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Community-Centred Leadership: What Growing Up in a Small Town Taught One Man About Business, Belonging, and Giving Back
23 Plays13 days ago
Host Robbie Spier Miller speaks with Scott Bridger from the Burlington Chamber of Commerce about the impact of community-centred leadership in business and life.
- Scott shares stories from his small-town upbringing and early volunteer experiences that shaped his core values of integrity, accountability, and generosity.
- Learn how those values continue to inform his work supporting entrepreneurs, nurturing local business, and creating culture at the chamber.
- From volunteering at a day camp at age 13 to mentoring new business owners today, Scott’s journey is a powerful example of how service leads to success.
- The episode explores how connection, contribution, and character form the foundation of meaningful leadership—both in organizations and in everyday life.
- Perfect for entrepreneurs, community builders, and anyone who wants to lead with more purpose and people-focus.
With over 25 years of experience in the Chamber of Commerce network, Scott Bridger is a seasoned leader in community engagement and membership development, currently serving at the Burlington Chamber of Commerce.
He is a current member of the Burlington Today Advisory Board, a past President of the Canadian Chamber Executives, and was honoured as Employee of the Year by the Canadian Chamber of Commerce.
Scott’s deep roots in volunteerism include serving as Board President of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Waterloo Region and Chair of Cambridge Celebrates Canada Day—roles that reflect his lifelong commitment to giving back and bringing people together.
Scott is passionate about travel, sports, and family—and most of all, he loves connecting with entrepreneurs to help them grow, thrive, and feel at home in their community.
You can connect with Scott Bridger here:
https://www.burlingtonchamber.com/who-we-are-bcc/
Learn more about how Robbie Spier Miller’s coaching, training, consulting and speaking opportunities can help you enhance your personal and business performance here:
https://www.hypnosistrainingcanada.com
https://www.mindlinkconsulting.com
@hypnosistrainingcanada
@robbiespiermiller
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Transcript
The Benefits of Giving Back
00:00:00
Speaker
Giving back is probably one of the most beneficial things that I've ever done in my life, and and I've i've all you know continued to do that for many years.
00:00:10
Speaker
Welcome to the Habit of Possibility podcast, the show about turning obstacles into opportunities to create a better life and career. I'm your host, Robbie Spear-Miller.
Community-Centered Leadership in Business
00:00:21
Speaker
Today, we're exploring the power of community-centered leadership and how focusing on giving and connection not only supports others, it can also strengthen your business or nonprofit in meaningful ways.
00:00:33
Speaker
Joining me is Scott Bridger from the Burlington Chamber of Commerce. Scott brings over 25 years of experience in contributing to community, building relationships, supporting entrepreneurs, and leading with purpose.
00:00:45
Speaker
He'll be sharing the values that guide his work and the ripple effect that generosity can have both personally and professionally. Hello,
Scott Bridger's Journey in Community Involvement
00:00:54
Speaker
everybody. This is Robbie Spear-Miller, your host for the Habit of Possibility podcast.
00:00:58
Speaker
Today, I'm going to be speaking with Scott Bridger, who is from the Burlington Chamber of Commerce, and he's the one who helped me join. i think it was about over a year ago now. um And that everybody there is doing a fantastic job.
00:01:13
Speaker
And what we're going to talk about is exploring how um Scott's experience with building community went really far back and how, you know, his skill at this and how he brings this into his success with the Chamber. So welcome, Scott. Hi, welcome. thank Glad to be here.
00:01:29
Speaker
Yeah, thanks for coming. So tell us a little bit about where all that this community, you know, building started for you. Well, I think that i ah ah in a very young life, i was very yeah my my sister was very much a um kind of a role model for me. and She was someone who always said, you know you've got to get in your community, you've got to get involved.
00:01:56
Speaker
um You know, it's going to help you down. and And she actually got me volunteering at a day camp when I was like 13, 14. And throughout my career, I have always done lots of lots of lots of thought ah volunteer work, which I always felt is...
00:02:14
Speaker
So important to to get to know the roots of the community and, and and um you know, it's ah it's beneficial from a work-related sign standpoint too, but that's not why I do it.
