Rebecca Stephens is the First British Woman to have climbed Everest. Following her triumphant ascent of this highest mountain in the world, in 1993, she continued her travels and climbed the highest mountain on each of the seven continents, the so-called Seven Summits. Again, she was the first woman from Britain (and the first English-speaking woman in the world) to accomplish this feat.

The Seven Summits are: Kilimanjaro, in Africa; McKinley, in North America; Everest, in Asia; Elbrus, in Europe; Carstensz Pyramid, in Australasia; Aconcagua, in South America; Vinson, in Antarctica.

Mad on adventure, she has also sailed the Southern Seas to Antarctica and competed in an eight-day Eco-Challenge with polar explorers Sir Ranulph Fiennes and Dr Mike Stroud, running, biking, riding and canoeing across the Canadian Rockies.

Professionally, Rebecca is in the business of communication. She writes, broadcasts and lectures, drawing from her experiences and delivering inspirational talks to business audiences on how to achieve absolutely the best performance, both as an individual and as a team. She talks on the subject of personal development - defining one's passions and goals, self-belief, overcoming fear, tenacity and commitment - and on the subject of effective teamwork and leadership.

Rebecca is an outstanding speaker particularly on motivation and teamwork drawing examples from her remarkable experiences. She captivates her audiences and encourages individuals to believe in their own capabilities. For example through her talks Rebecca highlights that the road to achieving ones desired goal is less about knowledge and technical skill and more about ones inner desire to achieve and having the courage to step out and do it. She stresses the importance of teamwork - how a team can achieve more as a whole than any of its individual players in isolation and how each member can draw inspiration from the other. As Rebecca herself remarks, 'With a commonality of purpose and a willingness to succeed then the impossible becomes possible'.

Believing passionately in the ability of every individual to achieve goals beyond their wildest dreams, she has inspired people again and again to seek new horizons.

Rebecca has written a compelling account of her ascent of Everest, 'On Top of the World'. She regularly contributes articles to national newspapers, and has appeared on a number of television programmes, including the BBC's Tomorrow's World.

She is a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, a committee member of the Alpine Club, a trustee for the Sir Edmund Hillary Himalayan Trust and a member of the Chelsea Arts Club - and returns regularly to the Himalayas, leading treks.
Back to Speakers Menu