Lessons in Leadership from Everest

by Deirdre Coleman

It's rare to hear a first hand account of the experience of summiting Everest but listening to John Burke last night recount his enthralling experience of trudging through the "Death Zone", passing frozen corpses on his path offers some compelling lessons on how to identify, master and scale your own individual heights.

Everyone has their own Everest to climb and supreme tests to pass on their way to the top. I sat slack-jawed at times as I listened to Clare entrepreneur and Elevate founder, John Burke recount the life-altering experience of standing on the top of Everest and the process that prepared him for this journey that tested him both physically and mentally.

Here are the lessons he shared:

1) Everyone needs to find their own path:

"I grew up in West Clare where everything was about Gaelic football and I wasn't very good at it - it was just never a passion. I threw myself into my career and at 28, I was overweight, drinking, smoking, not sleeping, stressed and anxious, working 16 hours days with zero balance in my life. It was time for a change. I discovered mountaineering after reading an article about Pat Falvey (an Irish mountaineer) and something triggered in me. I realised that it didn't demand a whole lot of skill or dexterity - just placing one foot in front of the other. I decided to try it out and so I booked a guide to climb Carrauntuohill. A lot of it was about endurance and being strong mentally".

The appeal was as much to do with how it made him feel and being able to switch off from work pressures.

"I just found that it was not only good for my body but for my mind also. I wasn’t handling pressure as well as I used and was suffering from anxiety. Getting out onto the mountain was the ultimate way to clear my head. I had become so used to the luxuries of hotel life that the rawness of being out in the open air battling the elements was also appealing".

Everest became the ultimate goal but then the recession hit and plans were shelved. It was about knuckling down to work but the desire never left. "Instead of focusing on the goal it became about enjoying the journey of getting myself mentally and physically prepared. But then every step of that journey became a success. Any mountain I would climb I would never feel physically or mentally phased. I had been to Nepal, the Alps 8 times and Scotland about 10 times. Everything was working out and the next big hurdle was getting the green light off the wife!"

2) Fail to prepare, prepare to fail:

Once he got the green light in 2015, he spent 12 months preparing in earnest, not just physically but mentally too. Mountaineer Edmund Hillary was quoted as saying "It's not the mountains we conquer, but ourselves".

Part of the mental endurance training involved watching YouTube clips of dead corpses to prepare him for the reality of coming face to face with non-survivors.

He also consulted a sports psychologist to help him prepare. "In the end, the mind was the part of me that outperformed everything else. Even though there were so many things to fear around me, it was never an issue and I never felt scared at any point." He etched an E on his glove as a continuous reminder that he had 'Endurance', something that was tested to the full multiple times. "The word ‘endure’ became my trigger word and any time negative thoughts came in, I would concentrate on that one word so as to drive away the negative."

His training proved useful at basecamp.

"It was a seriously hostile environment with lots of fighting breaking out between groups. There was a lot of cloak and dagger stuff too as you ideally want to climb without too much traffic as that's when accidents can happen as you're passing people on a narrow ledge."

Physically training involved sandbags, the rower, the bike and pushing sleds. "On top of that I was on the mountain twice a week clocking up hours. One of my big challenges was trying to climb Carrauntuohill continuously over 24 hours and I managed to climb it 8 times! I also climbed Croagh Patrick with a 45kg bag on my back. "

He broke Everest down into controllable and uncontrollable dangers both of which he prepared hard for. Scenario planning was aided by building up a mental toolkit which could be drawn on as needed. "Here's the laminated sheet I carried with me with my techniques: visualisation, progressive muscle relaxation, disassociation where I took myself out of my body and displaced myself elsewhere - into someone else body. I'd also visualise mistakes leaving my body as if you beat yourself up over errors that can impact on your confidence and hinder you".

3) Tuning out negativity:

His endurance was tested to the full when he found out famous Swiss mountaineer Ueli Steck (known as the Swiss machine) had died after slipping and falling 1000 metres. "That was really tough as that could potentially throw you but I had to completely remove it from my mind using the techniques I had built up".

The most dangerous parts of the expedition were at the top and the bottom. At the bottom you are climbing ladders across crevasses and that is the end of the journey for some people. There is a huge number of people that drop out of climbing Everest. Mindset is a huge part of it - overcoming your fears, doubts, not allowing mental and physical fatigue wear you down. There is zero room for self-doubt. "You can't even entertain it".

The summit was elation-filled and spiritual in equal measure as he recalled his father and brother-in-law, both deceased.

“I got to stand on top of the world on May 16 at 9.45am. It was a dream of ten years for me and I was so emotional when I got to the top, I’m still emotional that I got to the top. I suppose when you chase a dream and you succeed it’s very, very special.”

Part of the motivation for taking on the world’s tallest mountain was to show young people that they can achieve their goals, and to promote a new charity he has established. “I’ve always enjoyed getting out to the hills and there’s no bigger hill than Everest! Also I wanted to raise awareness for Elevate, which is a new charity that I’m set up to support youth wellness. I want to let young people believe that if you have a dream go for it, whatever it is, no matter how unusual it is. It's OK to be individual and find your own path."

Mental health cuts close to the bone for John.

"My ambition for Elevate is to make genuine change to the lives of young people in Clare, promoting positive youth mental health. My own family was touched by a mental health tragedy. Young people are under enormous stress and pressure now and we're rolling out a series of programmes in secondary schools focusing on wellness, mindfulness and build resilience".

4) Balance and burnout

Burnout is a growing problem for the modern workplace, having an impact on organisational costs, as well as employee health and well-being. These include possible long-term health risks and, due to its contagious nature, a toxic working environment of low morale, scapegoating, and increased office politics.

Rising workloads and long hours are the main culprits; however, some employees are better able to cope or are more adaptable than others. "“Everest was an incredibly proud moment for me. But if I’m looking back in years to come, with a more balanced approach, then probably my proudest moment was retaining jobs in my businesses during the recession. I found that incredibly difficult and challenging, and experienced much anxiety. Not every business made it through; not every family made it through with their house. It was a defining period in our lives, and the connection is that we’re now investing in the wellness of people at work.” As part of Elevate, he has also developed an intensive personal wellness programme for his employees.

To learn more about Elevate and the programmes it offers, at no cost, to young people in secondary schools, youth organisations and youth reach centres in Co Clare, click here: www.elevatefoundation.ie