Set Your GPS for Success with Wayne Lee

Wayne Lee will help participants to access and harness the power of their GPS (Great Programmable Subconscious) for optimal performance at work and at home. Wayne will show us how to Fix our Focus and reveal what is possible when we program our GPS for success. Deeply engaging, always down-to-earth, Wayne Lee delivers life-changing content and an exhilarating, one-of-a-kind experience.  

Over the last 20 years, Wayne has presented for over 4,000 audiences worldwide. He has appeared on national television shows, radio programs and has presented to clients such as IBM, General Motors and Princess Cruise Lines. Through his motivational presentations and comedic hypnosis shows, Wayne entertains, educates and shows his audiences how to wake up the power of their mind to perform like the champions they are.

Maintaining and Increasing Your Resilience

What is resilience, how do we assess it and how do we improve it?  Not just for your employees but for you!  The goal of this session is to have a consensus on what is resilience and learn skills on how to improve it in the moment and the long haul.

Many employers are hiring for the way a person's mind works, hoping for a creative and intelligent mind that will grow with experience.However, even the brightest minds will feel as though their battery is draining when placed in a stressful work environment without being taught how to use their stress effectively.

Our brain drives our body and our body drives our brain.  It is a two-way communication system.  The mental health experts say "change your brain and change your life", the physical health experts say "change your body and change your life".  It is starting to feel like a power struggle.  Physiologically, human beings have homeostatic mechanisms to foster resilience in the event of adversity such as stress.  Psychologically, human beings have the capacity to move on in a positive way from negative or stressful experiences.  So who is right?

About the Facilitator

Darren Steeves, MSc., CEP, Owner of Vendura Wellness, is a professional Exercise Physiologist and an adjunct professor in the school of health and human performance at Dalhousie University.  He has consulted within corporations, with top level executives, Olympic Medalists and World Champion athletes attending the most recent Rio games as a sport scientist for Team Canada. In the last year, Darren has been a lead author on research papers, published a book, and started a newspaper column.  Darren's most recent project is leading a 3 year study in partnership with Dalhousie University, looking at the links between resilience assessments and training in University students.

Marijuana in the Workplace Concurrent Session (Tuesday at 1:30 pm)

Due to the high level of interest in this topic, this session has been changed from a roundtable to a full concurrent session.

Facilitator:  Rick Dunlop, Partner, Stewart McKelvey

Rick Dunlop is a Partner with Stewart McKelvey's Nova Scotia Labour and Employment Group.  Rick has a diverse management side labour and employment law practice in which he provides practical solutions and representation on all workplace legal issues.  In particular, Rick often represents employers in human rights complaints, union certification applications in the construction and non-construction industry sectors, and wrongful dismissal actions.

Rick regularly appears before all Nova Scotia courts and labour and related tribunals including the Nova Scotia Labour Board, Supreme Court of Nova Scotia, and the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal.  Rick has also successfully represented an employer before the Supreme Court of Canada in an employment law case.

Rick consistently speaks and writes on labour and employment law matters.  Rick has been externally rated as Best Lawyers: Labour and Employment Law in 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2016.  Rick is a current member of the Canadian Association of Counsel for Employers (CACE).

New Paradigms: Mental Health in the Workplace with Stephane Grenier

Stephane Grenier has challenged society’s traditional outlook regarding mental health for much of his career by redefining how we should care for and support those affected by mental health issues. His body of work began in his very own workplace, the Canadian Military, where he created and managed numerous employee driven mental health programs that have proven effective over the years and have been sustained since his departure.  Grenier is a powerful speaker who provides a nice blend of evidence base, personal experiences and humour, allowing audiences a firm understanding of how we need to re-humanize the healing and recovery process.

Stephane Grenier is a Veteran of the Canadian Military who retired as a Lieutenant Colonel following 29 years of service and numerous overseas missions. Faced with undiagnosed PTSD upon return from Rwanda, he took a personal interest in the way the Canadian Forces was dealing with mental health issues; a mission he has now decided to broaden to the entire Canadian workforce through his work in developing non clinical mental health interventions as a complement to traditional clinical care. In 2010, he was seconded to the Mental Health Commission of Canada and since his retirement from the military in 2012, Grenier has founded a charity and created Mental Health Innovations, a social enterprise dedicated to re humanizing workplaces in Canada.  Throughout his career, Grenier has been recognized for his transformational leadership style and commended for his collaborative efforts and outstanding leadership.  He was awarded a Meritorious Service Cross by the Governor General of Canada, and in 2015 he was awarded an honorary degree of Doctor of Laws by the University of Guelph for his contributions in the field of mental health.