Choreographing a stronger community with Clarence Ford
Bet On Yourself with Fred VanVleet and Derek FolkShow Notes
Clarence Ford started out as an athlete; first as a competitive hockey player, then transitioning to dance as a choreographer for the world-renowned Cirque du Soleil. After seeing the power of community-building first-hand within Cirque du Soleil, Clarence embarked on a journey of creating circus programming for underserved youth in Toronto. He launched a non-for-profit called Square Circle, with a mission to “help students develop communication, interpersonal, artistic, and physical skills in a safe, collaborative, and fun environment”. Through educational partnerships and community workshops, Clarence hopes to build out his business by tapping into as many youth groups as possible in Toronto and beyond.
On this week’s episode, Clarence sits down with Fred and Derek to discuss new avenues to explore expansion and growth of Square Circle. They speak to building a solid foundation for his business - from considering a strategic board, to finding mentorship, and building community as a new entrepreneur. Finally, they discuss strategies on how to manage burn out while navigating multiple priorities to get your business off the ground. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
More from Bet On Yourself with Fred VanVleet and Derek Folk
In the season one finale of Bet On Yourself, Derek Folk and Fred VanVleet sit down with Boyd Reid, the Co-Founder and COO of Hopin, an app that helps mobilize transportation options and logistics - enabling employees to get to work efficiently and incentivizing them to commute during a pandemic when the popularity of remote work is skyrocketing.
In episode 11 of Bet On Yourself, Derek Folk and Fred VanVleet sit down with Baba Ajayi, the CEO and founder of andie.work - a live information app that uses artificial intelligence to help both businesses and customers. Andie.work enables user input settings to give suggestions on which restaurants to go to - all based on user preferences. The app drives more traffic and sales to the businesses, while eliminating unnecessary wait times for customers.
Born in the Congo and raised in Montréal, today’s guest both embodies and promotes the cultural diversity of her new hometown, Toronto, where she is the Director of The Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery, Canada’s leading public gallery.
Most people use filtered water to make good cup of coffee… but in this episode, we learn how our entrepreneurial guest uses coffee to make clean water - particularly in service of remote reserves in Canada where some Indigenous communities lack proper water filtering systems.
From Granada to Canada comes a superfood like no other… sea moss. Turns out this algae, sourced responsibly from the Caribbean, is a nutrient dense, affordable, natural remedy with a variety of health benefits.