The Great Traits - News & Events

Debbie and Mark delivered a 3 hour Games Experience at the Cooperatives Managers Association's annual meeting. Using the spectacular backdrop of the Rocky Mountains, leaders reaffirmed their vision and values, and worked together to find even more effective solutions to the broad ranging challenges they face.

The XXX Olympic Games took place in London, England from Friday, July 27 - August 13th. 277 athletes and 93 coaches represented Canada and were supported by a mission team of over 300 strong. Mark was the head of the Canadian delegation, staying in the village and rallying the team. Canada placed 14th with 18 medals.

The regional leaders and branch managers of TD bank experienced the Games Experience in Mississauga, Ontario. This 2.5 hour workshop focused on the challenge of continuing to win. This 2.5 hour workshop had a strong focus on leadership, with an emphasis on being a great coach for the team back home by ensuring they get what they need to succeed.

Working with the leadership at Daimler Benz, Mark and Debbie spent two days with the team at this legendary company. Asked to consider many different case scenarios through the lens of the Great Traits, participants openly discussed their corporate culture and left ready to move even more solidly into the future.

Debbie and Mark delivered a Games Experience at the closing session of the Public Sector Information Professionals Conference in Ottawa, Ontario. This annual learning event is a highlight for professionals in this industry, and Mark and Debbie used the opportunity to inspire and engage with a 75 minute program. Participants left open to seeing things differently and ready to embrace setback and challenges in order to move forward.

Mark was invited to speak at the Canadian Club's luncheon meeting at the historic Hotel Chateau Laurier in Ottawa, Ontario. Keeping with the Canadian Club's mandate of being a place to be informed, engaged and inspired about contemporary Canadian life, Mark used the Great Traits as a framework to speak about his role as Chef de mission for the upcoming 2012 Canadian Olympic Team.

Mark and Debbie created a program that brought the conference theme of "Bring Out Your Mojo" to life at this all staff retreat in Allison, Ontario. Great Traits asked participants to consider how their thinking ultimately affects their own mojos. The team also reflected on the past successes of their fast growing company, and looked at what the future might hold when everyone brings their mojo.

What do you do when you have representatives from companies who might not know each other attending your conference? "Go To" Great Traits! Debbie and Mark were honored to deliver the opening session of this "Go To" Conference with an Achiever Trait program that helped participants break the ice, learn from each other, and set the tone for fun and learning for the rest of the conference.

The Athabasca Rotary Club in Alberta holds an annual fund raising event in order to support important local initiatives. In this playful and fast paced program, Mark and Debbie delivered a Great Traits Games Experience that provided an opportunity for personal development while stressing the importance of appreciating and celebrating community.

Debbie and Mark had the privilege of closing Revera's manager and leader conference in Toronto, Ontario. Bringing the team from across the country together, this fun and thoughtful workshop asked participants to reflect on their performance in order to bring the best them to the larger team, and challenged them to find best ways to communicate with their teams back home.

Mark and Debbie were invited to present a Games Experience to the Financial Risk Professional Conference at Manulife's head office in Toronto, Ontario. Pitting teams against teams in this game filled learning session, participants learned about the impact they have on the larger organization, and were reminded of the importance of being an excellent example.

Debbie and Mark joined the staffs from the Ontario Ministries for Children and Social Services for an off-site professional development day in Hamilton, Ontario. This interactive 2.5 hour session focused on being champions of change, and having heightened awareness through challenging and uncertain times of transition.

On the last official site visit to London before the Olympics this summer, Mark joined the extended leadership team for a final week of preparation meetings. Meetings with LOCOG, visiting Olympic park, and seeing the Canadian team allotment in the Olympic Village were among the many activities that took place.

Mark spoke to members of the Toronto Board of Trade as part of the National Speakers Bureau Series In Conversation With... Mark's presentation, "Learning from Leaders: Essential Traits You Need to Succeed", focused on inspiring his audience with the Great Traits in order to reach new performance levels in 2012.

