Jamie Clarke Speaker Biography
Extreme Adventurer; Entrepreneur; Performance Coach and Professor of Leadership
Jamie Clarke is a natural born explorer. He grew up in the Rocky Mountains of Alberta, Canada and fell in love with the outdoors at an early age. In his teens, he was a competitive cross-country ski phenomenon, enjoying success on the national stage. Soon though, he had his eyes set on higher things.
Mount Everest
His first attempt of summiting Mount Everest came in 1991 at the age of 23. Bad weather stymied the ‘Climb for Hope’ team. Three years later, Jamie was back, this time with the Canadian ‘Lungs Without Limits’ team. Again, Mother Nature intervened within sight of the summit.
Seven Summits
Success came in 1997, and again in 2010, when Jamie stood proudly on top of the world. Between Everest expeditions, he had been collecting the other of the Seven Summits, the tallest places on each of the seven continents: Mount Aconcagua (1993), Mount McKinley (1996), Mount Kilimanjaro (2001), Mount Elbrus (2005), Vinson Massif (2006), and Carstensz Pyramid (2008). And he also spent 40 days crossing the Empty Quarter of Arabia by camel in 1999.
Entrepreneur
He retired in 2010 to spend more time with his wife Barb and their two children. He became an early e-commerce entrepreneur, launching an outdoor gear website alongside a bricks-and-mortar store. He also became a sought-after speaker on podiums across North America, Europe and Asia.
Nepal
But the call of the wild is strong with Jamie. He has been harbouring a desire to go on an expedition with his son since they spent a month together in Nepal in 2010, when Khobe was just nine. The latest expedition will have son Khobe at 18 years of age teaming up with dad Jamie at 51. It’s a completely different dynamic.“You spend all your time looking after your kids and then one day, they start to look after you. Maybe this will be that trip; when Khobe steps from boy to man and says, “Hey Dad, I’ll take it from here.”
Life Mongolia
Life Mongolia is the first of Jamie’s new ventures as an advocate for reassessing our relationship with digital media and encouraging a life connected to nature and the great outdoors.
Jamie Clarke Speaking Topics
THE NATURE OF RISK
The passion that drives an adventurer is akin to that of a business leader. With his trademark spirit and high energy, Clarke excites audiences as he draws parallels between the dynamic environments found in the office and in nature. He provides business leaders with a new framework to achieve success in any competitive setting. Clarke shows how to adapt to forces outside of one’s control and uphold one’s mission despite distractions and dangers, all the while encouraging a healthy dose of risk balanced with an ample measure of humility. Clarke delivers insights and strategies for taking one’s organization to the peak and conquering the adventure of business.
FEAR IS A FRIEND
With humor and palpable emotion, Jamie challenges audiences to think differently about success, failure, hard work and fear, as he shares insights from his journeys, adventures and explorations to and through the world’s most dangerous places. Perfect for audiences seeking expertise on risk-taking, project management, and team building, Clarke delivers powerful perspectives on learning from failure, the art of grunt work, conquering fear of focus and above all — living life with passion.
COURAGE IS A JOURNEY
After multiple trips to the top of the world, what’s next? A 700-mile venture on the back of a camel, crossing the world’s most desolate and dangerous desert: Arabia's Empty Quarter. Clarke shares the lessons learned from a journey of contrast and endurance. In a program laced with laughter, poignant moments, tension and lush illustration, Clarke will challenge your audience to persevere through obstacles, resolve conflict, live in the now and to lead others by empowering them to live passionate and courageous lives.
Jamie Clarke Books
