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PHOTO: MONIQUE ELLIOT his home in Ottawa as the chief platform He was given a choice: leave McGill, go Harley Finkelstein started his first business as a university student when his family could no offi cer (CPO) of Shopify, one of the back to Florida and try to work everything longer provide financial support. fastest-growing tech companies in Canada. out as a family; or try to make it on his “Hustle is just about persistence. It’s own in Montreal, without any fi nancial “I needed to do something that would out of passion, ambition. I wish that was about being smart and creative.” support and tuition costs of $18,000 per put food on the table and pay the bills,” he the case for me. It wasn’t. That, to me, Finkelstein said his chutzpah was year. said. sounds so glamorous, so awesome. But, initially tested seven weeks into his fi rst He chose to stay in Canada. “Most people become entrepreneurs See Finkelstein on page 2 ‘Rolling Rabbi’ reaches out with new online blog Still recovering from an accident that left him “Technology has been a life saver, “Part of my mission is to inspire actually, a life changer,” said Rabbi Simes, people,” explained Rabbi Simes, who a quadriplegic, Rabbi Yehuda Simes is using who was in a tragic car accident three- says he wants his blog to help others and-a-half years ago that broke his neck overcome obstacles and meet challenges. the Internet to inspire readers around the world and made him a C4 quadriplegic. He eventually wants to expand the blog Six months ago, he started the Rolling to offer Torah classes via Skype to stu- BY JOEL BALSAM “Well. Comma. There ya. Backspace. Rabbi blog – www.rollingrabbi.wordpress. dents all over North America and in “Home screen. Mouse grid. One. Three. Delete. You, have it. Exclamation point,” com – which now has more than 14,000 Israel. The American-born rabbi recently Seven. Five. Click.” says Rabbi Simes into the voice-recording page views. Most of those views have started a pet project of placing pins on a With those words spoken directly into technology called Dragon that is set up come from where he has lived or has map of North America on the places he a microphone, the mouse clicks the on his home computer. The program family – Canada, the United States and has been to or has Skyped with. He hopes bookmark “Rolling Rabbi” on Rabbi allows him to navigate the computer and Israel – but an astonishing number of to cover the map entirely in pins. Yehuda Simes’ web browser and his blog type posts on his blog without lifting a views come from places as far reaching as “We are about to enter my central opens up on the screen. fi nger. Nepal, South Africa and Poland. See Rabbi Simes on page 2 Jon Avery on the Michael Regenstreif on Hannah Barbara Crook on inside: Social Action Mission > p. 3 Moscovitch’s new play > p. 7 hit Israeli TV series > p. 21 World Class Outsourcing ... and more! 613-744-6444 613-244-7225 Providing quality service 613-744-5767 613-244-4444 to the National Capital Region Publication Mail Agreement No. 40018822 since 1947! www.boydgroup.on.ca 2 February 17, 2014 OTTAWAJEWISHBULLETIN.COM Finkelstein: ‘Find your life’s work early’ Continued from page 1 of look up to the most, a lot of them are perspective,” he said. for me, it was disparity; it was having run by Jewish entrepreneurs.” Conventional wisdom that has typically nothing.” It was Finkelstein’s weekly meeting with come from school and parents, Finkelstein Out of desperation, with no money or a small group of local entrepreneurs, said, can be soul-crushing if a young adult experience, and very minimal equipment, including Shopify founder and CEO Tobias chooses a secure career path simply for the Finkelstein launched a promotional Lutke, which allowed him to save his sake of long-term security. apparel company to sell T-shirts to McGill. T-shirt business and ultimately realize his “Find something you love doing. To Finkelstein eventually had a run of life’s work. spend 40 years working a job and saving success during his undergrad years, which Finkelstein took his business online money, so when you retire you can start involved a transfer to Concordia using Shopify’s software and launched your life’s work? I think that’s backwards. I University, which had more fl exible Smoofer.com, retailing licensed T-shirts. think we should start thinking about what scheduling to accommodate working Lutke later realized he wanted our life’s work is right now,” he said. students. Finkelstein on his team at Shopify, and “The Jewish community has always Challenges aside, Finkelstein – who brought him onboard as CPO. Finkelstein been very supportive of me and everything moved to Ottawa in 2005 to attend law said he couldn’t be happier with the result. I’ve done. I’m not religious, but I’m very Harley Finkelstein school, a move that threatened his T-shirt “Most people spend their entire life traditional. And, so, I give advice to a lot of business – said he knew he had genera- working a job to eventually retire and start people, but I feel a certain loyalty and a tions of history of the Jewish community their life’s work. What I’m saying is, fi nd certain connection to the Jewish challenge, Finkelstein advised. from which he could fi nd inspiration. your life’s work as early as possible and do community.” “What’s interesting is that people who “We’ve all come here over the last 100 nothing else. Shopify and building Shopify has hosted Shabbat at Shopify really know how to hustle always fi gure it years and, in some cases, we’ve built the businesses like Shopify, that is my life’s for Young Professionals, including out,” he said. largest, most successful businesses in work,” he said. medical, law and graduate students, “I feel a connection to all entrepreneurs North America – we’re hustlers. There’s a “That’s really part of what I want to where the Ottawa offi ce offers its space and all young people, but I feel a special real connection with the Jewish commun- explain to students and younger entre- for the evening. connection, and a particular responsibility, ity and entrepreneurship,” he said. preneurs. They don’t have to believe me, For an entrepreneur and CPO whose to help Jewish entrepreneurs and the “We’re a self-made people and we’re a they don’t necessarily trust me, but I do time is now his most valuable commod- Jewish community in particular,” he said. survival people. The companies that I sort want them to at least have a different ity, getting time with him can be a “I think that’s really important.” Rabbi Simes: ‘Challenge is not physical, but emotional’ Continued from page 1 information, but Rabbi Simes insists on control offi ce,” said Rabbi Simes, as he being open about his situation. shuttled down the elevator installed in “I am who I am. I have nothing to his home. hide,” he said. There, he shows off the cardio-cycle Still, he is happy most of the attention machine that allows him to fi x his fi ngers he garnered from stories in local, around two handles and spin for as long national and international media has as he can. His record, he says proudly, is died down. 31-and-a-half minutes, non-stop. “I want to be a regular, normal, Rabbi Simes glances over to another person,” he said. machine in his offi ce, a tilting table that Rabbi Simes’ recovery is slow, painful allows him to briefl y stand on his own and constant as he continues to work two feet. daily with a physiotherapist. But he is “This is the most challenging thing for showing improvement. Lately, he and me,” he said describing the brief the physiotherapist have been forcing his moments when he has been able to stand wrist to bend in an intensive splint to up over the past eight months. The shorten the tendons so he can eventually challenge is not physical, he explains, turn his wrist over and pick things up. but emotional, due to his longing to “That’s the next frontier,” he said. stand again. Rabbi Simes also continues to teach at PHOTO: JOEL BALSAM Many other people might be shy about Torah High, the supplementary high Rabbi Yehuda Simes uses voice commands to “type” his Rolling Rabbi blog. divulging such heart-wrenching personal school he co-founded.