The 29th Annual Special Olympics Festival was held in Toronto with Mark as keynote speaker at the evening gala. Mark spoke on the themes of achievement, leadership and legacy, celebrating the bravery and accomplishments of Special Olympics athletes, and the tremendous commitment of the volunteers in hundreds of communities across Canada who support them.

In her role as a high performance advisor for summer sports with Own the Podium, Debbie spent much of November and December doing sport reviews for those sports for which she is responsible. The role of a high-performance advisor is to help national sport organizations create training and competition environments that will give athletes and coaches the greatest opportunity to win medals at the Olympic Games. These will be the final reviews before Canada competes at the London 2012 Games.

Mark and Debbie were invited to open the Shoppers Home Health Care Innovations Show in Calgary. Their presentation to the hundreds of health care professionals in attendance focused on inspiring possibilities and reaching new levels of excellence.

Great Traits Challenges the Project Management Institute of Calgary to Become Champions

Mark and Debbie led a session for approximately 600 delegates at this annual conference whose theme was evolution and change. Two interactive breakout sessions followed that focused on team building and creating synergy. Participants left READY to face the challenges of the ever evolving project management industry, SET to expand their perspectives in order to GO closer to their objectives.

Along with staff from the Canadian Olympic Committee, Mark led a weekend of activities with athletes, coaches, health science professionals, team leaders and media attaches representing the summer Olympic sports. The objective of the workshop was to provide information in preparation for London, and to begin to build the spirit within Canada's Olympic team. A few highlights from the weekend included hearing from a panel of summer and winter athletes share their Olympic experiences, as well as a talk from Ernest (Ernie) McCullough, a member of the 1948 Canadian Olympic track and field team that competed in London 64 years ago!

TD Branch Managers from the Prairie Region gathered for a 2-hour interactive workshop led by Mark and Debbie. The dynamic, high-energy group rallied around the saying "Own the Podium", and the Games Experience workshop focused on leadership skills that gave participants practical tools to take back and implement with their teams in their home branches.

Mark and Debbie joined members of the Abbott Canada financial team from Toronto and Montreal for a workshop off-site at a resort in Quebec. The 3-hour session, in a competitive games format, was presented as a "springboard for ideas" with a focus on collaboration, communication and innovation.

DFK International, a global association of independent accounting firms and business advisors, chose the Four Seasons Resort in Maui as the location for their 2011 North American conference. Mark and Debbie delivered a 2-hour program to the group with a broad focus on leadership that was enthusiastically received by both attendees and spouses.

In preparation for his role as Team Canada's Chef de Mission at the London 2012 Summer Olympic Games, Mark travelled to Guadalajara to shadow the Pan Am Games 2011 Mission Staff. Mark met members of the Canadian Team, spent time with the leadership , and observed many of the Games activities including the Canadian flag raising and the Opening Ceremonies.

Mark and Debbie travelled to Montreal to lead a 75-minute presentation as these two pharmaceutical giants came together to launch a new product, Trajenta. With a focus on innovation and utilizing power of thought, representatives of both companies left the session highly motivated and excited about the upcoming year.

The High Performance Directors (HPD's) for summer Olympic and Paralympic sports met in Quebec at the Chateau Montebello for two days of professional development. Debbie presented the ''Top 10'' List for HPD's as they prepare for the London Olympics, sharing lessons learned from previous Games.

The Canadian Cosmetic, Toiletry and Fragrance Association held its AGM in Quebec City, and Mark and Debbie were invited to deliver a 90 minute interactive session to its members. This dynamic group looked at their priorities as a personal care and beauty product industry, and reconnected to what gets them excited about the great work they do.

Debbie and Mark were invited to deliver a 90 minute Great Traits Games Experience for the store managers of HBC Home Outfitters. Gathering from across the country at the Westin Harbour Castle in Toronto, the group was challenged to look at things in a new way and innovate in order to continue building on their winning results.

With a year left to go before the 2012 London Olympics, the organizing committee of the games, LOCOG, hosted the heads of the Olympic delegations from around the world for an informative briefing session. Over the course of the week, the representatives from 200+ Olympic delegations saw venues, enjoyed presentations from each functional lead, and experienced test events for some of the sports that will be on the program next year.

