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The Fab Four; Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, George Lucas and Steven Spielberg were a band like no other. As someone born in 1971, they are my generation's Fab Four.
  • Steve, the raw but brilliant and creative ring leader was Lennon.
  • Bill, the melodic but safe visionary was McCartney.
  • George matched his namesake with ingenuity & worldly thinking.
  • Steven, like Ringo, kept the pulse on new discoveries bolstered by impeccable timing. 20111005-093158.jpgThe death of Steve Jobs, like that of John Lennon, came too early. Too blindingly. Undoubtedly, there were many more songs for both of them to write. But like John, Steve was my Fab Four favourite. His unwavering quest for excellence was legendary. His creativity and innovation was uncanny. His passion to reach new heights, new sounds, new riffs was Michelangelo-esque. Steve's early years at Apple were his Shea Stadium, Ed Sullivan Theater and "we're more popular than Jesus Christ" moments all in one. His "lost weekend" may have been the NeXT project, but it  ended up resulting in the best music (think Double Fantasy album) of his life with Pixar, iMac, iPod, iPhone and iPad as the result. Lennon was brash without the need for test audiences or fans. Likewise, Steve dreamed up the music our society wanted to listen to next, devoid of focus groups or reviews. I've always been a Lennon fan. I'll always be a Steve fan. And to close, two powerful yet similar lyrics from our Fab Four leaders: "Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans." John Lennon “Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” Steve Jobs sent from my iPad
  • Testimonials

    • Frank Monteleone, CHRO & CPO, Rexall Pharmacy Group Ltd.
    • Dan Pontefract delivered a powerful, thought‑provoking keynote session that resonated deeply with every attendee. His ability to blend compelling storytelling with actionable insights was nothing short of extraordinary.

      Sidh NC, Director, QnA International, UAE
    • We are so proud to have had you at our event. Your talk was a big hit. It moved us. We can’t thank you enough.

      Malin Björnell, Salesforce
    • Dan was engaging, authentic, and full of energy. His keynote connected with our audience and left them inspired. A true professional and a pleasure to work with.

      Erin Whetstone, Ontario Retirement Communities Association (ORCA)
    • Dan Pontefract’s keynote on the importance of workplace culture in employee engagement was excellent.  Dan used his vast leadership experience to provide our conference attendees with practical strategies to build teams that are engaged and committed. His relatable, real-life examples were thought provoking, memorable and very personal, creating a connection to the audience. I would highly recommend Dan as an entertaining keynote speaker who delivers content that is relevant and actionable.

      Michelle Hillyard, Director SCU
    • Dan challenged us to have clarity of purpose, both as individuals and as an organization. He related inspiring stories drawing on his experience in business, technology and academia. As he said, ‘There is no ownership without belonging.’

      Christian Pantel, D2L
    • Fantastic engaging talk for our global partner summit. Thank you so much, Dan!

       

      Barb Kinnard, CEO Response Biomedical Corp
    • Dan not only brought his presentation to life with his charisma, but also content, style and presentation finesse. Our members were especially interested in his thought provoking and top of mind topic on the future of work and how we’re going to be leading the next generation of leaders.

      Cheryl Goodwin, CPA
    • Dan is a conference organizer’s ideal speaker. Not only did he inspire and energize our group, but he also masterfully adapted his content so it resonated with the audience and our conference theme. As a bonus, Dan is able to nimbly navigate to adjust to a reduced time slot when other speakers went over time without sacrificing the impact of his session.

      Director and General Counsel
    • Dan accomplished what we set out to do, which was not only to be inspirational, but also to leave everyone with tools and food for thought / self-reflection to improve their personal and professional lives.

      Hermann Handa, FCT

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