I Love Real Estate

A deeply personal conversation with  Laurence East from Metro Community Church. We talk about the fascinating life and times of a Third Culture Kid: being raised in two distinct cultures and then growing up to create your own unique Third Culture. Surprisingly, there are Third Culture Kids all over the planet and they have a lot more in common than you might think!You can listen to Episode 22 (and see the Show Notes) of the I Love Kelowna Podcast right here:Apple PodcastIf You Don’t Have Apple PodcastIf you enjoyed this episode, an iTunes review would be SO appreciated!SHOW NOTESLaurence was born in England, grew up in India, the Middle East, and Cyprus. Has also worked in China, South America, and of course now Canada. Moved to Kelowna in 2003, which is the longest he’s lived in any place.Commuted to work for Apple Computer in Vancouver, but put down roots in Kelowna because it seemed like a beautiful place to raise a family.Laurence’s wife is also a Third Culture Kid: Born in Japan, raised in Bolivia, and s

A heartwarming chat with multi-award winning, bestselling Canadian author Alexis Marie Chute. Alexis will be launching book one – Above the Star – in her new fantasy trilogy series. She’s having a fabulous book launch party tomorrow, Saturday August 18 at Mosaic Books from 1:00-3:00 p.m. Make sure you head on downtown to Mosaic Books on Bernard tomorrow and say hello to Alexis.You can listen to Episode 21 (and see the Show Notes) of the I Love Kelowna Podcast while you're commuting, exercising or relaxing, by clicking right here:Apple PodcastIf You Don’t Have Apple PodcastIf you enjoyed this episode, an iTunes review would be SO appreciated!SHOW NOTESAlexis does not live in Kelowna but comes here often to write, dream, enjoy our amazing outdoors and spend time with her family.Alexis’ first book Expecting Sunshine is a personal story about tragedy, unimaginable pain from personal loss, and eventual recovery. Love of independent bookstores and why she chose Mosaic Books for her launch.Self Publishing vs. T

This is a really interesting discussion with my new friend Roz Huber formerly of Moksha Yoga Kelowna. Roz is the first person I’ve interviewed so far, who was born and raised IN Kelowna. We cover many great topics including what it has been like to grow up here and see so many demographic changes, how she got involved with November Project Kelowna, and how psychology ties in with physical training. You can listen to Episode 20 of the I Love Kelowna Podcast while you're commuting, exercising or relaxing, by clicking right here: Apple Podcast: https://tinyurl.com/y8jax3xb If you don't have Apple Podcast: https://tinyurl.com/y8zjsuv5 If you enjoyed this episode, an iTunes review would be SO appreciated! https://tinyurl.com/y8jax3xb SHOW NOTES Roz was born and raised in Kelowna. She considered leaving to play basketball in Calgary or Kamloops, but ultimately decided against it when she was recruited by UBCO. Discussion of the many obvious and subtle ways Kelowna has changed over the last 3 decades. Kelo

This is a really interesting discussion with my new friend Loyal Wooldridge from Loyal Hair Therapy. He intends to run for City Council in October, and I think his platform is well-worth listening to. We cover many great topics including entrepreneurship, mentorship and Kelowna Politics. You can listen to Episode 19 of the I Love Kelowna Podcast while you're commuting, exercising or relaxing, by clicking right here: Apple Podcast: https://tinyurl.com/y8jax3xb If you don't have Apple Podcast: https://tinyurl.com/y8zjsuv5 If you enjoyed this episode, an iTunes review would be SO appreciated! https://tinyurl.com/y8jax3xb SHOW NOTES Loyal was born in the Kootenays, but moved to Kelowna in 1993 when his mom and dad were transferred. Mom worked in dispatch and dad was an officer for the RCMP. Attended George Pringle and Mount Boucherie. Opened Loyal Hair Therapy in 2006. Personal philosophy that drives Loyal Hair Therapy and everything he does in life is giving back to our wonderful Kelowna community. Loy

This is a really interesting discussion with Stephen Maser from Raymond James! We discuss the current state of the Canadian economy and ongoing NAFTA negotiations with the United States and Mexico. You can hear Episode 15 of the I Love Kelowna Podcast right here. (LINK) If you enjoyed this episode, an iTunes review would be SO appreciated! https://tinyurl.com/y8jax3xb SHOW NOTES Stephen was born and raised in Medicine Hat, AB. He and his wife Laura moved to Kelowna in 2011. Buying a house sight unseen requires a lot of trust… And he was not disappointed! Stephen grew up on a cattle ranch that has been in the family for many generations, and in university he majored in agricultural production. Learning the science and working his way up the ranks in Canada’s oil and gas industry. Edward Jones agreed to take him on and pay for his training, which was like financial bootcamp. In the world of financial planning and advising, personality and one’s fit with the dominant corporate culture are crucial, so he decided

