TRANSFORMATIONAL KEYNOTES
INSPIRING AND MOTIVATING INDIVIDUALS AND TEAMS TO CLIMB TO NEW HEIGHTS
No matter what the current situation holds, every person has within them the potential to achieve great success with inspiration, purpose, collaboration and advocacy.
Over the past 15 years, Mitch Lewis – one of the most accomplished adventurers and a celebrated speaker – has motivated groups from 5 – 5,000 from the large stages of TEDx, Mobile Future Forward and YPO, to intimate corporate programs designed for his clients Cisco, NetApp, Workday, Juniper, SC Johnson, Rogers, REI & many more.
Each of Mitch’s speaking engagements is uniquely curated to successfully motivate and inspire based on your company’s culture and goals. Developed from his decades of quota-carrying tech exec leadership (with the scars to prove it) and athletic achievements, Mitch created the Twelve Principles for Leadership Success to help people and organizations move through any limiting paradigms and to achieve unprecedented levels of success.
A passionate speaker, Mitch educates and entertains his audiences with actionable tools and thrilling anecdotes from his 60+ marathons and epic Seven-Summit climbs on the highest mountains in the world. Mitch is the author of several highly-acclaimed books including Climbing Your Personal Everest – A Journey of Self-Discovery and Leadership; Climb Higher – Pursue Your Passion With Purpose as well as the young adult publications Mother Mountain and the Billy series.
What’s holding your team back? Let’s dive in & summit Your Personal Everest!
SPEECH TOPICS – CUSTOMIZABLE TO YOUR GOALS AND AUDIENCE
PERSONAL TRANSFORMATION IN UNCERTAIN TIMES
CLIMB HIGHER
SEVEN STEPS TO HEART-LED CHANGE
THE MOTHER MOUNTAIN
BROTHERHOOD OF THE ROPE
SEVEN AND SEVEN (AND FIFTY)
SHACKLETON’S WAY
TECHNOLOGY LEADERSHIP FOR A SUSTAINABLE WORLD
PERSONAL TRANSFORMATION IN UNCERTAIN TIMES
A Journey of Self-Discovery & Leadership (Audience: All)
Mitch Lewis is one of a celebrated few people in the world to run a marathon and summit the seven highest mountains on all seven continents. And yet his story is far more than the death-defying escapades of a world-class adventurer. At 45, Mitch was an ordinary out-of-shape guy, stuck in a rut with a gut, dogged by a nagging, restless feeling that there was more to life than this. With the impulsive decision to run a marathon in his city, his entire world turned upside down and he found himself on an epic quest; to complete a marathon and climb the highest summit on all seven continents, while giving back along the way.
His message is simple: if a middle-aged, out-of-shape guy can reinvent his life by running seven gruelling marathons and summiting the highest mountains, you can achieve your goals and dreams too. And it doesn’t matter if what you dream of is a small tweak or a radical do-over of the life you are living in today. In addition to his riveting story, Mitch shares his Twelve Principles for Climbing Your Personal Everest, revealing what he’s learned along the way about goal setting, perseverance, collaboration and more. In doing so, he provides a practical, life-changing and sometimes humorous look at the things that keep us climbing towards greatness despite the challenges and obstacles that life throws our way.
Mitch’s presentation focuses on setting big goals, building a high performing team, overcoming extreme adversity, executing under pressure, and celebrating success as a team while making a positive contribution to the world in pursuit of your dreams.
CLIMB HIGHER
Pursue Your Passion With Purpose (Audience: All)
Most people reach the point in life where they feel compelled to do more and be more. Perhaps they redefine what is meaningful in life and begin investing their time in things that matter. Perhaps they realize they have been “stuck in a rut with a gut” and finally choose to do something about it. Perhaps they reach a milestone birthday or encounter a significant setback and decide to pursue a grand ambition. With Covid-19 and pandemic related restrictions, many of us have had time to reflect on our lives and about our human potential.
