From March 18 - 20, we went on a trail in the Spanish mountains. Cistema Central to be exact. Our trail meant 3 days and 2 nights in pristine nature, with no distractions (phone/work), daily hiking and back to basics. So our group chat was temporarily called "Pooping in the Mountains. That bodes well! In this blog you can read our experience & lessons from this special trip.
Good to know: team Recharge works completely remotely, so you actually only saw some of your colleagues once or twice in real life. And now we were all going to take a shit in the mountains....
The packing list for our trail included a sleeping bag to temperatures of at least -5 and preferably -10. Whether we slept outside or in a tent was not quite clear yet. The weather forecast was 3 degrees at night. These facts alone were mentally challenging for some team members.
Anyone who thinks that we went on a cozy vacation together is wrong. Our trail also consisted of:
- Silent Walks
- Walking along the steepest precipices
- Sharing thoughts without immediate response
- Setting up our own tents
- Not having a toilet & shower
- Daily walks of +- 12 km
What did we learn from this trail?
In advance, all team members wrote down for themselves a challenge or question they were sitting with that they would like answers to during the trip. Read below to see if we got answers to these and what we learned from our trail.
Hidde de Vries (founder The Recharge Company)"How cool is it that you can do this with your team! Even though I know the power of a trail, it was exciting to do this with the team now. Especially since they had not participated via open registration from intrinsic motivation, but more from the idea that this would indeed be fun to do with the team. Fortunately, the result was really fantastic. You get so much closer together as a team in such a short time. You get to know each other in a way that you will never achieve in the office, and in doing so you immediately build much-needed trust within the team. That trust is essential when you're all working further remote or hybrid. No training can beat that!"
Chantal Folman (Project Manager)"My challenge was survival without comfort. No WC, not being able to shower, sleeping in a tent, no cell phone - I was dreading it terribly. For days, my colleague Helena & I were already emailing each other how much we suddenly enjoyed having a toilet and warm bed at home now that we weren't on the trail yet. I also have to say, it really wasn't easy for me (I only slept 2 hours a night for example) but I did it. I realize through the trip that I could incorporate more rest. Turning in my phone was a big thing for me and my weekends are often filled with all sorts of cozy appointments. And here I still experienced peace, less distractions & no sense of time. That does something to you."
Randy Hereman (general manager)"Leaving everything behind for a while, including the notion of time, really allowed me to relax. Doing something other than sitting behind a screen. This made me realize that everything I wanted is actually already there and that the pressure, stress and problems I experience daily are 100% self-created. They are small problems that I make very important when they are not at all."
Helena Kotsolaki (Content manager & coach)"On the one hand, I was super looking forward to the trail. In daily life I crave a more natural environment, clean air, being outside more and not sitting in front of my laptop all the time. Letting go of my phone and my schedule seemed like a luxury. On the other hand, I hate sleeping in primitive conditions and being cold. I was also in a certain period of my cycle where I always find it important to take it easy. So yes, I was both looking forward to it and dreading it. Beforehand, I thought my challenge would be mostly letting go of wanting to create ideal conditions. But that went pretty well for me. Above all, I learned that it is very good to distance myself from things now and then. Relax without padding this with online pursuits, for example. Zooming out so you get more of a helicopter view. Everyone should do that sometime."
Raymond Reed"A leadership trail: hiking in the mountains around Madrid, eating and sleeping outside (in a tent then) and various exercises in between, where an hour of silent walking was also an assignment. Wow cool, count me in. Beforehand, I didn't really have a question or challenge, I mostly wanted to experience it. I learned the following:
- Really taking a moment offline (no time, no device) is REALLY nice. I haven't missed it for a second either.
- Being outside gives a lot of energy and peace. I also liked the connection with nature very rg and made me feel fulfilled. How wonderful that I can do this. The outdoors and consciously connecting with nature is something I'm going to look for more often.
- Being aware in the here and now...I'm walking here in the mountains and I don't have to consider/do anything...letting it happen. Delightful. Me, myself and I."
Want to read more about how to apply these lessons in your daily life?
- Benefits of exercise
- Empolyee wellbeing boost in 10 steps (and make more profit)
- Why pausing is vital
