TEDx 2014 Nando Parrado
Summary
TLDRThe speaker recounts his miraculous survival of the 1972 Andes plane crash, where he and 28 others endured 72 days at 14,000 feet with sub-zero temperatures. He emphasizes the importance of teamwork, leadership, and innovation, which they excelled in to stay alive. The ordeal taught him to value life's present moments and led to a successful career and family, proving that extraordinary moments are often born from love and resilience.
Takeaways
- π The speaker survived an incredible ordeal, having been involved in a plane crash in the Andes Mountains 41 years ago and living to tell the tale.
- ποΈ The crash occurred in a remote and harsh environment where survival was nearly impossible, with temperatures dropping to minus 35 degrees and no immediate rescue.
- π₯ The rugby team and others on the plane exhibited exceptional teamwork, leadership, and resilience, which were key to their survival.
- π The speaker attributes the survival and later success in life to the skills developed during the ordeal, such as risk management, innovation, and creativity.
- π The ultimate prize of survival was achieved through excellence in various aspects of life that were later recognized in business and leadership.
- π The speaker experienced profound personal loss, including the death of his mother, sister, and friends, which adds to the emotional depth of the story.
- π The initial belief of imminent rescue was replaced with the harsh reality of being stranded, leading to a shift in mindset and survival strategies.
- π The speaker had to confront the moral dilemma of cannibalism as a means of survival, an extreme measure taken in the face of death.
- πΊοΈ Despite being misled about their location, the group's determination to survive led them to undertake a perilous journey across the Andes to seek help.
- π The speaker's life post-ordeal is a testament to the power of perseverance and the importance of living in the present, cherishing loved ones, and pursuing success.
- πΆ The speaker's narrative concludes with the joy of family and the birth of his grandchildren, emphasizing that life's most precious moments are often connected to love.
Q & A
What significant event occurred 41 years ago that the speaker is referring to?
-The speaker is referring to the plane crash in the Andes Mountains that occurred in 1972, where he and his rugby team survived against all odds.
How did the speaker's experience in the Andes influence his life and business achievements?
-The speaker attributes his success in business to the skills he developed during his ordeal in the Andes, such as teamwork, leadership, facing change, crisis management, and innovation.
What was the initial belief of the survivors about being rescued after the crash?
-The initial belief of the survivors was that they would be rescued the next day because helicopters do not fly at night in the mountains.
How did the speaker's mindset change after hearing the news that the search for the plane had been abandoned?
-The speaker's mindset changed from hopeful to determined, realizing that they had to take matters into their own hands to survive and escape.
What drastic decision did the survivors have to make in order to survive?
-The survivors had to resort to eating the dead bodies of their friends in order to sustain themselves until they could find a way to escape.
What was the physical condition of the survivors after being stranded for two and a half months in the Andes?
-The survivors were extremely weak, dehydrated, and suffering from the harsh conditions of the Andes, including frostbite and malnutrition.
How did the speaker and another survivor attempt to reach help after being stranded?
-The speaker and another survivor, Roberto, attempted to cross the Andes Mountains by climbing to the top and then walking and climbing for ten and a half days to reach civilization.
What was the emotional impact on the speaker when he returned home after the ordeal?
-The emotional impact was profound; the speaker had to face the loss of his mother, sister, and friends, and had to rebuild his life from the ground up.
How did the speaker's perspective on life change after his survival experience?
-The speaker's perspective on life changed drastically, valuing every moment and striving to live a meaningful life, cherishing his family and achieving success in his personal and professional life.
What does the speaker consider his biggest triumph in life?
-The speaker considers his biggest triumph to be his family, including his wife, daughters, and grandchildren, rather than his material or professional achievements.
What advice does the speaker give to the audience about living life?
-The speaker advises the audience to live in the present, to be good, competitive, and to cherish every extraordinary moment, especially those linked with love.
Outlines
π Survival Against All Odds
The speaker begins by expressing gratitude and reflecting on a life that should have ended 41 years ago in a plane crash in the Andes Mountains. Despite the harsh conditions and loss of loved ones, he survived and later thrived, founding multiple companies. The ordeal taught him invaluable lessons in teamwork, leadership, crisis management, and innovation, which he credits for his survival and subsequent success. He shares a video of the Andes to illustrate the severity of the situation and promises to inspire the audience to find strength in the face of adversity.
