ADventure Speaker - Find Your Polar Bear - Teaser

A motivational keynote talk for organisations seeking resilient teams that view change and growth as exciting challenges rather than obstacles to overcome. Your staff need a Polar Bear. 

Before going to the Arctic, Mark Agnew interviewed:

➡️ A military psychologist on team cohesion and camaraderie

➡️ A sport psychologist on finding meaning in the challenge

➡️ A tourism sociologist on having authentic experiences on your journey

➡️ A psychological scientist on suffering and happiness as social glue

➡️ A hardiness psychologist on building resilient teams

Find Your Polar Bear is the ultimate framework, where cutting edge research meets lived experience.

Mark discovered:

Being tough and being resilient are not the same. Resilient people:

• Adapt
• Ask for help
• Find meaning and joy in the challenge
• Bond with their colleagues
• Build camaraderie to elevate their performance.
   

If your staff are only tough, they won’t adapt, they won’t ask for help, and they will burn out. They need their Polar Bear.

“The best, most inspiring talk I’ve ever heard.” — Ricco Zuschlag, Country Lead, Google.
 

Themes: Resilience, accountability, ownership, thriving in adversity, joy in the challenge change and growth.

Pursuit – “When you strive you always arrive.” Give your staff purpose and meaning in the pursuit so they are motivated and driven each day.

Ownership – “You cannot control the wind, but you can keep paddling.” Help your people stop wasting time and start overcoming obstacles by focusing on what they can control. 

Live and Thrive in Uncertain Times – “Tough things are tough. That’s not the problem. That’s the point.” Staff must embrace adversity and see opportunities for growth in challenges. 

Adapt – “Tough people persevere. Resilient people adapt.” Being tough isn’t resilience — resilience means knowing when to adapt and when to ask for help. 

Relationships – “Camaraderie is formed when tough times are shared.” Deep bonds grow when teams take on tough challenges together. 

Bounce Back – “Mistakes create experience. Experience avoids mistakes.” Failure is inevitable. What matters is how your organisation uses it. 

Experience – “Turn headwinds into tailwinds by falling in love with the challenge.”  When staff enjoy challenging themselves, they become more engaged. 

Accept the Challenge – “Fight the problem, not your emotions.” Stress is are normal. Resilient teams learn how to sit with discomfort and focus on solutions. 

Consistency – “The miles take care of themselves when you take care of the strokes.” Focus on consistent actions to build long-term success. 

“When staff stop asking ‘Where’s my manager when I need help?’ and start asking ‘What’s my next polar bear?’ they’ll be happier, hardier, and more accountable.” — Mark Agnew.