Latest / Forget The Noise / 7. Rooted in Community | Featuring Lisa Post

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7. Rooted in Community | Featuring Lisa Post · Forget The Noise

• Speaker 2: They say motivation is something you want. Discipline is something you need. Obsession is something you have to have. I'm gonna show you what I wanted, how I got it, and how I was obsessed to get there. Another week on Forget the Noise Podcast. Today we have a special guest, Lisa Post. Everyone uses excuses, like I've got kids, I've got no time, but Lisa did it all at once. She did family, school, policy, politics, advocacy, and she became the second female mayor. I screwed that up the first take. After 159 years in Orangeville, that is amazing. She sent me her bio, she sent me her resume, and I'm gonna try and cover everything in this episode, but we're gonna give her the floor. Let her do a little introduction, then we're gonna dive right into it. Speaker 1: ⁓ awesome. Thank you so so much for having me here today. I'm so excited to ⁓ I l I love what you're doing. I love the concept of this podcast. I think it's just a really cool way to get to know each other a little bit better. So thanks for having me. Speaker 2: ⁓ so I turned 40 this year, and I think this resonates with me because I hit like this wall where I'm like, you know what? Nope. I'm I literally woke up in the morning, my birthday is like January seventh. And like I was turning forty that year. New Year's world round, I'm like, no way, I'm not gonna accept that, right? And then I heard a quote from the good old Gary V 40 is a fascinating age. A lot of people start to reflecting on their lives when they hit 40. And they look at it as they've already peaked. Truth is forty isn't even halftime yet. So we're gonna get Lisa's perspective on this because she did so much in the past few years that I'd love to hear what you had to say. Speaker 1: No, absolutely. And that's a quote that really resonates with me too, because I feel like a lot of like this this newer chapter of my life really started when I was in my late thirties and early forties, right? I'm forty-six now. ⁓ and when I was thirty-nine I decided I was gonna go back to school. So I I worked a little differently than what's typical, I guess. So I got married young and had kids young and started a career at the time and it was my temporary career, it was I need to raise my family and it wasn't my passion career, it was the work that I did to keep the roof over our heads. And as I went through life, I really started to realize that life's too short to be doing something you don't love to do. And you know, I always wanted to go back to school, but I had my kids young, so I didn't do post secondary right out of high school. And I knew that when the time was right I would go back. So When I was thirty nine I signed up to do my university degree in community development because at thirty nine is when I figured out what I wanted to do when I grew up. So so that's when I started it. So it was kinda cool because my daughter was starting grade nine just as I was starting my first year of university. So wow. Yeah. That's cool. It was pretty neat, right? So we sat at the through COVID for a lot of it, so we sat at the dining room table and did homework together and that's awesome. It was pretty cool. Yeah. And and the chapter of my life in politics really started when I was in my late thirties, right? That's when I got into it and when I, you know, I figured out again what I really wanted to do when I when I grew up. So I'm doing it now. So it's the new chapter. Speaker 2: that because I had my kids young as well too. Right. So I feel like I can relate with that. Totally. Now looking back at it, like I personally would never change that. I'll have the kids like young and then now I'm a little bit older and like me and my wife will look at each other instead of one of those like, hey you guys want to go for dinner? Like ⁓ we the kids I'm like why and I'm like ⁓ yeah yours are young like they can't stay home alone like you know me out is kind of like one of those like hey bud can you pick me up later it's like yeah no problem I can pick you up driving right exactly so do you feel the same way with having the kids young? Speaker 1: Me too. My kids are adults, right? Yeah. Totally. Best thing that I ever did, right? That was good. And you know, now they're they're grown up and fun and friends and helping me with my political journey and they knock on doors with me and they do all the cool stuff, right? So yeah, definitely different. And you know, it's not everybody's path, but it was the right path for me and I wouldn't change a thing. Speaker 2: That's awesome. Yeah, no, I love that. Yeah. What I also love is heavy hitting. Like, you know, me with my AC custom brand, you know me with my criterion brand, the podcast, try to be an advocate in the community, try and be involved in the community. And I'm very in your face. Like I am, I'm gonna be honest, I'm very in your face. I was going to your bio and I read, look, they can only told me only one woman had ever been mayor it of Orangeville. That was in 1863. I thought, well, someone's gotta be the second. Like that's fucking cool. Like that that's one of those, like, okay, let's go, gloves off. Like, that's a vibe I got when I read that quote. Yeah. Speaker 1: Yeah. So so the f yeah, 1863 was when Orangeville was founded, and the first female mayor was Mary Rose, and that was when I was in high school. So she was actually the very first female mayor. So I'm really honored to be the second, right? So someone's got to be the second, so it should be me. Absolutely. Speaker 2: A resident to the story of like the nine minute mile. I don't know if you ever heard about that, but like everyone said the nine minute mile wasn't possible. And then the first person broke it, and I think within the first three years, like twenty-seven other people broke it. It's not wild. It was like that first ceiling had to be broken. It was when those like that's the way I feel about you being mayor. It's like, yeah, the first one, now it's like, okay, now like I've opened the door for other people. So like I know you're huge on advocacy, so let's talk a little bit about like how you like opening doors. Like Do you enjoy using your position to open doors? Or is it one of those like you