Trust is not felt into existence. It is built. And I can show you how.
At five, Matt Formston was diagnosed with a degenerative condition that would leave him with three per cent vision. Doctors told his parents he would never hold a job, keep a friend, play sport, or live independently. His parents had one question back: why not? Matt has spent every year since answering it.
For fifteen years he ran two elite careers at once, blind. A senior executive at Optus by day, a world class athlete by night, with no line between the two. In 2014 alone he became Cycling World Champion and world record holder at the UCI World Championships in Mexico, beat his sales target by 140 per cent, and welcomed his first child six weeks before flying out. Since then he has added a Rio Paralympics campaign, four Adaptive Surfing World titles, and three Australian Freediving Championships to the list.
In 2023 he won the Heavy Water Award, Australia's open prize for its best big wave surfer, beating a full field of sighted professionals for the trophy. A year earlier he had surfed a 51-foot wave at Nazaré, the largest ever ridden by a para athlete and now the subject of the Netflix documentary THE BLIND SEA, screened more than 1,200 times in Australian cinemas.
Matt sits on a federal government advisory committee, chairs multiple boards, and works as an executive coach. He built Business Trust, the framework corporate leaders now use to see what holds a team together under pressure, drawn from those fifteen years of board meetings, sales targets and fifty foot swells. His book ‘Why Not? Breaking Limits in Sport, Business and Life,’ (Wiley, August 2026) sets out the eight standards behind it. Surfing in the Dark, combining Braille, text and illustration in a single copy, brings his story to readers most books can't reach.
He has taken that framework into rooms at Commonwealth Bank, Apple, National Rugby League, Toyota, Amazon, Manly Sea Eagles, Allianz, Google, AFL, Lendlease, Tesla, St Kilda Football Club, Westpac, Adobe, Fremantle Dockers, Colliers, Australian Defence Force, Specsavers, Channel 9 and Bob Jane T-Marts.
Talking Points
The Can Mindset
Matt Formston was told by doctors at five that he'd never play sport, hold a job, or get a proper education. He's blind. He's also a Paralympian, four-time Adaptive Surfing World Champion, World Champion cyclist, and winner of the 2023 Heavy Water Award, Australia's best big wave surfer, competing against and beating the full field of sighted professionals. He's the only para athlete ever to win it. This keynote gives teams a practical framework for resilience, adaptability and sustained high performance under real pressure, not a motivational moment that fades by Monday. Built for people navigating constant change, tighter markets and rising expectations, it shows exactly how confidence and momentum get rebuilt when circumstances get harder, not easier. Audiences leave with tools they apply immediately, not just a lift.The Can Mindset
Key Takeaways
- A practical framework for building resilience and confidence under sustained pressure
- Tools for adapting and maintaining momentum through constant change, not just surviving it
- A method for turning setbacks into the next challenge solved, not a story to get over
- Concrete takeaways people can apply the next time performance is on the line
Available as: Keynote · Keynote + Workshop ·
Copies of Matt's book Why Not? (Wiley) are available with any keynote or workshop
The Business Trust Formula: Standards × Consistency × Time
High-trust organisations grow revenue faster, retain their best people longer, and outperform competitors on nearly every meaningful metric. Leadership teams know trust matters, but few have a system for building it deliberately, and the gap shows up in engagement, retention and psychological safety scores long before it shows up in revenue. Matt Formston built his career, and his world records, on one formula: Trust = Standards × Consistency × Time. This keynote gives leaders and their teams a practical framework across five levels of trust, from self-trust through to customer trust, and shows exactly what breaks, in culture or on the numbers, when any level fails.The Business Trust Formula: Standards × Consistency × Time
Key Takeaways
- A repeatable formula for building trust deliberately, not assuming it exists
- A diagnostic across five levels of trust, from individual through to customer facing
- Clarity on where accountability and psychological safety are strong, and where they're costing engagement or revenue
- A shared language leadership teams can use in the room the next day
Available as: Keynote · Half-day workshop · Full-day workshop
Copies of Why Not? (Wiley) available with any keynote or workshop
Rejection-Proof: A Sales Performance Mindset
