On CBC's NOW, which debuted to half a million viewers, Bruce Kirkby helps two people every week achieve life-altering experiences, and accomplish goals they had never thought possible. As a trusted guide, he assists NOW challengers in conquering their personal fears, and turning their thoughts into actions. It's something he's perfected over the years in his inspiring keynote presentations.

Sharing his adventures with others is Kirkby's passion. A noted wilderness adventurer, a bestseling author, and an award-winning photographer, he has journeyed through sixty countries and to the most remote corners of the world. With over 1500 days of expedition experience, he has crossed Iceland by foot, endured bombings in Borneo, traveled by horse through Mongolia, survived hostage-takings and crocodile-attacks in Ethiopia's Blue Nile, and joined an expedition to the summit of Mount Everest.

Kirkby is the author of two bestselling travel memoirs, Sand Dance, which was short-listed at the Banff Mountain Book Festival, and Dolphin's Tooth, about his journey from engineering cubicle to a life of adventure. He is a contributing editor at Explore, a columnist for UP!, and has written for The Globe and Mail and TIME. Three of his journeys have been featured in National Geographic documentaries, and his photographs have been shown in American Photo, Maclean's, and National Geographic Adventure. When not traveling, he lives in the small mountain town of Kimberley, British Columbia.

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, dream large, identify and overcome fears and live life with passion, purpose and vitality. Combining music, stunning adventure photos and inspiring examples from the show and from his own life as an elite adventurer, he shares his personal philosophy and provides a step-by-step plan to systematically break down barriers and achieve goals. He challenges audience members to step outside of existing comfort zones and rise above self-imposed limitations. Whether facing your greatest fear or reaching for your highest aspiration, his insights—gathered from decades as an adventurer, and on full display on NOW—help individuals and organizations plot a course to personal and organizational success. Kirkby exemplifies the adventurous spirit and challenges audience members to search out and celebrate their own sense of adventure, each and every day.

Drawing from more than 1500 days of field experience, Bruce Kirkby explores the essence of the adventurous spirit—deconstructing the fundamentals of expedition success and building a blueprint for success in times of uncertainty and change. What is an adventure, and how is it different—and sometimes analogous—to challenges we face at home, or in business? What does it take to move from vision to reality? What are the fundamental strategies that, no matter what the arena, bring safety and success to these major undertakings? And what are the common stumbling blocks?

Based on the conviction that every challenge we face offers opportunity, Kirkby shares hard-won lessons on nurturing an adventurous spirit, the value of careful preparation, dealing with major obstacles in the field, overcoming fears, and assessing risk. He shows us that extraordinary achievement is tied into attitude, the most critical trait affecting personal and organizational accomplishment. Kirkby knows this first hand: he was a disaster in gym class, yet he went on to lead a life of adventure; he failed English, yet he has written two bestselling books. For companies dealing with change management, this presentation will prepare your audience to understand, embrace and navigate change—and see challenges as opportunities, setting the stage for long-term success.

In today’s business world, teams are the norm, and teambuilding commonplace. But what does it really take to transform a group of individuals into a high performing team? The first key, according to Bruce Kirkby, is to clearly understand what “team” means, and what a team is capable of achieving—two things he lays out right away. With breathtaking stories from his adventures, Kirkby outlines his three fundamentals of moving from a "disorganized group" to a "functioning team"—Commitment, Alignment, and Relationships. He explores the importance of collective responsibility, constant communication, and clear goals. Taking the audience along for the ride, inside both the disastrously malfunctioning teams and highly polished crews he’s worked in, he leaves one clear message: by working together, everybody achieves more.

Using images and tales from a decade of adventures—including expeditions to Everest, Bhutan, Greenland, and Borneo—Bruce Kirkby reviews the fundamentals of risk management, and then digs deeper, sharing specific strategies and lessons learned in the high-stakes wilderness arena. He reminds us that risk is a dynamic variable, which must be constantly monitored. Human fatigue and error, along with single-minded focus on only the biggest hazards, can lead to tragedy. Statistically, most major accidents do not result from a single, catastrophic failure, but rather from a culmination of small, seemingly innocuous mistakes. Kirkby's scenarios—ranging from ice climbing, rafting, camel riding, and hostage-taking—provide tips and strategies on avoiding such pitfalls. He shows us that, with preparation and planning, even seemingly intolerable risks can be overcome, a key to success on nearly every major project. Krikby advocates nurturing a culture of safety, providing guidelines on how to determine risk and to act accordingly. "Risk is a fundamental element of change and growth," he notes, "What is crucial is not avoiding risk, but rather understanding and managing the dangers you face."