Do you find it easy to become discouraged? Disempowering attitudes can quickly morph into states of being that send us spiraling down our path – the exact opposite direction from which we had planned to travel.
Eleven years ago my two sisters and I failed in our attempt to reach Mt. Kilimanjaro’s 19,340 foot peak. We believed our challenges were beyond our ability to overcome. Completely exhausted at the 15,000 foot mark; we abandoned our goal and turned back to a lower elevation campsite.
In mountain-speak, it takes “attitude before altitude.” When was the last time you heard yourself say something like “I don’t think I can do that” or “it is too hard a challenge for me to attempt” Do you doom your outcomes with negative stories and low expectations before setting out on your path?
On January 10, 2014, ten years after our first attempt, one of my sisters, a childhood friend and I, made it to Mt. Kilimanjaro’s peak – same mountain, challenges of course, yet different, more empowering, yes we will attitudes! During a pre-climb briefing, we poured over the map that charted our 8-day path. Wilson, a retired mountain guide, said to us “why shouldn’t you be amongst those who make it?”
Embrace an attitude of possibility, and then climb!
