James Castrission

James Castrission's Biography

Adventurer | Keynote speaker | Entrepreneur | Leadership Consultant

James holds two Guinness World Records for his accomplishments and is highly regarded as one of Australia’s premier corporate motivational public speakers.

His bestselling books Crossing the Ditch and Extreme South cover his world-first journeys; kayaking from Australia to New Zealand and travelling unsupported to the South Pole.

As a business keynote speaker, James shares the unbelievable stories of his adventures and inspires audiences to set their own goals of greatness.

In 2008, James (aka Cas) and his partner Justin ‘Jonesy’ Jones became the first kayakers to cross the Tasman Sea without support.

The journey required a leap of faith, with James leaving behind his corporate role to raise funds and plan the highly dangerous expedition. Their landing in New Zealand captured global attention and inspired them to plan even more challenging adventures.

On the 26th January 2012, Cas and Jonesy made history by completing the longest unsupported polar expedition of all time: the first return journey from the coast of Antarctica to the South Pole and back without assistance. The journey made headlines around the world and led to James’ new challenge as a keynote speaker and corporate leadership coach.

In 2013, James founded MyAdventure Group – a business committed to sharing the benefits of having an Explorer’s Mindset with the corporate world. Harnessing lessons learnt from the most hostile environments on earth, James’ keynotes, workshops and offsites are designed to develop teams and drive competitive advantage in organisations.

After a hiatus due to COVID, James has returned to in-person presentations as well as virtual keynotes and has resumed the hosting of corporate retreats at his unique Base Camp in the Blue Mountains.

James Castrission brings his signature relatable style and past experience as a senior manager at Deloitte to also deliver a full or half-day event that exceeds everyone’s expectations.

Delegates have the chance to get to know a globally renowned adventurer and time to focus on both their individual and team development. James will have employees operating on a brand new wavelength so that they can find alignment and begin to think like a tribe.

A memorable keynote speaker does three things:

Tells an incredible story

Has people sitting on the edge of their seats

Shares highly relevant messages that audiences can truly connect with

As well as being a record-breaking adventurer and entrepreneur, James Castrission has a background as a corporate executive.

Having a clear understanding of what it takes to survive in both worlds sets him miles apart from other corporate speakers.

Speaking Topics Include

FEEL THE EXCITEMENT AND DANGER OF TWO OF THE GREATEST ADVENTURES IN HISTORY

Crossing the Ditch & Crossing the Ice are highly motivating, story-based presentations perfect for motivating and inspiring an audience to open or close a conference.

Imagine facing white-capped ocean swells as tall as a four-storey building and struggling across blinding-white ice sheets as far as the eye can see…

Audiences of all ages are thrilled as they take an audio-visual journey through two of the greatest feats of adventuring in history.

These international keynote presentations will stick in your team’s minds for years to come.

COLLABORATING TO WIN

Effective collaboration is the most important element of success, whether you’re striving to grow a company or you’re voyaging across an ocean or tundra. Without real collaboration both endeavours are bound to fail.

In this engaging keynote you’ll learn critical steps in creating a tribe that is aligned and working together, that supports each other, and that doesn’t put personal ambition and success over that of the organisation.

This is the perfect session on how to develop a “culture” that is geared towards collaboration, and ultimately: success.

THE 6 STEP JOURNEY FROM INSPIRATION TO EXECUTION

In this lively keynote, audiences learn the critical steps that ensured James not only survived his adventures but set two Guinness World Records.

James has developed a six-step model so any organisation can apply what he has learnt to achieve its own BHAGs (Big Hairy Audacious Goals).

Whether it’s a roadmap to achieving your 2023 vision or launching a new product, this model will help your team build clarity and alignment to achieve the impossible.