The YES Effect

In 805conversations by Mark Sylvester

Serving and saving people on their worst day

Shelli Varela, firefighter, author, podcaster, speaker and mentor spent time with Mark talking about what motivates her and how she motivates those around her. There was a lot of ground covered in this conversation, including:
  • Her story about becoming the first female firefighter in Mississauga, Canada
  • “I made a difference and make an impact” You’ll hear this a lot in the show
  • Cool tech: TIC, Thermal Energy Cameras
  • Being an Artist and writing her first sonnet at 8 years old
  • Her fascination with special effect make-up
  • A quick bit about the Childrens’ Book she wrote
  • Who’s her biggest hero
  • What it was like working with the Junior Female Firefighter Bootcamp, where she received national recognition
  • Her goal to be on the New York Times Bestseller list
  • “Always and only – look at the end goal.”
  • Her three tips for achieving your goals
    • Until you start, you won’t realize all the serendipitous things that can happen along the path
    • Identify your goal worth chasing
      • What’s the goal beneath the goal, what are the benefits of reaching it?
    • Breaking down the steps into small, doable tasks to reduce the feeling of overwhelm
  • The YES Effect podcast and how that got started
Shelli’s podcast, The YES Effect, is great and you’ll love the variety of guests she has on her show