Bonita Summers with Spirit Kelowna! You can listen to Episode 17 of the I Love Kelowna Podcast right here. If you enjoyed this episode, an iTunes review would be SO appreciated! https://tinyurl.com/y8jax3xb SHOW NOTES Bonita is a psychic, life and business coach. Born in Montreal and lived there and many Ontario towns and cities. By January, 2011 she had been living in Kingston, Ontario for 15 years and all of a sudden felt it was time for a big move. She had a repetitive intuition about Kelowna, even though she knew almost nothing about our city at that time. A very profound and somewhat lengthy discussion about intuition and self awareness. Several examples from her life and mine. A surprising fact: Many people decide to come to Kelowna after having strong intuitions and dreams. Arriving in the dark, and waking up the next morning to the majesty of Big White: Gobsmacked. So many reasons for loving Kelowna. If you’re considering moving here, you need to hear this section of the interview. Bonita teaches yoga

A really cool conversation with Scott Stanger from Optimiiize Kelowna! Scott is going to revolutionize the way we look at fitness and physiotherapy by combining the two fields into a central location. You can listen to Episode 16 of the I Love Kelowna Podcast right here. If you enjoyed this episode, an iTunes review would be SO appreciated! https://tinyurl.com/y8jax3xb SHOW NOTES Scott was born and raised in Richmond Hill, just north of Toronto, Ontario. In the health and fitness world for over 10 years now. A challenging and adventurous cross-Canada drive with an old car in January 2018! Scott founded Optimiize in early 2018. It is a very unique concept: the integration of exercise with physical therapy. An affordable fitness option combined with physiotherapists on staff. Why it makes perfect sense to combine the two separate fields into one: physio + fitness The vital importance of coaching so that you avoid injury AND gain maximum benefit from your workouts. Scott got to work as a trainer for the Canadian

This is a really interesting discussion with Grant Biggs from Kitcsh Wines! We discuss the current state of the Canadian economy and ongoing NAFTA negotiations with the United States and Mexico. You can hear Episode 15 of the I Love Kelowna Podcast here. If you enjoyed this episode, an iTunes review would be SO appreciated! https://tinyurl.com/y8jax3xb SHOW NOTES Grant was born and raised in Port Alberni. French grandmother and Italian grandfather connected him to food and wine in a very positive way from a young age. Should you go to university straight out of high school? Hotel Grand Pacific in Victoria is where he worked when he started his sommelier education. Extensive restaurant and retail background. Decided to move to 2010 in Kelowna to make wine; friends thought he was crazy! Worked at Raudz downtown, where he got to meet and learn from a lot of people in the industry. Started to study chemistry and take distance learning courses on wine making. 2012 was his first job at a winery with Mt. Boucherie i

What a great conversation with Laura Draycott from Wink I Wear! It was a ton of fun getting to know her. You can hear Episode 14 of the I Love Kelowna Podcast here. If you enjoyed this episode, an iTunes review would be SO appreciated! https://tinyurl.com/y8jax3xb SHOW NOTES Laura was born in Hamilton, Ontario and grew up in Calgary, Alberta. Now in the eyeglass business for a decade. Fell in love with the wine, the people and the mountains of Kelowna and moved here in 2011. A gradual introduction into the eyeglasses business: working at an eyeglass shop that wasn’t stylish or run the way she KNEW she could run her own shop. A love of fashion and design, and some horrible bosses, gave her the impetus to become an entrepreneur with the full support of her husband. Fun trips to New York to shop for eyeglasses at the world’s largest eyewear trade show, the International Vision Expo. Also: Vegas, Paris, and Florence, Italy! Learning to master Social Media Marketing and how it’s really helped launch the business.