like to be in the background just kinda like helping out where you can or like Speaker 1: Really a hide in the background kind of person at all. Quite honestly. And you know, I think that my role as mayor is a really important one in a lot of ways. Not only are we making big decisions for the future of the community with my council, like that's that's a huge part of my job, but the other part of my job is advocating for change. And I've got a position where I have that opportunity and I have to use it. So I use it in a lot of different ways. Sometimes it's advocating to the provincial or federal governments for things that the community needs. Other times it's advocating for marginalized communities in marginalized marginalized people within our community, or it's working with youth and trying to inspire them into what they can do, right? That's an advocacy role as well. And really trying to connect youth with with society, with the community, trying to make them understand that their role, even as young people, is really important and really significant. And, you know, they have ways of giving back and know they can't run for counsel yet. But There's a lot of things that they can do as youth to have their voice heard to make sure that they're giving back to their community in a meaningful way. And really inspiring those youth that if they want to be the mayor one day they can. If they want to run for council one day, they can. And here's the path that you can do, right? Speaker 2: And that's what I love about seeing people so like open with communication and like the community is one of those like I had this like I guess complex as a child. Kind of like this is where I belong in society, right? And like I'm middle class, it's all I need to be. That's all I can ever do. I don't know how those people get there. And by opening those doors and having those communic like those conversations with the young generation, I think it's so important. Like I literally just canceled the contract through my contracting company because I found out the way management Held a standard with their man like the owner held right, I guess, standards with their management. And I'm like, our job is to teach the next generation. Absolutely. That's literally our job. So unfortunately, our company doesn't align with you because your job by hiring young workers and stuff like that is to set a standard. Like I agree every kid should lose a job. I agree every kid needs a failed test. Yeah. But there's a standard on how it's dealt with, how repercussions are dealt with, how learning is dealt with, how like rectification is dealt with. So I think that's so important, like advocating for that younger community and showing them yes, you can do it. Like that's so huge telling people like yes, you can do it. Speaker 1: And oftentimes people don't have the opportunity to explore what the art of the possible is, right? So I think it's our role as leaders in the community, whatever that leadership role looks like. I know your leadership role in the community looks different than mine, but we both have that responsibility to allow people in our community to explore what is possible. Speaker 2: And I find in our community, especially with what we have right now as like let's say leaders in the community, right? It's a very open door policy. That's what I love about it. And that's what I think the world needs more of is like an open door policy to allow other people to come in. Like I'm not at the competition stage anymore, I'm a calibrate or ⁓ collaborate. Yeah. Right. Like if another business owner came to me that was in the same sector as me and said, Hey, I'm a young business or I'm just starting out or I'm really struggling, can you help me? I would say yes. Yeah. Go back six years ago it'd probably be like, No, you're my competition. Like it's it's amazing how the mindset changes. I feel like we're in a position right now in the world where that's actually opening up to other people where they're starting to realize like collaborating is more like efficient than it is like I guess inefficient. Speaker 1: Well, and I think it's something that you see in our community and I I think you just gave a really good example of it, but we see that across the community. We've got restaurants in our community who all support each other. Yeah. We've got not for profits who are always at each other's fundraising events. There's something really cool about Orangeville when we do believe that that collaboration is way more important than the competition side. And and those are businesses and not for profits that are actively working for the same funding. They're all actively working for the same customer, right? But you know, being able to collaborate, I think that's that's hugely powerful. Speaker 2: So let's dial into it like a niche right now because the past three episodes I've had women on. Okay. And I always respected them in business, I always respected the hard work. I always know they have a little more of an uphill battle. But like they've completely blown my fucking mind. Like, no the just the mindset and the way they articulate thoughts and stuff like that, I'm like, why are they not doing everything? Like I know it sounds bad, but like men, step it up. Like literally step it up. Like I've been talking to someone, especially behind the scenes and like getting into these conversations, and I'm like, like I wouldn't even have thought about that. And I'm pretty good, like business sense, community sense, stuff like that. And I'm looking at them, I'm like I'm looking at things like trying to get involved in local communities like the D bot and stuff like that. Great. And the people I'm having on or and I'm sure you've done it too, is like they're instead of looking for a committee or place to be, they're creating those spaces, like masterminds and like committees and stuff like that. So there's one thing I heard that women belong in in all places where decisions are being made. Speaker 1: One of my favorite quotes. Isn't it? One of my absolute favorite quotes. And I think it's so important, right? It's it's people think that it's 2026 and that. Isn't relevant anymore, but I have to tell you it is. And I mean, I grew up in a family that believed that women could do anything. My grandfather was a pioneer in politics as well. And you know, he was around when