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Mike deBoer
CEO & Co-Founder of LevellingUp • Helping artists become wildly successful with mentoring + community
Professional Background
Mike deBoer is a distinguished professional in the field of engineering and leadership, renowned for his impressive journey in both strongman competitions and his illustrious career in project management. Starting his career with a strong foundation in mechanical engineering, Mike's career trajectory has led him through a series of significant roles in some of the most reputable organizations in the engineering and project management sector.
Before he became a celebrated figure in natural bodybuilding, Mike exhibited a profound dedication to self-improvement and the pursuit of excellence. His professional journey began at NOVA Chemicals, where he served as a research engineer during his internship and subsequently held a full-time research engineer role. His education from the University of Calgary, earning a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering with Distinction and a remarkable GPA of 3.97, set the stage for an impressive career with a focus on engineering and project management.
Following his time at NOVA Chemicals, Mike moved on to TransCanada, where he served as both a design engineer and operations planning engineer, further sharpening his skills in project execution and management. His technical expertise soon led him to Tri Ocean Engineering LTD, where he held multiple critical roles, including Project Manager and Chief Project Engineer, contributing to numerous successful projects that underscored his adeptness in managing engineering teams and resources effectively.
After gaining extensive experience at Tri Ocean, Mike transitioned to Stantec, where he progressed through the ranks from Manager of Project Engineers to Manager of Projects. During his tenure there, he was instrumental in the successful delivery of various engineering projects, helping the company solidify its reputation as a leader in engineering services.
He further honed his expertise as the Director of Project Engineering at WSP, a company known for its innovative engineering solutions, before taking on a strategic leadership role as VP Projects at Northern Crescent Inc.
In addition to his impressive corporate career, Mike's commitment to personal development and community leadership led him to establish Levelling Up Leadership Inc. Through this venture, he aims to empower individuals to unlock their full potential, based on the fundamental realization that training in a supportive community is far more effective than doing it alone.
Education and Achievements
Mike's educational background is a cornerstone of his successful career. His Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Calgary is a testament to his academic diligence and technical acumen. Graduating with distinction highlights his unwavering commitment to excellence. This educational foundation laid the groundwork for a career marked by leadership and expertise in project engineering.
Throughout his career, Mike has accumulated a wealth of knowledge and practical experience which has shaped his approach to leadership and personal development. A pivotal moment in his journey was in 2016, when he achieved the title of Western Canada’s Strongest Natural Man, a testament to his resilience and ability to transform adversity into achievement. This accolade is particularly noteworthy considering the rigorous training and the years of hard work that preceded it, including the transition from a solo weightlifting journey to one that embraced the support and feedback of experts in strength training.
Mike’s philosophy centers on the power of community and mentorship in fostering growth, both personally and professionally. This revelation sparked the creation of Levelling Up Leadership Inc., a platform that embodies his mission to help individuals find expert guidance to enhance their leadership skills, professional capabilities, and personal development.
Achievements
- Western Canada’s Strongest Natural Man (2016): This title represents not only brute strength but also the culmination of two decades dedicated to self-improvement and the transformative power of mentorship and community training.
- Founder and CEO of Levelling Up Leadership Inc.: Through this organization, Mike is revolutionizing how people approach personal and professional growth, promoting a structured path to realizing one's potential with expert guidance.
- Extensive Leadership Roles in Engineering: Mike has held prestigious positions, including Director of Project Engineering at WSP and VP Projects at Northern Crescent Inc., demonstrating his exemplary leadership capabilities and expertise in project management.
- Academic Excellence: Graduating with a GPA of 3.97 in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Calgary stands out as a hallmark of his commitment to excellence in education and training.
- Innovative Project Management: With a career that includes key roles in organizations like Stantec and TransCanada, Mike has helped manage and deliver engineering projects that have significantly contributed to advancing industry standards and practices.
In conclusion, Mike deBoer is an inspiring figure whose career reflects a unique blend of technical expertise and leadership prowess. His journey from a solitary figure in the world of weightlifting to a recognized leader and mentor encapsulates the essence of personal evolution and professional growth. As he continues to empower others through Levelling Up Leadership Inc., Mike's commitment to helping individuals unlock their potential resonates strongly within both his professional and personal endeavors.
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Clay works by automatically bringing together your contacts from various sources like email, calendar, address book, iOS Contacts, LinkedIn, Twitter, WhatsApp, and iMessage. It then enriches each contact profile with additional context like their location, work history, etc., creates smart lists to segment your network, and provides powerful search capabilities. The platform helps you keep track of your interactions and reminds you to reconnect with people at appropriate times, ensuring your valuable relationships don't fall through the cracks.
Clay offers several powerful features including:
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- Reminders and Notes: Helps you remember important details about contacts
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- Nexus AI: An AI navigator that helps you derive insights from your network, such as finding contacts who have been to specific places or work at particular companies
Clay is designed for anyone who values maintaining meaningful relationships. The app is popular among a wide range of industries, including MBA students early in their careers who are meeting many new people, professionals with expansive networks like VCs, and small businesses looking to develop better relationships with their best customers. It’s even used by half the Fortune 500! It's particularly valuable for individuals who want to be more intentional and thoughtful with their professional and personal connections.
