At 30 years old, Jamie McAnsh woke up paralysed from the waist down.
What followed was a battle with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome, mental health, identity loss, and rebuilding life from the ground up.
Today, Jamie is an award-winning speaker, adventurer, and inclusion advocate helping people and organisations rethink resilience, leadership, and what’s truly possible.
Trusted by organisations across the corporate, education, and public sectors.
Featured speaker • Inclusion leader • Founder of Project Can’t
The Journey
Jamie’s story is one of resilience, adaptation, and refusing to accept limitations. From paralysis and chronic pain to mountain expeditions and global stages, every chapter has been built on one belief
No matter how hard life gets, you can always get back up.
The Fall
Everything changed overnight when Jamie woke up unable to walk. Diagnosed with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome, he faced paralysis, chronic pain, mental health struggles, and the loss of identity that followed. Life as he knew it disappeared in an instant.
The Fight Back
Recovery became about far more than physical rehabilitation. Jamie had to rebuild confidence, purpose, and belief from the ground up. Through setbacks, isolation, and uncertainty, resilience became a mindset rather than a moment.
The Mountains
From a wheelchair to Everest Base Camp and on to the summit of Mt Kilimanjaro. Jamie began turning adversity into adventure. Every expedition became proof that limitations do not define possibility and that even the hardest mountains can be climbed one step at a time.
The Mission
Today, Jamie shares his journey to help others overcome adversity, embrace inclusion, and realise their potential. Through speaking, storytelling, and advocacy, his mission is simple: to help people get back up and move forward with purpose.
Real Stories. Real Resilience. Real Impact.
Jamie’s keynote talks combine lived experience, emotional storytelling, humour, and practical lessons that challenge audiences to rethink adversity, leadership, inclusion, and human potential.
Having spoken for organisations, schools, leadership events, and conferences across the UK and beyond, Jamie delivers talks that leave a lasting emotional impact while inspiring real action and reflection.
Topics
- Resilience & Adaptability
- Mental Health & Wellbeing
- Leadership & Team Culture
- Inclusion & Accessibility
- Overcoming Adversity
- Human Potential
Not sure where to start? Let’s figure that out together.
Most organisations start with a conversation and take it from there.
Motivational and keynote speaking
Practical, human keynotes on resilience, inclusion, and leadership under pressure.
Grounded in lived experience and designed to spark meaningful conversations, not just applause, these sessions help teams think differently and act with greater confidence and clarity.
Latest blogs, articles and announcements
Explore Jamie’s latest blogs, articles, and announcements covering resilience, inclusion, leadership, adventure, mental health, and lived experience.
Honest storytelling, practical lessons, and reflections designed to inspire change, challenge perspective, and encourage people to keep moving forward.
Get Back – The Podcast – Coming Soon
The Get Back Up Podcast shares honest and inspiring conversations with people who have faced adversity, rebuilt their lives, and discovered strength through struggle.
From mental health and disability to adventure, leadership, and personal transformation, every episode explores the power of resilience and the importance of never giving up.
Challenging the Word “Can’t”
Project Can’t was built to challenge limitations — physical, mental, and social. Through extreme expeditions, storytelling, and community impact, the project exists to prove that impossible is often just untested.
From mountain climbs to future global challenges, every journey represents something bigger than the destination itself: resilience, belief, and the courage to keep moving forward.
What Clients Had To Say About Jamie
Some of the professional organisations Jamie has worked with
Sometimes Getting Back Up Starts With Hearing Someone Else’s Story
Announcements From Jamie
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In loving memory Lynda and Alan McAnsh : How My Parents Shaped the Values I Live By
I am wearing a new bracelet In loving memory Lynda and Alan McAnsh. My parents and my greatest mentors, friends and supporters. It is simple. Black. Quiet.Engraved with the words: In loving memoryLyndaAlanMcAnshMum & Dad xxxxxxx I did not buy it to make a statement. I wear it as a reminder. A reminder of who…
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Top Motivational Speaker in London | Recognised Among the World’s Best
Last year I was voted onto a list of top motivational speakers to book in London.A list that included Richard Branson and Steven Bartlett. I am not going to pretend that didn’t stop me in my tracks for a moment.Because it did. London is a city I genuinely love working in. The pace. The ambition.…
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From Top 20 Motivational Speakers London to London Keynote Speakers Agency:
Building a Powerful Speaking Profile in the Capital Recognition in a City That Sets the Standard London is one of the most competitive speaking markets in the world. It is where global brands, international audiences, and world-class events converge. To be recognised in this space is never just about visibility. It is about credibility, consistency,…
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Being Listed on The Mental Health Speakers Agency. Why This Matters So Much to Me
There are moments in your career that quietly mean everything. No fanfare. No noise. Just deep personal meaning. Being listed on The Mental Health Speakers Agency is one of those moments for me. Not because it looks good on paper.Not because of the logo.Not because of another agency relationship. But because I am here today.…
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Remembering the Fallen and Supporting the Living
Why Veterans Need More Than Gratitude: Supporting Veterans After Service A Part of My Story I Rarely Share Remembrance Day always pulls me back to a part of my life I do not often talk about and you wont read about it on my about page either. My military background sits quietly in the background…
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Joining SpeakOut Speaker Agency
A New Chapter as a UK Inclusion and Resilience Speaker Becoming part of SpeakOut is a moment I’m genuinely proud of. As someone who has spent years talking about resilience, inclusion and the realities of rebuilding life after paralysis, finding the right agency matters. I’m pleased to say I’ve now joined SpeakOut, one of the…
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Finding Love with Someone Who Has Children – The Story I Needed.
A Life I Thought I Wanted If you had asked me at 15 whether I wanted children, or imagined I would one day be finding love with someone who has children, my answer would have been an immediate and resounding no. Back then, the thought of parenthood didn’t appeal to me, and that feeling stayed…
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The Profici Podcast with Special Guest Jamie McAnsh
💥 “That guy in the mirror led me to a suicide attempt.” 💥 Jamie McAnsh Profici Podcast on resilience and overcoming adversity. In this raw and powerful episode of The Profici Podcast, I sit down with Anthony O’Brien to share the truth behind my story — the highs, the lows, and everything in between. From…
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Joining the Diversity and Inclusion Speakers Agency
A Perfect Fit for My Story In a year where I reached number 9 in the top 15 UK speakers on inclusion, it feels like the right moment to take the next step in my speaking journey. I am proud to share that I have now been signed to the Diversity and Inclusion Speakers Agency,…