I had a great discussion with Heith Martin, co-owner and co-founder of one of my favourite pubs in the entire city, FSH! You can listen to Episode 13 of the I Love Kelowna Podcast here. If you enjoyed this episode, an iTunes review would be SO appreciated! https://tinyurl.com/y8jax3xb SHOW NOTES Heith was born and raised in Regina. Started in the restaurant business as a dishwasher and delivery driver at Boston Pizza at the age of 16. Got into the nightclub business, first as a busser, because he was not as large as the bouncers when he was still a teenager. Went to university in the States, then came back to Regina and got a job at Checkers Nightclub as a doorman for 4/5 years. Learned all about the food and beverage business including fundraising, event promotion and so on. So 4-5 of his colleagues and he decided to open their own nightclub in 2001. In the meantime he was a volunteer football and basketball coach, always giving back to the community. In year two they bought a building and opened a second ni

My friend Garth and I had a lot of good laughs and encouraging words on this show! If you’re a realtor or know one, you’re going to love this episode as much as the last one. This is Episode 12 of the I Love Kelowna Podcast. If you enjoyed this episode, an iTunes review would be SO appreciated! https://tinyurl.com/y8jax3xb SHOW NOTES Garth Donhauser of RE/MAX Kelowna has 9 years of experience as a REALTOR® in the Okanagan. Lived in Alberta for most of his life, then Manitoba for 12 years, then Calgary in 1992. If you’re going to be broke, be were you want to be! Came to Kelowna in 2006. In 2009 when Garth decided to be a REALTOR®, people thought he was crazy, but he saw opportunity. Breaking even in the first year was great, because he knew he could repeat that and even improve on it. His father was a plumber, and a good friend was an engineer, and so over time he learned about framing, drywall, electrical, roofing – all of the components of building and repairing a house. Even though he became skilled at con

I really learned some powerful things about my friend Jason Neumann in this interview. He was vulnerable, charming, funny and even inspirational to me. If you are a realtor, or know a realtor, I believe you will really enjoy this interview. You can listen to it here. Jason Neumann of RE/MAX Kelowna was born in New Westminster, then lived in Abbotsford for 30 years. Moved to the Okanagan 15 years ago where he got into new construction sales and marketing up at Big White. Two years later he moved to Kelowna. His parents were builders, then he ran a lumber yard, then built roof trusses, then moved into engineering and shipping / receiving. The moment he decided to become a REALTOR®. Building the skill of networking and relating to people. Yes, that is an actual skill you can cultivate! Jason loves the fact that people put their trust in him for the most important transactions of their lives. Dealing with children when showing houses. What it’s like dealing with divorce and children, self esteem issues, and final

Tony Lewis was born in California. His parents moved from Wales to Canada in the late 1970s but then moved to California where he was born near San Francisco. First band named Storytime in Lake Tahoe. Went to recording school in Huntington Beach, CA and became an entrepreneur, recording bands. Opened a recording school in Long Beach, then went to Hollywood, right at Sunset and Vine! Finding creative ways to make money in the extremely competitive L.A. music business. Auditioning for Capitol Records… on the sidewalk! Making the transition from musician to recording engineer. Complete life transformation from having his first daughter. Unemployment! Then being invited by his father to move to Kelowna in 2007. “It’s just like California!” Starting as a big fan of beers, but had no real appreciation for wine. Okanagan Villa became Vibrant Vine. The unbelievable amount of physical labour required to run a successful winery. Different ways to learn: the long and meandering way or the fast and efficient way. Learn T

Sean loved Karate from a very young age: Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan Got into weight lifting from elementary school, wrestling from junior high. Went to the Canadian Games for Olympic Lifting as a young man. When he started in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, there was literally no one in BC who was doing it, but soon masters like Marcus Soares and Dennis King and Stephan Kesting from grapplearts.com began to emerge, and he got to train with them. Started as a gym rat but was always intrigued with the martial arts. Had a dream to run his own gym. From a sublease in 2010 in Penticton he taught 3 classes a week. Then 5 years ago in Kelowna opened up First Strike Martial Arts. Since the Spring of this year, Alliance Jiu Jitsu on Kirschner, which is part of the most successful team in North America. The difference between Jiu Jitsu and other martial arts: the strategic use of leverage! Appearances aren’t everything! Getting past your self-perceptions about your looks. Failure is a huge part of success! The biggest challenge for a

