Just the other week I made it back alive from the heights of Breckenridge. And why wouldn’t I have made it back? Well, without wishing to make the whole thing sound too dramatic, I squeezed in a ski trip and my experience on the slopes was all rather harrowing, although it did end in a victory of sorts.
When faced with a new skill to learn, we are told, “It’s just like riding a bike.” Well, skiing, it turns out, isn’t like that at all!
Thirty five years ago I took skiing lessons on a dry slope over a twelve week block and, although I was getting pretty good, I never made it to the mountains. Then I had a brief dalliance learning to snowboard but again, circumstances were such that I didn’t get on to any snow!
So, fast forward to the present, and I’m older, confident in my muscle memory, and raring to give it a go! On arrival at the ski hire shop I met with my first obstacle: The kit took ages to get on! Eventually suited and booted, after a bit of puffing and blowing, I joined my very patient friends who nursed me along the route, onto the bus and then onto the gondolas that took us up and over the mountains.
Clipped in and ready to negotiate the ski lift, I lost control on the small slope down to the pick up point. The emergency button was pressed and the whole mountain turned its attention to the guy on the floor, unable to get back up! The kindly team sprang into action and got me on the lift. Next thing I knew we were heading up the silent mountain suspended in the air on what appeared to be a sofa on a cable.
The exit from the chair at the top ended in yet another fail and once again the emergency button halted proceedings to tell the slopes that I had arrived! By this time, my pride was well and truly smashed and yet I hadn’t even begun trying to negotiate the slope back home.
After several determined attempts and a couple of business conversations that ended really positively, sat on the edge of the piste, I began to gain a bit of perspective. While I couldn’t ski, there was a real business adventure growing here significantly and internationally. Although I’d failed when it came to negotiating my mountain, it was in fact a business mountain that was being conquered!
As I made the decision to hike back down, one of the ski guides suggested asking for a download (the term for going back down the mountain if you are injured). I headed back up (seemed like an eternity but still shorter than going down) and made my request. They asked if I was injured and I had to reply no, I am not injured, just rubbish!
I went down the mountain on the chair of shame, and on arriving at the bottom, the girl that had helped me up said, ‘Ah you again’! I headed off to bar and sat with a cold water, cheered by the thought that despite my failure in one area, success was materialising in another!
I didn’t enjoy such abject failure on the slopes but apart from that, the long weekend trip was epic, fun and challenging. I spent it with fellow entrepreneurs from all around the USA. In context, the trip refreshed my heart, soul and mind and deepened relationships with others.
So, on returning to the UK it will be back to the dry ski slopes for me to try and get better at skiing or even snowboarding. It all reminds me a bit of four stages of the crisis cycle I used to help others in The Crisis Catalyst! I am now fully aware of my Crisis and the need to change. I sat there at the bottom slope in Shock at how bad I had become! If I am going to get any better I’ll have to visit a place called Stretch. There is going to be Pain as it is going to cost me a few dry slope lessons as well as more bumps and scrapes.
These first four stages of the crisis cycle have become real to me again in a new way! I am going to brave this journey and not fail nearly as badly again when given the next opportunity. As Breckenridge appears to be an annual fixture with my U.S. business buddies I HAVE to get better.
I didn’t know this, but news of my disastrous attempts at skiing had gone ahead of me down the mountain. On the last day of my trip I headed down the mountain to Denver to meet our new clients and join them on the “All Things Parking” Podcast! My wife, in a Teams meeting earlier in the day, had kindly filled John and Dani in, so I had the opportunity to relive the whole experience on air and my shame cycle was complete!
As I headed back to London, I started to see the funny side of it all. It taught me that not everything in life is as easy as riding a bike! More importantly, I learnt that trying something new will always come with its challenges, but in every failure we can learn and turn a negative experience into a positive one.
Growing a business can feel just like that. At times it is a struggle as we negotiate “trickle” terrain. Enlisting help is something that we must learn to get better at.
As you conquer one mountain, you have to do what it takes to embrace another. In business there are many, and in life there are others. We need perspective to carry us through! When one thing isn’t perfect it doesn’t mean everything is a disaster.
So 2025 has a personal challenge loaded and ready to go. I want to crack this skiing thing and maybe even snowboarding too! It has now become a personal mission and I fully intend to head to the dry slopes at Gloucester Ski Centre. I have a new pursuit, and I’m going to get my family involved. This will become Team Irwin’s new thing!
I’ve been humbled and embarrassed but it’s not the end, it’s just the beginning! In 2026, I will revisit the snow slopes a different man. It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish! Who knows, I might even be an older active skier showing the young ones how to do it in the future!
My skiing debacle might just be a good example for approaching life. Dealing with failure in the right way helps us move forward. If you are going through a challenging time right now, remember that it isn’t permanent, everything can change. All we need to do is ask for help and enlist the right people to help us to succeed.
2025 has started really really well for us as we go international, and that in itself is uncomfortable. I wrote this for those that are looking for the summer, for those who have ‘hit the slopes’ harder than most. You can make a change, you can make a difference, keep going, keep fighting and even if some things are not perfect, there will always be something to celebrate and be grateful for.
Don’t lose heart, 2025 is just the start of the year and the key to winning is having the right people in your life. Tests can be a gift and even prepare you to go higher, faster and further.
Keep growing, keep going and conquer your mountain with like-hearted and like-minded people!
I know you have got this.
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