00:02:25
Speaker
ah It's there because I want to give back to the community that has served me so well. no Okay. Yeah. And when we were talking earlier, you mentioned that when you were growing up, you also were living in a more like a smaller town kind of place. Yeah.
00:02:42
Speaker
And so what what like what did you pick up from being in that environment that helps you? Well, it was, you know, my parents kind of had to drag me literally almost out of Toronto. I mean, I was like 13, 14, you know, going to high school, ah you know, active in sports and active ah in the big city. and And so it was a little surprising when my when my mother and father told me that they had bought a place in a small town in rural Ontario and that we were moving there.
Community Support and Personal Growth in Small Towns
00:03:18
Speaker
Um, and you know, I mean, it was, wasn't great at first, but, uh, I got, so I get to a small town that, that had probably less people in the town than the high school that, uh, uh, that I was going to, at the time in Toronto.
00:03:35
Speaker
Um, but it didn't take long before I got to, i see just how much people in small town Ontario, uh,
00:03:46
Speaker
bid into ah working together in the community, the the the fundraising efforts. I got started at it very early and it was there also that I started i started volunteering at a day camp ah and really started to get involved in the community and got my first job.
00:04:06
Speaker
Uh, so it was, it was quite different. And, uh, and, uh, but I think I look back at it. I mean, many of the people that I went to school with were, were, were from farms and, and, you know, many of those people stayed on, stayed, stayed with their parents farm.
00:04:24
Speaker
And there wasn't really much in the way of, uh, post-secondary education. There was really nothing in the town. I mean, it was, you were either going to London or Kitchener,
00:04:35
Speaker
ah and and you know there was A lot of people kind of lived their life there by knowing they were going to stay on the farm, ah but there was lots of people who knew that they were going to broaden their horizons and and eventually leave. but But, you know, i I saw that town come together um many, many times when there was, you know, perhaps, unfortunately, maybe tragedies in the community, ah that sort of thing.
00:05:05
Speaker
But I really learned in my time in that small town just what what made up really good friends. And I have many, many, many friends still from that high school era, which is 50 years ago.
00:05:21
Speaker
Yeah, wow. Yeah. So people were very people-oriented and and that was the focus. yeah but Well, it was, I think everybody knew what everybody was doing, mean, in a small town, and and i mean, there was...
00:05:38
Speaker
ah Everyone knew everybody and and that was you know really part of the ah the beauty of of of growing up in a small rural Ontario town. um you know We didn't have a movie theater, of course no phones, no internet.
00:05:53
Speaker
my My first telephone at my parents' house was a yeah um a party line. So there was a ah farm next door with the people there. I mean, I'd be you know talking to a friend and And, you know, someone would be picking it up or, you know, oh, we need the phone, you know, that sort of thing. But, yeah.
00:06:13
Speaker
That's funny because you think of that as being like from, I don't know, the 1950s time frame. I was born in 59. Yeah. yeah So this was 60s. Yeah. not You know,
00:06:26
Speaker
you know one one phone and and you know I look back at it and I think about now and you know when you're going to meet a group of people somewhere it's just very easy to uh you know text hey you know we're here now see you we're moving we're not going to stay we're going to this place or whatever back in those days it was in a small town with with nothing to to really talk to it uh if you decided to move on to and go somewhere else you your buddies would eventually find you because everyone else knew where you were.
00:07:00
Speaker
and Well, it's funny you say that, Scott, because one of the things that we teach people here and with hypnosis, we're helping people get their goals. And often what's in their way is a lack of accountability, meaning that they can get away with things in their own mind and nobody knows. And then life just goes on, and but they're hurting themselves.
00:07:20
Speaker
yeah So we talk about how and Imagine that there was a cartoon bubble above your head and people could read your thoughts all the time so that there was no, like people would know exactly what you were thinking and doing.
00:07:33
Speaker
And that there are some benefits to that in terms of following through on things, having integrity, right, being trustworthy. Here we we mostly teach people to do that simply for themselves, but in a community that's also something that we want to Encourage because when you're in a community it matters people know if things go great people know if things don't go great people know and you know, I guess there are downsides to that because I'm sure there's a lot of gossip and things like that It definitely holds you accountable.
