Hiking Mt. Kilimanjaro

I will be hiking Mt. Kilimanjaro in October as part of my RSM MBA program (yes, hiking a mountain is actually an elective!). Part of the course includes blogging and applying to participate. My pitch to participate in the course is below and was also posted on the RSM blog. I will be blogging about the experience along the way. 

I have always wanted to hike Mt. Kilimanjaro. It is on my bucket list, along with hiking in another country (which I guess climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania also ticks off). This year I seem to be checking a number of items off of my bucket list and I am extremely excited that hiking Mt. Kilimanjaro can be one of them. And I find it a huge bonus that I have this opportunity to hike with the women of RSM and learn far more than I would just hiking the trail with a tour group.

I have done plenty of hiking in British Columbia, Canada. I did the infamous West Coast Trail several years ago with one of my best friends. It involved hiking 75km along the wild west coast of Vancouver Island, with heavy backpacks, crossing streams, scrambling on rocky beaches and heaving ourselves up 4 ten metre high ladders in a row. It was one of the best experiences of my life. Many other hikers along the way were surprised that we were two women hiking by ourselves, but really, we thought nothing of it; we always knew that we could do it – it was just a matter of doing so. I feel like this is how I have approached all of my other hiking adventures: knowing that we could do it, not feeling like we couldn’t because we were women, and always succeeding. Almost all of my hiking has been with girlfriends, and this is truly an amazing way to bond and continue to develop our lifelong friendships.

I am excited to bring this incredible experience to more women and to develop stronger relationships with the women of RSM. I am grateful for the beauty of British Columbia that has allowed me to conquer mountains and trails, and given me the confidence I need in all I do. For me, the Kilimanjaro experience at RSM is special and important because of the other women. I love to see women succeed when they doubted whether they could. Two years ago, I trained with and did a triathlon with my sister, who hates running and never thought she could do it; it was so amazing being at the finish line with her as she burst into tears feeling like she could conquer anything. In fact, later we did a half-marathon together and now, this year she trained on her own and completed an Olympic distance triathlon! It is simply amazing to see how activities like these can change a person’s life forever.

I want to help the women to reach the top. I want to reach the top. I want to foster and develop deeper relationships with my fellow RSM female students. I want to push myself hard in an environment that I’m not used to.

I want to help RSM attract and support more females in business – and I believe that this experience attracts potential students to RSM, it attracted me. And I want women to have that same feeling I’ve had, if I can hike this mountain, or climb that ladder, well then, obviously I can do anything else I set my mind to.