Career Buzz

Is work worth doing based on what we accomplish? What we earn? The people we help? The skills we master? The feeling that we belong to something larger than ourselves? And if our work doesn’t feel meaningful, does that mean we need to find different work, or might we need to look differently at the work we already do? My guest, Samuel Halpern, has dug into those questions. His new book, Wellsprings of Work: Surprising Sources of Meaning in Your Career and Retirement, explores the often hidden sources of meaning and motivation that can run through our working lives, -- and which continue long after the last paycheque. Sam comes to these questions through an unusual career of his own. His work took him from Wall Street to Warren Buffett to advising investment funds for Major League Baseball players, Broadway stagehands and governments from Beijing to Bangkok. Then retirement, and an unexpected triple-bypass surgery just weeks before it, prompted a different question: What had all that work amounted to, and what did he want to do next? On this episode of Career Buzz, we’ll hear some of Sam’s career story, but mostly we’ll explore the ideas it led him to: the role of values, craftsmanship, belonging, competition, mastery, legacy and contribution to future generations; the difference between earning a living and experiencing a life through our work; and whether the search for the perfectly meaningful job might itself send us down the wrong path. And we’ll ask what happen to all of this as AI changes not only the work humans do, but our relationship with work itself. Sam calls that challenge “protecting ‘I’ from AI.” For career counselling for you or someone you care about, start with a free discovery call: careercycles.comFor gamified, story-based professional development, learn about and schedule a demo of Who You Are Matters!

Join Hoda and her guests as they bring Career Literacy to life through real stories and lived experiences. Liv Pennie challenges us to rethink traditional career education, noting that for many adults, their school‑based career experience “is often a really negative reflection… wrapped up in one bucket of careers.” How would you describe your own experience? You’ll also hear from high school student Christopher Ibarra, who shares how meaningful career learning shaped his future. As Christopher puts it:“Education can change us — who we are and what we wanna do in the future… you’re opening a new chapter in your life that you never knew you could have opened.” If education can open chapters we never knew were possible, what chapter might a young person be waiting to discover? Reflect and share. Guest 1 Bio In 2017, Liv started BECOME Education to reimagine careers education. She holds an MA in Psychology and a Postgrad in Career Development. She spent 15 years in advertising, digital product and experience design. Liv brings together these worlds of academia and innovation to close the gap between evidence and practice in careers education. BECOME Education’s work transforming careers education in schools has been recognised by the OECD as an example of global best practice. Guest 2 Bio Christopher is a high school student who has experienced career education firsthand. I will read his bio as he shared it with me. Hello everyone, my name is Christopher Vargas Ibarra! I am a senior at Bostonia Global High which is a competency-based school. My goal is to become an automotive technician and I have previous experience by having a pre-apprenticeship at the San Diego Automotive Museum where me and my co-workers restored a 1966 Ford Mustang to life after 25 years of it sitting. I also was at the City of El Cajon: Fleet Services where I serviced fire trucks, police cruisers, utility trucks, and more!

Join Hoda for amazing discussions that boost your career literacy. Lili Foggle highlighted, “just about anybody can learn to interview successfully”. How confident are you in your ability to successfully interview? Urmi Hussein shared, “Your personal brand is portable, no matter where you go, you always have your brand”. How intentional are you about developing your brand? Listen, comment and share your thoughts and experiences. Guest 1 Bio TikTok @yourinterviewcoach Lili Foggle is the winner of the Momentum Awards 2025 Top Specialty Coach from The Modern Coach, and holds interview coaching certifications from Career Thought Leaders and the Professional Association of Resume Writers and Career Coaches. She has taught hundreds of her one-on-one clients—as well as many of her over 70,000 TikTok followers—how to deliver effective and confident answers in job interviews. Her proven, data-driven communication techniques help candidates stand out in a competitive field and secure the offer. Through the Professional Association of Resume Writers and Career Coaches, she provides interview skills training and mentoring to other career coaches. Lili is a passionate advocate for the power of interview skills to transform careers and lives. She believes that with training and practice, anyone can learn to give authentic interview answers that get the job. Guest 2 Bio Instagram @storiesbeyondborderspodcast Urmi Hossain is a self-published author, speaker, blogger, and podcast host based in Canada. She works in financial services and holds both the CFA and CAIA designations. Through her work, she empowers women by championing mentorship, education, and public speaking. She serves as the Co-Chair of the organization Women in Leadership, for the Montreal Chapter. She is the author of Discovering Your Identity: A Rebirth from Interracial Struggle and the host of Stories Beyond Borders, a podcast exploring identity, migration, and culture. Outside of work, she enjoys reading thrillers, boxing, running, and HIIT workouts. For career counselling for you or someone you care about, start with a free discovery call: careercycles.comFor gamified, story-based professional development, learn about and schedule a demo of Who You Are Matters!

What do you do when your career, your organization, or life itself gets MESSY? My guest on Career Buzz (Wed. July 22, 11-noon ET) is Daniel Atlin whose career has included senior roles at the University of Guelph, Seneca, the University of Toronto, in government, and as host of the podcast, Messy with Daniel Atlin. We’ll explore Daniel’s story, the central narrative and sense of purpose that helped him navigate change, and his model for making sense in the face of complexity. And this isn’t only a conversation for people with “leader” in their title. It’s for anyone trying to make sense of themselves, listen for competing stories, improvise when plans stop working, and find a way forward when certainty is in short supply. For career counselling for you or someone you care about, start with a free discovery call: careercycles.comFor gamified, story-based professional development, learn about and schedule a demo of Who You Are Matters!

Technology is advancing faster than at any time in human history. AI is transforming industries, quantum computing promises to reshape cybersecurity and national security, and digital technologies are increasingly making decisions that affect every aspect of our lives. Yet the professional regulatory frameworks governing technical expertise in Canada remain largely rooted in legislation and assumptions developed more than a century ago. In this episode, we explore how engineering regulation evolved from the late 19th century to meet the needs of the industrial age—and why those same regulatory models may no longer be sufficient in the era of AI, cyber threats, and emerging technologies. Drawing on decades of experience in engineering, technology, public policy, and professional regulation, our guest discusses why modernizing the oversight of not only engineering, but the broader applied sciences, has become essential to protecting public safety, security, welfare, and Canada's future competitiveness in an increasingly complex technological world. Guest Bio Peter DeVita is a licensed P.Eng and is past president of the Professional Engineers Ontario in 2001. Peter founded his electronics manufacturing company in 1977. He is currently president of Engineers for the profession. He is a graduate of the University of Toronto holding a BASc & MASc in Electrical and Electronic Engineering. He also holds an MBA from York University with focus on Marketing and Economics. He has taught courses at Sheridan College, and Centennial Colleges overseeing the development of two-degree courses in software and network technology. For career counselling for you or someone you care about, start with a free discovery call: careercycles.comFor gamified, story-based professional development, learn about and schedule a demo of Who You Are Matters!