π¬ The Tragic Plane Crash and the Fight for Survival
The speaker recounts the tragic plane crash that occurred while traveling with his rugby team and family to Chile. The crash took place in the remote Andes, where 29 out of 45 passengers survived the initial impact. The captain took charge, but despite his efforts, rescue never came. The survivors faced extreme conditions, with temperatures dropping to minus 35 degrees and no food or resources. The speaker's mother and sister died, and the realization that they were presumed dead and the search abandoned led to a profound sense of fear and despair among the survivors.
ποΈ The Harrowing Reality of Andean Survival
As the days passed without rescue, the survivors were forced to confront the brutal reality of their situation. The speaker describes the psychological shift from mourning to survival mode, where the harsh conditions of the Andes demanded a fight for life. The decision to resort to cannibalism in order to survive was a desperate and horrifying measure. An avalanche further compounded their suffering, killing eight more survivors. The speaker's determination to live and return to his family drove him to propose a risky escape plan, which involved climbing the treacherous Andes Mountains.
πΆββοΈ The Desperate Climb for Rescue
The speaker narrates the courageous decision to climb the Andes in search of help. Despite the immense physical and psychological challenges, he and a companion embarked on a perilous journey across the mountains. After ten and a half grueling days, they encountered a local peasant, which led to their eventual rescue. The speaker reflects on the profound impact of the ordeal on his life, vowing to live a meaningful life and cherish the second chance he was given.
π¨βπ§βπ§ Rebuilding Life and Cherishing Family
The speaker shares his journey of rebuilding life after the tragedy, emphasizing the importance of living in the present and cherishing family. He talks about his successful career, his marriage, and the birth of his daughters. The story comes full circle when he takes his family to the Andes to pay respects to those who perished. He concludes by expressing his belief that life's true measure is not the breaths we take but the extraordinary moments that take our breath away, highlighting the importance of love and living in the present.
Mindmap
Keywords
π‘Survival
π‘Leadership
π‘Teamwork
π‘Innovation
π‘Crisis
π‘Andes Mountains
π‘Rugby Team
π‘Rescue
π‘Miracle
π‘Family
π‘Present
Highlights
Survival against all odds in the Andes Mountains for 72 days, demonstrating human resilience.
The speaker's unexpected survival, having been presumed dead for over 40 years.
The importance of leadership and teamwork in crisis situations, as experienced during the ordeal.
Innovations created for survival, such as snow shoes and water-making machines, from available materials.
The psychological impact of being stranded, including the shift in mindset required for survival.
The tragic loss of family members and the emotional journey of coping with such a loss.
The decision to consume the bodies of deceased friends as a last resort for survival.
The physical and mental challenges of climbing the Andes Mountains in search of rescue.
The realization of being 90 miles away from safety, contrary to initial beliefs.
The struggle with dehydration and the creative solutions to obtain water in a harsh environment.
The emotional reunion with family post-rescue and the subsequent life reflections.
The transformation from an average person to a leader through adversity.
The establishment of successful companies and a family after the ordeal, as a testament to resilience.
The return to the Andes with family to pay respects to those lost, signifying closure and remembrance.
The value of living in the present and the importance of cherishing life's moments.
The speaker's belief in the miracle of life and the strength derived from extraordinary moments.
The profound message that life is measured by the extraordinary moments that take your breath away.
