Last week I had a client facilitation assignment that took me to a small town in Missouri, where I was sequestered for three days with the sales team for one of our clients. I was excited to go on the trip because I always enjoy working directly with our customers and try to take every opportunity I can to get out and work in the field. To say I was surprised when I arrived at the “conference facility” would be the understatement of the year! The facility we were working at was basically a Church Camp in a forested area with very basic amenities and accommodations.
The people that ran the facility could not have been nicer or more accommodating and the meals, which were prepared onsite, were simple yet quite good. The rooms, however, were Spartan at best. I slept on a modest single bed in a very small room with no television. There was a towel folded on the end of the bed with a bar of soap on it when I arrived and that was about it for amenities. No shampoo, no blow dryer, no lotion, etc.
My first reaction was something along the lines of, “you’ve got to be kidding!” I thought about getting into my car and heading out in search of a hotel that I am more accustomed to. Then I decided to relax and go with it. So what if I was going to miss game seven of the Cavaliers and Celtics series? So what if I was going to miss game seven of the Penguins and Canadiens series? There would be other opportunities for sports but this was a unique opportunity to experience something different.
As it turned out it was a lot of fun! The group of sales people we had was great to work with and the local trails provided some peaceful walks. I had plenty of time to myself to read, reflect, and think. One of the many things I thought about was, “Why haven’t I done something like this sooner?” It is amazing how we adjust to the pace of our life. I even take vacations at a frantic pace and it was great to just slow down. As Yogi Berra once said, “You can observe a lot just by watching.”
I decided to make some changes to my life when I left the assignment four days later. When I returned home I was more relaxed than I had been in a while and I decided to set up a regular program where our entire family would get away into the wilderness at least once a month. Usually when we go “camping” it is in a motor home with all the amenities of our normal home and we try to cram as much as we can into our trips. Now we will be going backpacking far into the wilderness. No television, no video games, just the Terry family and lots of space. It will be interesting to update this blog with the results in a few months. I wonder if my wife and kids will feel as moved by the minimalist experience as I was.
Chuck Terry is the Executive Vice President and CSO of Carew International and is regular contributor to Carew’s blog – Executive Insights
Carew International is a leader in sales training and leadership development; specializing in comprehensive, proven training programs for sales, sales management and customer service excellence. For over 30 years, Carew has earned its reputation of delivering increased productivity and profitability to our valued clients world wide.
