Mountain Top Leadership

Lessons on leadership are a dime a dozen in this age of business enlightenment.

So, as I was finishing this year's installment of the Mt Borah climb, I couldn't help but find numerous messages on leadership resident in the rocky crags that make up the climb.

Lesson #1 - Have a good guide.
While we were climbing, there was a massive rescue operation for a missing hiker; gone for 3 days. We learned he'd asked a stranger if it was "OK to go that way?" Turns out it wasn't and he was lost. A good guide knows the way. A good guide shows compassion for the less experienced. A good guide doesn't show off how much he knows.

Lesson #2 - Know your team.
We each bring different strengths to the team. We also each need different supports. We met half of our climbing team the night before we started. Around the campfire we talked about our goals for the climb; what scared us the most; what we thought we could each bring to the effort. Knowing that little bit about someone who had been a stranger, connected us when we needed to exert the most effort.

Lesson #3 - Learn the terrain.
At the end of the climb I met a man who was going up solo the next day. He showed me a route map he'd retrieved from the web. He said: "So is that where I start?"...pointing at the wrong mountain. I said there are two or three places where there are choices to be made. Good choices will reward you. Bad choices can ruin the whole day. "Ask my guide. He knows the way."

Lesson #4 - Have the right tools/resources to do the job.
I loaned out a jacket and one of my climbing poles. It hurt me a little, but without them the others would have hurt much more. Understand what you're getting into before you jump.

Lesson #5 - Pacing is everything.
Go out too fast, and you're not going to make it. Go too slow, and you'll lose touch with the group. One of guys (its always a guy) charged out hard first thing. By the top of the first pitch, he was 30 minutes ahead of the group. He didn't finish.

Lesson #6 - The team will be stronger than the sum of its members.
I really didn't think one of our team would make the summit. He was making noises about turning around. No one discounted how he felt. No one said "Suck it up you can do it." The team just started climbing closer to him. Our guide never left his side. No one got louder cheers for summitting.

Lesson #7 - Things will get hard and scary. Someone may get hurt.
Life is not a video game. Things happen. Three of us were slightly bloodied. One sprained an ankle. One of my favorite quotes is: "Its not an adventure until something goes wrong." Understand the risks going in and the team will be able to adapt to what comes along.

Lesson #8 - When you reach the summit, celebrate!
The next challenge will come soon enough. Sing, pray, laugh, clap...just do something.

Lesson #9 - Coming back done requires diligence.
Reaching the summit is just half the job. Its not the finish. You don't finish until everyone is home safe. The toughest tasks are those that come when your energy is at its lowest.

Lesson #10 - One victory leads to another.
Many say that climbing Mt Borah is a spiritual moment. Many of us look to challenge to validate our lives. I remember the first time I summitted. I'd been through a tough string of personal events. I remember thinking: "I've just done the hardest thing I've ever tried." Carry that feeling forward. Now whenever I feel too tired; or too scared to climb the really tall ladder (a'la Paint the Town) I think to myself: "Heck its not like Chicken Out Ridge, and I did that."

Don't get me wrong. You don't have to climb a mountain to be a great leader. Choose something you're passionate about and I bet you'll find that these 10 simple lessons will enable you to do it better.

Here's a link to a video of this year's climb. Enjoy.