Take the Stairs

When I was in the seventh grade, our entire class took a trip to Washington DC. I remember loading a bus late in the evening on Friday night, and driving for what seemed like an eternity but was really only about 6 hours. The weekend was to be full of touring national monuments and museums, making more tangible the stuff we were learning in US History.

I also remember driving into DC for the first time feeling surprisingly awestruck at the site of these famous locales, and being genuinely excited at the opportunity to see them first hand.

It was a hectic schedule without much room for free time, I'm sure the idea was to keep a bunch of 13 year olds out of trouble. We saw just about everything we could, but there was one visit in particular that stands out in my mind.

When we arrived at the Washington Monument, there was a line that wrapped around its base several times. Everyone there was waiting for the elevator ride to the top and the opportunity for a few minutes of a birds eye view of the entire capital city. Typcially, the tour consists of just that...a ride up, a few minutes at the top, and a ride back down. However, one of my friends struck up a conversation with one of the tour guides while we were standing in line, and a few minutes later I saw him waving a few of us over to him. Apparently the guide took a liking to my friend and offered him an exclusive "walk down" tour of the monument. For those that don't know, the Washington Monument is the tall, tower like structure with about 50 floors. The walk down tour would take a while.

Shortly there after we were escorted to the front of the line and rode the elevator to the top. It was from here that we started our journey back down, and it turned out to be quite the adventure. When you take the stairs down, you have the opporunity to experience the monument in an entirely different way. Each floor has a plaque dedicated to one of the 50 states, and each plaque comes with a story. The guide was especially knowledgeable about how each of the plaques came to be, full of anecdotes and information about each.

This tour was rare and involved a little more time and effort, but the reward was significant and the memory stays with me more than 20 years later. I hear they're even harder to come by in the post-9/11 world, but if you get a chance, I highly recommend the long way.

The other day a friend shared with me a personal philosphy of hers and said she takes the stairs in life, not the elevator. This quote reminded me of the tour we took back then, and caused me to reflect on other experiences that I've had.

I've been fortunate to have toured most of the United States and have seen some beautiful and awe-inspiring things along the way. Most of the best stuff I've seen has come from getting off the beaten path, taking the long way, or working a little harder to get to a place not many go. The reward for such work and wandering are views and experiences that not many take the time to enjoy.

The same holds true for less tangible rewards as well. As an athlete and now a coach, I'm reminded every day that there aren't any shortcuts to real acheivement. Legitmate success takes hard work and time...and is rarely easy. Most often there is no real outside motivation to do so, its all about seeing how hard you can work or how far you can go. The situations aren't life or death, and if you quit, there are often no real consequences save having to face yourself in the mirror. However, the internal rewards for success by doing things the hard way - doing things the right way - are far more significant than any outside validation could ever provide.

I'm beginning to learn that this holds true with relationships as well. Too often we don't take the time to really get to know people, really understand and develop friendships, and make big decisions without knowing the entire story. Relationships become tertiary, and when things get tough...which they always will...often fail. By going slow and doing things right, foundations are built that will withstand even the toughest storm.

The next time you're standing at the bottom of a building, skip the elevator and take the stairs. You never know how life altering the rewards might be.