Master the Climb

When I was in Rotary International, our club met weekly for lunch on Tuesdays. Each week, we would sit with different members to learn about them and their businesses while we enjoyed a meal together.

I recall one such conversation that unexpectedly led me to a profound insight on leadership, an insight that is just as applicable to the boardroom as it was to a mountainside.

One of my friends was an avid rock climber. Over lunch one week, he asked me, “Al, what do you think is the number one reason why people get hurt doing rock climbing?”

I guessed, “They fall?”

He said, “Right. Why do you think they fall?”

I remember shrugging and saying, “Equipment failure or maybe not using it the right way?”

“Good guess, but no,” he said, shaking his head. “The real reason is that they skip essential steps. You see, a beginning rock climber will tackle beginner hills, just like in skiing. When they get good at that, they progress to intermediate beginner climbs and then to expert beginner climbs. You with me?”

I said, “So far.”

He said, “The problem comes in when they become intermediates. They go to the beginning intermediate climbs and get used to them. Then they think they’re good enough to skip ahead to the expert climbs. The problem is: They are not ready for those. As the climbs increase in difficulty, they not only get higher, but sheerer. There’s less oxygen and their lungs haven’t become accustomed to working with that lower level of oxygen. Their fingers and hands haven’t developed the strength to grip the surface of the climb. Combine those two issues, and they fall.”

There’s a leadership lesson in that. Just as in rock climbing, effective leaders acknowledge the importance of every stage of the leadership journey.

Think about a time when someone you know faced unexpected challenges in leadership. Could that situation have been handled better had the person progressed up the executive ladder in a more measured way?

How many people do you know who skipped a step in their climb, believing that they were ready for greater challenges? I’ve seen quite a few people in higher ed jump from dean to president. I’ve also seen people jump from professor to dean. And given my experience, I don’t think that this is a phenomenon exclusive to higher ed.

Effective executive leadership, much like rock climbing, requires building strength and endurance gradually. Each role, just like each climb, brings greater pressures and fewer resources from which to draw for support. Let’s face it, the old saying, “It’s lonely at the top,” exists for a reason.

Just like the climbers who fail to develop stronger lung capacity and stronger hand/forearm strength by skipping the middle climbs, skipping over rungs of the executive career ladder deny you the chance to develop the skill sets and mindsets required to negotiate the higher levels of executive leadership successfully. That doesn’t only spell disaster for your professional future, but for the lives and livelihoods of the people depending on you to lead them.

Patience and perseverance will not just get you to the top; they will ensure that you excel once you’re there. You’ll be ready to face the challenges that meet you along the way. And you’ll be equipped to help your teams navigate them well, too.

After all, leadership in any industry isn’t a destination. It’s a journey.

And whether you are climbing a mountain or leading an organization, you need to respect the importance of each step on that journey.

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c. 2024, Alfred G. Mueller II