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What has life got to do with Rock Climbing? It does seem absurd at start, but look deeper, you might find even more relevant lessons than you think. Here is Matthew Childs, an advertising lead at Razorfish, a rock climber by passion and also a climbing guide. Childs when invited to the Ted Talks had pearls of wisdom to share about Rock Climbing which almost directly relates to you, your life, your dreams and what you would call success or achievement in life!

Presenting Matthew Childs below:

Here are the thoughts from the video:

1. Don’t let go!

If you are climbing on the rock and if you let go, the only thing you will hit is the literal Rock Bottom, you break your spine along with some bones and sometimes you lose your life as well. So is it about your dream, the moment you let go, it all vanishes into thin air and not many are going to care about it. You are the only one who can keep it alive!

2. Hesitation is bad-

If you keep heisitating, if you keep thinking whether the next jump is going to be bad, you will be right where you started. Take that chance, make that move, The moment you hesitate, it means that you have to start all over again. And remember whether it is starting a car or climbing a mountain or chasing your dream, you will have to start all over again when you break momentum!

3. Have a plan

Don’t neglect the plan. If you don’t have a plan, you don’t know when you win, you won’t know where you are headed. Have a plan, let it be the guiding light for you. You don’t need to aim in the dark and shoot at the first thing which makes noise. You got to get to your goals and your mountains of accomplishment!

Strategize you idea. Make some research; think what to do and how to do. It’s definitely not going to work according to the plan; you have to alter it in-between. Look for the possibilities and opportunities and alter your plan.

4. The move is the end

You got to keep going, you got to keep moving. The moment you stop, that is where everything stops. There is energy in perpetual motion, the move is the end and the end is in that one move which takes you where you always wanted to go.

5. Know how to rest

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. You can’t climb The Everest in one go. You got to take your breaks, you got to bring your energy together and you got to make the move where it is more effective. It is about clever use of your resources!

6. Fear sucks

I love the way he says “Fear really sucks because what it means is you’re not focusing on what you’re doing.” Instead you are focussing on what you don’t want! How absurd is that?!

Look at what you want and go get it! Don’t wallow in fear. If you keep focussing on falling, you will fall. You need to focus on the ground below your feet not the entire horizon around!

7. Opposites are good

You need to have challenges, you need to know how to use these challenges to make your way up. Challenges are there, they are going to be there and there is not much you can do about it. But there is a plenty lot you can do about facing it! They are good, they are there for a reason, they are there to make you grow!

8. Strength is not equal to success

Most times it is thought that strength or talent alone matters. If you are a runner, it is not just about how fast you run, it is about what you run also. If you are on the marathon, your stamina and consistency matter a lot more than sheer short spurts of speed!

9. Know how to let go

You got to let you! You can’t let the same things bother you over and over again. You have to move from rock to rock, you have to more from one step to another, one hurdle to another cos what is important is not those falls it is about the bigger picture, it is about the broader goal!

So, what say, when are you planning your next climb?