00:08:07
Speaker
I was gonna say you yet yeah when When you kind of maybe did something silly as a teenager, and I did a few things, I mean, but no i always i I was always more worried about my parents hearing about it than than anybody else. I think everyone else probably knew, but but everybody was kind of that way. I mean, we had good...
00:08:33
Speaker
good family values ah in a small community. And it was a different time. It was a different
Volunteering's Impact on Career and Personal Life
00:08:40
Speaker
world. I mean, um I don't know whether you're going to ask me about, you know, i was trying to remember, one thing I was trying to remember when we were going to talk today was when I kind of finally decided what I really wanted to do, but it was somewhere in there towards towards the end of the time that I i kind of knew where where I wanted to go and what I wanted to do. And that came from certainly with some of the friends I have. And and as I said, I've kept in touch with many of them. and
00:09:08
Speaker
And, you know, so so some of these people, you know, you know very successful people. If you're enjoying this podcast, please like and follow us and post a review so other people can find us too.
00:09:25
Speaker
It's interesting because you have this great experience growing up in this smaller community and then you've really been most for most of your career, you've been working building communities like Burlington is not a small community.
00:09:39
Speaker
You know, we're in the GTA. There are millions of people who live around here. i think Burlington itself has about 200,000 people, but we're attached to we're right beside tons of other communities. So it's a lot of people.
00:09:52
Speaker
um But the Chamber does create this amazing community, like people really know each other and there's a sense of caring. And so i I think it's really interesting from a hypnotic point of view to observe that that was the choice you made because we tend to recreate environments in our lives.
00:10:11
Speaker
Sometimes recreate negative ones, unfortunately, and sometimes we create really positive ones, which is what you've done. So talk a little bit more about that. about about ah about growing up in the community and and making that decision. And I did eventually, when I left ah when i left the the small community, I mean, I did meander my way back in and ended up in the Kitchener-Waterloo-Guelph-Cambridge area for many years, which is a larger community too.
00:10:42
Speaker
um But i you know the the the the folks that I grew up with in the small town I was in, many of them moved to that Kitchener, Waterloo, Cambridge area. It was an hour and a half away, either that or London.
00:10:59
Speaker
um I chose the route. My sister actually went to went to Western. ah She went to London. um and And myself, i I went to the Kitchener-Waterloo area after doing ah a couple of great things around the country and and started with with my education there.
00:11:17
Speaker
and And actually, in my first year of ah college, I lived with a chap who was a year older, um but was from the same small town. And it was through those connections you know that we made. And I saw him three months ago. So ah I still keep in in touch.
00:11:37
Speaker
i I often think you know where my life would have been had I decided to stay, or my parents, I guess at that time, had decided to stay in Toronto. My father worked for many years for IBM.
00:11:50
Speaker
ah had he not decided to to to move on from that ah where I would have ended up. But um I'm happy really happy the way it went and and and I mean I guess there comes a time where the where where where you are makes a difference but it's but it's what's in here too.
00:12:13
Speaker
and um You know, i I've done a tremendous amount of volunteering over the years. I was president of Big Brothers Big Sisters. I ran the Cambridge Canada Day event for nine years, worked at, volunteered at the hospital.
00:12:27
Speaker
I've always given back to the the community that i that that i' that I'm living in. um To me, it's... ah and know um When I meet with new chamber members and they're young entrepreneurs and they say, Scott, what what should I do? how How do I get started? i've I've always pushed people to say, and they shouldn't need to be pushed, but sometimes they need a nudge to start to volunteer in their community.
00:12:55
Speaker
and over the years that I've been with the Chamber, I've seen so many successful folks that that started doing that and started to build their their circle, their rapport, their their their their own life. And um giving back is probably one of the most beneficial things that I've ever done in my life and and I've i've all you know continued to do that for many years.
00:13:21
Speaker
Yeah. Okay. And talk about when you said you decided what you wanted to do as a career, talk about how do you made that decision and what attracted you to what you do.
00:13:33
Speaker
Well, when I was ah um living in the small town and and and growing up, my my older sister, um ah she had got me involved. She was working at ah at at the YMCA,
00:13:47
Speaker
um half an hour away. And I started to volunteer there. And I started to work at at a day camp and started to get involved in the programs at at ah ah a small YMCA in comparison to what you know you see now.