The best divers, swimmers, water polo players, and synchronized swimmers from around the world gathered in Shanghai, China to compete against each other at the FINA World Aquatic Championships. In her role as a high performance director for Own the Podium, Debbie was there to observe and support the Canadian team in their quest to bring home medals, and to be well positioned for success at the Olympic Games in London next year.

Debbie and Mark led the Rogers Retail team from across the country though a professional development day at a small resort outside of Toronto. This six hour session focused on the Leader traits, and pitted teams against each other in an intense competitive set of games that drove home the fundamentals of what it takes to create the environment for themselves, and the people they lead, to succeed.

The Canada-United Kingdom Chamber of Commerce held a dinner to honour the outgoing Canadian High Commissioner, Mr. James Wright, during Canada Day celebrations in London, England. Mark was invited to be the keynote speaker at this prestigious event, and then took part on stage the following day during the festivities that included a performance by Blue Rodeo in Trafalgar Square.

Mark and Debbie were invited to present an interactive Great Traits session during the opening reception for Manulife's Assistant Vice-Presidents at the Marriott Hotel in Toronto. This fast paced 45 minute session got participants out of their seats and challenged them to continue driving performance and collaboration by better understanding what is going on in different parts of their business.

The dynamic marketing team at Unilever gathered at the Windsor Arms Hotel in Toronto and took the Great Traits challenge. Building off their current success, Debbie and Mark led the team through a fast paced, interactive two hour session that focused on finding new opportunities to raise the bar on their individual performance in order to take their results to the next level.

Mark and Debbie were invited back to speak to the RBC global legal team following a well received session in 2010. Coming from all corners of the world, the group participated in a two hour Games Experience that focused on collaboration and celebrated the team's leading edge practices in global corporate governance.

The administrative team that works behind the scenes at RBC Dominion Securities gathered from across the country at the Royal York Hotel in Toronto for a professional development conference. Debbie and Mark led the group through a three hour Great Traits session that focused on leadership and generating enthusiasm for the tremendous work they do.

Great Traits was again part of the program that took the show on the road to Calgary, AB to once again showcase a group of diverse speakers. Taking place at the Epcor Centre downtown, Debbie and Mark gave a snapshot of a 25 minute Games Experience, and were among a program that included the Honourable Preston Manning, Piers Steel, David Prentice as well as other leading experts in various fields.

Great Traits was invited to be a part of Speaker Spotlight's Annual Showcase event in Vancouver, BC. Held at the spectacular Vancouver Convention Centre, Debbie and Mark gave a snapshot of a 25 minute Games Experience, and were among a program that included Vancouver 2010 CEO John Furlong, Tod Mafin, Bruce Kirby and other leading experts in various fields.

Every year the Alberta Sport, Recreation, Parks and Wildlife Foundation presents a Leadership Summit as a training and development opportunity for the provincial sport and recreation community. This year, Great Traits presented the Opening Plenary session to close to 200 participants. The four hour interactive session explored four of the Leader Traits. Later in the day, Mark and Debbie returned to host the evening gala, interviewing four well-known Olympians who were products of the Alberta sport development system.

Amidst a long cold winter in Canada this year, Mark and Debbie were both thrilled to take in a bit of sunshine as they visited California this month. Mark spoke in Palm Springs and, although only in and out, enjoyed some sun AND dinner at Frank Sinatra's house turned event-space. Debbie was there in her role with Own the Podium.

Great Traits was invited to be a part of Speaker Spotlight's Annual Showcase event in Toronto, Ontario. Held at the Design Exchange Theatre on Bay Street downtown, Debbie and Mark gave a snapshot of a 20 minute Games Experience, and were among a program that included CBC's Amanda Lang and other leading experts in various fields.

Following the first part of the Athlete Program given four weeks ago, the athletes at the Granite Club came back together for a fast-paced, activity driven concluding workshop. The participants debriefed their homework assignments, competed for Olympic prizes, and experienced the remaining four Achiever Traits all within a highly interactive session.

