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What is your vision? Featuring Isabelle Fortin. Podcast Session 1.
1,920 words · 3 speakers
Isabel Fortin, tell me about your vision.
My vision is that every single leader out there in the corporate world, big and small companies, become a human centered. Because leadership is about being there for your people and letting them do the job. It's not about command and control. It doesn't work. It's been proven that it doesn't work. It is about supporting the people. And the people, when they feel seen, heard, and valued, they will take care of themselves, they will take care of one another, and they will take care of your company or your clients.
So that's my vision.
Wow. Tell me more about that. Where did that come from and why that specifically?
Well, my, the first job that I ever had right out of high school was in the Royal Canadian Air Force. And in the military, you would think that it is command and control. And there are circumstances where command and control works in case of an emergency, like a real emergency. Not a, we need to deliver this on Tuesday, if not, nobody dies. Um, but in case of a fire or a war or something like that, well, this is the time for command and control. But the rest of the time in the military, uh, it, in my experience, it was very much, who's the best person for the task?
So whose natural ability will serve the team better to do this specific task? And regardless of how long you've been there, what your rank is, you've got to do that task. And what that does is, A, everybody has to put their ego aside because it's the mission comes first. But the second thing is that you, as an individual, you feel seen, heard, and valued, and you know exactly what it is that you're contributing to the team. Because if the big boss is giving you something in particular to do, that means you're the best at that job.
And when I left the military and I joined my first corporate America job, I was shocked, and not in a good way, on how little leadership skills all my bosses had. And you know what, Harry, it wasn't your fault. Because in corporate America, people don't get leadership training. In the military, everybody gets leadership training. And leadership is a skill, and it can be learned, and it should be learned. So now, that's my focus, and that's why it became my focus. So that we can develop these skills,
so that every single leader can have the tools to manage their people better.
That's awesome. Um, I completely agree on that. Like, we need to have better leaders.
I haven't had much experience in corporate America, just very little. But I have heard stories and I've heard people talk about it. Um, and it is, even yesterday I had someone on my podcast, and they were leaders. And they were in the leadership space. They, they said that, I didn't believe it until now, that people don't really leave companies, they leave bad leaders.
Yeah, they leave bosses.
Yeah.
And you know what, it, it's, it's been proven, and I can't remember who was the author of that particular research, but it said that your manager and your leader and the people that you're, that are in quote, quote, quote unquote, in charge of you at the office, have more impact on your mental and physical health than your own doctor.
Really?
Yeah. So, we, I think that in the private sector, we overlooked that.
It was, it's all about getting the job done. No, it's about taking care of the people. The people will do the job. And people don't leave offices and they, they, they either leave a company, a company culture or they leave a bad manager.
And employee turnover is extremely costly.
Yes.
One point five to two times their annual salary to replace an employee.
That's a lot.
That's a lot of money. Yeah.
If you're doing in the tech world, like it's a million dollars easy.
A, a friend of mine just hired, she owns, she co-owns an accountant firm. And they just hired somebody through a headhunter and they paid the headha- the headhunter fifty-two thousand dollars. For three months in order to find one qualified employee and actually fill the spot that they needed.
Fifty-two thousand dollars. So imagine if that person is in the right fit for your team.
Yeah, that, that's, that's, that's a lot of money.
It is. It is.
Yeah, wow. That, that's a, that's a staggering problem.
Yeah, I think that leaders also so far are bad with interview because they're wrong, they ask the wrong questions. But that's, that's a two-way street and thank God it is slowly changing. But the people applying for a job should always show up to the interview with questions. Because it's not a one-way street. It's not, oh my God, I'm so lucky they're hiring me. Of course, there's, sometimes there's a little bit of luck in that. But it's also, okay, do they, does this company or this manager? Do, do they align with my values? What's the company culture about?
What's the rate of the turnover? Because if the turnover rate, the employee turnover rate is extremely high.