00:14:02
Speaker
ah They were all YMCA, now they're YMYWCA, but this was a YMCA. But i I started to work at the day camp there and working with younger kids. I mean, I was only 14 or 15, but, um and it was there that I decided that I wanted to to to get into recreation leadership.
00:14:23
Speaker
um which is what I took at college and wanted to get into rec. I wanted to maybe get into municipal recreation, um you know, that sort of field.
00:14:34
Speaker
um But I i i spent ah i spent the the last summer before I was supposed to go to Conestoga College, I had a I became a junior forest ranger for the summer.
00:14:46
Speaker
um Another great experience, ah north shore of Lake Superior for two months. Black flies were bad. Wow, it must have been stunning. Yeah, you beautiful. yeah merit merit Marathon was the name of the town, and it was a provincial park ah just on the north shore, about an hour outside of Thunder Bay. but ah So I was 17.
00:15:08
Speaker
scheduled to go to school that fall. It was a summer. It was only the junior forest ranger program is only something you can do at that one age. It's 17. It's a one-year thing. And they hire a prop. They used to bring about a thousand students and you'd get shipped to different parks, different ministry areas throughout the throughout the throughout the province.
00:15:30
Speaker
um And about two weeks before I was to come back, um I was all set to go to college, you know i paid and deposit and all that stuff.
00:15:41
Speaker
But I had taken an interview at my sister's um nudging ah for a brand new program that had just started up called Katimavik which is an Inuit word for meeting place and they brought a thousand ah kids but 17 to 25 I was at the low end I was 17 and they picked kids to provide a cross-section of the country so there was francophone there was male there was female there was age difference ah you know economic where where your background
00:16:14
Speaker
probably helped me being from a small town. And so it was a one-year program and I i took a big leap right there.
Career in Recreation Leadership
00:16:22
Speaker
my my um My mom called me and said, they just sent and just got a letter that you've been accepted at this and what what are you going to do?
00:16:29
Speaker
So I went. I postponed school for a year and I spent a year traveling around Canada with a group of 30 people. It dwindled by 11. I mean, there was interaction and, you know, 1725, you're moving here. and We went to three different areas of Canada. And again, we did community work.
00:16:48
Speaker
We had jobs, at which we did. And that we got paid a dollar a day. ah which they gave us $7 at the end of the week. ah But everything was paid for. I mean, all our food and everything.
00:16:59
Speaker
And if you made it through, you got $1,000. And that's what I did. And I i made it through. I say, 11 of the people left on the way. and and And so I just delayed everything for a year. And then I went on and I did take recreation leadership. And my first job was at the YMCA when I got out in Kitchener.
00:17:17
Speaker
Cool. Yeah. Yeah. So everything you've been attracted to is all about people and giving, right? Giving to others, connection, um enhancing quality of life for people in various ways.
00:17:31
Speaker
That's where you find meaning. So you're very attracted to that. Yeah, and i you know we were, we were um when I was on the government program, Katimovic, I mean, we were mandated that we spent at least two days in the community, and we had to go out and find our own places. And I kind of got back into that recreation there again when I was away. I was you know working at the, well, actually worked at a high school,
00:17:59
Speaker
ah ah for for for a couple of months. So um it's always been kind of around that community, giving back, um And, you know, the rewards have been, that was the very first year of that program ran, Katimovic, and it ran for many years.
00:18:18
Speaker
ah But I never would ever, ever regret ah
Challenges and Growth in Youth
00:18:24
Speaker
that. And I still have a ah few acquaintances from ah from that era as well.
00:18:30
Speaker
The beauty of Facebook and things like that, I guess. Yeah, no kidding. Yeah. Yeah, people you might never have seen again. All of a sudden, you're connected. I did go up up to Ottawa. They had a 25th reunion, and there was many of those people in that first group of 30 that I traveled across the three different areas of Canada with.
