Sam Thiara

Sam Thiara is a professional who has created a personal journey as a storyteller, writer, mentor/coach, problem solver, educator and entrepreneur.  His goal is to engage individuals in their personal and professional development and was recognized by the Governor General of Canada for his work.  Over the years, he has mentored hundreds of individuals and engaged. Added to this are the 45+ non-profits that he has worked with over the years.
 
Presently, Sam is the Founder and Chief Motivating Officer at Ignite the Dream Coaching and Consulting, a platform that engages his audience to define their path.  A key element is transformational practices where he is an expert in youth career coaching and supports teams and organizations in corporate alignment.  He co-founded a youth career platform that has gone nationwide.
 
He is a lecturer at the Beedie School of Business at Simon Fraser University where he blends academic and professional experiences into a rich environment that captivates his audience.  Finally, he is an accomplished and sought after speaker and has two TEDx talks to his name and speaks at conferences, seminars and workshops about 30-35 times a year.  Added to his speaking is the book he recently wrote a book called, ‘Lost and Found: Seeking the Past and Finding Myself’.  It focuses on his journey to India to find his ancestral roots with little else than a faded photograph and determination.  The book is also about realizing one’s cultural identity because many struggle with understanding who they are.
 
Sam’s signature tagline is, “Everyone’s life is an autobiography, make yours worth reading.”  

The session I share is about storytelling and about overcoming obstacles, not listening to the noise and persistence.  To accomplish something of an epic nature and claim it as my own.  Out of this, I gathered one of the greatest treasures that I have ever seen.

A number of years ago, I went on a journey to reconnect with my ancestral roots.  I went to India with a faded photograph and little else in the hopes of finding my grandfather's house.  We were a couple of generations separated from our ancestral roots and no one knew where it was except for some sparse information.  It was looking for a needle in a haystack except no one really knew where the haystack exactly was and without giving away the journey, I did arrive at my destination by some unique circumstances and stood in front of my grandfather's house scooped up dirt and brought it home to my father so he could have a connection to his father's house.

The journey though, was also about identity.  As a British born Canadian with parents from Fiji and grandfathers from India, who am I?  Am I Canadian, British, Indian or Fijian.  I grew up struggling with this and realized after my journey that other have as well.  This trip had me going to India as a foreigner but I should not have been a foreigner.  I had some revelations and realized my own identity that was a blend of cultures.

asthiara@shaw.ca