Every doctor Matt Formston ever saw told him no. He has shaped, led or personally closed more than $250 million in enterprise sales, across his own quota, the teams he built at Optus, and the boardrooms he now sits in, and built a string of world records proving each no wrong. This keynote takes the mental framework he used to handle rejection at the highest level and hands it directly to sales teams working a prospecting list, handling objections, or pushing through a difficult market. It isn't a motivational lift bolted onto a sales kickoff agenda. It's a set of practical tools for confidence, follow-up discipline and staying resilient deal after deal, built by someone who has lived by that standard his entire executive career.Rejection-Proof: A Sales Performance Mindset
Key Takeaways
- A framework for handling objections and rejection without losing momentum
- Practical tools for prospecting discipline and follow-through, not just a motivational lift
- A model for staying resilient and confident through a difficult market or a stretched sales cycle
- Confidence-building techniques tested across $250M+ in enterprise sales closed, led and shaped
Available as: Keynote (sales conference / kickoff format) · Half-day workshop
Copies of Why Not? (Wiley) available with any keynote or workshop
Safety in a World of Risk: Noise Isn’t Risk, Losing Focus Is
Matt Formston is blind, and he uses a drop saw. Audiences watch him do it. His father taught him the process at thirteen, starting with two questions: what is the real danger here, and what is not? Safety in a World of Risk: Noise Isn’t Risk, Losing Focus Is
The blade and his hands were the danger. The noise and the fear were not. Noise isn’t risk. Losing focus is risk. He used the same process to surf the 51-foot wave at Nazaré that earned him a Guinness World Record, and to dive through a sunken shipwreck on a single breath. Both on screen. This keynote gives crews and leaders the sequence behind all three: separate real risk from perceived risk, build the process against what is actually there, then hold it under pressure without shortcuts.
Key Takeaways
▪ A diagnostic that separates real hazards from the noise competing for a crew’s attention
▪ Why a process built against perceived risk leaves the real risk unmanaged
▪ The verification pause that catches a skipped step before the trigger is pulled
▪ How to hold process when the moment is screaming at you to improvise
Available as: Keynote, Safety conference or toolbox format or Half-day workshop.
Includes cinematic footage of the drop saw process, big wave surfing at Nazaré, and a single-breath shipwreck dive.
Workshop: Hard Standards
In 2008, Matt Formston made a decision in a Killara apartment that most people never make. He stopped making excuses and started holding himself accountable to standards he had let slip. Two years of invisible work later, everything arrived in the same year: meeting Bex, his selection to cycle for Australia, an executive promotion, his first board seat. This workshop runs on the eight Hard Standards behind that year and every one since, drawn from his book Why Not?. Trust is the eighth standard, the outcome earned once the other seven hold under pressure, not a separate initiative bolted on top. Teams leave with a Standards Audit that names exactly which standards are real and which are just posted on a wall.Workshop: Hard Standards
Key Takeaways
A completed Standards Audit scored across leaders, teams and pressure, not just intentions
The two priority standards to rebuild in the next 90 days, each with a named accountable owner
A shared language for accountability that carries into leadership meetings and performance reviews
The personal groundwork underneath any organisational trust or culture initiative
Physical and breathing exercises drawn from elite athletic training, built to hold composure under pressure
Available as: Half-day workshop · Full-day workshop · Multi-week deep dive for senior leadership groups
Copies of Why Not? (Wiley) available with any keynote or workshop
For Schools: Kids Can Mindset
At five, doctors told Matt Formston's parents he was going blind, and that he would never play sport, never get a proper education, and never hold a decent job. His parents asked one question back: why not? Matt did go blind. He went on to build a senior executive career in corporate Australia, and to become a Paralympian, a four-time Adaptive Surfing World Champion, and holder of the Guinness World Record for the largest wave ever surfed by any para athlete. Students watch that wave in cinematic footage from THE BLIND SEA, featured on Netflix. Then Matt hands them the question his parents asked. Not an assembly they forget by lunchtime. A tool they can use in a classroom, on a field, or in their own head.For Schools: Kids Can Mindset
Key Takeaways
- A practical question students can use the next time they hear the word can't
- A method for naming a goal that feels out of reach and starting anyway
- Proof that other people's low expectations are a prediction, not a fact
- Shared language that carries into the classroom, the sports field and home
Available as: Whole-school assembly · Year-level session · Teacher professional development · Parent and community evening. Content adjusted for the school and the year level, Kindergarten through Year 12.