00:18:51
Speaker
So great great times, great experience. Opened my eyes. Glad I did it. Never regret it. I bet between being a forest ranger and doing Katimovic, you had some experiences that were really challenging where you showed yourself you could handle maybe more than you thought or you just like got things done because they needed to get done and then you look back on it and you're like, well, I did that. Did that happen for you? Yeah. I mean, when you think, when I left for Katimovic just after finishing the junior ranger, the junior ranger wasn't so bad because it was
00:19:24
Speaker
It was a group of 40 young men, all the same age. we We were just from different backgrounds. um But I mean, we we had you know some good you know physical labor that we did in the campsite, you know collecting garbage and firewood and all that. We did all that sort of stuff.
00:19:43
Speaker
Katimovic was a little bit different in that there was, I was 17 and I was, you know, it went from 17 to 25. So I was kind of the the baby of the of the ah ah ah the group of 30 actually. like And um I think the biggest thing for me was was because I had been gone all summer,
00:20:04
Speaker
Um, the, the old, uh, you know, 17, the old homesickness started, uh, to settle in. I was gone for like 16, 15, 16 months at 17.
00:20:17
Speaker
But then I think my, my, my father, ah was in the second world war and, he you know I always looked up to him because you know I'd say that to him and he'd say, well, I joined when I was 18. He was gone for four years. No no contact at all. they had letter here and there. but But I was corresponding with my parents through letters as well.
00:20:38
Speaker
Mm-hmm. at that time. yeah ah But I mean, so probably homesickness, ah you know my you know, missing my my family and friends back and at home. But that was probably one of the toughest things. But but but we had to, um you know, the way Katimovic was set up, I mean, you fended for yourself. we We weren't staying at the, you know, we we were staying in and we weren't staying in hotels and that we were staying in some meager ah places uh northern Quebec and uh you know it was it was tough and and you know it was nice to think about going home and you know watching tv or whatever just didn't have any of that but great experiences for sure
00:21:26
Speaker
Yeah, all right. And so your dad was your role model and he'd been through World War II. So to him, he was like, he he expected you to be able to do tough things and make things happen and be self-sufficient.
00:21:41
Speaker
And then you sought out those type of experiences and you just expected yourself to do it. yeah and and Sorry, and I was just going to say, like our group of 30, we were responsible for our own cooking,
00:21:52
Speaker
ah everything. So, you know, at 17, it was a good experience for me. Yeah, well, it's great experience. and And I think from the point of view of having what it takes to build a business or be in sales or something where you have to go out and and be self-reliant in many ways, but yet connected, you had a lot of early experiences that made you confident about that and just expect to do it.
00:22:21
Speaker
And I think a lot of people don't have those experiences yeah as a young person, or they might not have a role model like your dad. And so they never really show themselves what they're capable of. And it's unfortunate because i that a lot of people could probably ah do more than they think they can.
Passing on Values to the Next Generation
00:22:41
Speaker
Yes. i I think it gave me the opportunity to ah You know, I i was, my my other brothers and sisters had left ah at home ah when I was kind of the last one there and then left. So the baby of the family, I was, you know, coddled pretty good at home, I think, you know, going up through high school and,
00:23:07
Speaker
And so it was an eye opening experience. And, you know, now I'm i'm in a situation where i have a stepdaughter that's saw heading off next week to school.
00:23:20
Speaker
ah So, you know, far away, Sault Ste. Marie. ah So, you know, i I'm hoping to to bring some of those things that I went through with my parents and learned so that I can be, you know, help her with a role model with with with going away and and the experiences that will be first for her too.
00:23:42
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. Great. Well, she's lucky to have you there to help her adjust because I think being, ah you know, going from that stage from high school to college is a really interesting time for a lot of people. It certainly was for me. Right. It was a big adjustment. And I've seen a lot of clients in that age range who, you know,
00:24:03
Speaker
sometimes struggle in various ways because sometimes we we want to be like Peter Pan. right yeah Understandably, right? you You get it, right? Like when you were feeling homesick or, you know, when you want to keep things the way they used to be.
00:24:17
Speaker
um So I think it's really important that that age to have some experiences where, you get pushed out of the nest and you have to show yourself you can fly. and so you had some really cool experiences like that. it was um it was, you know, I didn't, you know, I had to make that kind of split decision. I could have bypassed Katimovic. And I think, I don't know what impact it would have had other than experiences, because I mean, it was I was out fresh out of grade 12.
