Purpose builds resilience.
Passion gets you started. Purpose gets you through. The fastest person, and the first woman, to sail solo, non-stop and unassisted around Antarctica shows your people why knowing what they're sailing for matters more than willpower.
QBE Insurance · International Zonta Convention · Bremont Watches · The Brand Agency · Refuelling Solutions · Sydney International Boat Show · TEDx
Are your people facing change and uncertainty? Running on empty? Being asked to deliver something that has to matter?
Lisa Blair OAM works with organisations that need their people to keep going when it's hard. She's the fastest person, and the first woman, to sail solo, non-stop and unassisted around Antarctica, and she knows from 1,000 miles out that resilience doesn't come from willpower. It comes from knowing why it matters.
Five moments. One idea.
Falling in love with the ocean
Lisa didn't grow up sailing. At 25 she went from art teacher and shop assistant to a job on a charter boat in the Whitsundays, and fell head over heels for the ocean. Within a few years she was racing 40,000 nautical miles around the world.
Passion got her started.
A sea of plastic
Racing around the world, she saw a styrofoam box drifting 20 days from land, then sailed through water so thick with rubbish a crew member had to push it off the bow. It changed her. Over the next few years she set out to sail solo around Antarctica, bought her first boat, named it Climate Action Now and wrapped it in thousands of handwritten climate pledges.
That's where she found her purpose.
1,000 miles from land
On day 72 of that first attempt, her mast came crashing down in the night and began cutting the boat in half. Hypothermic, alone, frozen at the bow, she could have set off her beacon. She didn't. It wasn't the boat and it wasn't willpower: it was Sally and her short showers, and every other promise wrapped around that hull.
Purpose got her hand back on the rail.
The phone call home
Months later, swept off the deck in a winter storm, she called her mum to quit. Her mum didn't argue; she helped Lisa see it differently, because Lisa had brought her into every plan, every risk, every reason.
When you share your purpose, your people can steer you back.
Going back
She finished as the first woman to sail solo around Antarctica, and came home feeling she'd failed. Five years later she went back and became the fastest person ever to do it solo, non-stop and unassisted.
Purpose is what's worth going back for.
Why purpose builds resilience
Teams don't break because they're weak. They break when they lose sight of why it matters. People with a strong sense of purpose are far less likely to burn out: 11% report regular burnout, compared with 52% of people with weak purpose (Gallup and Stand Together). In a five-year study of more than 5,000 employees, people with passion and purpose performed in the 80th percentile, against the 20th for passion alone (Morten Hansen, Great at Work). And customers notice: half of UK consumers would switch to a brand with stronger sustainability credentials (Fox + Hare).
Lisa doesn't hand your people a model. She takes them onto the boat, and leaves every one of them with their own answer to the question that carried her around Antarctica: what are you sailing for?
"Lisa's presentation was so well received, with the audience in awe of her achievements and the message she was delivering, so much so that she received a standing ovation."
Dawn Newman OAM, International Zonta Convention (1,700 delegates)
"What an incredible launch event today. Lisa was amazing and had the team buzzing. Talk about an engaging storyteller."
QBE Insurance
Built around your brief
Every audience gets the same powerful story, shaped around what your people are facing right now.
Leaders & teams through change
Restructures, acquisitions, new strategy, uncertainty: the keynote shows teams why purpose, not pressure, is what keeps people going.
How it works for this audience →Sustainability events & climate panels
For launching a sustainability commitment or climate panel: the sea of plastic, the science she collected at sea, and why every action matters.
How it works for this audience →Women in leadership & IWD
From art teacher at 25 to the first woman to sail solo, non-stop and unassisted around Antarctica, in one of the world's most male-dominated sports.
How it works for this audience →Schools & young people
Age-tailored talks on courage, ocean science, mental health and big goals, and why every action matters.
How it works for this audience →Lisa on stage and on screen
Author of Facing Fear (Australian Geographic) and the subject of the award-winning documentary Ice Maiden.
Media, TV & podcastsEverything you need
Bio & MC introduction
Short and long bios, plus an introduction your MC can read on the day.
Get the biosPhotos, kit & showreel
High-res photos, the speaker kit, logos and video, free to use for your promotion.
Speaker resourcesBooking Lisa
What does Lisa Blair speak about?
Lisa's keynote is Purpose Builds Resilience. Through the story of her solo voyages around Antarctica, from the dismasting 1,000 miles from land to her record-breaking return, she shows why purpose, not willpower, is what keeps people going through change, pressure and burnout.
Who is Lisa Blair?
Lisa Blair OAM is an Australian keynote speaker and record-breaking solo sailor. She is the fastest person, and the first woman, to sail solo, non-stop and unassisted around Antarctica (92 days, 2022), the first woman to sail solo around Antarctica (2017), and holds 8 world sailing records. She received the Order of Australia Medal in 2025.
Who books Lisa?
Organisations going through change and uncertainty, teams facing burnout, companies launching sustainability or climate commitments, climate and sustainability panels, women in leadership and International Women's Day events, and schools. No sailing knowledge is needed; Lisa tailors every talk to the audience and the brief.
How long are Lisa's presentations?
From a 15-minute story to a full 45 to 60-minute keynote with Q&A, plus panels, fireside chats and workshops.
Does Lisa travel, and does she present virtually?
Yes. Lisa is based in Australia and speaks around the country, in the UK and internationally, in person or virtually.
How do I book Lisa Blair, and what are her fees?
Use the enquiry form at lisablairspeaks.com/book-lisa-blair, email lisa@lisablairsailstheworld.com or call 0431 302 088 (+61 431 302 088) with your date, location and audience. Fees depend on the format and location and are provided on enquiry. Speaker bureaus are welcome.
Purpose builds resilience. Let's bring it to your people.
Tell us your date, location and audience, and Lisa will come back to you personally with availability and fees. Speaker bureaus and agencies are welcome.
Check availabilityCall 0431 302 088