When I'm not in the field, I love speaking to corporate and public audiences. I am comfortable with groups of any size - from 20 to 5000 - and I have delivered hundreds of addresses in the last decade. I love telling stories, I love taking my audience away from the world they know, on a journey to unknown lands - be it the Blue Nile Gorge or the deserts of Arabia. But more than anything, I love being able to share the insights, strategies and lessons I have learned from these expeditions.
Everytime I take the stage, my goal is the same: to leave each member of the audience with a bolstered sense of what is possible. I focus on ideas that will stick long after the conference has ended. Simple yet unique concepts from the world of adventure that the audience can apply at work, and in life, to help make the world around them a little better place (more productive, more profitable, easier, happier, whatever.) My favorite topics to explore include Excellence, Fear, Risk, Leadership, and Teamwork. I customize each and every presentation - which requires a brief telephone conversation with meeting planners or senior staff to discuss your organization's specific challenges, obstacles and goals.
I am represented exclusively by The Lavin Agency (with offices in Toronto, Vancouver, and Boston). You can learn more about my keynotes, and find a preview of my presentation, by visiting their website.
Here are a few Keynote descriptions from the Lavin site:
No Opportunity Wasted: Forging a Path to Excellence
In this high energy, fastpaced and inspiring address, Bruce Kirkby—host of CBC's No Opportunity Wasted (NOW)—shows
audiences how to ditch the excuses, plan bravely, move carefully, use
fear as a compass, and embrace the unknown. Along the way he unearths
key elements of excellence in leadership and teamwork, providing a
step-by-step strategy for systematically breaking down barriers and
achieving goals. Ultimately he explores the fundamental principles of
working (and living) with passion, purpose and vitality. Combining
video clips, stunning adventure photography and awe-inspiring stories
from his own expeditions, Kirkby shares a personal philosophy that has
vaulted him to international success as a photographer, author, and
elite adventurer. Most importantly, Kirkby constantly challenges
audience members to step outside their own comfort zones and rise above
self-imposed limitations. Whether facing massive uncertainty and
change, or striving for new and extraordinary results, Kirkby's
insights—gathered from two decades of adventure, and on full display on
NOW—can help individuals and organizations alike plot a course towards lasting success.
An Adventurer's Guide to Risk Management
Using images and tales from a decade of adventures--including expeditions to Everest, Arabia, the Arctic, Africa, Hong Kong, Bhutan, Iceland, Greenland, Borneo--Bruce highlights the fundamentals of risk management and shares specific lessons learned in the high-stakes wilderness arena. He reminds us that risk is dynamic, but also that a culture of safety is necessary. He also provides ways to spot and avoid human error, telling us to not focus only on big hazards - that, actually, most big accidents are the result of a culmination of small mistakes. His scenarios--ranging from ice climbing, rafting, kayaking, camel riding, and hostage-taking--are used to show that with preparation and planning, seemingly intolerable risks can be overcome, a key to success on nearly every major project. Bruce acts as a guide on how to determine risk and to act accordingly from there. "The person who risks nothing," he says, "has nothing, does nothing, and is nothing."
Exploring The Importance of Careful Planning
Drawing from a decade of extreme journeys in some of the most dangerous places in the world, Bruce shares his secret to not only staying alive, but to prospering and being able to go back, year after year--that secret is meticulous preparation. From choosing the right partners (the people you can trust, the people who are experts), to constantly accessing and managing risk, to staying the course, and, most importantly, to having patience, Bruce's been-there advice and stories have resonated with audiences everywhere he's talked. Weaving together stories from around the globe--Arabia, Africa, Everest, and the Canadian Arctic--Bruce's multi media presentation on the importance of careful planning also includes his award winning images.
To contact Lavin:
Head Office: 1.800.265.4870
Western Canada: 1.800.665.3833
Manitoba and Ontario East: 1.866.682.8263
