Paul Godfrey: Toronto's Leading Man

If you heard the name Paul Godfrey what image would pop into your head? For the 25 or so young professionals who attended the first Bay St. Breakfast of 2011, most could not wait to ask the former owner of the Toronto Blue Jays about his thoughts on Roberto Alomar being named the first Blue Jay to be entered in the Hall of Fame, the use of HGH (Human Growth Hormones) by top athletes in all sport and what Toronto's chances are of getting an NFL team.

(From left Community Connect’s David Goodman, David Spiro, JUMP’s Ali Silverberg and Paul Godfrey)

Hosted by Toronto Federation's community connect in joint partnership with JUMP (Jewish Urban Meeting Place). Godfrey the long time businessman and former politician, took us on a retrospective journey from his modest beginnings to his present status as CEO of the PostMedia Network and chair of the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation.

The top tips given that most people walked away with from the breakfast were as follows:

If Godfrey ever had to choose between being smart and being lucky he would choose being lucky every time.

Fortunately when he was a North York alderman and Chairman of Metro Toronto, the economy was in a balanced state and all across the board performing well. "Anyone can be a good politician when the economy is right" he said. It's when the economy takes a major hit you discover which politicians can really manage the hardest of times. All in all, it takes a real thick skin to be a public servant, he said.

Finally, with the majority of his life spent running major publications, Godfrey admits he is excited to see what the future holds, as the media landscape keeps its physical embodiment largely still at the forefront, while building up it's cyber audience online.