How do you combine technology with business? This is an angle that Don Stickney wanted to explore with Playbook, his consultancy that advises on how to use technology as leverage for business. To him, his clients don’t simply want advice on how to succeed, but rather advice on how to be a thought leader. This is far cry from his beginnings as a hot tub salesperson but his ability to talk to others and fix their problems made him realize that he was in for a communications- and relations-related career.

Did you know there is a World Happiness Report? That is what John Helliwell devotes his professional life to, creating metrics and analyses to measure happiness around the world in order to influence decisions that promote personal wellbeing – a far cry from where he thought he would end up.

For Chyanne Trenholm, meeting people from all over the world is an everyday occurrence at Homalco Wildlife & Cultural Tours. Fittingly, her love for tourism started with the outdoors. Combined with her educational background in physical education, it has well-positioned her to connect visitors with nature and introduce them to Canada’s indigenous culture in a way that never would have been possible in their home countries or cities.

Problem solving – that is how lawyer Bruce McIvor describes his job. To him, that is why people come to lawyers. It is about identifying the problem, the solution, and barriers to the solution. “It’s often not about the law,” he claims. “It’s about relationships” and how legal issues tend to come up when a relationship has failed in some way. That is also something he teaches his students at the University of British Columbia, helping shape the next generation of lawyers.