This interview features a reflective conversation with Ant Ackers, the founder of Mountain Boardroom, an initiative that uses outdoor experiences to help business leaders break free from the daily grind and reconnect with strategic thinking, trust-building, and authentic relationships.
The discussion explores the intersection of leadership development, entrepreneurship, and the human need for connection, offering insights into how nature-based coaching can reshape how we collaborate, reflect, and lead in a post-pandemic, digitally accelerated world.
Find out more about the Mountain Boardroom-> Here.
Key Take Aways
- Mountain Boardroom leverages the outdoors to facilitate strategic thinking for business leaders, offering an alternative to traditional office-based planning.
- Outdoor sessions enable leaders to escape daily operational noise and engage in more reflective, long-term thinking.
- There is a significant psychological barrier in giving oneself permission to step away from work to invest in self-development and visioning.
- Shared physical challenges, such as hiking, help build trust, resilience, and camaraderie among business professionals.
- Many business relationships are becoming increasingly transactional due to the pace and digitalisation of work.
- Authentic connection is a growing business priority, with experiential events seen as a credible route to build trust and long-term value.
- Modern corporate environments often suppress slow thinking, which is essential for effective strategy formation.
- Remote working has contributed to greater social isolation and a loss of in-person team dynamics.
- Outdoor experiences generate “type two fun”—challenging in the moment, but deeply fulfilling in hindsight.
- Physical environments are curated based on the group’s capability and the intended business objective—e.g., visioning vs. confidence building.
- Entrepreneurial resilience stems from exposure to uncertainty, something not always developed in traditional employment.
- Building consistent, value-aligned marketing and authentic relationships over time proves more effective than short-term tactics.
Innovation
- Outdoor Strategy Coaching: Taking leadership teams into nature to facilitate strategic planning and reflection.
- Experience-Based Team Building: Using shared physical challenges to forge authentic business connections.
- Tailored Route Selection: Designing hikes aligned to business goals—confidence-building, visioning, or strategic planning.
- Blending Business Frameworks with Nature: Applying structured consulting frameworks outside the boardroom environment.
Key Discussion Points
- The psychological and logistical challenge of stepping away from daily business operations for personal and professional reflection.
- The declining value of traditional networking events and the rising demand for authentic, long-form interactions.
- Impact of remote work on isolation and the erosion of team cohesion.
- The need for slow thinking in strategy and how modern work culture often undermines it.
- Trust and relationship-building through shared outdoor adversity.
- Importance of understanding personal values and consistency in marketing.
- Emotional and psychological responses to perceived danger and how this contributes to growth.
- Differences between transactional and relational business approaches.
- The value of real-life storytelling over AI-generated narratives.
- Transition from corporate employment to entrepreneurship and its implications for resilience.
- Role of authenticity in future business development and marketing strategies.
- Plans to scale Mountain Boardroom’s model through team retreats and integrated coaching services.
#MountainBoardroom
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