Polly Letofsky 
Motivational Speaker | Elite Speakers
Denver, CO, UNITED STATES
Mapping the Course Through Your Overwhelm: Lessons in resilience from one woman's walk around the world
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Biography
On August 1, 1999, Polly Letofsky left her home Colorado home and headed west. She traveled across 4 continents, 22 countries, and over 14,000 miles – by foot – to become the first woman to walk around the world.
As an awareness campaign for breast cancer, survivors and well-wishers around the world came to walk with her. Every day strangers welcomed her into their homes and shared meals. The world had embraced her.
But in the middle of Polly’s five year journey, the world suddenly shifted on it’s axis when September 11 flung us all into a crossroads in world history. Polly suddenly found herself embedded in a vastly changing world and realized she could never retrace her steps home – they’d vanished in a tide of world events.
Through the lessons of her own daunting journey she brings the lessons of goal setting to life. Your audience will walk away with a renewed commitment to take on larger, bigger, bolder projects without the walls of fear holding them back. Lessons in adaptation, attitude, commitment, and turning fear into fuel, will provide clarity and empowerment to their goals.
Polly’s GlobalWalk has been featured in over 2,000 newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations around the world, including Good Housekeeping, CNN International, The CBS Early Show, NBC’s Your Total Health, and Fine Living Channel’s Radical Sabbatical. Newcastle Productions has recently released Polly’s GlobalWalk, a documentary chronicling her journey. Her book 3mph: The Adventures of One Woman's Walk Around the World won Best Memoir at the 2011 National IPPY Book Awards, as well as Best Memoir at the 2011 Writer's Digest Best Book Awards.
A natural storyteller, since her return, Polly has been speaking to rapt audiences around the country. She richly details her journey with humor and honest reflection, the good times and the hardships. Sometimes serious, sometimes funny, always inspirational, Polly’s inspiring keynote personifies the spirit of commitment and perseverance that will compel your audience to take on life’s biggest challenges – one step at a time.
Sometimes serious, sometimes funny, always inspirational, Polly’s program personifies the spirit of commitment and perseverance that will garner a new strength in your team to reach goals.
Industry Expertise (3)
Training and Development
Health Care - Providers
Women
Areas of Expertise (5)
Resilience
Perseverance
Attitude
Goal Setting
Fear
Accomplishments (4)
Best Memoir at 2011 IPPY Book Awards (professional)
3mph: The Adventures of One Woman's Walk Around the World was awarded as Best Memoir at the 2011 IPPY National Book Awards
Wheat Ridge City Reads Award (professional)
3mph: The Adventures of One Woman's Walk Around the World was chosen as the Wheat Ridge Reads Book of the Year for 2012.
Best Memoir at Writer's Digest Best Book Awards (professional)
Polly's book 3mph: The Adentures of One Woman's Walk Around the World took Best Memoir at the 2011 Writer's Digest Best Book Awards
Woman of the Year (professional)
CBW (Colorado Business Women) voted Polly Letofsky as the 2012 Woman of the Year for her work -- both personally and professionally -- with women and her community.
Education (3)
Dale Cargegy : Speaking
Brown College: Broadcasting
Mankato State University: Communications
Affiliations (2)
- President of BPW-Colorado (Business Professional Women)
- NSA
Links (3)
Testimonials (8)
Wendy DeVargas, Meeting Planner, APWA Greenwood Village | APWA Annual Winter Conference
We received an explosion of positive feedback from the attendees that your presentation was “a nice human touch to a technical conference” and “keynote speaker was phenomenal!” It was definitely what I was looking for and was impressed that you tied in your challenges to relate with our challenges on the job
Jill Mariley, President APWA Washington | APWA Annual Convention -- Washington
I’m a professional speaker and have heard hundreds of speakers over the years. This is the first time I was left breathless.
Professor Candace Ruiz , Business Professor | School of Business | Community College of Denver | Guest Speaker
We received an explosion of positive feedback from the attendees that your presentation was “a nice human touch to a technical conference” and “keynote speaker was phenomenal!” It was definitely what I was looking for and was impressed that you tied in your challenges to relate with our challenges on the job.
Diane Sova, Engineer; Adventure Speaker Series Coordinator | Ball Aerospace; Bi-Annual Adventure Speaker Series
“We NEED this woman back again and again and…!’
Karen Miller, CAA Executive Director | Colorado Assessors Association Annual Summer Convention
We were motivated, educated, entertained, and enlightened. The room was buzzing afterwards.
Karen Main , Training Specialist, City of Englewood, Colorado | Englewood Summit
Polly was the perfect kick-off speaker for the 2011 Summit for Professional Growth. Our theme for this year’s Summit was “resilience,” and Polly certainly set the stage for the rest of the conference with her witty and inspirational program. I have already recommended Polly to several of my colleagues.
Coralie Chan , Assistant Director of Sales | Kaiser Permanente Annual Sales Convention
Polly’s inspirational message to our practice left everyone who walked out of the room awed - and provided us with the confidence that putting one step in front of the other will get us to our goals.
Rebecca Priebe, Michigan Council of Nurse Practitioners | Annual Convnetion of Michigan Council of Nurse Practitioners
I cannot even begin to tell you how wonderful Polly’s keynote was. Multiple nurse practitioners who were at the conference said her keynote was ‘inspirational and just what we needed to start off the conference.’ We could not be happier!
Event Appearances (6)
Ball Corp
Bi-Annual Travel Show Boulder, CO
2011-08-27
2011 Jefferson County Celebration of Women
Annual Celebration of Women Lakewood, CO
2011-12-03
HealthOne
Colorado Health Summit Colorado Springs, CO
2012-03-09
American Public Works Association
APWA Western Annual Spring Conference Seattle, Washington
2012-04-05
Kaiser Permanente
Annual Sales Conference Denver, CO
2011-08-16
Annual MIchigan Nurses Council Conference
Annual Michigan Nurses Council Conference Ann Arbour, MI
2011-04-10
Sample Talks (1)
Little Steps, Big Feat: Lessons in resilience from one woman's walk around the world
On August 1, 1999, Polly Letofsky left her home Colorado home and headed west. She traveled across 4 continents – by foot – to become the first woman to walk around the world. Through the lessons of her own daunting journey she brings lessons to life. Polly custom designs her program to draw parallels to what your audience is facing in the work place: economy, morale, productivity, she will prove how powerful one step can be, and that partnered with attitude you, too, can take on the world.
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- Keynote
- Author Appearance
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