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Chris Hadfield - An Introduction
Referred to as "the most famous astronaut since Neil Armstrong," Colonel Chris Hadfield is a worldwide sensation whose video of David Bowie's "Space Oddity" — seen by over 75 million people — was called "possibly the most poignant version of the song ever created", by Bowie himself. Acclaimed for making outer space accessible to millions, and for infusing a sense of wonder into our collective consciousness not felt since humanity first walked on the Moon, Hadfield continues to bring the marvels of science and space travel to everyone he encounters.
Hadfield has flown three space missions, built two space stations, performed two spacewalks, crewed the Shuttle and Soyuz, and in 2013 named the commander of the International Space Station for six months off planet.
Formerly NASA's director of operations, Hadfield is a heavily decorated astronaut, engineer, and military fighter/test pilot whose many awards include the Order of Canada, the Meritorious Service Cross, and the NASA Exceptional Service Medal. He was named the Top Test Pilot in both the US Air Force and the US Navy, and was inducted into Canada's Aviation Hall of Fame.
An internationally bestselling author, Hadfield has written four books: An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth; You Are Here; his children's book, The Darkest Dark; and the critically acclaimed The Apollo Murders — a thriller set in space and his first fiction novel. Hadfield also released a musical album, Space Sessions: Songs From a Tin Can, and is featured on Ted.com for his talk, "What I Learned from Going Blind in Space", which has been viewed more than 11 million times.
Hadfield is the co-creator and host of the internationally acclaimed BBC series Astronauts: Do You Have What It Takes?, as well as the co-host, with actor Will Smith, of National Geographic's One Strange Rock, directed by Darren Aronofsky. He also produces the celebrated Rare Earth series on YouTube and is the creator of the on-stage celebration Generator, which combines science, comedy, and music.
Additionally, Hadfield is an adjunct professor at the University of Waterloo and with Masterclass online, an adviser to SpaceX and Virgin Galactic, and chair of the board of the Open Lunar Foundation. His keynote presentations have been called "an astonishing display of visual storytelling" by Harvard Business Review.
Presentations listed below include in-person and virtual keynotes, as well as workshops, fireside chats, and other presentation formats.
Commanding a spaceship takes superb leadership. The vehicle is complex, the team is international, the crew is on their own, and the stakes are at their highest — huge financial consequences and perpetual life or death situations.
Only one Canadian has ever held that command — Colonel Chris Hadfield. Through his 25 years spent in the Royal Canadian Air Force and 21 years with the Canadian Space Agency and NASA, he has developed and honed leadership theories and practices that have taken him to the very top.
In this keynote, Hadfield combines fundamental leadership theories and original insights with examples from his own experiences as a US Navy top test pilot, NASA's Director of Operations in Russia, NASA Astronaut Chief of Space Station Operations, and as a Commander of the International Space Station.
Hadfield has been an instructor in crew resource management, as well as a teacher in all phases of astronaut/groundcrew team development. He is also a three-time internationally bestselling author and his book, An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth, is regularly used by students and instructors around the world.
An immensely experienced teacher, speaker, and leader, Hadfield will help your team lead more effectively.
Preparing for the Unexpected: How to Manage Through Complexity and Change
Spaceflight is an unforgiving business, with industry success riding on every launch and event. Being a commander of a spaceship means facing the highest of stakes — human lives, irreplaceable and expensive equipment, and worldwide scrutiny.
Having commanded the International Space Station for months off planet, Colonel Chris Hadfield is experienced in managing people, complexity, and change under extreme circumstances. Surrounded by life-threatening risk, his daily routine was to prepare for and solve worse-case scenarios, from both a team and leadership perspective.
Hadfield draws from his experiences and lessons learned during his 21 years in the astronaut corps to share the best strategies and tactics to help individuals, teams, and leaders prepare for and meet the challenges of our rapidly changing world. Key topics include managing stress, leading under pressure, encouraging collaboration amongst diverse teams, redefining norms, and more. Using multiple examples from his tremendous career, he illuminates the necessity for both preparation and reaction to complex change.