Copies of Matt's children's book Surfing in the Dark, available in standard print and braille and on the NSW Premier's Reading List, can be included with any school booking.
For Schools: Kids Trust Muscles: Who You Trust and Who Trusts You
Every student is making two decisions constantly: who to trust, and whether they are someone worth trusting. Those choices shape friendships, teams, and whether a young person speaks up when something is wrong. At Nazaré in Portugal, home to the biggest waves in the world, Matt Formston let go of a tow rope and dropped into a 51-foot wave, five storeys of moving water, blind. He could not see it. He was trusting the person driving the jetski. Students watch that wave in cinematic footage from THE BLIND SEA, featured on Netflix. None of it was possible until Matt built trust in himself first. This session gives students three trust muscles, self, team and others, and shows them how to build each one and flex it when it counts.For Schools: Kids Trust Muscles: Who You Trust and Who Trusts You
Key Takeaways
- Practical ways to build self trust, the foundation every other kind of trust sits on
- A method for choosing trustworthy friends and for being someone worth trusting
- Three trust muscles students can name, build and flex when pressure arrives
- The confidence to speak up and ask for help from someone they trust
Available as: Whole-school assembly · Year-level session · Teacher professional development · Parent and community evening. Content adjusted for the school and the year level, Kindergarten through Year 12.
Copies of Matt's children's book Surfing in the Dark, printed with braille alongside standard text and on the NSW Premier's Reading List, can be included with any school booking.
For Schools: Kids Trust Muscles Workshop
Students already know trust matters. This workshop shows them exactly where theirs is strong and where it is not. Matt Formston holds the Guinness World Record for the largest wave ever surfed by any para athlete. He rode it blind, trusting the person driving the jetski, and students watch that wave in cinematic footage from THE BLIND SEA, featured on Netflix. Then they get to work. Across the three trust muscles, self, team and others, students map who they trust, who trusts them, and what earned it. Paired physical exercises put them where Matt is on every wave, dependent on someone else and unable to see what is coming. Every student leaves with a Trust Map naming the one muscle to build next and the first step to build it.For Schools: Kids Trust Muscles Workshop
Key Takeaways
- A completed Trust Map naming who they trust, who trusts them, and why
- The one trust muscle to build next, with a first step attached
- Paired exercises that make trust physical rather than a word on a poster
- A method for spotting who is worth trusting and who is not
- Shared language teachers can carry into the classroom for the rest of term
Available as: Year-level session · Whole-school workshop · Teacher professional development · Parent and community evening. Content adjusted for the school and the year level, Kindergarten through Year 12.
Copies of Matt's children's book Surfing in the Dark, printed with braille alongside standard text and on the NSW Premier's Reading List, can be included with any school booking.
Video
Matt Formston | There is no such thing as can't | Saxton Speakers
Matt may be blind, however his clarity on his purpose and goals is laser focused. He has been a Keynote speaker sharing his life story and how to turn your differences into superpowers for 15 years. Matt's passion is to inspire leaders and teams with a can-do mindset and how to defy the limits to achieve the extraordinary. With over 20 years of experience as an executive and big wave surfer, I want to empower people to embrace uniqueness, diversity, and inclusion to forge trust in teams and leadership, crucial to any organisation’s success.The Blind Sea - Official Trailer
Trailer for incredible new surf documentary on blind surfer Matt Formston and his attempt to surf the monster waves of Nazare PortugalTaking On Nazaré: Blind Surfer Matt Formston Takes On The World's Biggest Wave
Portugal's Nazaré is home to some of the world's biggest and most dangerous waves. Over the weekend, Aussie surfer Matt Formston conquered the famous break by riding a 12-metre monster. What's extra impressive is he managed it with just 5% vision.Matt's story was enough to motivate our audience; however, it was his down-to-earth personality that really hit home. He was also willing to hang around in the breaks and chat to anyone; he ... keep reading Specsavers Pty Ltd
Matt is one of those extraordinary people who has so much to teach all of us in how we might best live our lives. His courage, curiosity and determination to never be defined by what others think is possible have allowed him to achieve the unimaginable. But it is his values of kindness and care for others; his joy for life and great sense of humour that make him a very person to know and collaborate with.
