Last month, Pierpont Austin took a little field trip. Rather than your typical cocktails-and-conversation bonding time, we decided to challenge ourselves a bit. Pierponter Sarah Zomper found a great deal for a beginners lesson from
Trapeze Austin and we decided to give it a try.
What they didn’t know is that I’m deathly afraid of heights….and speed. So, swinging through the air from a height equivalent of the top of my two-story house was not on my list of top ten things to do.
However, I decided two things: (1) if your team wants to do something good for themselves and the company, you shouldn’t be the roadblock; and (2) we all need to stretch from time to time. So, I agreed and prayed for the best.
Unfortunately, I discovered that having your whole team watch you confront both height and speed does not diminish your fear of it. In fact, it only makes you realize you’re going to look like an idiot when you’re the only one in the class going back down the ladder, instead of up.
Fortunately for me, my team was super-supportive – along with the great folks at
Trapeze Austin – and I did it! While I wasn’t quite as amazing as Sarah and Sylvester, who managed to do a catch on their first outing, I did manage three swings, even getting upside down on one of them.
So, what was the lesson for me from this whole experience? While it’s my job to push my team to perform at their optimal potential each day, sometimes it’s also their job to push me – literally. Thanks, guys!