Stories Behind "The Apollo Murders"
Bestselling author Colonel Chris Hadfield's latest book, The Apollo Murders, is a Cold War thriller set in 1973 that explores the dark heart of the space race. While it's Hadfield's first fiction book, the inspiration behind it is based on true stories that only an insider could ever know.
Join Hadfield on a journey through the fascinating, technical, and thrilling stories behind the space race that he discovered while researching for his new fiction series. Hadfield combines these with his own personal stories of launching into space, living six months off-planet in the darkest dark, and hanging on to the outside of a spacecraft while orbiting the Earth at 17,000 miles per hour, to give audiences a perspective of what it's really like to be an astronaut. Starting from the beginning when landing on the moon was a dream and an international competition and ending in today's landscape of international cooperation, Hadfield shows what is possible and what might have been.
Colonel Chris Hadfield has worked with countless students and teachers, from pre-school to post-doctoral, for decades. Speaking in schools and at education conferences throughout his 35-year-career as an engineer, pilot, and astronaut, his rare mixture of personal experience, memorable ideas, and a warm, fun, interactive style has influenced a generation. Most recently, his extensive teachings from Earth orbit, recorded on-board the International Space Station, continue to be seen by millions via YouTube.
Hadfield strongly believes in the necessity to give every student the tools and the inspiration to succeed. His face and accomplishments are in Canadian science textbooks as both a role model and clear example of where STEM education can lead. Using real-world examples from his unique experiences, he enables audiences to see beyond their normal horizons, and helps give them the tools and ideas for personal growth and achievement in learning.
A Musical Evening with Chris Hadfield
Colonel Chris Hadfield shares a selection of stories, images, songs, and ideas in a musical presentation that delights audiences of all ages.
Performing songs like his evocative "Beyond the Terra", which looks away from the land to the skies, Hadfield ties his presentation together with incredible tales from over the course of his career, including his experience as the ISS commander.
Suitable for audiences big, small, and in-between, Hadfield customizes his performance to his audience.
More great information and resources.
The Apollo Murders
The far side of the Moon, 1973. Three astronauts are trapped in a tiny Apollo module, and one of...
The far side of the Moon, 1973. Three astronauts are trapped in a tiny Apollo module, and one of them has murder on the mind…
As Soviet and American crews sprint for a secret bounty hidden away on the Moon's surface, old rivalries blossom and the political stakes are stretched to breaking point back on Earth. Houston flight controller Kaz Zemeckis must do all he can to keep the NASA crew together, while staying one step ahead of their Russian rivals. But not everyone on board Apollo 18 is quite who they appear to be.
An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth
Colonel Chris Hadfield has spent decades training as an astronaut and logged nearly 4000 hours...
Colonel Chris Hadfield has spent decades training as an astronaut and logged nearly 4000 hours in space. The secret to Col. Hadfield's success is an unconventional philosophy he learned at NASA: prepare for the worst—and enjoy every moment of it.
In An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth, Col. Hadfield takes readers deep into his years of training and space exploration to show how to make the impossible possible.
Through eye-opening, entertaining stories, he explains how conventional wisdom can get in the way of achievement and happiness.
This vivid and refreshing insights will teach you how to think like an astronaut, and will change, completely, the way you view life on Earth—especially your own.
A playful, thought-provoking and visually delightful photo tour of Earth from the astronaut who...
A playful, thought-provoking and visually delightful photo tour of Earth from the astronaut who made us fall in love with our planet all over again…
The millions of us who followed Chris Hadfield's tweets from space thought we knew what we were looking at when we first saw his photos of Earth. We definitely caught the beauty but we may have missed the full meaning. Now, with a collection of his favorite, never-before-shared images, Hadfield helps us see the big picture: why our planet looks the way it does and why we live where we do. Drawing on his in-depth knowledge of geology, geography and meteorology, he takes us on a planetary photo tour – an idealized orbit of Earth – and explains the mysteries these stunning images reveal.