Hazel McAlian was running for mayor for the first time, and he was a big supporter of hers in a time that supporting women in those roles wasn't really the most popular thing to do. And so I grew up in a family where we really believed that you could do anything. And I have to tell you, I was absolutely stunned when I knocked on a door during my last mayoral campaign in 2022, and there was a gentleman at the door, and I'll use the term loosely, but who Actually said to me, Why do you think that you have the right to run for a man's job? And I was floored. Like, this is 2022. And I'm like, I don't often get speechless, but I was pretty speechless because I actually laughed because I thought he had to be kidding, and he wasn't kidding. He really believed that being the mayor was a job that a man should do and that women had no place in it. That is 2022, right? So we still need to talk about that. We still need to talk about the fact that women aren't Often equally represented at those tables where decisions are being made. And when I walk into conferences and things like that, it is still a very male-dominated industry. Being in politics is still very male dominated. It's getting better. It's definitely becoming more equal. There's lots of really great female mayors that I work alongside with that I have the utmost respect for, who are doing really great work across their communities. But when you walk into the building, it is still mostly men. It is still primarily men. Speaker 2: So Lisa Post as a whole, not Mayor, not ⁓ 27 other things on your resume, not like a mother, just Lisa Post herself. Like, why take on that burden? Like where did that start and why do you take on that burden to have that uphill battle? Like I always wanted that because I like me, I I'm very like, I love going against the grain. Yep. I love hearing like it's hard to do. And I like the process of it all. Like the end result, say like I was running for mayor, right? In my if I were to put myself in your shoes, becoming mayor wouldn't be the end result. I would enjoy the process of door knocking, totally campaigning. The best part like the hard part, right? And once you get mayor, it's kinda like my book. I said on one of my last podcasts when I'm like, I said I'm gonna write a book. I wrote it like a weekend and that I had the book in my hand and I'm like, Who cares? I wrote a book, now what's next? Like I I l I like the process of writing a book, the thought of it, the struggle of am I gonna finish this book on time? So like You as an individual, like take away all your titles, drip it right down just to a genuine human being. Why do you take on that burden? Like what goes through your head? Speaker 1: think I honestly I think it is all the titles that I have in my life that Wanted that made me want to take on the burden because I love the community. I care about what happens for it. I have kids that I wanted to be able to make sure could afford to live here and raise a family here and that they would want to choose our community as theirs, right? So knowing that I have a skill set that's different and a and maybe a perspective that's different than some of the previous mayors in the past had had is what really pushed me into running for politics in the first place. Was I wanted to be able to tangibly make a difference in the community that raised me. And you know, I was born and raised in Orangeville, and I care deeply about this community. So I really wanted to have a place where I could do that. As a person, I'm like you. I like the challenge of things, right? I love the campaigning side. A lot of candidates don't love knocking on doors. It can be overwhelming. You never know what you're gonna get when you knock on a door. Like someone who's gonna tell you that you shouldn't run for a man's job. Speaker 2: Well it's putting a ⁓ no over the phone. Like it it ⁓ yeah. Everyone should go through Speaker 1: yeah, and and it it takes a lot to go to the next door, right? And once you've gone to the next door and you get greeted with kindness or you get greeted with support, it's like okay, I'm fired up again, I can keep going, right? And I think that that's part of the process is the challenge and working towards something that's so important to me is is part of it, right? This job means everything to me. It really does. I love the role that I'm doing, I love the impact that I can have, but the challenge of getting there really makes it rewarding. Speaker 2: So you've clearly taken the path of least resistance more than once, right? As a whole. Everywhere you go, like female mayor, like going back to school at 39, like having a family young when I'm sure your friends were out partying and Totally. So like let's talk about the moment you knew you were like this. Like, was there a turning point where you're like, I remember when I started my business, I remember I walked in my office and I looked at my boss, I'm like, I'm too smart for this. Like it sounds arrogant, but I'm like, I'm not doing this, I'm too smart for this. I'm gonna go do my own thing, right? Was there a turning point where you actually thought to yourself it's like I'm constantly doing the hard thing or I'm constantly breaking barriers, I'm constantly opening doors for everyone? Was there like even after the success, like was there some point you looked back at yourself and said, That's when it was? Speaker 1: No, I don't think so. I mean I really think about my time throughout and and even through high school. Like I always wanted, you know, I did at the time I went to high school, there was still grade 13, right? I did my grade 13 in four years. So I didn't do five years of high school, I did it in four. So it was still kind of one of those things where I wanted to be challenging myself. I, you know, in grade 10 I was doing grade 12 English. In grade 11, I was doing my grade thirteen classes. Like again, I was always trying to I guess I made things a little difficult for myself. But again, it was the challenge of it. It was wanting to wanting to show that I could do the hard things, that I can, you know, I think it's a it's not proof to anybody else, but it's proof to myself that the hard things can be done. And if there's something that you want, if you put the work in and you put the effort in and you know, you do it with all your heart, it can be achieved, right? And