Transcripts
good morning thank you for being here
and the only one who shouldn't be here
to me not because I should be on another
place because I should be dead and
buried 41 years ago you look at me now
but this ordeal this obviously happened
41 years ago when internet didn't exist
text messages iPhones or anything didn't
exist I survived on the worst place a
human being can survive and whatever I
have achieved in my life I have
inherited one company and I created
three more companies I wouldn't have
achieved that with what I have learned
in the cold summits of the Andes
Mountains I was traveling to Chile from
Ontario with my rugby team my mother my
sister there were fans of my team and we
crashed in the middle of the Andes and
we survived on the worst place a human
being can survive you can survive on the
desert on a jungle on the ocean with no
chances climbers get up to a summit and
they get out of there as soon as they
can we survived there for two and a half
months at 14,000 feet with temperatures
ranging to minus 35 degrees below zero
without anything nothing whatsoever
quite did we survive why after speaking
to some of the best universities in the
world business schools in the world I
discovered that we survived because we
achieved excellence in all those things
that you later learned in life you know
how many times have you heard about
teamwork leadership facing change facing
crisis risk management research
development technology innovation
creativity we were excellent in each one
of those and we got the biggest prize of
all which is life I survived with my
friends on this worst environment and I
lost my mother my sister and my four
best friends on the plane crash all the
leaders died but then leaders have to
appear have to evolve from people that
were absolutely average like I was into
leadership I will show you a little
video of about one minute and a half or
you will see the exact mountains where
we crest and then we will go through
some PowerPoint we
pictures taken by National Geographic in
2006 that speak more than 1000 words and
you will really grasp what happened to
us and if we are ever presented with a
illness economical problem financial
problem relationship problem you will
remember remember me because you will
find the strength to weather that dark
night and create your own version of a
miracle because I shouldn't be here
it's a miracle that I'm here can we roll
the first video please one of the
greatest human survival stories of all
time began on Friday October 13th 1972
when a charter plane carrying a rugby
team from the South American country of
Uruguay vanished over the remote
snow-covered Andes Mountains for 72 days
the world thought they were dead Nando
Prado was only 21 when he caught the
plane which was taking his team to play
a rematch in Chile pirata was one of
Uruguay stop rugby players and his
mother and sister went with him for the
journey
the pilot had radioed that he was over
Chile it was a fatal navigational error
believing he had already crossed the
range he descended into the clouds and
emerged in the middle of the mountains
the head crashed at over 11,000 feet at
night temperatures dropped to 30 degrees
below zero they couldn't survive on just
a few bars of chocolate
chillin with a lot of happiness inside
the airplane and it's incredible how
fast life can change from a zone of
complete comfort from complete safety
happiness to something that you thought
would never ever happen to you things
that you read about on the news papers
on books but it never would happen to
you I was sitting on the middle of the
airplane on the aisle seat and my friend
Panchito hits me with this elbow and
said Nando look and I looked and about
100 meters away from the airplane mixed
with the clouds a huge mountain went by
and I said we cannot fly that close to
the mountains I look to where my mother
was and it's improbable how many things
you can't record in your mind in the
last tenth of a second of your life this
horrible metallic sound and then the
impact and complete blackness I died and
as you can see here in the this drawing
the plane hits the mountain with a belly
loses their wings
the engines breaks in half and it flies
in the air because of the speed of the
airplane and it lands on the exactly
same angle that the next mountain had
had it landed with a different angle you
would have cartwheel somersaulted and
destroyed itself but incredibly enough
the miracle is that of the 45 people on
board 29 survived the impact and the
plane slides down 2,000 meters from the
side like a skier out of control gaining
speed and speed and at 220 miles an hour
stops in 1 metre against the glacier and
that's the worst impact not the first
one the third this it stops in the
middle of the glacier surrounded by
mountains completely surrounded by
mountains so that we didn't have any
horizon and you see the front part of
the cockpit destroyed on the third
impact this kills the pilots and
Happiness turns to silence and complete
horror inside the airplane 29 guys
survived the impact and we were a team
we're a fantastic team we had been
playing rugby together since their
school days and we were a team and the
captain
took in charge 10-15 minutes after the
plane crash took charge helping the
wounded guys taking the dead bodies from
inside the airplane but he took the
biggest decision I've ever seen taken in
my life every Co I have seen in speaks
about biggest decisions but Marcelo he
was 21 years old he said guys we will be
rescued tomorrow because it's 5:30
helicopters do not fly at night in the
mountains so we will freeze tonight so
come on guys help me and with the help
of some of 6 7 guys he built a wall here
with suitcases pieces of the airplane to
keep the wind from come inning but the
helicopters didn't come the next day or
the second day or the third day or the
fourth day and then your mind and I try
