Crox of the Matter - Bruce Croxon

For decades I've admired Bruce: his integrity, his personality, his intuition and his drive. He helped build Lavalife before most of us trusted the internet, became one of Canada's best-known Dragons on Dragons' Den, and co-founded Round13 Capital. Few people have had a front-row seat to nearly four decades of disruption. Fewer still are this honest about what it takes. This isn't an interview. It's a masterclass woven into a podcast.  Hard-won lessons from someone who will tell you that anyone who claims to bat a thousand isn't telling the truth. We will also learn about 13th Round: Fight for Life, which has brought 700 kids into the boxing ring for discipline, belonging and self-esteem and then my Tony Takeaway:  My lesson in life for all who dream and do. Episode 2 of Small Business Matters, honouring our Small Business heroes, and presented by RBC. CHAPTERS 00:00 Three kinds of people: who makes things happen 02:57 Curiosity at 65, and what never changes about success 05:21 Lessons from his father: grade eight, $50 and humility 06:50 Dragons' Den: the fame, the brand and why he left 08:43 Lavalife: building trust before anyone trusted the internet 10:19 Why founders fool themselves, and the feedback loop 11:32 Passion vs. introspection: what Bruce looks for first 12:38 The pitch every investor dreams of 14:06 Billion-dollar valuations, AI and getting back to basics 15:39 The 51/49 rule, and Bruce's Achilles heel 19:18 Taking the emotion out of investing 20:25 Why Canada is the best place to build a business 22:52 Celebrating entrepreneurs like hockey players 24:01 13th Round Fight for Life 25:35 The letter Bruce hopes to receive 26:33 Tony's three takeaways 28:15 Stand for something before you try to stand out If this episode moves you, share it with one person who's building something. A business, a brand or a career. Round13 Capital: https://round13.com/ 13th Round Fight for Life: https://13thround.life RBC Small Business: https://www.rbcroyalbank.com/business/index.html    

What if the greatest threat to your business isn't what's broken but what's working beautifully?  To launch my five-part Small Business Matters series, I sit down with Sid Paquette, Head of RBCx for a powerful conversation about building enduring businesses and Canada's new economy. Sid explains why entrepreneurs must disrupt themselves before someone else does, how unexpected value turns customers into advocates, and why passion, resilience and execution are essential to attracting exceptional talent. He also explores the importance of embracing failure, hiring people who complement your weaknesses and creating a culture where bold ideas can thrive. The conversation then turns to Canada's defining economic opportunity: helping homegrown technology companies secure the capital, expertise and connections they need to scale here—and compete everywhere. I close with an essential lesson for everyone: Attention is the oxygen of every endeavour. In an age of relentless noise, earning attention begins by listening generously and becoming part of your customers' stories, not simply telling your own.  Whether you're growing a business, building a team or reinventing your career, this episode will challenge you to disrupt what's working, create value no one expects and turn attention into meaningful engagement. Chatter That Matters is presented by RBC. To learn more about why RBC Small Business banking works as hard as you do: https://www.rbcroyalbank.com/business/index.html To learn more about RBCX Ventures: https://www.rbcx.com/portfolio/ RBCx $1.4 billion growth fund: https://www.rbcx.com/investments/rbcx-growth-fund/    

Our Loves - Avi Nesher Can a film change how we see the world and ourselves? At the Toronto International Film Festival, I sat down with celebrated Israeli filmmaker Avi Nesher to discuss Our Loves, his moving new film about seven strangers whose personal struggles are overtaken by the events of October 7, 2023. Nesher reflects on five decades of filmmaking, the balance between structure and creativity, and why actors and audiences are partners in the storytelling process. In a deeply personal conversation, he also explores grief, artistic freedom, second chances, and cinema's power to build empathy, bring people together, and help us heal. And our world needs healing. 

In the summer of 1972, a group of young, largely unknown performers gathered in Toronto to stage Godspell. The cast included Martin Short, Eugene Levy, Gilda Radner, Andrea Martin, Victor Garber, Dave Thomas and Jayne Eastwood, with Paul Shaffer at the piano. What happened in that rehearsal room would help shape comedy for generations. I sit down with director Nick Davis and writer Jane Mendelsohn about their documentary, *You Had to Be There: How the Toronto Godspell Ignited the Comedy Revolution, Spread Love & Overalls, and Created a Community That Changed the World (in a Canadian Kind of Way). We explore how an ensemble built on friendship, trust and joyful experimentation became an incubator for extraordinary talent and how Martin Short's hidden audio recordings helped preserve a production for which no film footage exists. The conversation also honours Gilda Radner's enduring spirit, reflects on Avril Chown's more painful experience in show business, and asks whether such an unguarded creative community could emerge in today's era of personal brands and constant cameras. It's a moving story about collaboration, risk, memory and the rare moments that change culture before anyone realizes history is being made. CHATTER THAT MATTERS is live at TIFF with ODIENCE, an exciting and immersive content platform created by Montreal-based Summit Tech.   To learn more about: The documentary: https://tiff.net/films/you-had-to-be-there RBC and TIFF: https://www.rbctiff.com Odience360:  https://www.odience.com    

What if the moment that broke you was also the moment you began to wake up? Aymie Daniels, author of An American Awakening, shares her raw and deeply personal journey through depression, addiction, psychosis, misdiagnosis, and spiritual awakening. Together, we explore the fragile line between revelation and delusion—and ask whether a mental health crisis can also be a profound search for meaning. Aymie's story exposes the cracks in a mental healthcare system that can leave people feeling controlled, overmedicated, dismissed, and misunderstood. It also reveals what may become possible when compassionate guidance, personal agency, and hope replace fear and judgment. Blending lived experience with reflection and practical mental health awareness, this episode challenges what we think we know about sanity, consciousness, healing, and transformation. This is more than one woman's story. It's a powerful conversation for anyone who has ever felt unheard—and a wake-up call for a system that claims to care.      

