Your Guide Through the Wilderness

Twelve years ago, I went on a trip to Peru with my newish boyfriend and did something scary.

I went camping.

This was not our first camping trip as a couple, this was my first camping trip EVER.

And while my travel companion thought trekking through the Andes was glamping (glamorous camping), I didn't find anything glamorous about it.

Sleeping outside on the ground, waking up to unexpected snow, roughing it (or not roughing it depending on whether you asked me or the Eagle Scout in our party) was massively out of my comfort zone.

For my boyfriend (the Eagle Scout) this was just another walk in the woods.

For me, camping was unfamiliar and anxiety-producing. Two days without a shower or flush toilets was not my idea of a vacation.

This might seem contradictory for someone who grew up on a farm in the country, but camping was not part of my childhood, and it definitely wasn’t part of my adulthood in NYC.

Trekking through the Andes was an adventure. It was cold (we were not expecting snow in July), it was challenging (my legs have never been so sore), and it was invigorating.

I got to see some of the most amazing terrains I’ve ever experienced, I got to breath into a paper bag when I hyperventilated at 12,000 feet, I got to watch the sun pass over Machu Picchu, one of the most awe-inspiring places I’ve visited.

And most importantly, I proved to myself that I can do new and unfamiliar things.

I’ve been camping a number of times since then, all with the same man who’s now my husband, and sometimes with our kiddo in tow.

Camping is something I've come to enjoy, even in the rain, and I’ve been on a lot of rainy camping trips!

This is all to say that perspectives change.

But you have to try new things.

It might be scary at first. It might be unfamiliar.

But it helps to have a guide, accountability partner, and a plan.

Making a plan is easy. Following it is harder.

That’s the beauty of coaching.

I can help guide your plan, make sure you’re walking in the right direction, and hand you a paper bag before you start to hyperventilate.

You don’t have to walk through the wilderness on your own.

Whether you’re standing on stage, presenting on zoom, or leading a team, it’s better with a guide. Let’s talk.