Trust is not felt into existence. It is built. And I can show you how.
Matt Formston AM is a Paralympian, four-time Adaptive Surfing World Champion, World Champion cyclist, and Guinness World Record holder for the largest wave ever surfed by any para athlete. In 2023 he won the Surfing Australia Heavy Water Award — the premier award for big wave surfing in Australia — beating every professional big wave surfer in the country. He has 3% vision.
Alongside his world records, Matt has spent 24 years as a senior corporate executive, building a career as a board director and chair across multiple industries and a federal government advisory committee member. He is the creator of Business Trust — a practical framework that gives leadership teams and sales organisations a measurable system for building the trust that drives performance, retention, and revenue.
Subject of the award-winning Netflix documentary THE BLIND SEA. Member of the Order of Australia. Author of Why Not? (Wiley, 2026). His story inspired Surfing in the Dark — the first book in the world to combine Braille, text, and illustrations in a single physical copy. Husband and father of three.
Past clients: PwC · Australian Defence Force · Google · Allianz · Amazon · Tesla · Apple · Lendlease · Toyota · Adobe · Manly Warringah Sea Eagles · Fremantle Dockers
Talking Points
Keynote: THE CAN MINDSET There is no such thing as can't
At age five, doctors told Matt Formston's parents he would go blind. They were also told he would never play sport, never get a proper education, and never hold a real job.Keynote: THE CAN MINDSET There is no such thing as can't
He is now blind. He is also a Paralympian, a four-time Adaptive Surfing World Champion, a World Champion cyclist, and the holder of the Guinness World Record for the largest wave ever surfed by any para athlete. In 2023 he won the Surfing Australia Heavy Water Award — the award for Australia's best big wave surfer — competing against and beating the full field of sighted professionals. He is also a board director and chair across multiple industries, a senior executive with over $250 million in career sales, a federal government advisory committee member, and the subject of the award-winning Netflix documentary THE BLIND SEA.
Everything they said he would never do. He did. All of it. Blind.
This motivational keynote and inspirational leadership session reframes what is possible for leaders, sales teams, and organisations navigating change fatigue, organisational change, uncertainty, and goals that feel out of reach as they adapt to an increasingly competitive environment. Built on a proven framework — not optimism — it gives every person in the room practical tools to overcome adversity, build courage and confidence, develop a high performance growth mindset, and perform under pressure when it counts.
The Can Mindset does not ask audiences to feel inspired. It asks them to stop making excuses. The response is consistently the same: standing ovations, and people who leave with personal growth goals, renewed resilience, and a plan to achieve peak performance in their professional and personal lives.
Subject of the award-winning Netflix documentary THE BLIND SEA. Member of the Order of Australia. Author of Why Not? (Wiley, August 2026).
Available as: Keynote · Keynote + Workshop
Keynote: Business Trust
Most organisations know trust matters. The data makes that impossible to ignore. High-trust organisations grow revenue faster, improve customer retention, loyalty, and overall satisfaction, and outperform their competitors by up to 400% on key business metrics. Employee engagement, sales performance, and leadership development all move in direct proportion to the level of organisational trust inside the business.Keynote: Business Trust
The AI adoption wave is making this more urgent, not less. A 2025 KPMG and University of Melbourne global study of 48,000 people found that while 66% are already using AI regularly, less than half trust it. Deloitte data shows employee trust in company-provided AI fell 31% in just three months of 2025. The World Economic Forum is direct: without trust, the promise of AI stalls. Organisations that cannot build and maintain trust with their people will find that AI does not solve their performance problems — it amplifies them.
What most organisations do not have is a system for building trust. This keynote provides one.
Matt Formston AM is blind, a Paralympian, a Guinness World Record holder, and the winner of the 2023 Surfing Australia Heavy Water Award — the award for Australia's best big wave surfer — competing against and beating the full field of sighted professionals. He is also a board director and chair across multiple industries, a senior executive with over $250 million in career sales, and a federal government advisory committee member. He built his career and his world records on the same formula: Trust = Standards × Consistency × Time.
This keynote gives leadership teams, sales organisations, and anyone responsible for customer relationships a practical trust framework built around accountability and high performance. It maps the five levels of trust every organisation must build — from self-trust and team trust through to leadership trust, leadership accountability, and customer trust — and shows exactly what it costs when any level breaks down.