An Everest and Seven-Summits Mountaineer, Mitch began studying other individuals who had climbed their own big mountain and overcome obstacles, while making a difference in the world. He became fascinated by other people’s stories and the “magic moment” when they decided to make the next leap forward in their lives. How did they know it was time to move from one situation to another? How did they manage the transition? What challenges did they face? How did they persevere through setbacks? This presentation focuses on these eight amazing humans who have transformed themselves and the world, and what we can learn from them on our own pursuits; whether individually, as a team or as an organization,
Mitch’s presentation focuses on seven principles for pursuing our passion with purpose while learning from the fascinating stories of others in corporate roles who set about transforming themselves and the world. Intermixed with example real-life applicable stories and laced with immediate actions that can be taken. This top talent focused presentation looks at how to lead self, lead teams and lead the organization. This is a must have for any organization that wants to accelerate the leadership journeys of their next generation of leaders.
SEVEN STEPS TO HEART-LED CHANGE
Achieving Joy & Happiness in Turbulent Times (Audience: All)
Mitch brings his personal and professional achievements to an inspired intersection to show us not only how to achieve your own Personal Everest, but how leading with the heart can manifest intense meaningful change in these turbulent times. Mitch’s unique perspective comes from his vantage points standing on top of the highest mountains on all seven continents to standing on stages around the world guiding global business leaders.
Through this 30,000 foot-view, Mitch helps us refine what joy and happiness means to us individually and how to map the path to optimal health, wealth and happiness.
2020 gave us the great challenge – and the equal opportunity – to take back control of our life’s direction if we are willing to take just one small step forward. The Seven Steps methodology is designed to show how to move from Stabilizing through Actualizing to Acclimatization and includes progressive actionable exercises to guide the audience in making heart-led decisions to help structure and simplify for the greater good. This actionable presentation takes us on a metaphorical and literal journey from within our heart and soul to help achieve our Higher Purpose; our Personal Everest.
Mitch’s presentation focuses on the Seven Steps that can be applied to everyday usage or to managing big strategic decisions and execution at a personal or team level. With focus on gratitude and appreciation as well as self-actualization, this speech will take the attendee on a journey unlike any other with relevant areas to immediately implement.
THE MOTHER MOUNTAIN
You Can Climb Mt. Everest! (Audience: Age 6-11)
An absolutely unique, never-before-seen multimedia presentation with video, pictures and full color illustrations, about climbing Mt. Everest for young people and their parents and educators. A lyrical story, based on true events, of two best friends who decide to climb Mount Everest on a childhood dare.
After making plans, growing up, going to university, saving and training, they travel to Nepal where they meet their climbing teammates at the famed Yak and Yeti hotel in Kathmandu. Flying into the world’s most dangerous airport in Lukla, they embark on a two-month expedition to attempt a summit of the 29,035-foot “Mother Mountain” while trying to conquer their own deepest fears. Max and Molly discover the bonds that are formed with teammates and Sherpas through the laughter and the tears amidst the ever-present danger and risks. Climb with Max and Molly and their Sherpas in their do-or-not-die journey from Kathmandu to the Khumbu Icefall, from Base Camp to the Western Cwm, and finally to the South Col for their ultimate summit.
The story teaches our young people also about setting goals, training, saving, gaining increasing experience, working as a team under difficult conditions, resiliency, perseverance, respect and appreciation for the Sherpas and the Mountains while achieving something that they can dream about. The story is told with drama and humor, childhood bonding and celebrating success as a team.
BROTHERHOOD OF THE ROPE
Five Tenets of Partnering for Growth (Audience: All-hands, SKOs or Partner Events)
The term generally refers to a group of climbers, tied and clipped together on a single rope for dangerous stretches of mountains. The phrase is gender-neutral. Mitch sees it as a metaphor as well for partnering in the business world.
In this presentation he shares his Five Tenets for partnering for business growth aligned to the Brotherhood of the Rope on the mountains based on his decades-long experience of executive leadership in Partners and Alliances.
Mitch will acknowledge that partnering is hard while being roped up on mountains is difficult, and very similar. Leading partnerships and alliances require new skills. They require results orientation, joint business plans and moving from business reviews, to strategic planning sessions.
In the new-new-normal, software-defined IoT-networked world, there is a new element of Next Generation Partnering that will call on all companies from distributors to hardware manufacturers to application and cloud providers to be roped-up together and achieve new heights that would not be possible without each other.