Mark and Debbie led an interactive session with the managers of Aeroplan, sharing insights and activities that focused on what it takes to create a winning culture. 35 teams of 10 competed against each other at the KoSa Art Centre in Montreal during an intense, fast-paced afternoon of fun and learning.

Debbie and Mark were invited to deliver a two-hour showcase at the annual gathering of the HRPA. The second largest HR association in North America, over 3000 HR professionals from a cross-section of industries gathered at the Toronto Convention Centre to hear the latest offerings to inspire and educate their employees.

70 athletes from four different sports registered for a two-part Great Traits Athlete Program, launched in collaboration with the Granite Club in Toronto. Ranging in age from 9 - 19, the participants formed teams that competed against each other while experiencing and learning about four of the Achiever Traits. A four week 'homework' phase was built into the program in order for the athletes to apply the key learning directly to their sport. The remaining four Achiever Traits will be covered at the second workshop, scheduled for March 2nd.

More than 700 stylish guests from the beauty, style and media industries attended the Canadian Cosmetic, Toiletry and Fragrance Association's 19th Look Good Feel Better Ball at the Fairmont Royal York Hotel in Toronto just before Christmas. Debbie and Mark were proud to be a part of the evening that celebrated women living with cancer. The event was documented by Michelle Levy for the Post Newspaper chain.

The global sales team of Nordion, a world leading innovator in molecular medicine, came together in San Antonio, Texas, for their annual meeting. Debbie and Mark delivered a three hour workshop focused on the achiever traits to support their efforts, and to inspire the competitor in them. They rose to the challenge with three teams ending the session with only a single point separating them.

Invited by the leadership of Own the Podium to present to the national coaches and high performance directors of Olympic sports, Mark and Debbie delivered a fast paced and interactive 90 minute session that focused on ways to build on the success of 2010.

Mark and Debbie delivered a three hour Games Experience to women in leadership at the OTPP. Focusing on leadership traits, this workshop challenged the participants to be aware, continue role modeling excellence, and to communicate effectively. A dynamic and engaged group, this learning experience was an unmitigated success.

Debbie and Mark joined other athletes, coaches and builders of sport in Calgary, AB, to celebrate the inductees of 2010 at the annual dinner.

Debbie and Mark delivered a full day Games experience to the women's leadership network of TEIG. An inspiring and devoted group, this team of female leaders rose to the challenge of the Games and left with an inspired and articulate vision of the future.

Beginning in Sudbury, then heading to London, then Ottawa, and finally ending in Toronto, Mark and Debbie joined the executive leadership team of the Liquor Control Board on Ontario in a province wide tour. Providing a three hour workshop to all of the store managers across the province of Ontario, Debbie and Mark also had to raise their game with 90 tables of 8 people taking part in the final leg of this interactive leadership workshop.

Behind many of the successful performances at the Vancouver Olympics was the team at Winsport, formerly known as the Canadian Olympic Development Association. Speaking the same language of high performance, Debbie and Mark were thrilled to provide the first ever professional development program to the broad reaching team. Focusing on setting clear goals for the future, the team came together for two workshops to continue being a world class organization.

MEG Energy brought their operations leadership team together in Calgary, AB, and experienced a 90 minute interactive Games Experience. Focusing on the challenges facing the evolution of this fast growing company, the leaders looked at ways to better work together as a team, and to continue raising the bar on their own performances to be even more effective.

Great Traits Inc brought in Lisa Merchant, renowned Second City improvisational instructor, for a week of fantastically fun professional development work. A group of twelve people came together through the week to experience the magic of improv.

On the popular national morning show, Canada AM, Mark made the announcement that the Canadian Olympic Committee named him as Chef de Mission for the Canadian team competing in the summer Olympic Games in London 2012. Mark joins the leadership team in the lead up to the games to ensure that the environment needed for the team to perform at their best is created.

Over 60 participants were hosted in Calgary, AB, by Merlin Edge for a two hour games experience led by Mark and Debbie. Merlin Edge is a strategic marketing and corporate communications company that counts Great Traits Inc among its clients.

