Personal Philosophy

For a number of years I worked as a bar manager for a large corporate company. It became very stressful and tiring – to the point where I decided enough was enough and I would take a change in direction to life.  The only problem was… which direction?  The day after my final shift in the bar my girlfriend and I drove out to the country with the intent of going for a walk.  That day we ended up at the top of Ben Lomond.  Standing on the summit, surveying the wonderful view of Loch Lomond and the surrounding hills I realised I felt different.  I felt happy and free.  It was the best I had felt for a very long time having been on an arduous “treadmill” of work for a number of years. Another year passed while I worked in a café with minimal responsibility.  I knew that this was not an option for a career and so I decided to enter higher education as mature student.  One thing I knew was that I wanted a career which enabled me to spend as much time as possible in the outdoors and so I enrolled on the Outdoor Education foundation degree at Plumpton University in East Sussex.  It was on this course that I found my love for mountain biking, kayaking, canoeing and mountaineering among other activities.

I love the “challenging” aspect of these activities.  They help me to stretch my comfort zone from both a psychological and physiological perspective.  These adventurous activities facilitate in pushing me to my mental and physical limits.  The outdoor environment makes me feel free and relaxed.  Situations which have arisen from taking part in these activities have resulted in the formation of strong bonds with peers and have improved my ability in trusting others.  Looking back to that time on the summit of Ben Lomond, I love taking time out in these outdoor environments to let my mind wander and think about life.

I believe that everyone should have an opportunity to experience adventure activities.  It provides escapism from daily life and a means of psychological development.  From a child’s perspective I believe that adventure activities can help to raise self-esteem and self-efficacy.  It can also help them to put trust in people and bring them out of their comfort zone which can potentially shape their personality in later life.  With regards to adults… life can prove to be highly stressful at times and I personally feel that for someone to remove themselves from their normal, everyday environment and embrace adventure activities in the wilderness ca only lead to a better state of mind.

How does my personal philosophy affect my facilitation of adventure?

When I am working with groups or individuals in an outdoor adventure environment my main aim is for that client to gain the most from the experience.  This comes down to a careful balance of what that client wishes to gain from the experience AND what I would like the client to gain.  I believe in getting people to push the limits of their comfort zone and asking them to take calculated risks.  My personal philosophy allows me to adapt sessions to meet the needs of the individual.  I believe that this “differentiation” is of utmost importance and will always play a key role in any job that I have within the adventure sector.

I feel that it is massively important that we, as adventure facilitators, have the adaptability and flexibility in order for us to help our clients gain the most from their outdoor experiences.