That's a big indicator that the company culture sucks. And maybe you shouldn't, you know, want to work there until something is done. And slowly, I think that the millennials are, were the first ones to say, "Yeah, hang on, but what, what are you gonna do for me besides the paycheck and besides the health insurance?" Right? So where, where, if I, you know, get this particular position, what can I grow into within your organization? And that's very important because in the interview should be a discussion. Where do you see me in five years, but where do I want to be within your organization? And there's, is there room to grow?
Or does somebody, somebody have to die of old age? Or actually retire in order for me to actually grow within the organization? And the more the, both the employer and the employee find that it's a fit, then the better chances that that person is gonna stay there for a little bit.
Yeah, that's, thank you for sharing that with us.
You're welcome.
That's awesome. Isabel, where would you say that after you figured out that there's a huge gap in leadership in corporate America and that's what you want to fill? And how did you get started on that path about the entrepreneur journey? I know it's as not as easy as everyone makes it seem. It's a, it's a very tough pill to swallow and keep going. So how did that come around?
Uh, through an extremely bad boss who, um, funny enough, was the best positive, um, example for me. Even though this person was such a bad leader and almost too so bad that it made him a bad person. Um, and it was through seeing him having success, financial success, and what I would qualify as life success.
And I I was looking at him and I went, okay, if this person succeeded, there's no way I will fail.
So that was kind of the leap for me because I don't come from um, a family where there's a lot of uh entrepreneurs and everybody was an employee. Both my parents had been in the military. My, when I joined the Air Force, my brother was an Air Force pilot. Everybody had had the security of having a paychecks every two weeks. And I didn't know anything else. So I didn't think I had it in me. I had the limiting, the limiting belief that whatever was required to have your own company, I didn't possess. I didn't know what that was, but I was sure I didn't have it.
So by seeing how this bad example still made it work. And this, the, the secret to his success was the people that he surrounded himself with. That was how he succeeded. And when I saw that, I went, okay, well, if I don't bet on myself, I'm a fool, A, and B, I can never complain again. Because I finally recognized that whatever I thought it was out there that I did not possess, I had made it all up.
And I just closed my eyes, had my breath and jumped. And here I am, a couple of decades later. And I'm still standing and I'm still paying, you know, I'm still capable of paying the mortgage and needing and traveling and buying things that I need for my life. So obviously, it was the right fit for me. And now that I've done it, I'll never be an employee again.
Wow.
Ever.
That's amazing. Tell me more about that. Um, what, that I think when our listeners see entrepreneurs grow and struggle and overcome struggles and actually do all these, I think it gives them hope and gives them guidance. So how long have you been in business now?
Uh, twenty blah, twenty-two years, twenty-two or twenty-three years.
Yeah, I was a, yeah, well, all things considering, I was a pretty young entrepreneur. I was in my thirties. And, um, actually not even mid-thirties yet, and it was just, yeah, it's time to, to, to jump and believe in myself and bet on myself. And I'm, I'm not a betting person. I don't gamble. I don't like it, but I took that gamble because then it was for me. And I knew that I was smart enough and I was willing to work hard enough to, to see it through. And there was nothing easy about it. And there are still days that are extremely difficult where you
get up in the morning and you go, okay, and why is it that I've chosen to complicate my life this much? Like, especially when the pandemic hit. Um, where I live, companies closed, my company closed for fifteen weeks during the first wave of COVID and thirty-five weeks during the second wind of COVID. And so if you add them up, that's fifty weeks out of a year and a half, so a year, almost a year out of a year and a half.
But that's the thing that happens that make you see exactly what you're made of and what you're capable of. And as I was saying earlier, now I wouldn't have it any other way. I,
I will work for myself until I decide that I'm done working and that will more than likely be never. Um, just because I love what I do and I'm passionate about it, what I do. I'm passionate about the people that I work with and that I get to help. And yeah, but it's being an entrepreneur, there's nothing easy about it.
Thank you for being here today. I'm really happy that you tuned in to Vision Pros Live. I'm looking forward to seeing your reactions as these episodes continue to move forward. This is going to get more and more fun. We'll have more and more engagement as well. We'll invite people to participate in the show and thank you for giving us your time and attention. Have an excellent time building out your vision and becoming a vision pro yourself.
Page updated November 13, 2026 · transcript and summary are machine-generated