Citing his athletic accomplishments and dedication to human rights, Mark received an Honorary Doctorate of Laws from the University of Calgary. The highlight of the day was the opportunity for Mark to speak to the members of the graduating classes in a short but inspired convocation address.

Debbie and Mark presented a 90 minute interactive session in Toronto, ON, to the RBC legal team from around the world. Focusing on expanding their perspective to new realities in their profession, as well as ways to act even more effectively, this truly international audience embraced innovation and the great traits.

Invited by the Leading Hotels of the World, Mark and Debbie crossed the Atlantic to be a part of this prestigious group's annual meeting of sales and marketing professionals. Representing some of the most luxurious hotel properties in the world, the audience enjoyed a Great Traits book signing following an uplifting and inspiring speech.

Invited to present at the Wynn Encore in Las Vegas, Nevada, to the top performers by Empire Financial, Debbie and Mark kick started this annual celebration of excellence. With a focus on the Achiever traits, this 90 minute program reinforced the power of positive thinking and its connection to world class results.

In Calgary, AB, Mark and Debbie delivered a three hour workshop to the top Canadian swimming coaches. With a focus on heightening awareness and creating winning teams, the session concluded with inspiring visions of what would be behind the successful results of 2012.

Hundreds of branch managers from RBC came together in Vancouver, BC, to experience some of our favourite traits in this interactive 90 minute session. Borrowing from sport, we shared the importance of integrated support teams to help this organization best achieve its goals.

Over 60 learning and organizational development leaders came together in Toronto to experience Debbie and Mark in action as they showcased three of their leader traits.

On April 9th, Mark and Debbie delivered the first of two workshops to the creative team at Veritas. Held offsite at the trendy Spoke Club, this super fun, competitive day pitted mutli-disciplinary teams against each other in order to rally around purpose, create synergy and expand their perspective. The homework part of this program also tested each individual's ability to go the distance.

On March 3rd, Debbie and Mark delivered the first of two workshops to the staff at BC Aquaculture. Going through a challenging period of restructuring, the group learned how to apply the great traits in the daily work environment to keep them focused and on track in spite of the ever changing circumstances they faced.

Right before the Opening Ceremonies of the Vancouver 2010 Olympics, the Canadian Team met for the last time before the games began at a 'Pep Rally' held in the Athlete's Village. Mark was invited by the Chef de Mission to come and speak to the team to inspire them right before they headed onto the buses to walk into the stadium.

In her role as Canadian Olympic Committee Coach Mentor, Debbie spent three weeks at the Vancouver Olympic Games as part of the Canadian Mission Staff. Spending most of her time at the Whistler Athletes Village, Debbie ensured that the Canadian coaches had everything they needed to create the best possible environment for world class results to happen.

Every year there are a few select, prestigious events meant to inspire and educate Canadian women to become nation builders in the legacy of the Famous Five women who were instrumental in getting the right for women to vote. Debbie was invited to deliver a keynote address in Fort McMurray, Alberta as part of this highly regarded speaking series.

Over 200 members of the Reliance sales team had a fast paced, competitive Games Experience in London, Ontario. Celebrating the successful results of the previous year as well as looking forward to continuing that momentum, this workshop challenged each team to share best practices, and sell us on why Reliance is and will continue to be a force to be reckoned with.

At a time of organizational change, the team from Joe Media came together for a day off-site to align around vision and strategy moving forward with a new direction in leadership. Focusing on team building and purpose, the entire staff rallied around the great traits, and inspired us and each other with their energy and enthusiasm that built throughout the session.

In a fast paced 90 minute interactive presentation, the leaders of Canadian Tire came together to focus on team building and some fundamentals of leadership.

Invited by the principal of Chestermere Lake High School, Debbie and Mark delivered a day long Games Experience. Capitalizing on a professional development day, this dynamic group of high school teachers looked at understanding where they were as a team, and ways they could continue raising the bar on their own performance in order to ultimately raise it for their students.