there was a lot of people who said, You're 39 and you're on council and you're gonna back to school. Like you've still got you've still got kids at home and you've got like, how are you gonna fit it in? And I'm like If you want something done, give it to someone who's busy and we'll find the spot. If it's something you care about, you're gonna schedule it. And I have a really great calendar because if I didn't, I wouldn't get the things done that I could do, right? But my life has to be scheduled that way. And and going back to school and doing the degree that I finally figured out that I wanted to do, it was what I wanted to do. So I was gonna make sure that I did it and I did it with honors and I, you know, won the award at s at my graduation and I did all the things, right? That was important to me. And and did I need to have A ninety percent average in school? No, I could have done, you know, C's get degrees too. So but I wanted to do it the way that I wanted to do it, right? So, you know, I did it my way and and made sure that it was a priority and I wanted to be awesome at it. I wanted to do it with my whole heart. Speaker 2: So building that credibility to yourself. Because we we do do that, like high achievers, and I'll call it spoil high achievers, right? I feel like we eventually get this point where we get this like bank of like proof of concept. Mm-hmm. Now, do you feel like you're always a spear of the head? And that's why because I wanna get into you opening the door for some advocacy groups. Mm-hmm. Because you've done a great job for that in Orangeville. ⁓ thank you. So I do wanna talk about like, have you naturally taken on that role? Have you felt like Like that mama bear kind of thing. Like, okay, I'm in a position, I've worked hard, I've gone through resistance, no one else should have to go through that kind of like mud and truck. Yeah. So like I'm gonna be the head of the spear and do this because now I have the position to do that. And do you feel like it's partly because of how much you've already accomplished? Speaker 1: Definitely partly. ⁓ and again I think it's because I have this this debt to the community that I feel like I owe. It's the community that raised me. I value it deeply. And and I think that we all owe a little bit back to the community that raises us, right? And we can give back in whatever way works for us. And I think for me it is often in a leadership role or in an advocacy role. ⁓ I don't do well sitting back on the sidelines. I'm usually the one who wants to start the committee or open the door or start the event and you know, try and do the things that will bring people together. So I think it just naturally happens when you're in that kind of high achiever wanting to succeed role. Speaker 2: That's perfect. And so adding in those advice groups with you being a mayor, you being a mother, like going back to school and everything like that. I feel like I'm doing that right now because I'm just kind of going through your resume. I'm not being rude to her. I'm just Let's talk about juggling it. Yeah. So you can do anything, but you can't do everything. Speaker 1: Okay. That's right, yeah. I I think that's really key. And and I do have a bit of a rule right now that I have to pause before I say yes to everything because I am somebody who wants to be able to help everybody. ⁓ when somebody asks if I want to sit on their committee, I want to say yes because I care about their cause, right? But I also have to realize that I'm one person and I do have to take some time for myself as well. So so I am getting better at saying no. But it's really hard when it's something that you're super passionate about, right? So I do try and really balance the things that are most important to me. And and when there is a cause that really resonates with me, I'm gonna give it some time and I'll make sure that I add it to my schedule. Speaker 2: So I got asked a question three weeks ago. Yeah. And they're like, what does an average Tuesday look like? And I'm like And like when I heard when someone asked me that, I'm like, I love it. So I gotta ask somebody that's just as busy. So like I don't know why it just g it just resonated like I it just kinda like stuck into me and I was like, that's a really cool question. It is a cool question. Like, what does an average Tuesday look like? Yeah. Speaker 1: And it that's a funny question because I always tell people that I don't have a typical job. It is Thursday. Yeah. ⁓ but I don't I don't have a typical job. I don't work nine to five. My days are also different. And I think honestly it's one of the things that I really love about it. But in a typical, like we'll say it's not summertime and it's kind of start of a council term and we're working on some stuff, my days are full with meetings, meeting with residents, meeting with staff at town hall. Reading reports, I read a lot. Like every day I'm reading a couple hundred pages of reports that need to be done because I've got multiple councils that I sit on. I'm on county council and on local council. So I've got reports that need to be read, and some of them are pretty slow reads. They're technical reports that I need to know. So ⁓ I get about two hundred and fifty emails a day that I sift through and respond to. ⁓ Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, I I I got I got three of them working on my computer right now, it's like game changing for me like Speaker 1: No doubt. ⁓ so lots of that. But I think my favorite time is that often I'm going into schools and meeting with students and teaching them about municipal government and teaching them civics, right? Like why how why does our democracy work the way that it does? So I'll often go meet with schools or user groups or anything like that. ⁓ and then Speaker 2: Is that mandatory in your role or is that just kinda just to line line up my next question? Yeah. Speaker 1: Just something I love. No longer. It it does it's it's one of the things that I love to do and and you'll find that a lot of mayors do do that, go in and talk to school groups and stuff. I get the girl guides who come in and get tours of town hall or the, you know, local karate club will come on spring break and and do a tour and I'll talk to them about the history of Orangeville and how municipal government works. ⁓ I also teach part time at Georgian College when it's during the school year, so I teach in the social service worker program and that keeps me connected to the education side because I really do believe that you know, continuous education matters and when I'm not in school myself, I like to be able to teach others. So ⁓ that's crazy. I do it very part time, very, very part time, like one or two courses a semester. ⁓ and it's local. I'm teaching at the local campus, which is great. ⁓ but that's kind of typically what a day would look like for me is that usually I've got, you know, a couple of hours of prep work for school and some hours of prep work for council stuff. Speaker 2: So when things don't go to plan, what's the first thing to break? 