You Are Here opens a singular window on our planet, using remarkable photographs to illuminate the history and the consequences of human settlement, the magnificence (and wit) of never-before-noticed landscapes, and the power of the natural forces shaping our world and the future of our species.
The Darkest Dark
Chris loves rockets and planets and pretending he's a brave astronaut, exploring the...
Chris loves rockets and planets and pretending he's a brave astronaut, exploring the universe. Only one problem–at night, Chris doesn't feel so brave. He's afraid of the dark.
But when he watches the groundbreaking moon landing on TV, he realizes that space is the darkest dark there is–and the dark is beautiful and exciting, especially when you have big dreams to keep you company.
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SickKids
The presentation by Chris Hadfield at SickKids was extremely well received by everyone. We had really hoped that his talk would celebrate our trainees and inspire them to think big and get excited about their work and there is no doubt that he accomplished this in spades! His comments about dealing with failure and defining what success means to you really hit home for many people. It's a week later and people are still talking about it. I would have to say that this was an amazing success and we are very grateful that Chris took the time to come to SickKids and really relate to our audience.
Canadian Insurance Industry (Anonymous)
'Thank you' seems too meager words for the impact that Colonel Hadfield's address had on our staff on March 6th. Colonel Hadfield inspired each and every staff member. The way he was able to draw in the audience and intricately weave his experiences into what we are living as an organization was impeccable. There was a palpable buzz around the office on Friday and even today. What a wonderful experience for all of us.
Kubota Canada Ltd.
Chris — on behalf of Kubota Canada Ltd., its employees and its dealers across the country, we are honoured and thrilled that you were able to be part of Kubota's 40th Anniversary celebration at our National Dealer Meeting last week in Atlanta. Thanks for your multiple messages of inspiration. Many people mentioned to me that your strategy of "planning to fail" gave them a new way to look at how they might build their business strategies. On a personal note, thanks for tailoring your presentation to our Kubota group and connecting on a familiar level, equipment. As mentioned above, the message was received!
Chris's participation at the reception and his keynote address was exceptional. The event organizers were so impressed with how Chris worked with them and engaged them in conversation. He received a standing ovation from the delegates. The feedback continues to be very positive. Thank Chris again for making this a memorable event.
Bassett Events Inc.
The event went very well last Thursday and the true highlight of the evening was Chris's speech. He did such a wonderful job of connecting his own personal experiences to C-DAAP and their goal of being able to support dressage athletes and help them realize their dreams.
CHC Helicopter & Safety Summit
Our annual Safety & Quality Summit includes a Gala Dinner at which he have been privileged to have many well-known and highly entertaining guests; this year, we were honoured to have Chris Hadfield as our special guest and I have to say he excelled all of our expectations, and more. An enthralling story, masterfully delivered with style and humour, and supported with breathtaking images. Chris's commitment to provide a once in a lifetime opportunity for all of our guests was truly selfless and much appreciated by all who benefited from what was a fantastic evening.
Ivey Business School at Western University
The event was outstanding and your help with organizing Chris Hadfield's speaking engagement was professional and very appreciated. It was the best event we have ever held. Chris and Evan helped to make the event stress-free, being so calm, kind, and friendly, open and attentive to us, our students and guests both before and after the event. They were a pleasure. It goes without saying that Chris' presentation was beyond wonderful. Inspiring, humorous, insightful, surprising. What a shining example of leadership he is for all of us. We were thrilled to have him in London!
Victoria Symphony
Col Hadfield was a smashing success on every level. He was approachable and engaging and went out of his way to accommodate people. The performance was outstanding and we are hearing nothing short of rave reviews. We are ecstatic.
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