Close to 20,000 Calgarians came together at the Saddledome to hear the Dalia Lama speak following his acceptance of an Honourary Docotorate degree from the University of Calgary. Working with Sandra Oh from television's Grey's Anatomy, Mark was the master of ceremonies and had the honour of leading the question and answer period.

A long-time supporter of Special Olympics, Mark was asked to join the National Board of Directors. This three year term gives Mark the opportunity to work with the Head Office Staff in Toronto, as well as the Provincial Chapters across the country, to continue to promote and support the participation of intellectually challenged individuals in sport.

Mark and Debbie spent a half day delivering a Games Experience to the managers of American Express business travel from across the country. Focusing on finding unique strategic solutions for their clients, this workshop challenged participants to be innovative and show conviction.

In her role with Own the Podium, Debbie spent part of her summer in Rome at the World Aquatic Championships. The competition included diving, synchronized swimming, water polo and swimming. Debbie observed the international competitive reality for each aquatic discipline, and was there to act as a mentor for the coaches as required.

See all 8 Achiever traits come to life in these fun, fast-paced segments by going to http://www.cbc.ca/topofyourgame

Over two days, Debbie and Mark delivered a Games Experience workshop to nine Ontario teams from Pfizer. Three teams competed in Niagra on the Lake, followed by six more teams in Muskoka. The four hour workshop was action packed and focused on the Achiever Traits, helping the reps get focused for a year of best results.

Mark and Debbie were able to experience the magic of the newly opened Vancouver Convention Centre for themselves when they were on-site to deliver a Games Experience to staff. Members of the sales, catering and client service departments came together for a six hour team building session that focused on the Leader Traits. The countdown to Vancouver 2010 is on!

Watch for Mark every Wednesday on CBC News Morning with Heather Hiscox for his new "Top of Your Game" series. Each week, Mark will feature a different trait from The Great Traits of Champions and share his tips on how to apply the traits to help you be Top of Your Game! Missed the latest episode? Click here to check it out online: http://www.cbc.ca/topofyourgame

Mark was recently featured in the "Best Story Ever" spot of The Hour with George Stroumboulopoulos on CBC. Missed the episode? Catch up on Mark's story by pasting this link in your browser: http://www.cbc.ca/thehour/videos.html?id=1070845743

Recently Rachel Corbett of the Centre for Sport and Law read The Great Traits of Champions and posted her review on the Centre for Sport and Law's website. Want to read what she had to say? Go to the URL below: http://www.sportlaw.ca/articles/bookreview_champions.php

The Calgary City Teacher's Convention Association recently invited Debbie to share her expertise with teachers from schools all across Calgary. The theme for this year's convention was "No Road Not Taken" and in fitting with this Debbie chose to deliver her talk titled "The Champion's Journey - Coaching Teacher's to Lead with Excellence". Debbie drew on her many years of coaching experience and 6 of The Great Traits to inspire teachers to explore all avenues available to them when it comes to teaching the achievers, leaders and legacy leavers of tomorrow.

Mark and Debbie were in Halifax to deliver two main stage presentations as well as book signings as well as a 90 minute in-depth workshop on the Achiever traits. This was their first ever Heath and Wellness show and it was a huge success! They would like to extend their thanks to the Optimyze team for inviting them and hope to be back next year. Want to find out when Mark and Debbie will be coming to your city? Stay tuned to our News & Events page or better yet, subscribe to our Newsletter for the latest and greatest updates.

On the 60th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the government of France led an initiative to decriminalize homosexuality around the world. Mark was invited to the United Nations in New York City to speak at this historic event.

When Rowing Canada held their Annual General Meeting in Mississauga, Ontario this December Mark and Debbie were invited to speak and deliver an interactive keynote presentation to the coaches and club administrators. With a focus on the Legacy Traits, Mark and Debbie challenged their audience to think of the kind of legacy each of them as individuals were leaving as leaders within their respective organizations. The ultimate focus was how to ensure their impact on their teams was a positive one and a great time was had by all!

Debbie was invited to the International Triathlete Union's Congress and Federation Forum 2008 in Madrid, Spain on November 26th and 27th. She drew on her years of experience both as a coach and an organizational leader in sport and spoke to 120 countries about building organizations for World Class Performance.