'Cause that was my fault. That was the fall I was like, I don't know, like everything. Speaker 1: Question. It'll always be something in my personal life that breaks first, right? Like it'll it that's what's gonna drop is something that I've that I've set up for myself. That'll be the first thing to go naturally, right? So I don't get a lot of evenings to myself 'cause we're typically at events where, you know, evenings are big when you're the mayor. So we go to a lot of different community events and ⁓ oftentimes those will take priority over personal things that I'll wanna Speaker 2: And you find yourself because you've been doing this a while, you have some experience in it. Can you catch it as before it starts crashing most of the time? Yes. You're pretty good at Speaker 1: Absolutely. I can see when things are and I also know now now that I'm into the routine a little bit, I know where the busy times are. So I know where to be kinder to myself. And I think to be a little more prepared for it. So I know that when we're heading into budget times and I'm dealing with budgets at two different councils, that that's going to be chaos for me. November, December, January are crazy, right? So I try to be kind to myself and not ⁓ overextend myself during those times because I have to be realistic to the fact that my job will be exceptionally demanding. But in a slow time like summer, ⁓ we don't have a lot of council meetings, our committees don't meet as often. So I do have a little bit more flexibility. So even though I don't work a regular nine to five job, it's still a job with a lot of flexibility. Yeah. Which is great. Speaker 2: I do want the show to be impactful. So I do want your input because yeah, mayor, warden, professor, multiple boards, community involvement, fundraising. And imagine someone's just sitting in their cart listening to this right now. Or going for a walk or whatever it is. Or I've called them and said, Hey, you have to listen my show. Like it someone's listening right now. Okay. Now, what's your system? Like, I'm a non-negotiable guy, so that I have like non-negotiables or anything, but imagine someone's in there stuck. Speaker 1: Yeah, okay. Speaker 2: in a bad spot saying I can't even handle day-to-day life. Yep. And listen to Lisa just go. Like give them some advice. Like coming from your perspective, kind of like how do you handle it yourself? Because that might help someone out there. That's my main thing. It's like it might bring impact to someone saying, I never thought of it like that. Or is that how she does it? Like Speaker 1: I think the biggest thing honestly is find your passions and prioritize those. So if you can do that, great. ⁓ I also think that you need to be kind to yourself because there are times where it's not gonna be easy and it's not gonna be It's not gonna come naturally. And there's times where things are falling apart in your own personal life that you're not gonna feel like you can pick yourself up and do anything else, right? So I think you have to allow yourself the kindness of that ⁓ and recognize that we're all human and we can't do everything. So there are times where days are not easy, right? And and where you do have to work extra hard to do the non-negotiables, right? ⁓ but I think that if you can challenge yourself with prioritizing your passion projects and prioritizing the things that are most impactful to you. it it naturally falls into place or it can naturally fall into place. Speaker 2: This chip off my block where I'm like I'm I gotta do this for an hour. Like there's people out there that wish they can do what I do. Like let's just use a workout for example. I'm like, I'm only here for an hour. Right. Like people wish they can leave the hospital bed and come do what I'm doing. So I'm like, it's an hour of pain. Like, no big deal. I'm gonna go and do it. So that's a chip off my block, right? And then some other people are like, my why? For like my kids or like whoever it is that's important to them. And then you also have like you, where it's kinda like I use my passion as leverage. So it's amazing how many different ways people can look at it. I feel like This day and age though, people don't know how to give themselves enough credit to Totally go for it. Like they they don't know how to use that launch pad to kind of say, okay, this is how I'm gonna get there. Yeah. And that's what part of the reason I have the show is like I want see people to see you can do it. Like, trust me, if I can do it, ⁓ anybody can do it. Like you what I It's one of those, so I love hearing people's perspective on it and I love passion because this is a passion project. Totally. So like, you know, today it was a little bit of a busier day and Through and walks into the office and I'm running around and we ran out to shoot some content, came back. I have a bunch of stuff going on with the AZ Cus. I'm like, but my podcast is like, I love doing it. So it's like, I want to do this now. Right. Kind of thing, right? So that's really cool. But then coming in with the podcast, I found a lot of people are like, How do you juggle it all? Are you gonna be able to do it? Or are you gonna do only five episodes? Like, are you gonna stick to it? Like, ⁓ you're gonna write a book? So, like your position, I'm sure you've had doubters. Okay. Speaker 1: Totally. Well, and I think just to go back to what you were talking about before, I think one of the important things that people need to realize is that we have all of these different, you can call them chapters or seasons in your life, right? So there are gonna be seasons in your life where you have to do the grind, you have to do the hard stuff, you