Presenting Jamling
Tenzing Norgay
Motivational Speaker. Mountaineer. Author.
About The Speaker
In 1953, humankind reached a new pinnacle when Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay ascended to the summit of 29,035-foot Mount Everest. These two men faced the grueling hardships during this inaugural expedition, pushing the envelope for humanity without the aid of modern equipment and setting unprecedented standards for the climbing world.
The saga, however, does not end here. Both the suffering and the triumph of these two men have inspired dozens of today's climbers to summit Mount Everest.
Jamling Tenzing Norgay, the "Son of the Everest Pioneer," did not idle in the shadow of paternal legacies. He is a member of a living dynasty of climbers, with 11 of his relatives summiting Mount Everest.
Jamling's spiritual journey has led him to an attachment to the Himalayan region and its jagged 8000-meter peaks. Because of his acclaimed mountaineering expertise. Jamling was also chosen as the Climbing leader of the international climbing team that created the awe-inspiring IMAX documentary film, 'Everest'. Jamling recently entered the literary world with Touching My Father's Soul, (an International Best Seller) a poignant reflection on his relationship with his father and his 1996 Everest ascent.
Physical accomplishments aside, Jamling has been instrumental in bringing much needed social services to many of the more remote Himalayan villages. His philanthropic contributions are as valued and honorable as his mountaineering endeavors.
TOUCHING MY FATHER'S SOUL
An Odyssey to the Top of Everest
An illustrated presentation by Jamling Tenzing Norgay
"I climbed Everest so that my children wouldn't have to."
Ever since Jamling's father, Tenzing Norgay Sherpa, spoke these words to his son, Jamling had been seized by a passion to follow in his father's historic footsteps - to step onto Mount Everest's icy skin and learn the lessons she has to teach. In the illustrated presentation, Touching My Father's Soul - An Odyssey to the Top of Everest, Jamling brings to life a profound and compelling adventure, interweaving the lives of a family, a mountain, and of climbers facing nearly insurmountable obstacles. It is a story of disaster, triumph, professionalism and the resilience of the human spirit.
To reach the summit and return safely to base camp demands extraordinary commitment and perseverance.
Planning an Everest Expedition begins with piecing together a strategic puzzle: the pyramid of support whose foundation is balanced on the edge of an ominous, shifting glacier at 18,000 feet.
Within the "death zone" above 26,000 feet, a teammate or other climber in trouble puts all nearby climbers at risk. Judgment calls are difficult, and at this elevation they are downright arduous.
In Touching My Father's Soul - An Odyssey to the Top of Everest, Jamling uses expedition slides to illustrate not only the organization and dynamics of the IMAX Filming team's Everest climb, but he explores the natural and human events that led to the loss of 9 climbers in one storm and 12 climbers over the season. The IMAX team responded to the tragedy skillfully and compassionately, by shifting gears and immediately dedicating all of their oxygen and resources to the rescue. Two weeks later, following intense soul searching, consultation with Jamling's family priest and study of weather conditions, they reached the top with the IMAX camera. One seldom sees such a level of organization and team effort:
to film from the summit required that 11 people reach the top along with the camera, while 40 others delivered supplies and provided critical backup.
Throughout, Jamling interweaves the little-known story of his father's historic first ascent in1953, with Edmund Hillary, and shows how the mountain has changed in the past half century - and how it hasn't.
The Message
As Jamling found on Everest, in this captivating program we find more than personal triumph and family honor. We discover that climbing this mountain safely requires leadership, planning, confidence, commitment, apprenticeship, experience, humility - all in a measured balance. For each of these attributes, Jamling provides examples of how they were used to further his team's effort, how they contributed to their safety, success and response to the tragedy.
With the right combination of attributes and proper motivation, climbers are sometimes granted a chance to step onto Everest's icy skin, and then retreat, taking with them important lessons about the human condition and what it takes to succeed. Indeed, the Sherpa people especially recognize that one cannot conquer Everest, and that respect and experience are one's most essential companions. The objective is not the top of the mountain, for that would be like setting a goal of swimming to the middle of the ocean. Or, as team member Ed Viesturs put it, "Getting to the top is optional, but getting down is mandatory."
Aspiration and ambition are essential, but the mountain cannot be climbed on hopes and dreams alone. In this presentation, we learn about what it really takes to succeed, and we learn some of the lessons that this dangerous mountain has to teach us.
Some of The Places Spoken
- Royal Geographic Society, London
- Nasscom
- Maruti Suzuki India LTD
- Accenture
- Siemens
- Royal Geographic Society, Hongkong
- Deutche Bank
- Merrill Lynch
- Seagate
- Proctor & Gamble
- Mountaineers Club, Seattle
- Royal Colloquium, Sweden
- U.S. Senators, National Air and Space Museum, Washington DC
- Intel
- Reliance Mutual Fund
- Canara Robeco
- UBS
- Coke
- Toyota
- Cognizant
- Infosys
- Axiata /Ncell, KL, Malaysia
Thank you for the sensitive and informative introduction to the film and for your willingness to talk with senators and their families. The courage the skill and strength that you and other members of your team displayed in reaching the summit of mount Everest is truly awe-inspiring.
Tom Daschle, United States Senate, Washington D.C
Our company has the distinct pleasure of hearing Jamling Tenzing Norgay give a presentation recently at a large meeting of employees from around the world, and I would strongly recommend him as a featured speaker.
He is a thoughtful and dignified speaker, with a powerful message: achieve great things and enable others to achieve great thing as well. Jamling not only met the goal but exceeded our expectations.
Bill Watkins, President and CEO, Seagate Technology, Queenstown, New Zealand
Your talk was truly inspiring and helped us develop many insights into how one can overcome challenges. The experiences you shared tied in very well with the theme that we had for our meeting, and for our organization.
Sonali Roychowdhury, Senior Manager - HR, Procter and Gamble, Mumbai, India
It not only builds a new appreciation among the audience for the milestones you have achieved, but also the way you portrayed it in such an elegant manner and with such empathy that the entire partner community was uplifted and ready to take on the challenge.
Mark Wilson, Vice President, Fujitsu Goa, India
Jamling proved an engaging and fluent speaker. He held a large audience's attention throughout a talk of an hour or so. I would recommend Jamling as a lecturer and very much enjoyed his company whilst he was with us here in Hong Kong.
James Riley, Chairman, The Royal Geographical Society - Hong Kong