Atte Miettinen, who completed his MBA at LBS has recently accomplished another life long goal – climbing the ‘Seven Summits’ - the highest mountain on each continent. In this presentation he shares some of the images of his adventure and provides an insight as to what’s required to reach the top of the world. Watch the video footage of the presentation at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0LlZo2ZYiWg

1. Aim High!
Atte Miettinen
25 October 2012

3. Me
• 36 years
• MBA, London Business School
• Four start-up’s in it / telecoms
• Lived abroad for +10 years: USA, Singapore,
Denmark, United Kingdom, United Arab Emirates
• Done business in approx. 50 countries
• Curiosity taken to all seven continents and almost
100 countries
• Desire to test my limits: marathons, scuba diving,
mountaineering
• 22.06.2012: first Finnish Seven Summits

4. Seven Summits
• Kilimanjaro, Tanzania
• Elbrus, Russia
• Mount Kosciuszko, Australia (Bass List)
• Carstensz Pyramid, Indonesia (Messner List)
• Vinson Massif, Antarctica (November 2011)
• Cerro Aconcagua, Argentina (December 2011)
• Mount Everest, Nepal (March-May 2012)
• Denali / Mount McKinley, USA (June 2012)

5. What’s required to
reach the top of the
world?

6. Setting Goals

7. Setting Goals
• Everyone has their own mountain
• No-one inherits ambition – you have to find it
inside you!
• Goals need to be challenging but realistic
• Readiness to make sacrifices
• If there’s no passion, a rational person will give up
• Desire vs. obsession
• First step is often the most difficult one

8. Preparation

9. Preparation
 Right skills
 Right physical and
Recognise the mental preparation
key success
factors!  Right people / team
 Right tools
 Right attitude

10. Right Skills

11. Right Skills

12. Right Physical Preparation

13. Right Mental Preparation

14. Right Mental Preparation
• Start with the end-goal in mind – no shortcut to
the top
• Resolve / long-term approach
• Readiness to make sacrifices
• Positive confidence vs. arrogance
• Recognising risk – margins of error are small and
consequences are often dire
• Scenario planning and ability to adapt when
needed

15. Right Mental Preparation

16. Right People / Team

17. Right Tools

18. Right Attitude
• Positive thinking – I can do this!
• Team approach – we’ll succeed as a team, by
supporting each other
• Be ready to learn
• Tolerance for discomfort as well as uncertainty -
surprises are part of life
• Fear is a healthy feeling, but it should not impact
decision making!
• High morals / ethics

19. Execution

20. Execution
 You
Recognise the
 Teamwork
key success  Uncontrollable elements
factors!
 Risk management
 Balance

21. You
• Right attitude / positive thinking
• Resolve / persistence – mountaineering, like
business, is about long-term focus
• Split the end goal into smaller objectives
• Ability to learn from your mistakes
• Recognition of stress and ability to deal with it
• Judgment – ability to objectively evaluate
situations and make rational decisions

22. The human capacity is
much bigger than we
believe!

23. Teamwork

24. Teamwork
• Everyone’s A-type personalities / naturally
competitive
• Succeed as a team = succeed as an individual
• Positive attitude / looking after team spirit
• Speak the same language
• Supporting / helping teammates
• Trust / be reliable
• Conscious avoidance of unnecessary conflicts
• How can I help the team to succeed?

25. Uncontrollable Elements

26. Uncontrollable Elements
• Mountains, just like customers / markets are
often unpredictable!
• Important that mental preparation has been
sufficient – on mountains you cannot control
everything
• Patience / results are only measured at the end
of the season
• Right timing is critical for success
• A successful expedition always requires a bit of
luck

27. Risk Management

28. Risk Management
• Starts already during preparation e.g. right people /
team and right tools
• Positive attitude but critical thinking
• Don’t assume or guess
• Seek to identify potential risks in advance
• Scenario planning
• Fear is a healthy feeling, but should not impact decisions
making

29. Balance

30. Dealing with Success and
Failure

31. Dealing with Success and
Failure
• Success on mountains is never guaranteed e.g.
on everest more than half of climbers return
home unsuccessful
• However, returning home with all your fingers
and toes intact is always a sign of a successful
expedition
• Failures teach you most about yourself and
others!
• The price of success should not be too high

32. The price of success should
not be too high – you need
to be ready to say no when
that’s the right choice!

33. Thank You!

34. www.sevensummits.fi
www.facebook.com/AtteSevenSummits
www.twitter.com/AtteMiettinen