Polly Letofsky

Motivational Speaker Elite Speakers

  • Denver CO

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

Training and Development
Health Care - Providers
Women

Areas of Expertise

Resilience
Perseverance
Attitude
Goal Setting
Fear

Accomplishments

Best Memoir at 2011 IPPY Book Awards

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

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

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

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Education

Dale Cargegy

Speaking

Brown College

Broadcasting

Mankato State University

Communications

Affiliations

  • President of BPW-Colorado (Business Professional Women)
  • NSA

Testimonials

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

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.

Engineer; Adventure Speaker Series Coordinator

Ball Aerospace; Bi-Annual Adventure Speaker Series

“We NEED this woman back again and again and…!’

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Event Appearances

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

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Sample Talks

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.

Style

Availability

  • Keynote
  • Author Appearance

Fees

$3000 to $5000*Will consider certain engagements for no fee