13 Years Sober
Today I am celebrating 13 years of continuous sobriety, one day at a time. That is 4,748 days strung together without picking up a drink. An amazing achievement for me—someone who was a daily drinker for decades.
New Year’s Eve Recovery
The photo is me on New Year’s Eve 2001. I’m smiling. Why wouldn’t I be? I’m living the dream. On board our sailboat Dragonsinger living in Port Vell in Barcelona. What you can’t see behind the smile, but which I see in my eyes, is that I’m loaded.
Dealing with Issues that Affect Your Legacy
Listen as coach, leader, legacy builder, and podcaster Lois Sonstegard interviews me on her Building My Legacy Podcast where we talk about these issues that impact your legacy as an entrepreneur:
- How difficult and emotional big business transitions can be.
- Moving through your fears.
- How I used alcohol to cope with fear, stress, and the challenges of running a business.
- My path through recovery from alcoholism.
- The importance of a good coach to an entrepreneur.
- There is hope no matter what you suffer from or with.
- Have empathy for anyone who is suffering from alcoholism or addiction.
Challenged on to the Stage
While I was still a computer science student at the University of British Columbia, I joined a young software startup called Robelle, named for the two founders Robert and Annabelle. I was the first employee.
As a requirement of my employment Bob and Annabelle insisted that I had to write my first technical paper, submit it to the 1980 International Hewlett-Packard General Systems User Group, and if accepted travel to the conference to present my paper.
Synergy
When a group of people get a sailboat to sail to its full potential, such as when you are racing, you have to come together. This is my definition of synergy–the cooperation of two or more people to create something greater than the sum of the individuals.