00:24:50
Speaker
I hadn't done any post-secondary at the time that I was on it. and Some of the people in the program had you know were university graduates and stuff. But um for me, I've always been a yeah
00:25:05
Speaker
an advocate for my own children. I have two children, two children my own as well. um And, you know, I've always, I've always told them that, you know, it's, it's a, it's, it's an experience and, and let's live it to the fullest and let's, you know, learn, live, give back and do the best you can.
00:25:28
Speaker
Yeah, and the more we challenge ourselves, the more we can give back. and So you see yourself as a person who's capable of giving, and that that's like an important part of your life. Right.
00:25:40
Speaker
And that's what I'm getting from, you know, you sharing all of this is that that's kind of a very core thing to your identity. And I'm pointing this out because one of the things that we do here when people learn hypnosis to change themselves is that we want to have the values that match the outcome.
00:25:57
Speaker
Right? So for you, you have this outcome of building community and helping businesses and you were, you know, some people are community oriented, but not necessarily entrepreneurial or self-reliant on it.
00:26:09
Speaker
You're community oriented and very self-reliant at the same time. And collaborative, like you'll work as a team. I'm sure your experience with sports helped you with that too, right? Oh, yes. You did a lot of sports and recreation. And so there's a strong value on being a team player, being connected. and And so it's, you know, if if every entrepreneur could have those things, I think it would help a lot because sometimes as business owners especially when they're newer, are too self-focused, where they're focused on what they want to get out of it or expressing themselves for the business or making money. right And it it gets in the way because people come as a client because you're giving them value.
Entrepreneurship and Community Leadership
00:26:51
Speaker
So for focused on what other people need and being of service, then the business works and it comes together. And also if we expect that we're capable, because there are ups and downs when we're building a business, but if we expect we're capable and we can handle it, we'll we'll keep going.
00:27:09
Speaker
Just like, you know, I love at the end of Katimovic that they gave you $1,000. I think that was a brilliant way to set it up um because they were rewarding you for sticking it out and taking it all the way to the end. It doesn't seem like $1,000, but was...
00:27:28
Speaker
And at that age, right? At that age and at that time, like now a thousand bucks would probably be at least 5,000. Yeah, no, it was the biggest heck I ever had.
00:27:39
Speaker
Yeah, for an 18-year-old to get 5,000 bucks. My kids would be happy with it around age. So, yeah, yeah, but the structure of that, of of having you look towards...
00:27:52
Speaker
you know The outcome of completion and the having a reward associated with completion um helps a lot. And I think for people building a business, ah sometimes we need to create that kind of thing for ourselves because nobody's going to give it to us.
00:28:07
Speaker
But setting clear outcomes and then giving ourselves some reward for achieving them, having some recognition or a ritual around it, It really helps pull us forward and it helps us get beyond the, you know, that the bumps in the road that inevitably happen.
00:28:25
Speaker
I think there's one, ah you know, i when it comes to business and entrepreneurs, I i never... I never really, from a professional in work, and I never hadve i've i'd never had my own business.
00:28:40
Speaker
um And that's kind of one thing I wish maybe, but but I do feel that ah in a lot of the volunteer work that I did um ah with Big Brothers Big Sisters running the the Cambridge Canada Day event for many years,
00:28:59
Speaker
They were entrepreneurial in its own right in that I was able to kind of have the flexibility to take the association in the direction that the board and the or the committee had.
00:29:12
Speaker
And I was able to do that. i so i I still get a buzz every time i meet the young entrepreneur and I do meet lots that are just starting out. And I just love to see that passion in their eyes and, and seeing the drive that they have.
00:29:31
Speaker
And I see some very smart young folks coming out today that, uh, um, I maybe wish I had a tried it, but, And the same token, I i think that i the the I've been able to, I was given the ability to help help help these folks, and you know, after sitting back and watching for so many years growing up, part-time jobs, my own self. But um yeah, it still gets the fire going in me when I see a a young couple or ah somebody starting their own business.
Networking and Community Impact at the Chamber
00:30:08
Speaker
And I,
00:30:09
Speaker
um can have a small hand and and and you know some guidance for them and and and help open doors. Yeah. Yeah. And I would say, Scott, you're very entrepreneurial.