Rounding out a busy month, Mark facilitated a diversity presentation in Hong Kong for global investment banking and securities firm Goldman Sachs. Mark used the Legacy Traits to deliver the presentation which included employees in Tokyo, Beijing & Shanghai who participated via teleconference. Following his diversity presentation, a second more intimate presentation was delivered to the managing directors of the firm on Leader traits.

Debbie was invited by Enerplus, North America's largest conventional oil and natural gas income fund to speak at their leaders forum in Banff. Debbie delivered a presentation to 75 leaders on the Great Traits of Champions.

Mark spoke just outside of Toronto as part of the Canadian Olympic Commitee's Post Olympic Excellence Series. He delivered a presentation to athletes who chose to retire after the Beijing games about the transition from sport to success in the next phase of their lives.

Mark was invited by Craig and Marc Kielberger to speak to several thousand students at "Me to We" Day in Hamilton, ON. The day was in support of a global youth movement to end child poverty and provide access to education and other resources. Mark spoke alongside a number of other guests, including Mia Farrow, Sarah McLahlan, Justin Trudeau and Nate Berkus of Oprah and Friends.

Debbie gave a keynote address on Great Traits leadership at the Alberta Swimming & Synchronized Swimming Coaches conference this October. Debbie was honored to be this year's keynote speaker at the conference. Debbie's experiences as a Synchronized Swimming coach helped shape what we know today as the Great Traits of Champions and she hopes her words will help inspire future coaches to find the Champion in themselves.

Mark and Debbie were at the Top Notch Resort in Stowe, Vermont on September 17th to deliver The Games Experience to medical supply company Covidien. Mark and Debbie had lots of fun working with Covidien's leadership team to help them create a strong leadership capacity and get them ready for a successful 08/09 year. Mark and Debbie focused on 4 of The Great Traits to equip Covidien with the tools they need to produce some incredible results! Thanks to the Covidien team for being so open to the experience.

Mark and Debbie had their own Games Experience at the 29th Olympic games in Beijing! While Mark was working with Ron McLean for CBC's prime time coverage of the games, Debbie continued her work with the Canadian Olympic Committee as a coach mentor. When Debbie wasn't providing support for the Canadian coaches, she and Mark were able to share some CBC air time to talk about The Great Traits.

On May 6, 2008, www.thegreattraits.com went LIVE for the first time. Thanks to Jenny, Tayana, Daniel and the team at STEM Limited for their support. As Great Traits Inc continues to grow, this site will grow with us. Stay tuned to see where it all goes...

In the autumn of 2007, Mark met a remarkable woman, Mary Boon, at 74 years old, who was fulfilling a lifelong dream of competing in the 2008 Boston marathon. At 58, Mary casually joined a group of friends for a Christmas shuffle. At 62, Mary completed her first marathon. Twelve years, on April 21st , Mark joined her family and friends to cheer her on as she crossed the finish line under 6 hours at the prestigious Boston Marathon. Mary is a testament that it is never too late to be a champion.

In her role as coach mentor, Debbie recently visited Beijing with the Canadian Olympic Committee. There for twelve days, she cheered on the Canadian synchronized swimming team as they qualified for the Olympic games, as well as spending time with the Canadian team leaders and head coaches as they familiarized themselves with the Olympic venues. The clock is ticking and times are exciting as the 2008 Beijing Olympics draw closer. Stay posted for more 2008 Olympic great trait connections.

If you are looking for a copy of The Great Traits of Champions to read before ordering and you live in Vancouver, you are in luck! Check it out, literally, at the Public Library.

The Great Traits of Champions: Fundamentals for Achievers, Leaders and Legacy Leavers is available NOW for sale exclusively at www.thegreattraits.com. A four color, matte finish, 188 page guide book to achievement, leadership and legacy, The Great Traits of Champions takes a unique approach to classic themes. Colors, shapes, visual icons, assessment tools and summaries have never made the discovery of success and leadership so much fun.