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Ready, Steady, Rona!

It's great to achieve great things as an adventurer or explorer but sometimes hearing about it can be slightly intimidating for others. Now, however, there was a chance to see the tables turned and to witness an explorer floored by a humble potato peeler. Ready Steady Cook on BBC2 on September 27 saw me pitting my cooking skills (nil) against those of Andy Dare (adventurer, sailor, first-class photographer and cook) in the ever popular TV cook show. Great telly and even more fun to take part in - and yes, they really do put it all together that quickly and yet the food tastes just divine!

 

Bear Grylls and I were interviewed by Tony Fisher on 'What drives explorers to explore?' The answer? To overcome our fears

What People Are Saying About Rona...

Rona has been the subject of numerous print and broadcast media interviews and features both in the UK and abroad. Her fascinating story, awe-inspiring anecdotes and down-to-earth delivery style generate an instant interest and rapport whatever the audience.

Attendee at a Global Bank event in Canary Wharf

I just wanted to say how much I enjoyed listening to your talk and meeting you. Although your professionalism made it clear you had given this talk many times, your huge skills as a speaker and unscripted delivery made me feel as though it was as fresh for you as ever. Your ability to translate lessons learned in extraordinary circumstances into messages for everyday life was illuminating, and meant that each observation resonated on a personal and immediately-applicable level.

Society of Construction Law Inaugural Lunch - Lindy Patterson

It was as a result of great recommendations that we invited you to be the after lunch speaker at our inaugural Society of Construction Law lunch. A demanding audience of 140 lawyers and construction professionals was not disappointed. From your spectacular opening to the end of the talk; "Steering the Right Course" you had the audience captivated. As well as being hugely interesting, the motivational theme was clear and inspirational. I would thoroughly recommend you for any business event.

Defence Academy of the UK - Head of Leadership & Development

Drawing on her real-life experiences Rona developed these into a number of leadership-related themes that have equal applicability in day-to-day business. The leadership challenges that she presented were reinforced through tailored and interactive case studies that further tested delegates understanding.

Rona's lively and engaging style ensured that the encounter was equally thought-provoking and engaging, with the leadership challenges that she experienced, and how to approach them, brought to life through the telling of her exciting stories.

Michael Hislop, The PA Club

Rona really motivated the audience, both men and women, to believe that anything is possible provided you have the determination to do it. What makes the difference is that she is able to talk as one 'ordinary' person to another - she eschews the "talk down" approach, and communicates very quietly and effectively with her audience.

I can thoroughly recommend Rona as a speaker at any event, large or small, where the organisers are looking for a motivational speaker without glitz or gloss, but with a proven track record of feats of endurance - feats that she would claim anyone is capable of provided they want to achieve them.

Carston Holm - Diversified Business Communications

'Thank you for very much for your superb closing Keynote - one of the true highlights from a programme of exceptional and inspiring speakers. The delegates' feedback was a quite incredible 74% gave you 5 out of 5, with the rest giving you 4. In other words, everyone thought you were EXCELLENT. Thank you for ending our conference on such a high.'

Steve Pentland - Generator Systems

'I wanted to let you know that if ever anyone is doubting engaging you, ask them to call me. Your delivery was not only engaging, but displayed much of the inner emotions we all feel and face in our chosen paths. I'd be happy to endorse.'

Delegate from CMI Annual Conference

'I enjoyed your session very much - great fun and plenty of lessons for managers and leaders in what you had to say.'

Teresa Lombardo, delegate IIR EA/PA Congress, Melbourne

'You may be pleased to know that after your talk I have a whole new attitude about achievements I want to make in my life. Since then I have jumped into the driver's seat rather than be a passenger of my life. I know that the only person holding me back from achieving the things that I want in life is me.'

Grant Thornton

'We were very pleased to hire Rona Cant for our event. She was recommended to us, and we would not hesitate in recommending her to others. Rona's presentation was thought-provoking, animated, attention-grabbing and exciting. Above all, it made you evaluate your own working practices long after the event was finished - sign of a very good speaker.

The correlations made from Rona's personal life to the business world were subtle and effective using key transferable skills such as successful communication and assertiveness. This is a strong speaker and a strong presentation and we look forward to using Rona again in the future.'

 

HSBC Bank PLC

"You had us spellbound with your adventure and the management and leadership lessons evident in the experience." 

 

Susan Rice, MCMI, MCIPD

'Any organisation wishing to develop teamwork or leadership skills in their employees would gain substantially from investing a couple of hours listening to Rona and her gripping story.

Rona’s slides and her description of the preparation that was required showed how dangerous, difficult and testing such a feat would be. Rona took us through each step of the voyage speaking not of herself but simply recounting the tale of the journey. However this was more than the simple if effective telling of a story. At relevant points, Rona drew attention to the behaviours, attitudes and beliefs that either led to success or failure in achieving the aims each team set out to achieve. Her talk was an insightful and revealing account of teamwork and the attitudes and leadership necessary for a team to succeed.'

