Adventure Review: Travel and Adventure Show; Phil Keoghan Speech (February 10, 2008).

Listening to a speech about travel and adventure is somewhat like having someone exercise for you. It sorta misses the point. On the other hand, a speech exhorting one towards adventure can be as beneficial as a motivational speech inspiring personal bests in athletics. Who can legitimately doubt that Vince Lombardi or Bill Cowher delivered stem-winders leading their team towards greatness?

While not exactly Lombardi or Cowher, Phil Keoghan, host of The Amazing Race, can deliver a effective speech, and in so doing, debunk the existence of the cardboard character masquerading as him on the television show.

First, he is much more charismatic than the flat fellow they have hosting the show. Second, he is as much an adventurer as the contestants racing across the globe. His life of adventure predated the program by decades. He recounted a story at the age of 19 where he thought he was lost and going to die 120 feet under the sea inside a shipwreck.

Thinking he narrowly escaped a brush with death, he immediately crafted a list of adventures to complete. That list is reproduced at his website: http://www.noopportunitywasted.com/

“No Opportunity Wasted” is also the title of his 2004 book and his life philosophy. Over the past 20 years, Keoghan has crossed off many of these initial goals and added some new ones. The new list is also on his website.

Keoghan didn’t just focus on adventures for adventure’s sake. In fact, he expanded this concept by explaining how relationships can be repaired under the rubric of not wasting opportunities and taking risk.

In this regard, he spoke about taking a 10 day cross-country car trip with his father while promoting his book. He then committed to spending every summer (or part of it) with his father. His father mentioned that at 65 he thought he had only 15 summers left. This low number--capable of counting on one's digits with many to spare--hammered home to Phil that time is short. Additionally, it made him creative. He mentioned that summer comes twice a year—one in each hemisphere—so he could double the time with his father.

This speech highlighted how short life on Earth is. There’s no time like now or "NOW" (his acronym for "No Opportunity Wasted") to maximize it.