The WHY of resilience...

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The L&H 2016 class began with one simple question - Why are you hear? Some climbers articulated and discovered clarity, others contemplated, while others were provocatively haunted by the greater meaning of passion, perseverance, commitment, and courage. The question and experiential journey was complex, difficult, painful, tearful, yet hopeful, beautiful, and purifying. Student climbers have returned with volumes of stories, learning, and implications that stretch far beyond the mountain. Implications were revealed and relate directly to their higher sense of purpose in life, a renewed understanding and practice of leadership, and infinite implications for organizational strategy, team development, and organizations. The mountains have taught us much, as they have historically for others. The wilderness impacts, clarifies, and refines the mind, body, and spirit. 

Our last night on the mountain, students were asked to think about what they brought to the mountain, what they left on the mountain, and what they were gifted with on the mountain. This invitation was a primer to prepare in sharing what they learned about themselves from the context of this course and our shared climb. As students, what will you do with the content of this course? What are some implications of these experiences for leadership or personal life as you challenge yourself to live principles practiced on the mountain. The focus is on translating and scaffolding this transformative experience to personal & organizational life. You have license to be creative in how you capture this reflection and how you share words and images of your story. These are just some simple prompts to get you thinking about this final reflection. Please do not allow these prompts to confine who you are, but rather give you permission to blaze your own trail. 

Most importantly - Have FUN and ENJOY your story of leadership & hardiness.

"Will to Meaning"

Dear Visitors

Students in the ORGL Program at Gonzaga University are off to another great adventure in the Leadership and Hardiness course, studying the attitudes and mechanisms of personal and organizational resilience. As in previous years, this course continues to embrace Ignatian principles of action by challenging students to not only study various theoretical frameworks and complete projects, but also apply what they learn through an experiential adventure-based simulation of climbing Mt. Adams. Along this journey they read many seminal works that contribute to a refined and ongoing understanding of resilience. They are beginning this journey by studying Victor Frankl's story - Man's Search for Meaning - as a process of entering a contemplative state of considering their own search for meaning.

Frankl's gripping account of "life in a concentration camp as reflected in the mind of a prisoner" brings to life a story filled with realistic depictions of the experiences of camp life and how these experiences show that man does have a choice of action and in finding meaning in all forms of existence, even in the most dyer of circumstances, and thus a reason to continue living. Through readings and classroom discussions, students learn about existential analysis in the context of their life, families, organizations, and community.