About Matt

As a teenager Matt was expected to follow the path of his academic family, but his need for adventure led to him leave school at 16, and run away to sea, to work on a fishing trawler in the English Channel. This early taste of pitting mind and body against the elements, included finding out quickly what was required to keep his place on the boat, on-the-job training and the life and death necessity of safety protocols, resulted in a lot more than how to make tea, catch and gut fish.

Leaving life on the water behind, with swimming the channel and rowing the Atlantic years into the future, he rapidly reinvented himself, utilising everything he’d learned on those long, tough years on the trawler.

Still only 21, he soaked up everything he learned in varied new and challenging positions. Matt grew in confidence, reinvented himself, and redefining what he knew and experienced, he innovated new ways to succeed in business. Within ten years he had bought and sold two tech businesses and was garnering a reputation as a thought leader for consistent and sustainable process, leading to business growth success and a reputation as an inspirational leader.

Matt’s Keynote addresses, interactive workshops and mentoring are illustrated with the wit, wisdom and hair-raising exploits from his early days on the fishing trawler to leading a team to row the Atlantic.

He doesn’t shy away from revealing his own mistakes in his extraordinary journey which he presents as amusing cautionary tales, to motivate his audience to learn from them and elevate their own leadership potential. He shares with humility what he has learned about himself, how to survive intense situations, understanding the limits of endurance, how to combat burnout, the value of teamwork, and unlocking the experiences that lead to extraordinary leadership.