to put images in your mind starts to
work on a different level I look at you
I look at your eyes and I know that less
than 1/4 of you would have survived
which ones I don't know unless you are
there fear is one thing the real thing
is another thing would you have would
you have discovered flattering facets of
your personality that you didn't know if
they exist inside you and you would have
survived or would you have collapsed in
fear and died the most horrible death
you can imagine you don't know unless
you are there helicopters didn't come on
the fifth day on the sixth day my mother
and my sister died on the plane crash
but your mind changes survival modes
heat in your brain goes inside your
brain and you cannot feel sorrow you
cannot cry the conditions are so harsh
that you have to fight for survival day
eight day nine awake over there and we
hey guys could it be that they don't
know where we are so you start to get
very afraid very afraid very afraid and
we asked the captain Marcelo where are
the helicopters where are the
helicopters and he said don't worry guys
the helicopters cannot fly we are very
high up in the mountains so they are
sending help through the glaciers with
crampons equipment expeditionaries and
it will take them maybe two or three
more days to come here but just in case
try to be there look for everything
that's eatable on this airplane and
there was nothing there was nothing just
two chocolate pellets and we were 29
guys alive it's like being in Mars or
the moon there's nothing over there
rocks ice and snow day 10 arrives no
help no helicopters nothing we had a
small transistor radio we could listen
to a shortwave station from Santiago and
that day in the morning we heard the
news program and the journalists gave
international news local news and then
he said and we also want to communicate
or listeners that the search for the
Uruguayan plane with the old Christine's
rugby team has been abandoned after
searching for 10 days there is no hope
to find the wreckage of the plane
because it snows or the bodies there's
no covers all the degrees so the search
has been stopped and he said the Andes
never give back what they take how would
you have felt there I felt so afraid
some of the guys cried some fell to the
ground embrace each other we were
condemned to die and I thought and that
meaning I remember clearly thinking I
don't want to die I don't want these
mountains to steal away from me my life
I will find love one day I want to get
married I want to have a life but I'm
going to die and all the leaders had
died and I said I have to do something
for my life I have to do something and
I'll fight I want to go back to my
father and tell him how much I love him
and that he hasn't lost his whole family
so that gave me a lot of boost but the
days kept going 11 12 13 what happens
what happens your mind explodes inside
that fuselage to something completely
different we had to survive and thought
creep into your mind and I told the guys
look guys I want to get out of here and
we're going to die there's only one way
that we have to survive we have to wait
for the summer to arrive it's two months
away we didn't have any clothes no shoes
no jackets nothing shirts like you have
now
and we were at 14,000 feet we have to
eat and the only thing that we have to
eat are the dead bodies of our friends
and it's in those moments that you have
to peel away from your body from your
soul that thin veneer of civilized being
that you have and the survival links in
in each one of you when things go wrong
it starts it's like a nap in your brain
it starts and it creates thought that
you never thought you would have to
think about and things are revealed to
you and you will have to do things that
will really take you to the core essence
of you as a human being
just imagine surviving there in that way
horrible hell but three weeks after the
plane crashed at night in a silence that
like you have never heard before in your
life
darkness that you have never seen before
in your life a strange sound it's an
avalanche and it hits the airplane hits
your plane with a strength that you
cannot imagine like a sea courier in
your chest and the evidence goes inside
the airplane buries the airplane by
three yards and it kills eight of us
eight are killed by the Avalanche and
this is only three weeks after the plane
crash
we still have one and half more monster
at least two months more so what do we
do what do we do
we made a tunnel just to get out of
there
and I remember I broke the surface like
a rabbit and I could walk on that snow
like on this stage I'll own a hole in
the ground and inside a fusillade with
my friends eight of them dead and you
start to get weak and weak and weak and
weak and there's no water you suffer
thirst there as in the Sahara Desert
it's the same you dehydrate five times
faster than Scylla at sea level order so
we ate snow and ice for two and a half
months but then you get blisters inside
your mouth in your tongue in your lips
and it hurts a lot
so no food almost no water but life goes
on life goes on and in this picture
taken by National Geographic you see
exactly a place we were and the mountain
that was exactly
West quite exactly to a West because we
found a map on the plane I map with a
flight plan and we said look guys this
is a flight plan okay we made 1,000
calculations 1,000 each one of them gave
us the same average that we were about
five to eight miles away from a small
town in Chile from Carrico we had in
that equation speed of the airplane
Direction headwind you know all those
things but one of the items on the
equation was wrong direction of the
flight instead of flying West the plane
had flown south so instead of being five
to eight miles away from carico we were
90 miles away from Carrico in our minds
we were there and I said guys when the
summer arrives I climb to the top and in