00:30:22
Speaker
Everything you've done, even though you've worked with a team or a larger organization or for a charity or for the chamber, you're creating, you're making things happen yeah and you're leading.
00:30:33
Speaker
And that's really what it boils down to as an entrepreneur. you didnt You're just doing it as part of ah a community or a larger organization. So Yeah, so I bet one day if you decide you want to start a business, you do great.
00:30:47
Speaker
And the cool thing about these days is that the kind of businesses people have are so diverse. Like, oh my God, the possibilities are endless. And when we were younger, it was more, you could you could start your own business, but the kind of creativity or options or access was very different. And I think it's a very cool time of life for people who are starting out now. And I, I, uh,
00:31:11
Speaker
I, when I have a, you know, sometimes I, i you know, I spend a good, you know, lots of time during my week with just meeting with people, people I don't know, or I never met before.
00:31:23
Speaker
um And I, sometimes I come out of the, you know, the, we'll grab a coffee or whatever, and I'll come out of the meeting and I'll say, boy, that, that individual has got it going on. I mean, what a great idea. And um immediately when I listened to an entrepreneur tell me the story about the business that they're starting and what they're trying to do.
00:31:48
Speaker
I'm always got things going on. I'm always like, okay, what can I tell them to help them? Or who can I connect them with? Or, or, or how, how can the chamber benefit them?
00:32:00
Speaker
um And how can, you know, what, so it it's been a great journey to be able to sit and and talk to these folks and, um You know, of doing it for 25 years now, I mean, i i mean I've worked with with people when I first started at the Chamber who have sold their businesses for multi-millions of dollars.
00:32:25
Speaker
It's happened and so proud to see that and what the successes that they've they've done. And if I've been ah just a small part of that, I'm i'm good with that.
00:32:36
Speaker
Yeah, well, Scott, what I remember when I first joined the chamber, you're the person who signed me up. and And I love that you showed me, you gave me value right away, real value.
00:32:49
Speaker
And it's unusual that that happens. I've been part a part of a lot of different organizations and you know networking situations, and I was a member of the Chamber for many, many years before i rejoined with you.
00:33:00
Speaker
And um I've never really had that kind of experience that right off the bat somebody is showing me. And you continue to do it, right? Right off the bat, you gain value and you're always looking for how you can connect people, how you can help.
00:33:15
Speaker
And it's really awesome, like from from the the other side of that. And you do it in a way that's valuable. It's not just guy some people do it as a token thing, but like you make it happen bad it to the best you can.
00:33:29
Speaker
And, you know, if more people were doing that, we our community would be even stronger. So I think it's a very good quality to model and admire because you're you're like on it.
00:33:42
Speaker
Like I can tell you the wheels are turning and you're making connections and right, like that's like your your specialty, yeah one of your many specialties. Well, thank you. Yeah, it's, um you know, some ah there isn't many people that have worked in the sales end of, in in a chamber anywhere in the country for 25 years. um' Matter of fact, I think I'm probably the only one.
00:34:10
Speaker
um and But it it's ah it's been such a, it's been as good for me as for anything. I mean, it's from what I've learned and from, from I had the opportunity to to help shape young people starting out.
00:34:27
Speaker
And that to me is the biggest thrill for me. And I bet you've also met all kinds of people. Like I find as a business owner, you get to know people who own all kinds of businesses or thes are people from all walks of life.
Creating Inclusive Cultures
00:34:40
Speaker
And it's so interesting. Sometimes there are things you never even imagined. Yeah, I've met in 25 years. i i ah i yeah I don't know how many thousands of ah entrepreneurs and people I've met, um people from you all kinds of different backgrounds, countries, ah different ethnic, I've had the pleasure to meet so many, so many people that, um and, and, you know, I, I met with someone ah recently from, from Africa, and I got to learn a whole ton from them. I was sitting listening to them, the you know, telling me about, about what their life was like there, and
00:35:22
Speaker
It's a spot I have not been, but I'd like to go. But um yeah, no, it's ah sometimes i I like to just sit and listen too. And and I pop in with a question or so here and there. But yeah, it's been an amazing run.
