Where the Real Journey is Taking You
OCTOBER 27, 2025
Growth isn’t found at the summit but in the surrender required to reach it. When we answer the call, cross the threshold, and face what we’ve avoided, we return home not just stronger, but more whole.
Identify your current “threshold.” What’s the call you’ve been postponing because it feels uncomfortable? Take one step toward it, No Matter What.
Everyone wants the success of the summit.
The successful product launch.
Selling your company.
The photo at the top of Machu Picchu.
The moment of arrival that says, “I made it.”
But what if the summit isn’t the point at all?
What if the real destination is who you become on the way there?
There’s a hidden architecture to every breakthrough — personal or professional, in our lives or in our business.
And that architecture follows an ancient pattern: The Hero’s Journey.
Joseph Campbell called it “the monomyth” — a structure that underlies every story of transformation.
The same pattern exists in business, relationships, health, and leadership.
It’s not about geography. It’s about growth.
For me, and for the leaders who joined our No Matter What Leadership Adventure Retreat, that process became visceral.
You don’t have to hike dozens of miles through the Andes to live it.
You just have to answer your own call to adventure.
The call didn’t sound like a vacation. It sounded like restlessness —
like Neo in The Matrix, knowing there’s something more, but not yet knowing how to reach it.
For us, it sounded like:
“How do I fill the voids success hasn’t answered?”
“How do I step off the plateau and into my power?”
“How do I finally allow myself to feel whole — no matter what I’ve been through?”
That’s how every journey begins: not with clarity, but with discomfort.
Uncertainty. Fear.
The quiet knowing that something has to change.
Most people wait for the “right time.”
But growth doesn’t wait for your calendar.
It waits for you to answer your own call to adventure.
The Ancascocha and Inca Trails were just metaphors made of dirt and altitude.
They stripped away comfort, control, and the illusion of certainty — until all that remained was the real work: surrender.
Every steep climb mirrored the moment each leader questioned their strength.
Every cold night revealed how small their comfort zone really was.
Every shared hardship became a mirror: showing not who they appeared to be, but who they actually are.
That’s the threshold.
Once you cross it, there’s no going back.
Somewhere between exhaustion and awe, something shifted.
A CEO rediscovered curiosity.
An entrepreneur let go of guilt.
A consultant realized presence is performance.
Breakthroughs don’t happen on command.
They emerge when you stop resisting.
That’s when resilience stops being a buzzword and becomes breath by breath.
That’s when leadership stops being a title and becomes a truth.
The hardest part of any journey isn’t leaving. It’s returning.
Because once you’ve seen what’s possible, you can’t unsee it.
Once you’ve felt your own strength, you can’t unknow it.
One participant called it “a year of curiosity and connection.”
Another said, “I came with a bag of rocks. I leave with my heart open.”
That’s the real summit: clarity that outlasts the climb.
Every breakthrough — in business, leadership, or life — follows the same map:
The Call to Adventure – You feel the pull for something more.
Crossing the Threshold – You step out of certainty and into the unknown.
The Ordeal and Breakthrough – You face what’s been holding you back.
The Return Home – You integrate what you’ve learned and live it.
If you want a little inspiration, here’s a video summarizing our trip to Peru.
But it’s fundamentally not about Peru.
It’s not about what change or challenge you face ahead.
It’s about presence.
It’s not about hiking mountains. It’s about moving through fear.
And it’s not about who you were when you left.
It’s about who you become when you return.
Key Idea
Every transformational journey is a Hero’s Journey — the external adventure is just the stage for the internal evolution. Growth isn’t found at the summit but in the surrender required to reach it. When we answer the call, cross the threshold, and face what we’ve avoided, we return home not just stronger, but more whole.
Takeaway
Identify your current “threshold.” What’s the call you’ve been postponing because it feels uncomfortable? Take one step toward it, No Matter What.
Build your Movement
When was the last time you said yes to the unknown? Who did you become because of it?
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