the professional in organization, process improvement and project management that I had become.
I learned later that there are profound reasons for what we do in our profession. We can take something not so good and make it into something positive and powerful. For myself, the constant displacement had left my life devoid of meaningful relationships for most of my young life. Every time I started making friends I had to move homes. I never had the comfort of growing in the same neighbourhood. I couldn’t keep the friends I made. It was emotionally brutal.
These challenges growing up are why I love meeting new people in my business. I’m making up for lost time and restoring the friendships I never had.
I learned in life not to see people as trees. Everyone is genuinely unique, and you never know their personal story… unless you care. I learned to care and to value each human being as a treasured creation.
If you become my client, I’m not moving. I’ll be there every step of the way and will be there for a long time because I realize how important it is for people to have had stability and trust in their life and their work environment. I needed that growing up.
I also pursued recognition from people because, due to my moving, I needed to make friends fast. I knew I had to impress them because I knew I wouldn’t keep them long. So in everything I chose to do, I would go all the way do it to the full, with the highest dedication. If I were not willing to give it my best I would not bother starting. (That is, most likely, the reason I was really good at swimming but awful at soccer).
I assigned that commitment to quality and integrity into my business. If I can’t deliver maximum value, I will not take you on as a client.
I’m so grateful for the friendships I created. I give it back by alleviating the weight of business operations through process improvement. We strengthen the back office, which is the backbone of your company so that you can focus on your product and service, the heart of your company.
Our commitment to you as a client hinges on us being a fit for each other, which is why we put so much care in consulting with you first. We’ll only take your business you’ll be better off, and there is ROI with our involvement.
There is a reason I don’t give up: because I’m not leaving anything behind again.