Introducing Don Fillmore

Don Fillmore is in an industry where the only thing they don't deliver is babies. Don is in the trucking industry and is the president of Atlantic Pacific Transport and of the Atlantic Provinces Trucking Association.

It has been a dream of many to hit the open road and live the convoy lifestyle. Surprisingly, however, Don finds it difficult to find staff. Though his business is located in a region with high unemployment, it seems many haven't thought of a career in the transport industry.

Don started in the family business right out of high school and has since grown his company to over 40 trucks and close to 75 employees. Don has a passion for developing the business, as well as helping out his employees and the region in general.

Could you see yourself piloting a big-rig? Check out this episode to find out.

In this episode

• Don tells us how the trucking industry, like many other industries, is a people based business.

• He explains his decision NOT to be a driver himself

• Don explains his biggest challenge of finding qualified workers.

• He explains how being a business owner gives you a much bigger voice to help those in need.

• He also gives us insight of how to manage relationships in a family business.

• Greg relays his secret dream to try out trucking.

• Dave is inspired by Don's ability to convey what he does and to build awareness.

• Greg appreciates Don's thoughts regarding having a bigger business means you have a bigger voice. 

Links

- Atlantic Pacific Transport Website

- Atlantic Provinces Trucking Association

- Don's Linkedin

This week’s episode of Boiling Point is going to be a little bit different as we turn the table and our own Greg Hemmings is the guest. In conjunction with a group of New Brunswick thought leaders, Greg has recently started work on his newest documentary, “The Millennial Dream”.

New Brunswick, like a number of rurally based economies, has a problem.  Many of it’s smart, and talented young people are moving away to “greener pastures” in order to retain good, well-paying jobs.  These young people come from a generation called the Millennials and they consist primarily of those who have grown-up during the Internet age.

This out-migration is draining the province of not only population, but also skills, and tax revenue.  So, how does a community go about fixing this problem?  Greg’s answer is through better business.

Millennials are leaving because of a lack of opportunity.  However, opportunity can take on alternate forms than just salary and career growth.  Millennials are also interested in making a real impact globally, locally, socially, and environmentally.  “The Millennial Dream” seeks to change the way many businesses act to develop a triple bottom line: profit, but also social and environmental impact.

Is your business up for taking on this challenge?

In this episode

• Greg tells us about “The Millennial Dream” and how it got started
• Greg tells us what he had learned from a trip to Hubli, India and the impact being made by a local organization there that is “teaching people how to fish” metaphorically.
• We hear about a conference Greg attended in India and his chat with a Nobel Prize Laureate.
• We hear about the frustration Greg felt on his return to Canada.
• Dave explains how the frustration can be a fuel to continue to make an impact.
• Greg is reminded that the small impacts you make on people are still significant.

Links and References

• Greg’s Twitter
• The Hemmings House site
• Hemmings House Twitter
• Check out the documentaries progress, sharables, and amazing photos with the hash tag: #themillennialdream

Introducing Ja-Nae Duane

Ja-Nae Duane is the definition of the Renaissance woman.  She is an author, a public speaker, a nondenominational Christian minister, a university lecturer, a serial entrepreneur, and even an opera signer.  Her books include “How to Start Your Business with $100”, “How to Create a Revolution”, and “The Startup Equation” which was co-written by her husband and previous Boiling Point guest Steve Fisher. 

Ja-Nae always had an eye for improvement and evolution.  As a young girl interested in singing, a teacher brought her to the Metropolitan Opera to inspire her.  Upon leaving, the teacher asked Ja-Nae what she thought about the performance, and she said it was the most boring thing she ever watched.  The characters just stood there and sung without any dramatics, and the performance seemed very antiquated.  However, the performance didn’t dissuade her from becoming a singer, in fact it inspired her to revolutionize how opera was performed.  Ja-Nae has a brain for exploring traditional systems and turning them on their head.

Ja-Nae has taken this revolutionary approach to everything she has done in her career.  Ja-Nae tells us if we want to think and act like a revolutionary; we must do a few things.   First of all, our head and heart need to align.  This means in order to be revolutionary, you must have not only acquire the skills needed for the task, but a passion for it as well.  Next, there needs to be a trigger to disrupt the status quo.  This causes a level of unrest that continues to grow.  Finally, one event sparks the need for change.  In the chaos of thinking revolutionarily, you will develop a framework for change.  Your framework for change may need some modification, but thinking outside the box is never easy.

In this episode

Ja-Nae tells us how to think like a revolutionary and what it means to one’s self worth to think creatively.   She tells us not necessarily emulate someone else’s version of success because what makes success is different for different people.  She also recommends that entrepreneurs that are playing it safe should decide step out of their comfort zone because trying new things allows for learning opportunities and evolution of how you conduct business.  If you fail, often failure ignites ideas of how to do better next time.  Dave is inspired by Ja-Nae’s willingness to be uncomfortable and how her head and heart are definitely aligned.  Greg takes the revolutionary leader idea to heart and practice. 

Links and References

- Ja-Nae's Blog

- Ja-Nae's Twitter

- Ja-Nae's Books

- Ja-Nae's TED X Talk