"The Incline" was not my goal, which is why I didn't finish it!

I was visiting family in Colorado Springs, CO a few weeks ago, when someone asked if I wanted to go with him to climb "the Incline."  The Manitou Incline is a hiking "trail" located in the small town of Manitou, Colorado (very near Colorado Springs).  The "Incline", as it is popularly known, has become somewhat of a fitness challenge for locals in the area.  The "trail" is really a LONG set of "steps" that were built on an old narrow gauge funicular (incline) railway.  The average grade of the Incline is 45% (24 degrees), though in some places the grade is as steep as 68% (34 degrees).  The "trail" gains over 2,000 feet of vertical elevation over the course of approximately 1 mile.  If the steps don't get you, the altitude will definitely do so, as Manitou itself is at an elevation of over 6,300 feet!  Former major league baseball player Barry Bonds recently hiked the "Incline" and posted on Facebook, "I got to be out my mind, that's crazy," half out of breath.


There are several tips to conquering the Incline - one of which is to beware of the false summit (just when you think you are nearing the end, you pass over the false summit to learn that you are really only half way to the end!).  About 2/3 of the way up, there is a "Bailout" or "Wimpout" point in which you can hike the rest of the way up the Barr Trail (a series of switchbacks help you deal with the vertical climb and steepness of the ascent).


So, back to my attempt at the "Incline."  I arrived in Colorado Springs on a Saturday morning, and a member of our family asked if I wanted to join a small group that was going to hike the "Incline" on the following morning.  I said that I would "give it a try."  I can tell you that I am in fairly good shape - I completed my first marathon this past October.  While I am no longer in "marathon shape", I still run at least 3 miles almost every day.  Within about 100 yards of climbing the Incline, I was out of breath.  By the time we reached the "Bailout" point, my legs were burning and I was gasping for air.  I decided to "bail out" and finish the climb up the Barr Trail.  We did reach the top - two of the younger members of our group actually finished climbing up the Incline - successfully, but I did not conquer the Incline.  When we reached the top, I was met by an 80 year-old man who apparently hikes up the Incline (or so he said) every day!  Yikes! 


Now that I have had time to recover, I actually wished that I would have pushed myself a little harder (okay, a lot harder!) and finished the Incline.  I also started thinking about goals and what factors impact whether we achieve our goals or not.  I believe that the main reason that I was unable to complete the Incline was due to the fact that it was never my goal to do so.  It was someone else's goal to finish the Incline - I was just there for the ride, so to speak.  Had I truly been focused on hiking up the side of that mountain, I believe that I would have been able to finish.  Had I set a goal of hiking up the Incline, and if I had started climbing that day with that goal in mind, I do believe that I would have been successful.  It seems to me that one of the main factors in whether or not we achieve our goals is whether or not those goals are our own personal ones to achieve.  Did we set the goal?  Did we plan ahead in order to position ourselves to achieve that goal?  In my mind, I had done none of these things beforehand when I decided to "give it a try."  I was never committed to achieving that goal because it was someone else's goal and not my own.


How many times do we see organizations fail at achieving their goals because of a lack of ownership?  As I look back on some of the goals that we have set for ourselves, whether in the Intensive Care Unit or in the hospital, I find that the goals that we achieved were indeed the ones in which everyone, from the front-line employees all the way to the executive leadership, have bought into and owned.  Call it engagement, call it accountability - call it whatever you want, but one of the most important factors in goals is to have everyone firmly in support and ready to work hard to achieve them. 


So, the next time I am in Colorado Springs, my goal is to complete the entire Incline, from start to finish!  That is my goal.  I will own that goal, and I will hold myself accountable to that goal.  With that in mind, I am going to go climb some steps!