In the words of The Rascals 1966 classic, “it’s a beautiful morning” folks. It really is.

Sometimes life moves at Mach 2 and your only option is to hold on tight and embrace the ride. Well, that has been my life the past three weeks and you know what, I’ve loved every minute of the roller coaster ride its been. I took some friendly ribbing from loyal Mailbag readers about missing a couple weeks in a row, and rightly so, but I promise I’ll make up for it this week!

• Terri Trespicio… I came across her TED talk titled “Stop Searching For Your Passion“ a month ago and it really resonated with me. Like a lot. This is a must watch, especially for people early in their careers. Her train of thought went against the grain, which is a quality I admire in people. People who are passionate enough (very ironic I know) coupled with a spine made of steel to not cave into popular demand and the tendency to groupthink. “Passion is not a plan. It’s a feeling and feelings change. They do. You can be passionate about a person one day, at a job and then not passionate the next. We know this and yet we continue to use passion as the yardstick to judge everything by, instead of seeing passion for what it really is, the fire that ignites when you start rubbing sticks together… So don’t wait. Listen to my mother. Just start doing because to live a life full of meaning and value, you don’t follow your passion. Your passion follows you.” – Terri Trespicio

• Speaking of connecting passion with purpose, let’s read about someone I’ve featured many a times in my Mailbag – Chris Ackroyd. This is an interview transcript titled “How I Scored My Job at the NHL… With No Home Ice Advantage“ that the Student Life Network conducted with Chris. He makes a lot of really solid points with this one being my favorite,  “You are in control of how many people you know. Most people who know a lot of people have spent time and energy creating relationships. I always say that the people who are likely to be in the right place at the right time are those that spend all their time in many places. More people = more opportunities.” – Chris Ackroyd

• The picture above is myself with three friends – Dario, Michael, and Chris – a few weeks ago on the 2nd teebox at Cabot Cliffs in Inverness, Nova Scotia. The Cliffs course is truly a Canadian architectural gem and officially opened for play to the world on June 7th, 2016. When it was first designed, it was named the Best New Golf Course in The World by Golf Digest in 2015. This National Post article details the visionary mind behind the development, Mike Keiser, current projects on the go in North America… If only the CAD/USD would tilt more in our favor!!

• Roger Federer. Love him or hate him, he was the best tennis player on the planet for many, many years. His sheer dominance was impressive and he made it look so easy and carried himself with such grace in the spotlight. He was a true champion in all respects. One of the reasons why I enjoying interviewing people for Coffeetalk segments is because I truly am fascinated by people who are elite at their craft. I love figuring out what sets leaders apart from others in their field, what are the nuances they pick up on that others don’t, what motivates them, the list goes on… That’s why I love Andy Roddick interviewing Roger Federer (two of the most successful tennis players in history but the level of respect on Roddick’s part for Federer is so evident). “I think it’s gotta be sort of that fire and ice. I’m more in the I love winning and the other guys are more in the I hate losing bit.” – Roger Federer

Song of the Week: “Glass House” – Kaleo. Pro tip: Mix this track into your Friday afternoon commute home and prepare to dial your weekend up to an 11…

Quote of the Week: “Your resume is your past. Your job is your present. Your network is your future.” – Terri Trespicio

Work Hard. Play Hard. And in that order 🙂

Mike