What I learned getting to the top

,

At last.

I did it.

I’d reached a level that I know is the maximum possible for anyone in UK.

Achieved a goal I’d held for as long as I can remember.

Earlier this month, with my son Cameron, I climbed the 4,413 ft to the highest point in the UK, the summit of Ben Nevis in Scotland.

Growing up as a small child in Scotland, I was always fascinated by the stories of our mountains and took great pride that Ben Nevis was not just the highest in Scotland but in the whole of the UK.

Cameron had some unexpected free time in September and wanting to avoid bad weather, I decided to book the trip at short notice, giving me only three weeks to get fit.

Then I realised the extent of the challenge.

9 miles of arduous hiking and scrambling. One of the steepest, continuous ascents in Europe. The mountain has its own micro-climate. Even in early Autumn. Freezing temperatures. Wind speed up to 100mph. Visibility frequently less than 30m near the summit, making it difficult to navigate clear of 1000ft deep gulleys close to the climbing trail.

And this for a man rating himself as “moderately active” on his Apple Watch!

Was this wise?

On the day

How the guide added value to our experience.

As we set off in good weather, I feared that James, our guide, would be redundant.

I was so wrong.

Our initial thought was “ Let’s aim for a quicker than average time of less than 7 hours”

Instead, he encouraged us to slow down and take in what the experience had to offer.

It was his 20th ascent of Ben Nevis this year and he shared his intimate knowledge of the trail, the birds, fauna, the history and not least, the views of the stunning landscape.

We took shorter, regular breaks for hydration and food, rather than a long stop for lunch. That way we maintained our energy levels whilst making good progress.

When we were passed by some other groups, heads down, hurrying ahead, he rightly predicted that we would regularly pass them as they overestimated their capacity to sustain their pace.

It meant that we reached the summit with plenty of fuel in the tank and in good shape for the much more gruelling descent. It allowed us to have an enjoyable climax to what was a fantastic day.

My learnings

I was personally vested in this trip. The realisation of a long held goal. We had a short time frame, given my son’s availability and desire to avoid onset of winter weather.

I took an impulsive decision to go in early September. Hadn’t done much hiking this year and never done a mountain. Cameron is an experienced climber. So, I put some pressure on myself to make it a success, be fit enough, well prepared for every situation and ensure we had a memorable experience together in our two day window.

I did so much planning and preparation that I almost took the joy out of what was supposed to be an exciting adventure. My decision to join the guided group, which I felt was a bit of a “cop out” , was driven to manage the risk of bad weather ruining our trip.

In reality, the guide added huge value , enabling us to exceed our expectations of the day and get so much out of it together. We were able to focus on making the most of our experience, rather than thinking about what to do if things went wrong.

What are the parallels for business leaders?

Companies often ask me to coach leaders who they perceive “ have a problem” they need to fix.

It can be a dysfunctional team, difficult peer relationships, poor execution of plans, or more broadly, initially failing to meet expectations when taking on a new senior role.

At the initial company briefing, it can be framed as a “gap” or a “risk” or “problem” that needs to be fixed.

When I first meet with the client, we have a broad ranging conversation about their challenges, opportunities and their aspirations as leaders and the outcomes they want to achieve for their customers, companies, colleagues and for themselves.

We put the “problem” identified by others into perspective.

This focuses us on what we really need to work on to enable my client to grow their ability to deliver value for their stakeholders in a way that goes beyond initial expectations.

The more we are personally vested in reaching a destination, the bigger the risk that we can become preoccupied with obstacles in the way.

When we feel that tension, when we notice our anxiety rising about what can go wrong, that can be a trigger to pause and stand back before reacting.

One way to do this is by a simple but powerful change in language. So rather than talk about challenges to achieving success, reframe this to “explore the possibilities and opportunities that this situation offers ourselves and our stakeholders.”

That way we are more likely to grow our capability to maximise success rather than minimise the risks of a specific failure.

Often it can be hard to make this shift in perspective on your own.

On Ben Nevis, James, our mountain guide, acted as my coach, in helping me to see the broader possibilities our situation offered.

What about you?

Have you found yourself, when working towards an important goal, getting preoccupied with what can go wrong and wanting to minimise the risks?

I’m curious what challenges you have experienced like this and whether you have found ways to focus more on the upside than the downside.

I hope you found this edition of my newsletter useful. If you have colleagues or associates who you think would also find it useful, please forward it to them.

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‘Til next time.

John