We’re extremely excited to have invited Matt to be our Keynote speaker at our 2025 Sanitarium Trans-Tasman Comms Conference. He delivered an extremely engaging talk that combined unique engagements with the audience, captivating storytelling and a stage presence that really delivered impact to our Marketing cohort. Matt has a natural way of relating to people easily, breaking down barriers and stigmas around disability and in turn - opening up an honest, real and engaging dialogue with his audience.
I've been around sports my whole life and seen plenty of gifted athletes, but Matt Formston's story is different — it's not just about athletic accomplishments, it's about leadership. Blind since age 5 and once told he couldn't do anything, Matt broke down every "can't" with "why not" thinking, proving time and again that success isn't about the absence of obstacles but about how you respond to them — whether that's competing on a rugby team, riding solo from Sydney to Melbourne to set a world record, or becoming a world champion surfer against able-bodied competitors. What makes him a true leader to me isn't the list of accomplishments — it's how he took the lessons of achieving success despite his own obstacles and turned them into a framework for helping others push past theirs, all while staying humble enough to never lead with his résumé. He also tuned a very unique definition of trust from his experience and that matters in our business. That's the kind of leadership that sticks with you long after the conversation ends.
Matt Formston delivered a powerful and inspiring talk on ‘A Can Mindset’, leaving a lasting impact on our team. His ability to align his story of resilience, adaptability, and peak performance with our Amazon Leadership Principles made his message not just motivational, but actionable. Matt personally engaged with our employees, taking time to sign 50+ copies of his book and share 1-on-1 insights. His authenticity, energy, and practical wisdom make him an exceptional speaker for any organization looking to inspire their people to overcome obstacles and achieve the impossible.
Matt inspired our team and clients with his story of setting audacious goals and how he achieves them. He is vulnerable in the way he shares stories around the diversity he has faced in life, and left us with real take aways and processes we could all use in our business and personal lives.
The audience engaged with Matthew and were inspired about his determination to use his disability to an advantage. Matthew participated in our event with photos and discussions with our guests and felt a connection with him. Our guests felt inspired, and most will follow Matthew in his new challenges as a great Australian.
Matt’s keynote at our Sales Conference in Manly was nothing short of extraordinary. From the moment he took the stage, our sales leaders from across APAC were completely immersed in his story. He didn’t just share his journey; he tailored his message in a way that deeply resonated with our people, weaving in themes of resilience, adaptability, and high performance that directly aligned with our business goals. The feedback has been overwhelming, many described it as one of the most powerful and inspiring sessions they’ve ever attended.
What stood out most was his empathy, not just talking about it but actually living it, and the way he owns what he has built.
He's living proof that limits are rarely real, they're just stories waiting to be rewritten. His mindset is simple, powerful and contagious: why not?
Results don't come from talent alone, they come from the standards you hold yourself to every day. Success is built on discipline, mindset and the willingness to do the hard work when no one's watching.
Getting large organisations to set aside their own agendas, hold themselves to a common standard and build genuine trust across competing interests takes a particular kind of leadership, and Matt has it in abundance.
The standards you hold yourself to, especially when no one is watching, are the foundation everything else is built on. For leaders who need teams to perform, trust and grow under pressure, that is genuinely valuable.
Matt's message on 'the standard you hold' deeply resonated across the room. Ideas like 'there's no such thing as can't' and 'why not?' stayed with people, translating into how they lead and perform. He left them committed to raise their standards.
The team loved the games he got people up to play, and his presentation style. I have recommended him to so many people already.
Matt delivered an engaging and impactful workshop exploring trust, standards and culture, leaving a lasting impression on everyone involved. His approach was genuine, relatable and highly engaging, reinforcing the importance of mindset, accountability and positive behaviours.
Matt's lessons about leadership, perseverance and resilience, and the power of building strong teams, resonated with everyone.
