Forget Strategy. Get Results.: Radical Management Attitudes That Will Deliver Outstanding Success

On Groundless Ground

“When there are no guiderails, trust in your vision to show you the way forward.”

 

It was getting late, very late. Possibly too late. I had brought my management team to Iceland. The plan was to hike up an ice glacier – a way of getting everyone on the team to confront a mixture of physical, emotional and mental challenges far outside the normal confines of the office.

We had flown up to Reykjavik but been delayed. We were picked up at the airport and driven straight to this glacier, which from our perspective was in the middle of nowhere. We had no idea where we were, only that the cars had had to go off-road for half an hour to get us to the base of the glacier. There was no one else around, no man-made light, just us.

It was starting to grow dark, because the whole adventure was much, much later than we had anticipated because of the flight delay. The conditions were far from ideal. The guys organizing the expedition were professionals, but there were only two of them, and 15 or 16 of us.

To help us keep a footing on the ice they had issued us with crampons to give us spikes under our shoes. But now they also handed out helmets with torches on as the sun continued to fall.

We set off, walking and walking up this glacier. It was relatively steep. Along the way they were handing out shots of whiskey, or some kind of warming Icelandic liqueur, to keep us warm. The shots helped. When we reached the top of the glacier, the views were spectacular. But now ...