have to do the job that you hate because it's the thing that pays your bills and keeps the roof over your head, right? So and and I and I've done all of those things, right? And I feel really privileged now that I got to a point where I'm actually able to do the job that I love. ⁓ because it is really a privilege. And I know that not everybody is in that position. So I don't want anybody to think that it's just that easy, that you can just do what you love and it's gonna be great. Because there are different seasons in your life where it's gonna be hard and it's gonna be challenging, and you're doing a job that you absolutely despise, but you really need to make sure that you keep a roof over your head for your family, right? And I know that there's a lot of people out there right now in economic distress and just really trying to make ends meet, and and that's a reality. And I hope for all of them that there's gonna be a different chapter coming or a different season coming where they'll have the opportunity to get out of that grind and do the thing that they love. And just keep working harder towards that. Speaker 2: That's awesome. So who told you that you couldn't do it? Like I don't want a name, I don't want magic. But give me like a real life story. Like something that resonated with you where it's kinda like, no, you know what? Fuck you, I can do it. Speaker 1: So honestly, the first time when I ran for counsel, and again, I was younger and naive, and I ran for counsel the first time in twenty fourteen, and I lost that time when I ran. So I was brand new at it. I really didn't know what I was doing. I was knocking on my first couple of doors and it was going pretty well. Like people were really kind to me, right? And I got to the first door where somebody said to me, But it shows on here that you're a mom too. I'm like, Yeah. They're like, Well, how are you gonna do that? How are you gonna be a mom and a counselor? I'm like, well, I've had a job and been a mom for all these years. Like I'm planning on still having a job and being a mom and being a counselor. Like so I I think that was the first one whereas kind of young, naive knocking on doors, I was like ⁓ hang on a sec. There's people who think that that's why I can't do it. And then there are other people who's like, well, you've never gone to school for anything. You've never been in post-secondary. Why do you think you could be on counsel? I don't need to be an engineer or a lawyer or a doctor to be on counsel, right? You need to love the community, you need to care about the place that you live, and you need to be willing to work hard and make a difference. And so I think having doubters along the way who challenge, you know. what my education is or what my previous work history was and what makes me qualified. It was a lot of people like that, right? Who in the first little while, before they knew who I was or what I stood for, just saw me as this young mom who wanted to be on council and what credibility did I have, right? So it was a lot of hurdles getting over that. And I think the bigger things now, honestly, is the social media nonsense noise, right? You've got the loud group of, and I know we all have them, the loud group of haters who want to question whatever you're doing and it doesn't matter, you know, to some folks, it doesn't matter what I do, it's always gonna be the wrong answer. Right. So being able to ignore that and still know that you're trying to do the best for the most amount of people. Speaker 2: And I find now, especially with the social media noise, it's I use it as fuel before. Yeah. And as I get older and as I like build more and succeed more, it's harder to use as fuel. I don't know. Maybe it's just me, but it's one of those like I don't care. Like it before it'd be like, okay, yeah, you know what, you want to prove me wrong, you want you know, you know, talk on opposites and like we'll go all day. Yeah. Right. Now it's like I just don't have the energy. Like I got so much other stuff on the go. And I think that's the problem with a lot of the noise out there is like they have nothing better going on. Speaker 1: Well, you're never gonna win a fight on Facebook, right? No. You're never gonna win a fight on Facebook. And honestly, it was some of the best advice that I got the first time I ran. A counselor mentor of mine at the time had said to me, you know, I use social media as a one way tool. It's a way to get your message out. You don't need to engage it. Right. And I've that stuck with me. Like I'm using it as a communication tool because it does have that benefit. You can reach a lot of people quickly, right? But the opposite reaction is that it can sometimes stir up controversy that again, you're not gonna win a fight on Facebook. So I try not to engage in that stuff. I always just say to people, I'm open and accessible. My email's public, my phone number's public. If you want to talk to me and have a respectful conversation about something, give me a call and we'll talk it out. Yeah. Yeah. Speaker 2: But do find it does get to people. Totally. And it starts getting certain people, like a certain personality, it starts changing their perspective on themselves. For sure. And you've gone through like life change after life change. Mm-hmm. And have you ever hidden an imposter syndrome phase where you're kinda like, is this who I am? Speaker 1: the time, all the time. ⁓ and I think election day when I won as mayor, I was like, hold on a minute, like what gives me the right to do this job, right? Like maybe that guy that I knocked on his door was right. What gives me the right to do this job, right? So I get that all the time where you're questioning, you know, am I the right person for this job? And and you know, I just keep doing the work, right? You've just got to keep doing the work and showing up and and proving to yourself that you are the right person to do it. Because I think all of us can do anything that we want to if we put our mind to it. That's awesome. Speaker 2: Awesome. ⁓ so talking about the imposter syndrome. Let's go back to something you said with mentors. Because I'm huge on mentors. I I think I say on every podcast. T Bear, every podcast. It's like if you want to know what's on top of a mountain, ask someone coming down. Yeah. Like you know what I mean? Why you had to go through the shit if someone