“I love being a reporter, I love getting a story,” confides Philip Paul-Martin, editor in chief of nativehockeynews.com. He has been a journalist in print, web, and broadcast for decades. He started covering hockey in university in 1998 and has covered junior hockey, the American Hockey League and the National Hockey League as an accredited journalist. He has worked in communications and media relations and recently joined Immigration Partnership Winnipeg as manager of Indigenous Newcomer Relations. Over the years, he’s worked for CBC, Global, the Globe and Mail, and the Winnipeg Free Press.

After university, Paul-Martin was looking for a challenge and started writing and submitting articles to Windspeaker and the First Perspective. He found there was a learning curve and that the best responses were in off-the-cuff remarks people would say. He didn’t stay in it for the money but rather the people he met over the course of his work. Interviewing NHL players is a far from glamorous process, he found, being herded to and from the dressing rooms to get questions in. He learned the stories of everyday people were even more compelling and he loved to go out into the community to find them. “When you take an interest in people and you have a passion for What you do, it really shows in the type of stories that you file that you went the extra mile,” he explains.

As far as obstacles go, Paul-Martin struggles because he doesn’t make money off his reporting on his site. He hopes to get some advertising so he can spend some time on the road, travel to different NHL cities, and follow the NHL prospects. Sometimes he travels to watch hockey at the University of North Dakota or to Fargo, North Dakota for USHL games. Other times, he travels to Brandon for Junior Hockey League games.

He also offers, “The biggest thing that'll kill your dreams is doubt and living inside your head.” Paul-Martin recommends aspiring business owners find mentors for advice. Sometimes he has a hard time with focus and self-doubt. Sometimes he doesn’t get treated with as much respect as other journalists even though he’s more experienced. He reminds himself of his credentials and thinks to himself, “I created my own outlet, I'm filing for me, I'm filing for our people… I refuse to chase the validations of other people and I'm proud… and I think the work speaks for itself.” He also acknowledges, “If I exist, I’m good enough, and it gives other people permission to do the same in whatever area that they work in.”

He no longer compares himself to others and he knows his place in the market. “I have a broadcast voice that's in the top 10% of people in North America. My voice is that good. Now, a lot of people say that's self-centered. No, it's not. It's standing up and being counted,” Paul-Martin asserts. “It doesn't serve our people to be small and humble. If we want to break down barriers, we've got to stand up and be counted,” he continues. He also does what he does for the love of the game and pours himself into research and intense observation.

To keep his mental health in check, Paul-Martin gets extra rest on off nights. He exercises regularly, lifting weights and hiking in the summer. He takes a break from hockey in the off season and pursues outside interests, spending time with family and friends. When he was younger, he suffered from burnout and he tries to avoid that now. He has a deep desire to help his people and be of service and one of the ways he’s found to connect has been through the love of the game of hockey. “It's more than just a game to our country. It's more than just a game to our people,” he relays, thinking about the extra respect he has received as a reporter who knows the game and from people who appreciate having an Indigenous perspective on the game.

When it comes to inspiration, Paul-Martin is motivated that he is doing something that nobody else is doing as an Indigenous person. He loves getting to tell stories and showing people, “Yes, we can.” Thinking back on the historic moments he’s been present for he reminisces, “It’s been a thrill. It’s been a privilege.” He broke information that CBC, TSN, Sportsnet and the Winnipeg Free Press didn’t get about the return of the Winnipeg Jets, something he’s very proud of.

His advice for Indigenous youth struggling with public speaking is to find a local Toastmasters club to learn how to public speak and practice. “The more we work on things that we don't like working on, the better we're going to become, the stronger we're going to get,” Paul-Martin urges. He also recommends putting oneself in positions to talk to people. He also encourages, “Wanting something isn’t enough. You’ve got to find a way that you can repetitively work on those skills.” Even spending small amounts of time each day that might otherwise be spent scrolling social media could make an impact on skill development.

Thinking about his own career as a journalist, Paul-Martin shares, “When you have a passion to tell those stories…you will find a way to do it right, and you lose the nervousness over the course of a career, and you're going to have times where you doubt yourself, but if you get into the habit of doing the right thing day after day after day, those good habits will take you through those times…”

Sharing encouragement with Indigenous youth to excel in whatever they do, he says, “I don't really care what people do for a career, you can be a nurse, you can be a doctor, whatever it is, we need you, our people need you at the community level. They need you to make change at the national level, at the provincial level, in any aspect… become a teacher who makes a difference…If you want to become a welder…the next 20 years are going to be a great time for Canadians to be in the trade….Become the best trades person you can…You're literally going to be part of building a nation… if we show others that it can be done, then we let them do it.”

For the love of the game and the thrill of the story, hockey journalist Philip Paul-Martin has been sharing his insights on his own hockey news outlet. He’s published with mainstream outlets but found his place as an independent journalist, breaking stories nobody else has and showing his talents. Coming for the challenge and staying for the people, he is demonstrating what’s possible when you love what you do.

Thanks to Alison Tedford Seaweed for authoring this article.