The Ascent Experience is a personal discovery weekend of intensive coaching, reflection, and climbing that will help you to achieve your ambitions. We run a personal Ascent for individuals, and we run a business Ascent for teams. Below is a case study of one of our clients who sent their sales team on an Ascent Experience weekend.
James: I read the website. There’s quite a sort of spiritual depth to the website. I got a sense that people find out a lot about themselves through the experience, so that’s sort of what I was expecting. I’m looking forward to getting some time away; some time to think. I keep promising myself that I am going to improve my work/life balance, and then I keep not doing anything about it. I really want to get some steel out of this to actually change some things and use the chance to talk to some people. Often it’s my own guilt and perception of what others might think. My expectation is I want to use this as a chance to talk to some people and explain what I’m going to do.
Dave: My initial feeling was, ‘are we going to get lost?’ ‘Is someone going to twist their ankle?’ So I think, at first, I had very practical concerns and worries about some of the obstacles ahead as we walked into the dark. After a few moments, it was pretty clear to me that the obstacles were more imaginary than real and that it was pretty ok to walk and follow each other. I was very pleased at the way people supported each other. When you asked the question about what is the mountain saying to you, it was quite interesting to see some people talk in depth about their feelings and some of their concerns and hopes. I think that really helped to generate a new depth of conversation.
James: It’s such a simple thing to do, but you never really do. It’s analogous with taking steps on a new challenge, and thinking, when you’re feeling that uncertainty in your gut – the uncertain that says: ‘did I make the right choice here?’ ‘Is it all going to go well?’ ‘Can I see a way through this?’ Actually, you can conquer your fear. Fear is just one little conversation that you’re having with yourself. It’s good to just work through that experience because then when you are in the real world and you have the same emotion, you can remember actually that there is a way of dealing with it.
Chad: I have gained a greater awareness that the team dynamics need to change and my input within the team needs to change. It is for me to understand myself better within the team. Why I do certain things? Why I don’t? My personal one was to gain commitment to the types of things I want to do; to the types of things I want to change. And maybe be less concerned over the things I don’t actually want to change but think I do. I understand my team members more. I made commitments to behave differently and interact differently. On the personal side, I’m further forward than I was before. I’m clear on the things I want and the things I don’t want.
Dave: I’ve had two primary things I’ve been working on. One is the team agenda, and the other one is my own kind of personal dilemma about how I spend more time with my family. It’s really bizarre. I think on the second one I feel more centred and in control than I did before I came on. I’m not quite sure why or how. It just kind of happened during the two days. I feel like I know what I need to do more than I did before I came here, which is terrific. From a team perspective, there’s definitely a stronger bond between individuals. People dealing with each other better; people feeling more comfortable with each other. That’s really good to see. We have to make sure we don’t lose that when we get back to the office.
Keith: I think, talking to everybody else, you can see that we are all quite keen to have a bit more personal contact and talk about the way we should develop the business rather than all just getting on with the task-orientated side of things.
Simon: It told me that getting to the top of the mountain was probably not the most important thing for me. What I learnt along the way about myself and my colleagues was more important.
James: I see the mountain as a big old lumbering mate. I feel quite close to it. Choices. It’s all about me – I have to make those choices and do what’s right for me.
Simon: It’s been a very tiring, but refreshing two days mentally.
James: Once I switched my expectation from high octane to ‘this is something different’ and decided to go with it, I got a lot out of it. And actually some of the more spiritual stuff does stick with you longer and deeper.
Dave: I really wanted to use these two days to create some space for the team to get away from the day-to-day, task-orientated nature of the business to help us get in touch with ourselves, and more importantly, to get in touch with each other. If I had designed these two days myself, I think my own natural tendency would have been to go for a very high-octane, adrenaline-orientated experience, which on reflection would have been a mistake because I don’t think we would have got to know each other as deeply as we have done by going through a much more reflective experience. It’s been an enlightening experience for me as well as a relationship-building experience for the whole team.
Ascent: the adventure coaching experience that could change the way you do business. For more information contact Clay at clay@claylowe.com or call 07515 512 505.
“Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting. So… get on your way.” – Dr Seuss