Everything you need
to tell this story
the right way.
Jamie Johnston speaker kit: bios, interview questions, pitch templates, soundbites, and speaking information — all in one place. Built for producers, hosts, editors, and event organisers.
are forced out early
as much again
those who recover
Three lengths.
One story.
Jamie L. Johnston is a former Trust Company VP, serial business buyer, and first-time author of Own Your Next Job: How to Buy a Business Instead of Searching for Work. After being fired at the peak of his career, he built his retirement through business ownership — and wrote the blueprint. Stop Job Hunting. Start Owning.
Jamie L. Johnston earned three degrees in six years, played five years of Canadian university football, and rose to Vice President at a major trust company — earning $300,000 a year before being fired for outperforming his peers. Rather than wait for someone to hire him, Jamie bought the company he’d been consulting for. That decision launched decades of business acquisitions across Canada. Now happily retired, a husband of 50+ years, father of three, and grandfather of seven, Jamie has written Own Your Next Job — the book he wishes someone had handed him the day he cleared out his desk.
Jamie L. Johnston is a retired Canadian executive, serial business buyer, and author of Own Your Next Job: How to Buy a Business Instead of Searching for Work.
Jamie’s career began with relentless ambition: three degrees in six years — a B.A., a Master’s in Economics, and an MBA — while competing at the highest level in Canadian university football. He climbed to Vice President at a major trust company, earning $300,000 annually before his boss told him the problem: he was making more than every other VP. Jamie refused a pay cut. He was fired.
What followed was a masterclass in reinvention. After two consulting engagements where companies paid him well but refused to hire him, Jamie made a move that changed everything. He told one client: “Better than that — sell me the company.” They did.
Over the decades that followed, Jamie bought, built, operated, and sold multiple businesses across Canada — accumulating a retirement no salary ever could have funded.
Own Your Next Job is the product of those hard-won decades. It is a plain-spoken, zero-filler blueprint for professionals over 50 who have been displaced, sidelined, or simply done waiting for someone to choose them. Real numbers. Real templates. Real deals — and the mistakes so readers don’t have to repeat them.
Jamie lives in Canada. He is happily retired, married for over 50 years, a father of three, and a grandfather of seven.
Suggested questions for
a great conversation.
Jamie is not a motivational speaker. He informs and instructs. The most powerful episodes lead with the AARP statistics, then let him tell the firing story in his own words.
Background Reading
For producers who want more detail before the interview:
- Franchise vs. Independent Business: Which Should You Buy After a Layoff? — background for Question 6
- How to Evaluate a Business to Buy: The DCCF Method Explained — background for Questions 4–5
- 5 Reasons to Buy a Business After 50 (The Data Is in Your Favor) — background for Question 8
Click any quote to copy
for show notes & social.
“People don’t like hiring someone who might outshine them. Your experience becomes a liability in someone else’s org chart.”
↗ Click to copy“I told them: Better than that — sell me the company. And they did.”
↗ Click to copy“The businesses I bought and sold gave me a retirement no salary ever could have funded.”
↗ Click to copy“This is the book I wish someone had handed me the day I cleared out my desk.”
↗ Click to copy“56% get pushed out. Fewer than 10% ever earn as much again. I wrote the blueprint for getting into that 10%.”
↗ Click to copy“Stop waiting to be chosen. Pick yourself.”
↗ Click to copyReady-to-send pitch emails.
Three subject line options.
One talk.
Built from decades of it.
Start Owning.”
How displaced executives over 50 can buy a business and fund a retirement no salary ever could.
A complimentary copy of Own Your Next Job is included with all confirmed engagements.
Quick answers
for busy producers.
Media & speaking
inquiries welcome.
Jamie accepts a limited number of media appearances and speaking engagements annually. Response within 48 hours.
Jamie’s team will respond within 48 hours. For urgent inquiries, note that in your message.