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Brad Thiessen

Speaker, Certified Resilience Coach and three-time cancer survivor

Meet Brad

If you judge my life from my medical chart, it's pretty grim.

I've had cancer three times. I’ve had nine brain surgeries, three brain infections, and an operation that removed the top layer of my lat muscle and grafted it onto the top of my head. There's a permanent shunt coming out of my skull. And I almost died from a freak case of hydrocephalus.

I've had to learn how to walk again, how to cook a basic meal and even how to play a simple children's board game.

But here I am.

My oncologist called me Miracle Man. My neurologist says I shouldn't be able to walk, let alone run ultramarathons. My neurosurgeon said sitting and talking with me was like seeing Lazarus risen from the dead.

Just being able to sit here and type this at all makes me so deeply grateful.

So I've made it my life's work to learn all I can from the field of resilience, apply it to my experience, and then share it with whoever I can.

And I do it with energy, humor and vivid details that make my message stick.

If you're looking for a speaker or workshop leader for your event, or a facilitator to help your organization build its resilience and vision, let's talk about how we can work together!

Brad Thiessen built up his resilience after cancer by spending tim trail running 2

After my third cancer treatment in 2016, I knew I had to do some major self-work to make sense of the experience and keep from growing bitter. I set the goal of completing a 50k (31 mile) trail run nine months after taking my last chemo pill, and had an award-winning short film made about it, called Proof of Life. Check it out!

"Pacing"

"Pacing" is a 6-minute film about a time during training for my 50k trail run when I learned the power of having people in front of me to support and lead the way. It also gives a sense of my style and message.

Watch it here

Themes and Topics

My core focus is resilience. Within that, I'm flexible to fit my message to your audience, goals and theme, whether for individuals or organizations. You can book me for several options:

1. Speaking and workshops

My Keynote Motivational talk

Just One More Mile: My extraordinary journey from cancer to resilience **great for general inspirational/celebration events!

Topical talks include:

A new approach to goal setting that really works! (OKRs)
The mindset you need to build resilience in any setting
The 4 Core Resilience Muscles that help you reach new heights
3-part series: 1) goals; 2) resilience mindset; 3) resilience muscles ** great for workshops!
The power of storytelling to change our lives and share our vision - and how to do it
The brain-body-nature prescription in action **great for events hosted by outdoors-related organizations and health providers!
topics tied to your event or organization's theme

2. One-to-Two hour packaged events

Bring one of these presentations into your event or conference, with me as host! *ideal as an evening special event

The OutLive Film Festival (1-2 hours)

A set of short films telling the stories of people overcoming challenges by getting active outdoors and connected to others. These are award-winning films from the annual OutLive Film Festival in Spokane, WA. *Can be tailored to your time slot.

Brad’s Resilience Story (2 hours)

A live presentation of the stages of my resilience journey through cancer to completing a 50k (31 mile) trail run 10 months after taking my last chemo. My talk is mixed with powerful short films of other people conquering their challenges. *This presentation has played to multiple sold-out audiences with strong positive reviews.

I can also provide resources customized to your event's theme and design.

You can start a conversation using the contact form. From there we can see if I’m a good fit for your needs. I look forward to getting to know you a little!

- Brad

Photo: Anastasia Ahuravleva at Pexels.com

Resilience:

Brace yourself, get back up, grow.

When we are faced with huge challenges like I faced with cancer and hydrocephalus, we have two options:

We can get stuck in our suffering, in which case we get weaker.

Or, we can eventually move past our suffering, one step at a time, imagining a tomorrow that's filled with meaning and purpose. Dwelling on the good we have, not the good we've lost.

These tough times have the power to teach us how to live with more meaning and purpose.

And the good new is, resilience doesn't have to be a natural part of your personality. You can learn the resilience skills and a mindset that are the foundation to living a life filled with meaning and purpose.

Let me share some of my life story and learning with your attendees or organization. Together, let's take them one step further on their journey to resilience!