In Finding Grace, Rocco Rossi's brilliant new debut novel follows a ruthless executive who survives a fatal plane crash, only to discover a stranger walking the Camino de Santiago under his abandoned birth name.  What inspired this book was the sudden death of his mentor, which forced Rocco off the corporate ladder and onto a 1,000-kilometre walk across Spain . Rocco shares his transformation from an executive chasing wealth to validate his immigrant parents' sacrifices to a man who has dedicated 24 Camino walks to those who couldn't finish their own journeys . Tune in to discover how intentional stillness can chip away at the inauthentic parts of your life and reveal the true path you are meant to walk .       To purchase Finding Grace:  https://www.amazon.ca/Finding-Grace-Camino-Santiago-Story-ebook/dp/B0H37XH472

What if the parts of your story you most want to escape are the very parts that can lead you toward purpose? Growing up, Peter H. Bailey always felt that something was wrong, and somehow, he was it. After a brain hemorrhage and unsuccessful surgery transformed his father from a heroic Navy pilot into a man with significant disabilities, Peter carried a painful mix of embarrassment, confusion and shame. He was even ashamed of feeling ashamed. Being the smallest kid in his class intensified what he calls "the disease of comparison." Dangerous stunts, alcohol and drugs became ways to earn acceptance and escape what he didn't know how to feel. But Peter's story didn't end there. In this deeply human conversation, Peter explores how travel, adversity, his wife's cancer journey and Joseph Campbell's Hero's Journey helped him reframe his past and discover a more purposeful way forward.  He shares excerpts from his bestselling book, The Epic of You. I ask Peter the question we often ask ourselves. How do we find genuine meaning in a world engineered to distract us, compare us and keep us numb? Some fantastic takeaways on how to realize that the epic is you. To learn more about Peter and to purchase his book: https://www.peter-bailey.com  

I fear retirement. Work is where I find my passion, purpose and pursuit. Much of who I am is tied to what I do. Not easy to write, but the truth. And here is my reality and yours: many of us could spend as many years after our careers as we spent building them. Think about that. My guest, Mehbs Remtulla, achieved financial freedom and stepped away from work at 50. What his success hadn't prepared him for was the loss of identity, connection, inspiration and a reason to get out of bed. Mehbs turned that struggle into What's neXT50, a global community that helps people use their experience and wisdom to create a meaningful next chapter. I then chat with Tammy Vigue, who explains why financial readiness is only half the journey. We must plan not only for what we're leaving, but for the life waiting on the other side. This conversation is not only for people contemplating retirement, but for a world where AI and Robotics will take away many jobs, leaving many to navigate change, search for purpose, or ask: Who am I, and what am I here to do next?

Jonathan Todd Schwartz was once entrusted with the fortunes and futures of some of the biggest names in entertainment, including Beyoncé, Linkin Park, and Alanis Morissette. Behind the image of the disciplined CPA and trusted Hollywood business manager, however, Jonathan was living a secret life. Childhood trauma, cocaine use, and an out-of-control gambling addiction consumed him. He lost millions gambling and, as his addictions spiralled, embezzled over $7 million from the clients who trusted him most. What began in his mind as money he would "borrow" and quickly repay became an elaborate betrayal built on falsified records, concealed withdrawals, and years of deception. When the truth finally surfaced, Jonathan lost his career, reputation, marriage, relationship with his sons, and his freedom. He was sentenced to six years in federal prison. In this raw and unflinching conversation, Jonathan confronts the damage he caused without seeking sympathy or forgiveness. He opens up about suicidal thoughts, the moment his double life collapsed, facing his wife and children, the brutal reality of prison, and the slow work of accepting responsibility for harm that can never be undone. More than a decade into sobriety, Jonathan now works as a therapist, helping people confront addiction, trauma, and the secret lives that keep them trapped. "I make very little money, but I'm the happiest I've ever been."

A heart-moving episode about the unimaginable courage it takes to live after loss. When Pamela Shainhouse's daughter, Alli, died at 26 after seven years of fighting Hodgkin lymphoma, Pamela felt that the person she had been died with her. In the silence that followed came a life-altering question: Who would she become now?   In this deeply personal conversation, Pamela shares how Alli taught her to live fully, to refuse the limits others place on us, and to understand the profound difference between moving on and moving forward.   Pamela also speaks candidly about growing up with a disability, enduring bullying, becoming a caregiver, and navigating a grief that reshaped every part of her life. She reflects on the 16-year journey of writing her memoir, Daughter Dies, Mother Lives On—a testament to the daughter she lost and the woman she fought to become.   This is a powerful conversation about a mother's enduring love, the struggle to rebuild an identity after unimaginable loss, and the possibility of finding purpose, not beyond grief, but within the love that remains.   To learn more about what Pamela does: https://www.theshainhousegroup.com