Chris Waddell

Hall of Fame Athlete, NBC Analyst of Paralympics, Podcast Host, Author, Founder One Revolution, First “Nearly Unassisted” Paraplegic to Summit Kilimanjaro

Topics: Attitude, Resilience, Empowerment, Adventurers, Sports, Change, DE&I – Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Elite Performance, Inspirational & Motivational, Leadership, Personal Development, Storytelling, Teamwork, Business, Corporate Culture, Professional Development, Productivity

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Biography

Chris’s genuine, personal and considerate delivery aims to connect and instruct, something he sought even as a competitor. As he became the fastest monoskier in the world, he and his female counterpart started a monoski instructional camp to help others unlock their potential without enduring the pain and frustration that they had. Members of those camps went on to win National, World Championship and Paralympic medals.

When he attempted to become the first unassisted paraplegic to summit Mt Kilimanjaro, he stood on the shoulders of his heroes to turn the impossible into reality and give others the courage to confront their fears to live and perform most fully. The climb wasn’t without incident. His team had to carry him up a boulder field, but that “failure” allowed him to separate from the obligation to be a superhero—to be honest, vulnerable and to find his real power. In 2015, he published his first book Things I Want to Remember Not to Forget, inspired by his Middlebury College Commencement Address. The following year, he taught himself to draw and wrote and illustrated his first children’s book, Is It Lonely to be a Four-Leaf Clover? He has appeared on Dateline, Oprah, and 20/20, has provided color commentary for the Paralympics on NBC, and was named one of People Magazine’s “50 Most Beautiful People.”

A popular keynote speaker, Chris helps audiences become champions of their businesses, their worlds and themselves. He has spoken to nearly every industry and kind of audience—from Fortune 500 Companies to non-profits, from sales groups to venture capitalists and engineers. He inspires audiences to consider how seemingly ordinary people can achieve the impossible.

Career Highlights:

• Dalai Lama’s Unsung Hero of Compassion
• Thirteen Paralympic Medals
• Paralympic Hall of Fame
• Most medals of any male monoskier in Paralympic history
• World Champion Winter & Summer Sports
• US Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame
• Doctor of Humane Letters, Middlebury College
• First Ambassador International Paralympic Committee
• Founder One Revolution Foundation
• First nearly unassisted paraplegic to summit Mt Kilimanjaro
• People Magazine’s “50 Most Beautiful People”
• Skiing Magazine “25 Greatest Skiers in North America”
• NPR: The Best Graduation Speeches, Ever (Middlebury College ’11)

Videos

No One Climbs a Mountain Alone | Chris Waddell

Chris Waddell

Climbing Your Mountain: Chris Waddell

Speech TopicsExpand each topic to learn more

The Power of Change

Learning is painful and hard

2 diametrically opposed desires: security and growth
Stop growing learning and dreaming we’re essentially dead
No choice. Change or perish
Our greatest moments, when we look back, are when we changed for the better
Opportunities to learn from each other. What happened? What did you do?
Eliminate emotional part: Change doesn’t mean failure.
Change before change finds you
Culture of change: pursuing a direction, accepting that there will be specific diversions along the way and opportunities to revisit the strategy

Achieve Your Goals

How often do we say that something is impossible and it’s entirely true until someone does it? Why not us?
Depression after competing. Didn’t want to be passionate. Cut myself off from optimism, the trigger to my greatest power.
Dream, imagine, make it personal
Achieving goals=growing as a person—confronting fears, improving skills, growing confidence
Confidence not what we can do—it’s knowing we can handle whatever comes our way
Goal bigger than ourselves. Make a difference and tap into greater power
Learn triggers to best self. How were you at your best?
Run toward fear
Eliminate obstacles

Embrace the Struggle

No matter how smart, rich, strong, educated we are we will struggle. Death of loved ones, divorce, bankruptcy, disease, addiction or many other things will have the power to force us to question everything we believe about ourselves and every decision we’ve ever made.
I know struggle of traumatic injury but more damaging the struggle of complacency, indecision, and insecurity
When I look back I miss the struggle (the two a day training sessions, the times that I was so sore it felt like someone had hit across the top of my back with a baseball bat) more than I miss the medals. The daily struggle was the part. It was my connection to my world and friends and colleagues
Struggle was belonging
We have the ability to determine how we react
Be the underdog
Don’t take yourself too seriously
Talent abandons us when it’s most needed
Grind
Little things matter, daily routine, showing up everyday makes change
What does winning look like
Find strategies (those are yours. You made a difference)
All guaranteed is struggle and journey
Struggling is a game we can win either by emerging from struggle or turning struggle into something we can enjoy