Gary Kopff: Motivational Speaker

Gary Kopff: What If I Can’t Make The Summit?

In 1991, he stood on the summit of the highest peak in the Antarctic with his friends, Rob Hall & Gary Ball -- then the world's top mountain guides. They invited him to climb Everest. In his life, he believed “Shoot for the top; 2nd best you can always get.” Yet, at 25,000’ an injury denied his summit bid.

What did he learn? How did these lessons help him years later in 1998-2001 guide his clients up & down "Mt. NASDAQ?"

Hear what a Yale classmate of Bush and Kerry, a former McKinsey consultant, and an amateur mountaineer who started climbing at age 42, learned about the pursuit of excellence after failing to reach the summit. Kopff will motivate your organization’s top achievers who fail, at least once, to make their summit.

Educated at Yale at the time President Bush, Senator Kerry, and N.Y Governor Pataki were classmates, Mr. Kopff then graduated 1st in his MBA class at Cornell and began climbing the corporate ladder. His 35 years of financial strategy consulting include serving at McKinsey & Company, heading Policy Development for Fannie Mae, and serving a clientele that includes 7 of the 50 largest financial companies in the world* and such not-for-profit organizations as the World Bank.

More recently, he has aggressively managed investments, deeply on margin, for family and friends through the growth of the NASDAQ-100 as they climbed together from 1,000 to 4,600 and slid back to 1,000 between Jan 1998 and Oct 2002. What lessons did he put to use from his experiences on Everest when he couldn’t reach the summit? What were the lessons he learned from the late Rob Hall and the late Gary Ball as, together, they ascended and descended the icy Vinson Massif in the Antarctic?

Unlike the late climbing heroes, Rob and Gary, and many Everest motivational speakers, Mr. Kopff is not a great climber. And yet, prompted by his best friend’s death at 42, he embarked on a transformation that propelled him to the summits of three of the world’s “seven summits” and start his own financial strategy consulting firm, whereas, for example, peers from McKinsey rose through corporate ranks to become CEOs, his partner who shared leadership of the finance practice at another consulting firm went on to become CEO of Capital One, one of his fellow Fannie Mae officers became the U.S. Trade Rep, and others passed him by in climbing the corporate and governmental ladders. What did he learn from stepping out of rank to pursue his own dream? What mistakes did he make and now acknowledges? How does he build on these experiences and insights to motivate others to find their own dream and push to success despite setbacks on the way up?

A member of the Cosmos Club of Washington, D.C. and the Explorers Club headquartered in New York, Mr. Kopff’s pursuits are cerebral as well as physical.

Over 100 times over the past decade, he has either delivered presentations to corporate audiences throughout the U.S., Europe, and South America or delivered motivational talks at prep schools as an Outward Bound Board member, on Capital Hill, or to various other non-profit organizations. A former Trustee of the Colorado Outward Bound School and the International Outward Bound organization, he “walks the walk and talks the talk.” In 1962, as a high school student, he was one of the first participants in Outward Bound when it started in the U.S. Over the age of 40, he completed four more Outward Bound courses, including dog-sledding in the Arctic Circle and climbing in the Caucuses with Russians who spoke no English. Other explorations have included diving in the Mediterranean in a high visibility submersible to depths of 1,000 feet to explore ancient shipwrecks.

Mr. Kopff has developed a high tech, multi-media motivational talk to carry the images and his insights from the high mountains to young and old who may have failed to reach one of their summits -- or secretly fear they may do so – yet want to find the will to keep on trying. Mr. Kopff is now available to present to corporate audiences throughout the world his fascinating audio/video show. Moreover, he can draw upon his extensive consulting expertise to work with top management on organizational development and strategy issues that might be incorporated into a customized presentation.

*Citigroup (U.S.), HSBC Holdings (U.K.), Fannie Mae (U.S.), BNP Paribas (France), ABN Amro (Netherlands), AXA (France), and Lehman Brothers (U.S.).

To achieve the summit of your next business conference, club meeting, training seminar or social function, contact us

EverestSpeakersBureau.com

Marketing and Management Company

Disabled climbers like American Gary Guller who climbs unguided (he is a guide and expedition company owner!) with only one arm! Up and coming stars like Eric Alexander and Greg Crouch. We believe the leading Asian speakers in the world in Khoo Swee Chiow and David Lim and more! gear