The type of presentation can only be given by one in the trenches with those in the audience. At the end, participants will learn how to implement: Setting mutual and common goals, Pulling our own weight, Trust, Relationships and Commitment – all to achieve partnering for growth and success.
SEVEN AND SEVEN (AND FIFTY)
7 Continent Marathons & Summits & 50 States (Audience: Adventure groups, stores and Athletic companies)
Mitch considers himself an amateur adventurer despite his numerous achievements. He started off as a marathon runner at age 45.
When he saw there was a “seven continents club” for those that have run marathons on all seven continents, he signed up and completed his journey in less than five years. After completing his Seven-Continents goal, he received the book, Into Thin Air, as a Christmas gift from a colleague and decided to be one of the first persons to run a marathon on seven continents and summit the highest mountains on the same seven continents.
At the age of 50, Mitch signed up for a Glacier Mountaineering Course in Washington with the intent of being able to ultimately climb Mount Everest (and the other six summits within five years.) He would go on to summit Vinson Massif in Antarctica to complete his seven and seven quest.
Since then, he has added to his goal of running marathons in all 50 U.S. states and has completed 35, and a total of 60+ including several ultra-marathons.
Mitch’s adventure-based presentation includes heart-stopping audio, video, pictures and the stories of overcoming adversity and injury while learning how to run and climb at an advanced age.
Mitch’s presentation tells the tale that only a world-renowned adventurer can tell – the heroes and those fallen along the journey. Given that more people have walked on the moon than have ran and climbed the seven continents, his perspective that anyone can achieve most anything at any age is ingrained in the fantastic images and expeditions while revealing secrets that only an Everest summiteer can share with their audience.
SHACKLETON’S WAY
LEADERSHIP LESSONS FROM ANTARCTICA (Audience: Corporate Teams, Adventure Groups, Retail Organizations and Athletic Companies)
Shackleton has been called the “greatest leader that ever came on God’s earth, bar none”, yet he never led a group larger than twenty-seven and failed to reach many of the goals he set. He once wrote, “I love the fight and when things are easy, I hate it”.
Mitch seamlessly combines his own adventures and leadership-in-action stories from the most southern continent. The presentation notes the traits that made Shackleton “The Boss” (as his men called him), such an amazing man to admire in our own 21st century. He built his own success on a foundation of camaraderie, loyalty, responsibility, determination and – above all – optimism.
Mitch’s presentation focuses on the key leadership areas that are relevant to this day and age, even though they are over one-hundred years old.
Speech topics include diversity in groups, handling the constant pessimist, perking up the constant worrier, keeping the disgruntled from poisoning the team, to working with limited resources and bringing order, process and structure to a chaotic environment.
This presentation speech will take the attendee on a journey unlike any other with spectacular pictures and video to go along with relevant areas onc can immediately implement.
TECHNOLOGY LEADERSHIP FOR A SUSTAINABLE WORLD
TECHNOLOGY LEADERSHIP FOR A SUSTAINABLE WORLD (Audience: All)
Technology is amazing and it has enabled us to live a more prosperous, safe and giving life than we can appreciate at this time. Technology will not however replace intimacy, romance or physical love. Sight, touch, feel, smell and even feelings will continue to be replicated in digital formats. 3D, holography, and virtual reality – but they cannot take the place of a mother nursing her child for the first time or lovers holding hands. The basic human need is affection. We get that directly through physical touch combined with emotional attachment. By definition, we are sentient beings with consciousness. We are all composed of matter, sensation, perception, mental formations, and our consciousness.
With our consciousness, only we can decide how we live our lives and how we personally use technology for good. We can use technology, or it can use us. We can never lose sight of the natural beauty in the world, the abundant blessings we’ve been given and the power that technology possesses to use our limited resources to help change the world for the better.
Mitch’s presentation focuses on the ways we can both humanize technology for our better angels, but also how technology combined with key 5G verticals such as agriculture (and in a public/private partnership) can lead to better food resiliency and sustainability. This presentation is a must for every tech leader who wants to impart a higher-purpose message for the teams and company.