the evening I would be on the other side
of a mountain in Carrico so this it
takes weeks and weeks and weeks after
two months over there I told one of my
friends with whom I I got very well
there
I'm afraid to go Robert oh please come
with me come with me
and he said we're going to die anyway so
let's die trying
and on December 12th after two months we
started to walk and climb we didn't know
how high was that there are no mountains
as high as that one in the whole of
Europe that's 18,000 feet over there in
the middle of the Andes Mountains we
started to walk and climb and we start
to climb and climb and climb and climb
and climb this is the National
Geographic climber this is a top of the
mountain that you were seen until I
reached there the top and Roberto says
do you see green do you see trees do you
see houses and the only thing I could
look at was this this is the exact top
of a mountain this was my view to the
west the exact view and on that moment
with I don't know strength of mind or
survival instinct I decided that I was
not going to die there at the top of the
mountain and I said Roberto I'm going to
walk I'm going to climb but every step I
will give I will be closer to my
I will be closer to life I want to live
and we had created a lot of things
innovation at this stage is about apps
and I was listening with such interest
about those things you know over there
they didn't exist
our innovation or creativity was related
to snow shoes sunglasses things that we
had to make to make our brains work in
the same way that your brains work now
but creating physical things because we
didn't know that the technology would be
at this date now but we created snow
shoes sunglasses water making machines
ropes everything from nothing we created
things that allows us to reach that top
and then we kept going and we kept going
and going through the valleys you see
one of the climbers there it's huge ten
and a half days ten and a half days
walking crashing you can run the Ironman
and you can stop you're tired if you
stop there you're dead finally ten and a
half days after we started we saw a
peasant on the other side of a river the
peasant was the link to rescue to the
helicopters the helicopters came they
rescue us I flew with them to rescue the
other guys because I didn't know where
they were they took us to hospital in
San Fernando the silent parts of Chile
from there to Santiago from Santiago on
a chartered plane back home in
Montevideo what I got there my real
ordeal started my friends went back home
their families embraced them your deal
was finished I went back home my mother
was not there my sister was not there I
embraced my father when an embrace
I still feel 41 years later and I opened
the window of my house and I said no
what are you going to do with your life
what are you going to do and I said I'm
going to have a life I was blessed I
realized that I was blessed to have been
given the chance to be born again and I
said I won't destroy my life I will have
a life and I started to work hard I
started to do my sports hard and one day
in Europe I made a beautiful person and
a beautiful girl and I married her one
week later my decisions were fast
we have been married for 36 years she
gave me two beautiful girls my daughters
and I worked harder became chapter
chairman of YPO young presidents
organization wpo entrepreneur of the
year I created my companies I worked
hard but my father always told me don't
loose your connections Nando don't loose
your connections leave your present
leave your present because it's the only
real time the past is already gone the
future has not arrived yet it will
arrive and you will cope with it like
every human being since the history of
mankind so don't forget to leave your
present the present is the most
important time of your life and I work
hard but I also I never jeopardize my
family in order to obtain that and five
days five years ago my two daughters
asked me daddy we want to go to that
glacier because we were born there
haven't you fought in the way you fought
haven't you suffered in the world you've
suffered we wouldn't be alive and we
want to put flowers in the grave of your
mother and your sister and your friends
so I made an expedition and I took them
there I took them to the mountain I took
them there and that photograph a friend
of mine took it it's me my two daughters
and my wife looking at the first
mountain that we climbed that's the icon
of my life that represents my life that
represents my life and you know life
goes on life goes on and my biggest
triumph is not my bank accounts what I
have achieved my houses my companies
it's not that is that I have achieved
our family which I have dreamt of every
single minute on that frozen fuselage
but then three years ago my
granddaughter Alexia was born I'm not a
romantic I'm more competitive than
anybody here I can assure you I love
material things more than anybody here I
love good clothes good cars be
successful flying first-class success on
my company's more than anybody I enjoy
every day when I wake up I try to build
it
the best one and I am blessed with
breathing that is something you should
learn so Alexia was born and four weeks
ago
mΓ‘ximo was born my grandson and my
biggest triumph will be one day that
Maxim or Alexia say we are alive because
my grandfather crossed the end this tree
was life and remembering that life is
not measured by the amount of breaths
that you take but by those extraordinary
moments that take your breath away I
read that and I loved it
and those extraordinary more
extraordinary moments are usually linked
with love remember that live your
present
be good be competitive and thank you
very much because nobody knows how it's
going to happen tomorrow that's very
important thanks for being here
thank
lucky
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