In her inspiring keynote address, Lisa shares an intimate story of perseverance and determination gained from her 20 years of leading organizations and her ascents of the world's highest peaks.  Using images and anecdotes from her many climbs, Lisa takes her audience on a journey from the board room to the summits of Mt. Everest and K2.  Along the way, she shares the inspiring lessons that she learned as a cancer survivor and as a woman. 

Lisa leaves her audiences both inspired and energized to tackle the challenges in their lives with strength and humility.

KEYNOTE TOPICS:

EMBRACING CHANGE 

When I was young my father told me that change was the key to life.  I wouldn't realize what he meant for several decades.  Being diagnosed with cancer provoked me to examine my life, and I realized that I did not want to waste any of the time that I had been given.  Although the decision was excruciating and scary, I left my corporate career, made changes to my relationships, sold or gave away nearly everything that I owned, and climbed Mt. Everest.  Taking this leap of faith taught me many, many things about myself and others.  Most importantly I realized that we all have the ability to create the lives that we want for ourselves.  It may be daunting, and we will stumble, but it will be ok. 

OVERCOMING ADVERSITY

A cancer diagnosis is always devastating and threatens to throw one's life offcourse.  I was diagnosed with breast cancer six months before my first Himalayan climb, and finished treatment three weeks before beginning to climb Everest.  This experience - of fighting cancer while continuing to climb - taught me the importance of staying positive, managing what I can control and breaking things down into manageable chunks in order to overcome daunting obstacles.

RESILIENCE

Success in the mountains, as in life, requires the ability to nimbly adapt to challenges and unforeseen obstacles.  This flexibility was key for me as an executive - leading teams in a fast-paced, dynamic environment - and while climbing big peaks like Everest and K2.

LEADERSHIP

I have been fortunate through out my career to lead diverse teams.  By playing to our collective strengths and addressing weaknesses in the most productive and efficient way we were able to accomplish incredible results.  I believe that both in business and in the mountains, the key is to know your team and yourself, and to focus on setting both up for success.

BUILDING AND WORKING AS A TEAM

The concept of building a team of strong people who are fiercely dedicated to a goal was key for me as an executive, as a climber, and as a cancer survivor.  In each situation, I learned the importance of choosing the right people, defining roles and goals, communicating and measuring performance.

MOTIVATION

Motivation is difficult to marshal at 26,000 feet when the wind is screaming outside of your tent and everything inside is frozen.  It is difficult to find when doctors look you in the eye and say the word cancer.  But within each of us is the will to fight, the desire to take one more step in a positive direction.  The key is to realize that we are all capable of so much more than we believe.

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK

“Lisa's journey to the top of Everest, and back again, is something that I will remember for the rest of my life. Lisa is a dynamic, personable and intimate speaker that any audience will relate to with ease – Lisa is truly a treasure to witness. I would highly recommend Lisa as a catalyst to drive inspiration, motivation, and to connect the dots to performance."  

~ Alex de la Cruz, Vice President, First Tech Federal Credit Union  

“The group really enjoyed the session and called it the best of the day. I so appreciate your talk, you continuously leave us inspired!”

~ Sarah W, Agency & Operations Manager, Google

“The team kept referencing your quotes for the entire duration of the meeting. You were truly an inspiration”

~ B.S., CG&E, Google

"Your story of establishing goals, commitment, perseverance, and personal strength was the perfect end to our meetings and I can assure you that conversations of amazement and inspiration continued for a few days within our team."

~Bruce Dickinson,  Senior Vice President, Mortgage Lending

"Lisa’s presentation was truly inspiring! It really gives us perspective on how to continuously challenge ourselves and overcome adversity and fear during difficult moments in life.”

~Noelia B., NBBJ