Cole

Founder, Mental Health Advocate, Fundraiser and Business Operator

Consulting

Jun 2019 - Dec 2025 • 6 yrs 6 mos

From June 2019 to December 2025, I built real leadership experience through mental health advocacy, nonprofit leadership, fundraising, business development, and hands-on entrepreneurship. I founded and helped lead a mental health-focused organization, where I was involved in strategic planning, fundraising, stakeholder relationships, community outreach, team development, advocacy, operations, and program growth. During this period, I helped raise significant funding for mental health services and worked directly on building awareness, support systems, partnerships, and practical resources for people struggling with mental health challenges. My experience was not only professional. It was also personal. My work was shaped by lived experience with depression, anxiety, crisis, rebuilding, failure, resilience, and learning how systems actually work when people are under pressure. That gave me a direct, human understanding of leadership, communication, trust, accountability, and what people need when life becomes overwhelming. I also built, operated, and learned from both successful and unsuccessful business ventures. Those experiences taught me how to raise money, manage pressure, build teams, deal with setbacks, make hard decisions, recover from mistakes, and keep moving when things did not go according to plan. This work gave me practical experience in nonprofit leadership, business strategy, fundraising, mental health advocacy, public communication, crisis management, sales, operations, and real-world problem-solving. My approach became grounded in results, not theory. I learned through trials, failures, successes, pressure, and real consequences. This is the experience I bring to clients who need practical support, honest guidance, and clear thinking.

Financial Expert

TD

Nov 2011 - May 2019 • 7 yrs 6 mos

I help people understand banking, credit, debt, lending, fraud concerns, mortgage questions, account problems, and financial documents in plain language. My experience was built over more than 10 years in the Canadian and American banking systems. I worked in front-line banking, financial advising, mortgage advising, lending, wealth management, credit, compliance, fraud prevention, and Anti-Money Laundering environments. I dealt with real customers, real approvals, real declines, real disputes, real documentation issues, and real financial pressure. I previously held banking and financial designations, including mutual fund licensing, Certified Credit Professional, Fraud Deterrence Analyst, Certified Financial Planner, Personal Financial Planner, Customer Service Operations, and Branch Compliance Officer. These credentials were part of my professional background and are no longer active. I help clients organize financial information, understand banking documents, prepare questions before speaking with TD or another financial institution, review account concerns, understand credit or loan issues, and identify what information matters before wasting time or money. My approach is direct, practical, and easy to understand. I cut through confusing banking language, unnecessary paperwork, and generic advice so clients can focus on the facts, their options, and the next best step. I can assist with budgeting, debt planning, credit rebuilding, banking complaints, fraud-related concerns, mortgage preparation, loan readiness, financial summaries, and document organization. I am not affiliated with TD Bank, and I do not provide licensed financial, investment, legal, or accounting advice. I provide independent banking preparation, document support, and real-world guidance to help clients communicate better, stay organized, and make more informed decisions.

Sales, Customer Service and Front-Line Business Development

Consulting

Sep 2004 - Sep 2010 • 6 yrs

This period gave me real experience dealing directly with customers, understanding their needs, handling objections, building trust, closing sales, solving problems, and learning how to communicate with people from different backgrounds. I worked in fast-paced environments where success depended on confidence, product knowledge, persistence, professionalism, and the ability to create a strong customer experience. My sales experience covered a blend of consumer retail, financial products, service-based selling, relationship building, client retention, and practical problem-solving. I learned how to identify what customers actually needed, explain products clearly, manage difficult conversations, and turn pressure into results. This was also where I developed the core skills that later carried into banking, finance, business ownership, consulting, advocacy, and leadership. I learned how to sell without sounding scripted, how to listen before offering solutions, how to build credibility quickly, and how to stay focused on results. These years gave me a strong foundation in front-line sales, customer service, negotiation, communication, business development, relationship management, and real-world client support. My experience later expanded from consumer retail into higher-value client management, sales strategy, retention, and business growth.