 

Sanofi-Aventis

'I wanted to thank you very much for your excellent presentation at our recent regional meeting in the Lake District. The principal objective of our meeting was to integrate new members into our team, improving team spirit and therefore leading to better team work. We had a team building event on the first day, which was successful, and I was looking to your presentation to reinforce the importance of working well together as a unit.

Your presentation 'Just do it!' gave us a sense of the importance of effective teams as shown by your experiences in the BT Global Challenge. It also gave us a sense of urgency; and provided increased desire to know down any obstacles that may be preventing us getting to where we need to be with our business priorities.'

 

LloydsTSB

"Highly motivational and inspiring. Rona is able to make the impossible, possible and in the telling of her adventures encourages others to try to make changesthat they want to happen in their lives too. Thank you Rona for bringing your spirit of adventure to our workplace and for your help in motivating us to introduce something new or different into our work and personal lives".

National Speakers' Association – NZ

“It was a real pleasure to catch Rona on a flying visit to Wellington, New Zealand in February 2005 where she joined the Global Challenge Round the World Yacht Race for the leg to Sydney. It was particularly good to be able to hear her speak about her experiences in the 2000/2001 Challenge on the Save the Children yacht. Rona is a great storyteller and takes her audience 'along for the ride'. Coupled with her audio visuals, she made it possible for us to savour many of her special memories, both poignant and scary. She gave us a real taste of adventure from the perspective of a self confessed (one-time) 'unexceptional' woman. She is clearly nothing of the sort today!”

Save The Children Conference

“Inspirational, brilliant and vivid.”   “Very entertaining.”  “The presentation and delivery style were excellent.  If only we could produce a Rona Clone!”  “Delighted… would not hesitate to recommend you.”

Save The Children Conference

‘A remarkable woman and as such it was an inspiration to hear her speak.’ ‘I take on the gems of leadership and managerial courage from this. Superb!  Leadership, team building, focus, dedication, strength, courage, success, failure - although I'd heard this before, in this format it was extremely powerful.’

 

GQ Magazine

'Six explorers, one mission: to push the boundaries of human discovery...' 'GQ Meets the men and women for whom the adventure never ends.'
Click here for the full article in JPEG format.

The Prince's Trust

"I just wanted to say a very BIG THANK YOU for speaking at our Leadership Development Forum. It was a great success and just what was needed and really added to the forum."

International Shipping Federation

“Rona is a great story teller, who is able to demonstrate the value of teamwork and a positive attitude. Whilst being entertaining, she clearly highlights lessons learned regarding planning and organisation skills, as well as the value of delegation and recognising the strengths within a team. This message will always be of value to any Company or organisation”

 

Prof. Nadia Kakabadse, Northampton Business School

‘An inspirational speaker – A genuine story of focus and determination. Rona is an adventurer that captures minds and hearts.’

 

The Management & Leadership Network

'Through a vivid and well told story Rona was able to help the audience navigate their own journey of self discovery. The lessons learned on the high seas were translated into practical applications for leadership and teamworking for any situation. This wasn't a story of constant success it was an honest reflection of how people can deal with adversity and achieve a positive outcome. It was a great message to support our theme - Aspire, Lead, Grow.'

 

Women in Business NI

'I am writing to thank you for your stimulating and thought-provoking talk 'Steering the right course' at Queen's University Belfast for our Management Week. The audience was spellbound by the drama of the story and the way it led to key lessons learned along the way focussing on behaviours and attitudes regarding effective leadership and teamwork. It was an excellent and very informative talk and well worth listening to.'

 

Kettering Business Club

'Rona spoke at our local business breakfast club to an enraptured audience. With great ease Rona took the audience away from their breakfasts and into a world of trials, teamwork and terrific results. She linked her personal experiences so well with day-to-day issues that surround a business, that we all came away with a renewed motivation for the work we do, and a strength to get the job done. The title for this event was 'Just do it' and that's what we did.'

 

Prime Chartered Accountants

'Rona Cant gave an inspiring and stimulating presentation at our Coventry Business Academy. Rona isn't a typical "motivational speaker", she is someone who has actually achieved and completed some incredible feats. The fact that she has practiced what she preaches really adds weight to the messages that she delivers. Personally what I learnt is that action counts not intent. The audience feedback was very positive and I would recommend Rona to anyone looking for a guest speaker who can make you feel that you can achieve anything once you decide to take action.'

 

Council of Mortgage Lenders

'Rona's talk was extremely interesting as we had anticipated it would be, given the remarkable adventures she has been on. It was delivered with humour and passion, and certainly held the 'audience' rapt. Importantly, Rona also incorporated some powerful generic messages and learning points about the importance of goals and team-work. These messages weren't 'over-egged', which meant the presentation was a thought-provoking talk, rather than a lecture; a distinction which made it all the more accessible to our staff. A very inspirational lady!'

 

Women's Engineering Society

“Great impact! Gripping…. We all enjoyed your talk a great deal.”

IIR Finance LTD

“Fantastic speaker, inspiring", "Interesting, amazing story", "Brave lady", "Very good way of looking at leadership skills and the way a team should work together".

Women in Business

“Thank you very much for your excellent presentation last week at our first anniversary. The response has been very positive.”