I am so loving this new hobby of mine! In this fascinating conversation with Lisa Alentejano with mortgageplayground.com we discuss: Lisa has been in the mortgage broker business for almost 9 years and in finance over 20 years. She is also now a certified yoga instructor! What it was like getting into real estate in 2008 when the Kelowna market declined in a big way How to survive and prosper in a down market Getting yourself motivated to prospect every day, especially when your results are not immediate. Non stop education is the key to success in any business, including mortgage brokering Start building relationships before you even finish the course! Tell people what you are doing and why you’re excited about what you’re learning The profound and challenging life changes that come from divorce A little bit about her book Women Rising Journalling, authoring, learning yoga and gratitude practice Getting through the very challenging first year in a new business Fear of falling and a riveting story of jumping

Paul was the drummer for the very popular Canadian band Hot Hot Heat from 1999-2016 That moment when you know your hobby is actually becoming something serious An 11 year old drummer in the house?? How do parents deal with the noise? Life in Victoria, BC as a young teenage musician Even when you suck at the start, when you want something bad enough and you persist, good things eventually start to happen! That first feeling of having “arrived”… a call from Sub Pop Records! In some ways we are the same person we were when we were kids and in other ways we have changed so dramatically. Life as a travelling band. Meeting Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters and touring with him. Growing up and winding down the band, deciding to start a family and become a realtor. Dealing with major setbacks in life, including grieving the loss of the band Everything in life has a beginning, middle and end What Paul loves about his real estate career http://paulhawley.caSupport the showNOMINATE YOURSELF, ANOTHER PERSON OR A BUSINESS TO

In this interview, Julie and I discuss: Julie and I discuss: – Introversion vs. extroversion – Building a new business from scratch through networking, referrals, and word of mouth. – The challenges of a new business: cash flow, insurance and liability, photo shoots gone bad. – Should you mail out a price list? – The challenges and frustrations from dealing with realtors, homeowners and tenants – Showing off beautiful property: how to present your home in the best possible light – Dos and Don’t for realtors! Preparing for success – What makes the perfect client, and what Julie loves so much about her job – A lot more people than you probably think should be using professional photography in their business! – Very powerful advice for anyone starting out in a brand new business, including why you should join networking groups – Personal: What it means to be a mature person, and how having children changes you – A personal story about Julie that will surprise you! Find Julie at: https://www.snapcommercial.caSupp

Tracey is the owner of Points West…. Technology and the customers it helps, is her focus. Points West has a really interesting healthcare division that supplies equipment for long term care facilities with a focus on staff safety and dementia care and I definitely want to ask her about that! Their reach extends to customers throughout BC, Yukon and Northwest Territories. Points West has been recognized for its high levels of customer service for almost 30 years. Volunteering is also a passion of Tracey’s. She serves as committee member for the annual Walk to Fight Arthritis, Parent Advisory Councils, Girl Guides of Canada, and her latest position is as a director on the board for Starbright Children's Development Centre.Support the showNOMINATE YOURSELF, ANOTHER PERSON OR A BUSINESS TO APPEAR ON THE I LOVE KELOWNA PODCAST

Christine has an unshakable belief that a bright new world is just around the corner, where each person has realized his or her true potential, and lives the best life possible. She has been called “a visionary speaker with a clear mission to inspire others to greatness”. Christine leads her audiences and clients to profound conclusions about their lives, and provides the framework and tools to really show up. For 15 years, Christine worked as a lawyer, judge and mediator while raising her own son and daughter. Over those years, she took an active interest in youth activities, sports and personal development, enjoying mentoring young athletes in pursuit of their dreams. In 2004, Christine changed her own career focus to follow her true passion-teaching others to live their best lives and feel awesome! https://powerwithin.ca/about-chris-patton/Support the showNOMINATE YOURSELF, ANOTHER PERSON OR A BUSINESS TO APPEAR ON THE I LOVE KELOWNA PODCAST

Crispin Butterfield is the creative force and mastermind behind Urban Theory. A graduate of the Bachelor of Interior Design program at Mount Royal University in Calgary, Alberta, her engaging personality and design-commerce savvy make her a valued and well-respected professional and mentor within her field. She's able to uniquely see the parameters and vision of each new project, and has honed the process and expertise required to grow incredible client relationships. Crispin embraces a full life of ingenuity, fuelled by raw ambition and a desire to leave her mark on the world. Her impeccable design style and rock-solid business acumen is the foundation which allows Urban Theory Interior Design to provide full scale services with authenticity, innovation, and ample amounts of personality. http://urbantheoryinteriordesign.com https://www.facebook.com/urbantheoryinteriordesign/Support the showNOMINATE YOURSELF, ANOTHER PERSON OR A BUSINESS TO APPEAR ON THE I LOVE KELOWNA PODCAST