00:35:39
Speaker
I don't know. i hope it keeps going for a little while longer, but so far so good. Yeah, awesome. Yeah, well, it's been very interesting to talk to you about this. And I think that we've highlighted some really important things that you value or you focus on that other people might find helpful, whether they're trying to build more community, it could even be to have friendships, or if they are an entrepreneur and looking to build that world or wanting to work in something like what you do as a larger organization, but be a building community within that.
00:36:13
Speaker
Even companies these days want to build culture, right? Instead of calling it HR, they call it people and culture. um So they're trying to build kind of like a small town experience in a larger company.
00:36:25
Speaker
And um the the skill of doing that is a really, really valuable one. So for people who don't have it yet, I think that you're a really great model for doing that to modeling. We notice, you know, what somebody else's values or attitudes or beliefs or behaviors are.
00:36:43
Speaker
And if we agree to look at things that way and to behave from that place, then we can start to discover how to live that way too. So, it opens the doors to new possibilities.
00:36:56
Speaker
Right. That way. And I think that it's, ah um you know, I've always tried to tell a lot of the, you know, new members that I've done meeting, especially if they're, you know, they're younger you know, the sky really is the limit. And um I mean, it's always easy for me to say, I mean, i it's not my money I'm putting into the business, but I think I,
00:37:23
Speaker
been at it long enough that i you know, kind of can assist them with it, or or at least connect them with people who can help them with, you know, all the different moving parts of, of, of starting a new business. So, um, and, and as I meet people, um, I mean, not, not on, not on like, uh,
00:37:43
Speaker
you know, when when when when you and I worked on ah ah with the Center of Diverse Learners and did the kind of a business after five and and utilize your location. i mean, that just came from, you know, me talking and looking for the kind of people and the kind of ah environment that to to run an event ah for for, you know, autistic folks at the event that we did.
00:38:10
Speaker
And, you know, was it was successful, but, your place was fabulous for it. I mean, it worked out really good. And you know so and then for ah Carolyn to turn around and win not for profit of the year right after that i was better too. Because
Episode Wrap-Up and Reflections
00:38:27
Speaker
I signed Carolyn up as well from from the center. Yeah.
00:38:30
Speaker
Yeah, it's awesome. It's very impressive to see the kind of work she's doing there. So so rewarding to to see it come back. For sure. Yeah, great. Well, thanks so much, Scott. i There's so many important insights here. I hope our listeners have gotten value from this and you have so many cool, interesting stories and life experiences. So thanks for joining us.
00:38:52
Speaker
Okay. Thank you. It was my pleasure. Anytime. Okay. And how can people reach you if they want to connect with you? They can just connect at the yeah at the Burlington Chamber. If you go on our website, burlingtonchamber.com, you can click right through and email me, Scott Bridger.
00:39:09
Speaker
I'm happy to sit down and have a coffee with anybody, anytime. Great. And the Chamber is a really great organization. So for anybody in the Burlington area thinking of joining, it's really, there's an amazing team in place. So yeah, and I'll put that information in the show notes as well.
00:39:28
Speaker
Right. Okay. Well, thanks very much. Feeling stressed and need a reset? Click the link in the show notes to join one of our free stress management workshops offered both online and in person at our Hypnosis Training Canada facility in Burlington, Ontario.
00:39:43
Speaker
And if you're curious about personal or business coaching or want to explore training or consulting opportunities with us, visit MindLinkConsulting.com or HypnosisTrainingCanada.com to book your free consultation.
00:39:57
Speaker
We'd love to hear your thoughts on the show. Reach out to us through the website. And if you enjoyed the up episode, please rate and review us. It really helps others discover the habit of possibility too.
00:40:08
Speaker
I'm Robbie Spearmiller. Thanks for tuning in. Join us next time to keep discovering how to turn obstacles into opportunities and create a life and career you love. We'd love to hear your thoughts on the show.
00:40:20
Speaker
Reach out to us through our website. And if you enjoyed the episode, please rate and review us. It really helps others discover the habit of possibility. I'm Robbie Spearmiller. Thanks for tuning in.
00:40:31
Speaker
Join us next time to keep discovering how you can turn obstacles into opportunities and create the most of your life and career.