KEEP CLIMBING

Last week I was in Boulder, Colorado sharing the message of Champions 101 with a group of high level coaches preparing to kick off their season. Work provides me with the opportunity to travel from time to time, and usually when I visit someplace new, I like to experience something unique to that location that I can’t find here at home.

So what is it that Colorado has to offer a central Indiana native? Mountains of course! In Indiana, standing on your desk chair counts as experiencing life at elevation. It’s about as flat here at home as it can get. So I started researching “best hikes in Boulder” and planned to spend my one free morning up in some crisp, clean Rocky Mountain air.

I like to think I’m up for a challenge, so I settled on the four-and-a-half-mile Royal Arch Trail (Level: difficult). According to the City of Boulder website, it featured “roughly 1,400 feet of elevation gain, massive stone staircases, tight switchbacks, and rewarding views of the Flatirons and the city.” I set off late on a warm, clear morning excited for the journey ahead, and - as a native flatlander - mostly unprepared for what exactly I was getting myself into.

Early on, of course, my energy and enthusiasm were high. It was a beautiful day, and I was embarking on a memorable journey of my own choosing. After about an hour of rocky, uphill terrain, though, I felt my joy gradually being replaced by a more stoic and realistic approach. It became evident pretty quickly that this adventure was going to offer a sterner test than I had anticipated. A subtle burn settled into my legs, and a growing bead of sweat trickled from my forehead. "Better settle in here," I remember telling myself. "We’ve got a long way to go."

It was right about that time that I started thinking about the parallels between this hike I was on and the harsh reality that accompanies any meaningful achievement. In many ways, each of us has mountains to climb in life - big, important things we dream of doing or better versions of ourselves we want to ascend to. The idea of accomplishing something significant fires us up. Early on, our energy and our enthusiasm are typically high. At some point along the way, though, things start to get tough, and we find that while we may be pretty good at making commitments, the path to get there makes it much more difficult to keep them.

At some point, it becomes more and more obvious that this journey is gonna take more time and require more effort than you originally expected. And while you knew from the start that this would be an uphill climb, the grade is a little steeper than anticipated. Plus, there’s no way to know where you’re even at on this path. It feels like you’ve been at it for quite some time, but there’s no evidence that you’re anywhere near the destination. How far off is the finish line? From here, it’s tough to tell. Usually, about this time, that negative voice in your head starts working on you. "You’ve gone far enough," it says. "This has gotten too uncomfortable. Besides, it could go on forever." I’ll be honest. A couple exhausting hours into my hike up the Royal Arch Trail, that voice was working on me, and had me considering if I should call it quits.

I’d love to describe what came next as some impressive display of mental fortitude, but truthfully - from that point on - it was as much about survival as it was strength. I tried to forget about where I’d started or where I wanted to end up, and instead simply focused on the path in front of me. One step at a time. Just keep climbing. Not surprisingly, soon I found a second wind, and before long got the sense that I was closer to the top than I thought. Soon after, the path opened up, and I found myself standing at the peak of the Royal Arch Trail. The views from the top were pretty awesome. But in all honesty, what I saw up there paled in comparison to how I felt.

I don’t know here today what it is you’re dreaming of doing or who it is you’re working to become, but I do know that the journey to get there won’t be easy. It will probably take more time and require more effort than you originally expected. Maybe today it feels like the finish line is still a long ways off, and perhaps that negative voice in your head is working on you, trying to convince you that you’ve gone far enough, that this is too uncomfortable, or that you may just never get there.

If that’s you here today, then my advice is simple. Put your head down and focus on the path in front of you. One step at a time. Just keep climbing. Your desired destination is out there, and who knows? Maybe it’s closer than you think. But even if you don’t arrive at the mountaintop today, you’re making progress…and that’s the only way to get where it is you want to go.