#36 - From Grit to Growth: Explorer Bruce Kirkby on Adventure, Family and Focus
Today’s guest is Bruce Kirkby
Bruce is tackling the modern trap of distraction, comfort and grind—how busy, screen-saturated lives quietly erode our sense of presence, adventure, connection and growth, especially with our families.
In today’s conversation Bruce Kirkby explores what it really means to design a life around adventure, presence and growth instead of stress, traffic and endless grind. He shares how he walked away from a conventional career in engineering to become an expedition guide, writer and photographer, leading journeys across Arabia’s Empty Quarter, Ethiopia’s Blue Nile Gorge and remote mountain ranges around the world.
Bruce and Dr. Wells dive into the family expeditions that reshaped his understanding of parenting and technology—from taking his young sons on horseback across the Caucasus to living for months in a Himalayan Buddhist monastery, the story behind his book Blue Sky Kingdom: An Epic Family Journey to the Heart of the Himalaya. They close by unpacking his “grit vs. grind” framework, his recovery from a major back injury, and how consistent, small practices can transform performance and wellbeing over the long haul.
You will learn how Bruce intentionally rebuilt his life around wilderness expeditions, writing and speaking after leaving a traditional engineering career, and why time—not money—is the ultimate non-renewable resource. You’ll hear how traveling with his young family through places like Patagonia, the Republic of Georgia and the high Himalaya helped them unplug from screens, deepen their relationships and see fear and discomfort as gateways to growth.
You will learn practical ways to bring “micro-adventures” and presence into everyday life—whether that’s paddleboarding between airport layovers, reclaiming your commute, or building small rituals that keep you connected to nature and your kids. You’ll also learn how Bruce reframed his performance after a serious back injury by focusing on mobility, sleep, breathing and consistency instead of heroics and willpower alone.
You will discover how the same mindset that keeps a team safe in avalanches, deserts and whitewater can help leaders and organizations navigate distraction, change and uncertainty back home. You will discover why Bruce believes discomfort and fear are not problems to eliminate, but compasses that point toward the experiences and growth we value most.
Bruce’s knowledge helps solve the challenge of feeling stuck in a life that looks successful on paper but feels rushed, distracted and uninspiring in practice. By translating lessons from 3,000+ days of wilderness expeditions into simple habits, he shows listeners how to escape grind culture, reconnect with what matters and create more meaningful adventures—at work, at home and in nature.
Key take aways:
Time is more valuable than money or comfort.
Discomfort and fear are powerful compasses for growth.
Consistency beats intensity for long-term performance and recovery.
Presence with family starts by removing digital distractions.
Adventure is a mindset, not a plane ticket.
“Time is the most precious thing we have.”
Today’s Expert Guest - Bruce Kirkby
Bruce Kirkby is a Canadian adventurer, bestselling author, award-winning photographer and acclaimed keynote speaker whose journeys span more than 80 countries and thousands of days in the field. His expeditions include a 40-day, 1,000-kilometre crossing of Arabia’s Empty Quarter by camel, the first continuous descent of Ethiopia’s Blue Nile Gorge by raft, sea-kayak traverses of Borneo’s remote coast and horse-supported crossings of Mongolia and the Caucasus. Trained in engineering physics at Queen’s University, he later became a travel columnist for The Globe and Mail, a contributor to The New York Times, Outside and Canadian Geographic, and a multi-time National Magazine Award winner.
Bruce’s work is distinct because he uses real, high-stakes wilderness expeditions—deserts, rivers, mountains and remote cultures—as living laboratories for human performance, leadership and change. As host of CBC’s No Opportunity Wasted and the Travel Channel series Big Crazy Family Adventure, and author of three bestselling books including Sand Dance, The Dolphin’s Tooth and Blue Sky Kingdom, he bridges the gap between extreme environments and everyday life. His keynotes translate complex experiences with risk, grit and uncertainty into simple, actionable habits that help organizations move from “grind” to growth—using fear as information, embracing adaptability and building cultures where people become, in his words, “the best at getting better.”
Set up a recurring “distraction-free window” each week—whether it’s a half-day hike, a paddle, or just phones-off time at home—where you step deliberately into mild discomfort (no screens, no multitasking) and pay full attention to the people and place in front of you. Bruce’s experience in the Himalaya, with his family and even walking airports instead of sitting in lounges, shows that regularly choosing small doses of discomfort and presence compounds over time into deeper connection, better performance and a clearer sense of what really matters.
Follow Bruce Kirkby on Instagram & Linked In.
Check out his website.
Blue Sky Kingdom:
An Epic Family Journey to the Heart of the Himalaya
Recounted with wit and humility, Blue Sky Kingdom is an engaging travel memoir as well as a thoughtful exploration of modern distraction, the loss of ancient wisdom, and the challenges and rewards of intercultural friendships.
This podcast contains advice and information relating to health and wellness. It should be used to supplement rather than replace the advice of your doctor or another trained health professional. If you know or suspect that you have a health problem, seek your physician’s advice before embarking on any medical program or treatment. All efforts have been made to assure the accuracy of the information contained in this podcast / interview / article as of the date of publication. The author and publisher disclaim liability for any medical or other outcomes that may occur as a result of applying the methods suggested in this material.