else already gone through and they could give you a better path, right? Yeah. So through all your stages, have you had different mentors? One mentor Speaker 1: Lots along the way. Lots along the way. Starting with, you know, when I was young, first working full time, I had mentors in all of my different businesses that all taught me something different about myself. The first ⁓ the first manager that I had who promoted me into a management position saw something in me that I didn't see in myself where I was like, Hold on, she thinks that I can be the manager of this place. Like right? So I I was working retail at the time and she was the one who was like, No, you're the right person for this and she took a chance on me as a a very young retail worker to Run the place, right? And and she stayed a mentor of mine, she still is over the years. But throughout the process, I've met a lot of really great people along the way who have always taught me something different about myself that I didn't know, or shown me something in myself that I didn't know I had, right? And I think that's something that's great about mentors is that they can often see things in you that you don't necessarily see in yourself. Speaker 2: Now the mentor E, I guess, is I don't even know what that's a word. Do you feel like it has to be a certain person to be able to absorb that? Because like I'm pretty sure some people are resistant on that, saying, ⁓ you don't have to tell me how to do or do you feel like to have a good mentor you have to have a receptive personality? Speaker 1: Menti. Menti, mentor and mentee. I don't know that you have to have a receptive personality. I think the mentor has to have the right approach based on what your personality is. I think everybody can be a good mentee if they've got the right mentor in place. So I've I've had some that have maybe not had the right approach with me, where I probably brush them off in the beginning, right? And now 10, 15, 20 years later, I can go back and go, Well, you know what? I know what they were trying to tell me now. But at the time, the approach wasn't right for where I was at in my life. So I think all of us have the ability to be a good mentee if we've got that. right mentor who's resonating with with us in that moment. Speaker 2: Because I'm big on seasons, like you said earlier. Totally. I think every season has a purpose, ups, downs, whatever it is. Like during this podcast, I don't think I'd be able to sit here and have a good conversation with someone if I didn't go through my last 40 years in life. Totally. I wouldn't have been able to build my business to the point if I didn't have like everyone's like, Would you start it earlier? And I'm like, I don't think so because I needed to go through that employment stage to learn what I learned and said I can do this for myself. Speaker 1: Well now you know what the topics are that you want to talk about, right? It's not just in like you said at the beginning, it's not just an interview. It's about talking about things and human to human, right? Speaker 2: And so like having those different seasons in like everyday because you meet a lot of people and everything, do you find because you're so dialed in with yourself, you can kind of like do you think h like high achievers can look at someone and say, I know what season you're in? Boom, right off the hot. Because have a few friends I try to mentor or help out and stuff. I'm like, You're about to hit this season. Trust me, you're it's gonna suck. Like it's it's gonna be all downhill, but stick it through and it gets better. Like, do you feel like you can not judge someone but like Align someone in where they are based on where you are because you have so much more experience in so many different avenues. Speaker 1: say that the more that I learn along the way, the more ability I think I have to be able to recognize things in other people for sure. ⁓ And I think that my approach has probably gotten better over the years too with how I work with people and how I talk to people. And I again often it's not wanting to say, hey, I'm seeing something in you. It's trying to find the right approach with them to say, you know, let me show you something along the way that might be able to help you today, right? So I I think that as as we go through and learn different things, I think my approach has changed with people for sure. Speaker 2: And you feel like a sense of I guess how am I gonna word this? It's kind of like obligation. Like I feel like there's certain times where I'm obligated where I'm like, I better give them a heads up. Or I should pat them on the back. Like it totally. It's just it goes both ways. It's like, you know, kinda like pull them back, but also push them forward a little bit. I think everyone has an obligation to do that with someone a little bit lower in than them. I'm in a mastermind group, for instance, right? Yeah. Everyone says it's like I guess a Ponzi scheme kind of thing, right? Because you have your top end people, they pay a little more, a little bit less, and then free, right? But I'm like, the point is to feed, like overfill the cup and bring it down. The guys at paying top dollar, they're there because they know what they're doing, they can afford that. And their information is crucial to the people below them because those people are just there to kind of come up, right? And I'm like, I love the model because I'm like, one pay-to-play. So like if you're in a room with only 10 people that are paying, you know, thousands of dollars versus A hundred people that are paying fifty dollars or a r two thousand people not paying anything, the value in that room is not gonna be as much. Right? But then you also have going back to it, you have the obligation as someone with experience or at a higher level to either push people forward or pull people back. Especially with like you doing advocacy, right? That's big and that's gotta be a real heavy pushback. Like it's gonna Speaker 1: It can be for sure. ⁓ I think one of the things that's neat as I've done the job longer is that now spending so much time in the community and meeting people in all the different places that they're at, whether it's at a not for profit or at a community event or wherever in the community that I'm meeting people, I find now that I've been doing the job as long as I have, I can recognize in