Peter Legge will be one of the 13 featured speakers at the TEDx StanleyPark event happening on May 23 in Vancouver. I heard him speak in person a few years ago and found him to be funny, engaging and also one of the kindest and most authentic people I’ve ever met.
Recently I had a chance to reconnect with Peter. He shared 3 secrets that helped him to become the Chairman and CEO of Canada Wide Media Ltd. which is the largest independently owned magazine publishing company in Western Canada as well as an author and an acclaimed international speaker.
It turns out that Peter wasn’t born into wealth or had the right set of connections to account for his success. He and his parents were immigrants from the U.K. looking for a better life. They moved to Canada when Peter was 12. His first job out of school was writing for a newspaper, until he discovered that selling ads for a radio station was a more profitable economic activity.
Peter shares these 3 secrets that helped him get to where he is:
1 – Take calculated risks
In 1976, he took a 10-cent TV listings publication and turned that into a print and digital business that currently generates more than $ 25 million in sales annually. Peter says that getting fired from his last job was probably one of the best things that happened to him. Although it was scary, it enabled him to take a big bet on himself – and on a little publication – that would help him go on to build a successful magazine empire.
2 – Get mentors
Peter believes in getting advice from people who are more successful than him. He regularly consults with Joe Segal, who is one of Vancouver’s most well-known businessmen and philanthropists. It was Segal who inspired Peter to write “The Runway of Life”, and also “Lunch with Joe”. Despite his hectic schedule, Peter never runs out of books to write (he has currently written 15 books) and is now working on a new one that’s due for release this year.
3 – Give more than you take
Peter believes in giving back, having been told by his father “that to be successful in Canada, you have to give back to the community more than you take”. He’s been involved the Variety Club Telethon, the Salvation Army and the Vancouver Board of Trade, among other things. In fact, Peter gave me not one but two of his books as I was leaving and also granted me double the amount of time I requested (I only asked for 30 minutes) for my interview so he really walks his talk.
Hear Peter Legge and 12 other speakers deliver their life-changing ideas at TEDx Stanley Park on May 23rd at the Granville Island Stage at #1585 Johnston St., Granville Island.
Be sure to visit Peter’s website.
Photo Credit
Photo by Mark Whitehead – Get The Shot Studios
Guest Author Bio
George Verdolaga
George Verdolaga is an author, educator and speaker. He helps people get out of their own way so that they can reach their career and lifestyle goals faster and more efficiently via The Job Farmer and The Contractor Lifestyle books and his Sitting Pretty Course.
Read his blog here and be sure to subscribe to his e-Newsletter.
Blog / Website: Verdolaga Learning Systems
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