Audiences leave with a formula, a clear picture of where organisational trust is strong and where it needs attention, and the confidence that the person who taught it has staked his life on it being true.
Subject of the award-winning Netflix documentary THE BLIND SEA. Member of the Order of Australia. Author of Why Not? (Wiley, August 2026).
Available as: Keynote · Keynote + Workshop
Workshop: BUSINESS TRUST Trust = Standards × Consistency × Time
Matt Formston AM is blind, a Paralympian, a four-time Adaptive Surfing World Champion, a World Champion cyclist, and the holder of the Guinness World Record for the largest wave ever surfed by any para athlete. He is also a board director and chair across multiple industries, a senior executive with over $250 million in career sales, and a federal government advisory committee member. The Business Trust framework he brings to this leadership development workshop was not built in a consulting firm. It was pressure-tested in environments where broken trust costs far more than a lost contract.Workshop: BUSINESS TRUST Trust = Standards × Consistency × Time
Most leaders know that organisational trust drives team performance, customer loyalty, and employee engagement. Almost none have a system for building it deliberately. As AI adoption accelerates inside organisations, the trust deficit is deepening — a 2025 global study found that less than half of employees trust the AI tools their organisations provide, and that figure is falling. The organisations that will get the most from AI are the ones that have already built the human trust foundations beneath it. This workshop gives leadership teams a practical trust framework for understanding exactly where trust is strong, where it is quietly eroding, and what high performance leadership actually requires. Expect to leave with real leadership skills, a shared language across the team, and clarity on the highest-leverage actions to take from Monday.
The session combines a live diagnostic across the five levels of trust — from self-trust and team trust through to leadership trust and customer trust — facilitated group breakouts, and physical and breathing exercises drawn from world-class athletic training. Leaders leave measurably better equipped to build the psychological safety, accountability, and culture alignment that high performance teams depend on.
Subject of the award-winning Netflix documentary THE BLIND SEA. Member of the Order of Australia. Federal government advisory committee member. Author of Why Not? (Wiley, August 2026).
Available as: Half-day session · Full-day session for larger teams
Workshop: BUSINESS TRUST Trust is not built by accident. It is built with a framework.
Most organisations know trust matters. The data makes that impossible to ignore. High-trust organisations grow revenue faster, improve customer retention, loyalty, and overall satisfaction, and outperform their competitors by up to 400% on key business metrics. Employee engagement, sales performance, and leadership development all move in direct proportion to the level of organisational trust inside the business.Workshop: BUSINESS TRUST Trust is not built by accident. It is built with a framework.
The AI adoption wave is making this more urgent, not less. A 2025 KPMG and University of Melbourne global study of 48,000 people found that while 66% are already using AI regularly, less than half trust it. Deloitte data shows employee trust in company-provided AI fell 31% in just three months of 2025. The World Economic Forum is direct: without trust, the promise of AI stalls. Organisations that cannot build and maintain trust with their people will find that AI does not solve their performance problems — it amplifies them.
What most organisations do not have is a system for building trust. This keynote provides one.
Matt Formston AM is blind, a Paralympian, a Guinness World Record holder, and the winner of the 2023 Surfing Australia Heavy Water Award — the award for Australia's best big wave surfer — competing against and beating the full field of sighted professionals. He is also a board director and chair across multiple industries, a senior executive with over $250 million in career sales, and a federal government advisory committee member. He built his career and his world records on the same formula: Trust = Standards × Consistency × Time.
This keynote gives leadership teams, sales organisations, and anyone responsible for customer relationships a practical trust framework built around accountability and high performance. It maps the five levels of trust every organisation must build — from self-trust and team trust through to leadership trust, leadership accountability, and customer trust — and shows exactly what it costs when any level breaks down.
Audiences leave with a formula, a clear picture of where organisational trust is strong and where it needs attention, and the confidence that the person who taught it has staked his life on it being true.
Subject of the award-winning Netflix documentary THE BLIND SEA. Member of the Order of Australia. Author of Why Not? (Wiley, August 2026).
Available as: Keynote · Keynote + Workshop
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.
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.
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