Take your team out for physically and mentally challenging activities to discover and bond
Physical challenges, such as marathons or triathlons, are great ways to build fitness, motivation, goal-setting, and teamwork skills. They are beneficial to individuals by strengthening muscles and increasing endurance and to teams by bonding and training members to work together toward a common goal.
Last week, I completed a 7-day hike on Cape to Cape track in WA, the longest coastal walk in Australia, a total of 126km. It was a great adventure that I had waited for a long time, and I had a great experience with it. I gained more confidence as I completed the challenge and learned many lessons.
First, there is no substitute for preparation!
It took me over 6 months to prepare for this hike by doing weekday gym training and weekend long-distance training. But turning one day-long hike into a 7-day hike is still a giant leap, not just my body played up; some of my gears also chose to stop working, and there days require heaps of mental toughness to get through.
to get through the track, not just bringing the right gear but preparing for what-ifs and just-in-case is equally important!
Second, all of us are better than any one of us!
Hiking with a group of 12, inevitably, there are faster and slower hikers; some are much faster going up hills, some are the opposite. However, it won't be fun if we always arrive at the milestone alone. So, during the journey, we were in it together, and we reached our destination together as well. It is not a race at all, so we made a conscious effort not to rush, and instead, we waited for each other to take photos with the best view, we slowed down to walk with whoever was the last, and we made sure, we arrived at the destination all-together!
Last but not least, there is always a great moment to capture regardless of how stiff and painful your body might feel; the purpose is not just getting to the destination. It is to have an incredible journey along the way!
Stopping for the flowers, going as slow as you can to take in the view or having a great chat or rest while filling up your stomach... all these are part of an experience you will cherish for the trip. So enjoy the journey process and stop worrying too much about how fast you move. Instead, take it all in and keep yourself motivated to keep going!
It takes tremendous endurance to complete a trek like this; only the people with a positive attitude would survive and thrive. So does your business!
Taking your team out and doing something physically and mentally challenging will strengthen the bond and create a huge sense of achieving together!
At the end of the day, the best team is the team that can work with differences, solve all types of problems, sustain the up and downs and discomforts, and have all the fun while achieving together!
