Mountain Path a republié ceci
Last week, I embarked on a Wharton Leadership Venture with 12 of my classmates: a 50-mile trek across Corsica's beautiful and rugged terrain, from mountain summits to Mediterranean shores. Each morning brought new uncertainty. One person would be selected as leader, briefed on the day's objectives, and tasked with getting our entire team to a destination they'd never seen, through terrain they'd never covered. I've always felt that leadership meant taking on more than your fair share. It comes a belief that taking care of your people is just as important as reaching your objective. With my larger pack and faster pace, I volunteered to carry the extra team gear - tent, cooking equipment, food supplies. And after all, I could handle anything, right? Hint: the mountains have a way of humbling you. On ascents, I could power through. But on steep descents, the extra weight took its toll. Over five days, I bore the burden silently, diligently. Until my knees finally gave out in the very morning of our last full day– my day to lead. The irony was painful - literally and figuratively. I had defined leadership as shouldering a larger burden for my team. Instead, the truth hit hard: in trying to care for my team, I would ended up being the burden I was trying to prevent. But I also had a profound realization: leadership isn't measured by how much you carry but by how well you enable others to succeed. When it came time to brief the team, I took a different approach. I had the privilege of watching my peers lead through various challenges. I acknowledged that every other person had already led the team. They saw first hand what worked and what didn't. They knew what they we needed to do to be successful. Rather than dictating the specifics, I set our objectives but gave them autonomy to make decisions. And I admitted that I needed help distributing my load. The result? Our highest performing day of the trek. Not because I carried more, but because I learned to let go - both of physical weight and the weight of feeling I needed to control everything as a leader. Sometimes being a leader means caring for your team. And sometimes, it means letting your team care for you. Special thanks to Jules Roy, Director of Leadership Ventures at The Wharton School, and Blaise Agresti, co-founder of Mountain Path, for guiding us through this journey. And to my amazing ropes team (Caroline H., Carolyn Mei, Lisa Song, Prannay Srivastava) for taking care of me along the way. The 1 Minute MBA 🎓
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