people like, hey, I think you'd be really good on counsel, right? So sometimes I'll have a moment with them where I'm like, have you ever thought about running for counsel? Like I think we should go have a coffee and just talk, right? And it it's because I want people to recognize, because I don't I think if somebody hadn't said to me First time, you know, you should maybe run for counsel. I probably never would have thought about it, right? So I think oftentimes people just need to be asked. So or or suggested that, you know, this is something that maybe you're not seeing in yourself that I'm recognizing in you that, hey, I think you'd be really good at this job. And maybe it's nothing that you're actually interested in, but I'm seeing something in you that tells me that I think you'd be really good at it. And I think the longer I do this job, the better I am at spotting that in people and saying you've got the right passion or the right heart or the right drive to do it, right? ⁓ And oftentimes people are like, ⁓ I never would have thought of that. And I'm like, well, just think about it. We don't have to talk today, but here's my card. Call me anytime. I'm always happy to talk about what my experience on council has been because I think it's something you should consider, whether it's in Orangeville or in another community, right? Speaker 2: And is there a switch like personal and business and mayor and teacher? Like, do you actually physically like turn it on? I I find as I do it more, I'm just like, this is genuine me. I used to turn it on and off. Like I'd see someone in public, and one of those like, ⁓ my business owner. Right. This is not tighten my tie. Like one of those. And now I'm just like, it's me. Like I'm literally in doing a podcast and dance cap and dance cat t-shirt, right? With a how. Like, I'm like, it is me. Like that's it. Yeah. I'm authentic, I'm genuine, I'm honest. Like Speaker 1: And that's me too. I don't think there's an off switch. I mean, when you're the mayor, you're always the mayor. So whether I'm at the grocery store or I'm in here doing a podcast or I'm out at a community I've nobody'll grocery shop with me anymore. It takes forever. It takes forever. Like a couple of hours to go through the grocery store for sure. Nobody will grocery shop with me anymore. ⁓ but I'm always the mayor, right? So Speaker 2: Shopping take. Speaker 1: The easiest way to do that is to just always authentically be yourself. So I know that my students at Georgian or my council team or my volunteers on Celebrate Your Awesome will tell you the same thing that I'm always the same person. Right. And and it's there are times where I have to wear a different hat in what the decision I'm making is, but I'm always gonna do it with authentically supposed is gonna show up to do it. Speaker 2: It's awesome. Is there anything you want to touch on in specific? Speaker 1: No, I don't think so. I mean, we've covered a lot today. ⁓ right. That'd be great. Yeah. You know, again, I think that the biggest thing is that I really hope that what people take away from it is that there is the option to always change the season in your life and to try something new and don't be afraid of it, right? ⁓ the first time I ran for counsel, I was terrified. The d first door I ever knocked on, I was petrified, right? 'Cause what are they gonna say to me? What are they you know, what credibility do I have to be running for this role? So ⁓ I think embrace your fears and just follow your passions. Speaker 2: That's awesome. She's good. She's taking like questions right off my board before we get to them. So I always like to end off with two or three somewhat simple but kind of deep questions. Okay. One is everyone listening, what would you tell them to ask themselves right now? Speaker 1: Where do you wanna be in ten years? Speaker 2: I love that. Yeah. I'm ⁓ like I I I believe in like operate where you wanna be. No. Totally. Speaker 1: Where do you wanna be? What do you wanna do? Right? Yeah. Where do you wanna be in ten years? Where do you see yourself? Speaker 2: Next question. Yeah. What do you want to be asked? Speaker 1: ⁓ that's a really good question. I don't know. I would probably want to be asked the same thing. Like I I I I would hope that somebody I I hope that there are still people out there who will say that they see something in me that I'm not seeing in myself, right? That's awesome. I love that. And that they can be able to say, Hey, I think you'd be really good at this, right? Because every time that somebody says that to me, I it makes me think differently, right? It makes me look at my next ten years differently, maybe if somebody's seeing something in in me that I'm not noticing in myself. Speaker 2: That's become like a standard here. Like it. last question. Okay. If you could name this episode based on everything we talked about, what would you name it? Speaker 1: Rooted in community. Love that. That love that. Speaker 2: That is like the perfect podcast. Boom! Nailed it. So, Forget the Noise podcast. We are here with Lisa Post. Do you want to do any socials or anything like that or plugs? Speaker 1: Sure, any you can follow me on anything. I'm on TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, whatever Twitter's called now. You can find me on all of them. So ⁓ I'm happy to chat with anybody anytime. And my phone number and my email is public. So if there's anything in the community that you care about and you wanna talk about, reach out. I'm happy to chat. Speaker 2: All right, well, thank you for coming on. Thanks so much. Been awesome, awesome interview. Again, women in business, in roles of power, everything like that. Like it's just it's changing by the day and like everyone should advocate for it and push for it. Agreed. I've talked to them personally, and it's crazy, it's not only just equality, it's the sense of like the way they operate. They look at things differently. Like I said earlier in the episode, I look at things to get involved in, they create spaces to get involved in. Like it's That's just a small example of what I've learned over the past few weeks during this podcast. So forget the noise podcast, another great episode. AJ Cappuccini, Lisa Post, tune in for next week, another great episode. All our socials and everything will be in the comments. And just go out and forget the noise.