Every Speaker Slam® competition brings a new lineup of voices to the stage. On May 30, 2017 at Revival Bar, Toronto, 8 speakers competed on the theme of Overcoming Adversity.
Meet the speakers below. See how the night ended in the results.
Jozé Piranian
1st Place at Overcoming Adversity 2017
Jozé Piranian is a lifelong stutterer on the mission of destroying his fears one stage at a time. From avoiding speaking at all cost until just a few years ago to actively embracing the challenge, Jozé's journey is one of self-acceptance, paradigm shift and tenacious perseverance. While at McGill University, Jozé joined the debating club where he broke out of his thick shell and participated in tournaments. In order to overcome his fear of public speaking, he joined Toastmasters International; he still attends the meetings on a weekly basis in Toronto. Unwilling to stop there, Jozé has even started doing stand-up comedy, where he combines his passion for comedy with his drive to master public speaking. Jozé is a "Yes Man" - his recurring experience with adversity gave him the insight that fear is merely an indication that we must say YES and...just do it. If we are afraid of something, it probably means that doing it would tremendously benefit our personal growth. Whether it's public speaking, stand-up comedy or interacting with strangers, Jozé is deeply motivated to continuously self-improve while eliminating self-limiting beliefs, pushing his boundaries and meeting amazing people along the way. An avid traveler, Jozé has lived in four countries and stutters in six languages.
Brandon Schiafone
2nd Place at Overcoming Adversity 2017
Brandon Schiafone is one, of about 1000, people in known medical history to be born with Alstrom Syndrome. At a young age, this genetic condition took his eyesight and a good portion of his hearing. However, Brandon refused to allow his disability to be the defining attribute of his life. T urning his losses into strengths, Brandon graduated with an honours bachelor in media communications from the University of Guelph-Humber and took little time shaping his future. Now, during the day, Brandon teaches youth, with disabilities, the skills needed to be an effective member of the workforce. He is also one half of the dynamic duo that hosts Momondays Aurora--a speaking event where people come to share personal, purposeful stories that have shaped their perspective on life and made them into who they are today.
Taryn Hawley
3rd Place at Overcoming Adversity 2017
When you think the adversity you are facing is too much to overcome, think again! In the middle of an already difficult childhood filled with her mother’s addiction, evictions, sleeping in motels and hungry nights. Taryn found out she was pregnant at 13. After being faced with homelessness and only having a grade 8 education when she became a mom at 14, she decided enough was enough! Since then, Taryn has been on a mission to overcome all of the obstacles she has faced, so that she could offer her son a childhood better than her own. In addition, she dedicates her passion to improving the lives of pregnant and parenting youth, as well as youth facing homelessness in the GTA. She does this through her work, advocacy, education and mentorship. Taryn managed to put herself through college and begin a career as a caseworker for Social Services. She has been the Liaison for the Teen Education and Motherhood (T.E.AM) program for almost 10 years. T.E.A.M is alternative high school program offered through the Peel District School Board where teen mothers are given the opportunity to finish high school. She has also worked at several youth shelters in Toronto, including and most recently Sprott House. She is extra passionate about these programs because she was a student at the T.E.A.M program herself and at times when she was facing the most adversity, sleeping in a shelter was her only option. Taryn has been recognized by the Peel District school board for the work she does with the teen mothers at T.E.A.M. She also holds a seat on the Peel Young Parents Resource Group (P.Y.P.R.G) Committee. Several of the young moms she has worked with have successfully completed high school, gone onto Post-Secondary themselves and reference Taryn’s dedication and inspiring story as a part of their motivation. Her son is now graduating high school and has hopes of being a fire fighter in the future. Taryn is now less than a year away from graduating from an Honours Bachelor of Applied Science in Community and Family Services. A degree she plans on using as a stepping stone towards her Masters of Social Work application, and as a tool that provides her with even more knowledge of how to best support and advocate for the youth and families she works with every day.
Armin Shafee
Founder of The REBORN Experience, Peak Performance Speaker, Businessman, Philanthropist
Armin went through a near death experience at the age of 18 which turned his entire life around. Since then he has studied the thought mechanics, biology of beliefs and personal psychology. He new creates life-changing experiences at his full day seminar intensives and shows people how to find their personal passions and purpose in life.
John Iadipaolo
Educator, Empowerment Coach, Guitar, Singer
John Iadipaolo has invested over 18 years teaching and mentoring around the world. He combines Western psychology and Eastern mindfulness practices to create dynamic, inspired learning environments where creative individuals can dive deep, gain newfound love and understanding for themselves, and grow in real time. He loves cats, dessert and hip hop.
Tiffanie Caracassis
Yoga Instructor, Mindfulness Coach, Professional Public Speaker, Entrepreneur, President of Liberty Leaders, Toastmasters, Unquestionably a
is filled with compassion and truly loves people. Although Tiffanie has worn many hats throughout her career, somehow she keeps returning to her love of public speaking. Currently, Tiffanie is a Yoga and Aquafitness Instructor, a Mindfulness Coach, President and Founder of Liberty Leaders - her Toastmasters Club, Workshop Leader of Mind-Body-Soul, and an Entrepreneur. To inspiring others is her calling as she loves to remind people that life is beautiful, especially when we take responsibility for where we are today and where we want to go tomorrow. These past few years have not been easy, but Tiffanie is determined to achieve her big juicy goals and to design an extraordinary life for her and her husband. She is excited to be part of the Speaker Slam family and she looks forward to sharing some delicious wisdom for you to live your best life!
Amish Patel
Comedian, Actor, Writer, Public Speaker
Amish’s life began as a classic fish out of water tale. From a young age he gained perspectives on both Indian and Canadian cultures and learned to deal with discrimination and xenophobia through humour. Amish loved comedy from day one but he still obtained an Aerospace Engineering degree. After literally becoming a rocket scientist, Amish made up for lost time in comedy by writing and producing his own sketch comedy show called Fade to Brown. He produced sold out shows with crowds of over seven hundred people, gained media attention from NOW Magazine to the CBC, and acquired the funding to executive produce a sketch comedy show for Rogers Television. After Fade to Brown, Amish focused his attention on stand-up comedy and his online presence. Building a loyal online following and racking up hundreds of thousands of views on his comedy videos and becoming the host of Second City’s Diversity night. Not bad for a guy who used to work on jet engines! Amish also focuses his time on acting. He recently booked a leading role on a kids' comedy with the Emmy-Award winning Sinking Ship, which will premiere this year on TVO, Amazon and Nickelodeon. He has also appeared onSaving Hope, Man Seeking Woman, and Odd Squad. As a stand up he recently opened SNL alumni Tim Meadows, and Iliza Schlesinger to a packed house at the Danforth Music Hall. His original sketch comedy showMelting Pot was picked, from hundreds of submissions, by Kevin Hart at the Just for Laughs festival. Melting Pot was green-lit on the spot and is currently being developing for Kevin Hart's LOL Network. And, Amish knows how airplanes work. Did we cover that? Great!
Jermaine Murray
Entrepreneur, Director, Digital Content Producer, Writer
A 26 Year old, with a love of music, Basketball and Cinema. I am owner/operator of the Digital Production studio, DIGITAL PNTHR which aims to give Businesses and Individuals the ability to create a Footprint in the Digital Space. I have been an Emcee and Host for a variety of programs including YouTube shows, Radio programming and various Podcasts. Despite this experience Speaker Slam will be my first Speaking Event