Base Camp Decisions
Monday Momentum
Sometimes looking after the group means knowing when you can’t lead from the front.
Yesterday I went climbing with my daughter and friends. The pain was so limiting I couldn’t even belay. Humbling doesn’t quite cover it – standing at the base of the wall, supposedly the experienced one, while my body flatly refused.
But here’s what came back to me: leadership isn’t always about being the strongest on the route. Sometimes it’s about recognising your limitations clearly enough that you don’t become a liability. Sometimes it’s creating the conditions for others to climb while you hold base camp.
Base camp isn’t retreat. It’s operations.
Last week, the Meta essay finally went live – months of research crystallised into positioning around ethical technology and AI safety. Both professional bios updated. Started sharing with trusted friends. The strategic infrastructure work didn’t wait for perfect physical conditions. It never does.
This Wednesday brings the third partnership principle – the one closest to what I actually practice. Adventure Over Comfort. Not a theoretical framework but lived methodology, tested on rock and in boardrooms.
This week’s base camp operations: finalising CC’s English positioning and landing the first frameworks. Smart Mountains Q1 milestones. Planning the Christmas break and banking multiple Field Notes ahead. Architecting the late January circuit – Zurich → Milan → Valtellina → Bergamo → Padova → Belluno. Mapping February’s R&D focus. Restructuring what Fab Rides has become. Deciding Fab Wines’ transformation.
By Christmas, I’ll arrive at a decision point I’ve been circling: which 2026 projects get my embedded commitment? Italy or Scandinavia? Switzerland or England? Not every partnership can receive the deep integration I practice. Choosing means some doors close so others can fully open.
I miss being outside. The timing’s brutal. But recovery is its own discipline – possibly the hardest one, because it demands patience rather than power.
Final week before the break. Building from where we are, not where we wish we were.
What constraints are teaching you something this week?