Cobus Visser the Viking

 Cobus Visser is a renowned South African author, speaker, trainer, facilitator, life coach and firewalking instructor dedicated to helping individuals, business leaders and people with disabilities.
 
Over the past decade, he has worked with hundreds of individuals and local and international leaders, teams, and organisations to achieve peak performance.
 
Cobus holds a BBA in Marketing Management from the IMM Graduate School and is close to completing his MBA in Marketing at the University of Edinburgh. He is also expertly qualified as a Certified Master Firewalking instructor, a Certified Master NLP Life Coach and Trainer, an Executive Business Coach, and a ShadowMatch and Enneagram facilitator. In addition, he has completed courses in Applied Sports Psychology, Train the Trainer, and Mental Strength, among others.
 
The great-grandson of South Africa’s first president, CR Swart, Cobus, was born in Vereeniging and matriculated from Hoërskool Piet Potgieter in Potgietersrus, Limpopo. After being diagnosed with haemophilia as a child and enduring excruciating pain for years, he found himself in the hospital, unable to move, in 2013. Instead of giving up, Cobus decided his body would no longer be his prison. He has since learned to move his arms, crawl, and walk and conquered Mount Kilimanjaro with crutches.
 
It is this lived experience that drives Cobus to motivate and inspire others and to succeed in various professional arenas: he is the only Master Firewalker in South Africa; his executive coaching helps driven, powerful, forward-thinking individuals achieve more impact with less effort, as a global speaker and business strategist he uses his inspiring life story to help individuals and businesses reach their full potential; and as a teambuilding facilitator, he uses a variety of activities – from glass and fire walking to board and arrow breaking and hula-hooping – to help teams understand each other better.
 
Cobus has an insatiable appetite for helping others and continuously growing and challenging himself despite being in constant pain. In line with this, the peak performance expert recently introduced his new brand. Previously known as Africa’s Superman, his rebrand as Cobus Visser the Viking aligns with his personal and professional growth in recent years.
 
Despite an already packed schedule, his plans for 2023 include expanding his brand locally and internationally, writing a book about his journey – he has co-authored three books, Extraordinary You 1, 2 and 3, with Renier Horne – and continuing to support his clients. He is also looking forward to launching his unique empowerment programme for men called Viking Wolfpack, which is focused on helping great men become warriors.
 
Since starting this journey, Cobus has twice been honoured with the Men of Valour award. He has also achieved several personal and professional milestones, with climbing Mount Kilimanjaro on crutches and speaking in front of 3 500 people on stage and 10 000 online, standing out as highlights.  
 
Cobus lives his life according to two maxims – #whateverittakes and #livewithoutregret – and spends his free time travelling, hiking, watching movies, and broadening his horizons by completing short courses on various topics. The divorced father of two currently lives in Centurion, Gauteng.