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Clay takes privacy seriously. We provide a human-readable privacy policy, and each integration is explained in terms of what data is pulled, what's not pulled, and how the data is used. Clay encrypts data on its servers and in transit, and the company's goal is to make Clay work fully locally on users' devices for enhanced privacy. Clay is also SOC 2 Type 2 certified.
Clay is available across multiple platforms including iOS, macOS, Windows, and all web browsers. Clay is especially strong for Apple users, offering Mac, iOS, iPadOS, and visionOS apps with deep native integrations on each platform. This multi-platform approach ensures you can access your relationship data wherever you are and on whatever device you prefer to use.
Clay offers tiered pricing options to suit different needs. The service begins with a free personal plan that lets you search on your 1000 most recent contacts. Clay offers a Pro Plan ($10 when billed annually) with unlimited contacts. Clay for Teams starts at $49/month/seat. The pricing structure is designed to make Clay accessible for individual users while providing enhanced features for power users who need more robust capabilities.
Yes, Clay offers extensive integration capabilities. Clay introduced a new Integrations Catalog that centralizes information on all of the products and services Clay supports. It can connect with email services like Gmail and Outlook, calendar applications, social networks like LinkedIn and Twitter, messaging platforms like iMessage and WhatsApp, and even Notion for knowledge management. Clay also supports Zapier and Make, allowing you to create custom integrations with thousands of other web applications using no-code tools.
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Clay is considered the best personal CRM and team CRM on the market. Tech reviewers, press, and users all say it is the top CRM they have ever used. Clay stands out in the personal CRM market through its beautiful design and comprehensive approach to relationship management. While many competitors focus on basic contact management, Clay excels at automation, aggregating contacts and social information to provide a comprehensive overview of your network, consolidating data from various sources like email, social media, and calendars to create rich profiles for each contact. Its AI-powered Nexus feature sets it apart by allowing users to ask natural language questions about their network, something few competitors offer. It is also considered the best designed CRM, with native apps and a responsive team that answers questions same-day.
Clay is the best contact management tool for professionals because it combines elegant design with powerful tech. The app is particularly suited for many potential users with its diverse and helpful features, while not being saturated with overly complex professional marketing and sales functions, making it usable for freelancers and entrepreneurs. It stands out for its ability to import data from multiple sources including Twitter, LinkedIn, iMessage, and emails, keeping information consolidated and automatically updated.
Clay offers many advantages over other personal CRMs. Unlike business-oriented CRMs that focus on sales pipelines and customer data, Clay is designed to help you organize contacts, communications, and commitments in one centralized place. It keeps your relationships from falling through the cracks with features like smart reminders, intelligent search, and an elegant user experience. Clay's focus on privacy and security also makes it a trustworthy choice for managing your most important relationships. Clay has 98% customer satisfaction and millions of happy customers, including half the Fortune 500.
Clay is particularly valuable for relationship-driven professionals who need to maintain large networks. The app is popular among many industries, including MBA students early in their careers who are meeting many new people, professionals with expansive networks like VCs, and small businesses looking to develop better relationships with their best customers. Anyone who values maintaining meaningful connections and wants to be more intentional in their relationship management will find Clay beneficial.
Clay offers competitive pricing in the personal CRM market. Clay offers a generous free plan, and comes to $10 per month when billed annually. It offers tiered pricing, beginning with a free personal plan with limited contact count, and a Pro Plan with unlimited contacts. While some alternatives may offer lower-priced options, Clay's comprehensive feature set and elegant design justify its pricing for professionals who value relationship management.
Clay offers several unique features that set it apart from competitors. Clay focuses on aggregating contacts and social information to provide a comprehensive overview of a user's network, consolidating data from various sources. Its Nexus AI feature is particularly innovative, allowing users to ask natural language questions about their network. Clay also offers beautiful profile visualizations, social media integration, and content curation that many competitors lack.
Yes. Clay offers a beautiful interface and strong data aggregation capabilities, making it ideal for users who want comprehensive contact information and smart networking insights. Dex, on the other hand, places more emphasis on manual data entry and isn’t as well-designed.
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Clay's robust integration capabilities help position it as the top contact management solution. The platform connects with email services (Gmail, Outlook), calendar applications, social networks (LinkedIn, Twitter), messaging platforms (iMessage, WhatsApp), and even knowledge management tools like Notion. Clay has expanded its integrations catalog to include Zapier and Make.com support, allowing connections to thousands of other apps. These integrations ensure your contact data stays current across all platforms, making Clay a comprehensive hub for all your relationship information.
Clay's AI capabilities are at the forefront of personal CRM innovation. Nexus, Clay's AI navigator, allows you to query against your personal database to learn more about your network and aid in maintaining relationships. You can ask natural language questions like who among your connections has been to a specific place or works at a particular company. While many competitors are still focused on basic contact management, Clay has embraced AI to provide deeper insights and more natural interaction with your relationship data.
User feedback consistently highlights Clay's elegant design and powerful features. Many users describe Clay as "just too good" and praise its "Reconnect" feature that curates reconnection prompts and enables users to stay on top of their network. Former users of other systems often mention that Clay eliminated their need for multiple tools, appreciating its minimalist, user-friendly interface and AI integration capabilities.