I like to get out into the mountains, but given my ambition regularly exceeds my experience, I often find myself facing a bit of ‘a moment’… That is to say – a ‘how the fuck am I going to deal with this’ moment.
This was one of those days… I was 2,600m up on a windy ridge – somewhere around the red arrow.
I felt uneasy as it looked like the only option would be to climb over some large rocks about half way up. That felt way out of my comfort zone but I hate retracing steps, so I got started anyway!
They had looked impassable from below, but now that I was up amongst them, an easier path around the rocks was obvious – a route which had been hidden when viewed from below.
Taking the first step
Being almost the end of the year, I was in a reflective mood so I stopped to think things through. I realised by taking the first step forward I had moved past a number of previous ‘moments’ like this – not just in the mountains but also in life and business. It felt like a bit of a break through and, inspired, I captured the moment in the video below so that I could share it here. As you can probably guess, I made it to the top without problems – it was really rather easy after all that!
If you are facing a tricky obstacle, I hope my story might help you to take your first step forward.
Other things learned from being in mountains
- Everything is a choice, even if it doesn’t seem like it.
- I’m in charge of the direction I travel. Before setting out, make sure I choose a good path, with the least amount of anticipated obstacles.
- Regardless of how good the planning was, there will always be unexpected problems – I can’t control everything.
- Fear is always a factor, I better learn how to accept and deal with it so that I can keep a clear head and make good decisions.
- Always be prepared for the absolute worst case, especially if I have to turn back – better make sure I can spend the night out in the cold!
- Just because someone else might be able to easily conquer the obstacle doesn’t mean that it’s any less intimidating for me – I am the sum of my abilities and experiences, judging myself against others isn’t a good thing and will likely stop me from accepting my fear. Failing to acknowledge fear is likely to lead to problems – see the forth point.
Want to see more?
I published the full story about this hike here: Sunrise Winter Hike
What about you?
How do you deal with ‘oh shit’ moments? It would be great to hear from you on twitter or facebook.