“On The Edge” by Alison Levine is a Must Read Book

Looking for inspiration? Motivation? Are you finding the challenges ahead of you similar to climbing Mt. Everest? If so, then you need Alison Levine in your life.

Who is Alison Levine?

Well, we are glad you asked. According to AlisonLevine.com, she holds the following titles:

Adventurer. Explorer. Mountaineer. NY Times Bestselling Author. Leadership Advisor. Beer Muse. Filmmaker. Story-teller. Dog-lover. Empowerer. Knowledge-sharer. Challenge-taker. Boundary-breaker. Growth-enabler. Impact-maker. Game-changer.

First of all, Alison Levine is a polar explorer and mountaineer. For example, Alison made history serving as captain of the first U.S. Women’s Mt. Everest Expedition team.

She also climbed the highest peak of each continent as well as skied both the North and South Poles (otherwise know as the Adventure Grand Slam).

In addition, Alison is a leadership expert. Alison brings a diverse background of experience not only as an adventurer but also……

• Worked for Wall Street firm Goldman Sachs
• Served as deputy finance director for Arnold Schwarzenegger’s successful bid as Governor of California
• Spent four years as an adjunct professor at the United States Military Academy at West Point in the Department of Behavioral Sciences and Leadership
• Serves as a strategic advisor at the Thayer Leader Development Group at West Point
• Founder of the Climb High Foundation
• Served as a Senior Fellow at the Coach K Center on Leadership & Ethics at Duke University

For additional info, here is an awesome article about Alison from Forbes: What Polar Explorer Alison Levine Knows About Leadership That Corporate Managers Don’t

Alison has also built an incredibly successful career as a dynamic keynote speaker on leadership and teamwork.

However, don’t take our word for it. Let us introduce you to Alison Levine by checking out her amazing Ted Talk:

Alison Levine “On The Edge”

Believe it or not, Alison also found the time to become a New York Times Bestselling author.

Looking for an incredible book with a 5 star rating? Need some inspiration and motivation? Seeking new ideas and strategies to enhance your leadership skills?

Well, look no further. Alison Levine wrote the book for you: “On the Edge: Leadership Lessons from Mount Everest and Other Extreme Environments”.

“On The Edge” is truly a must read book. Especially for anyone in a leadership role.

You will find Alison’s stories fascinating, exhilarating, and inspiring.

She does an amazing job describing every detail from each adventure. With reading each page, Alison makes you feel the extreme cold while climbing terrifying heights. However, she still finds the courage to continue on taking each painful step. For example, she finds herself violently ill on a climb, yet still accomplishes her goal of reaching the peak (you need to buy the book to find out what happens).

Alison Levine on Complacency

• “…mountaineering, business, leadership, and life: fear is fine, but complacency will kill you. Don’t ever beat yourself up for feeling scared or intimidated. Fear is a natural human emotion, and it’s a strong survival instinct that keeps us alert and aware of our surroundings.”
• “Avoiding complacency isn’t just about keeping yourself in check; it also means watching out for all of your teammates.”
• “Ironically, complacency is a risk that skyrockets when things are going well — when you feel safe enough.”
• “You’ll never improve your skills if you keep following your standard route. And getting out of your comfort zone is not enough; you must take it a step further and learn to be comfortable with discomfort. This is an important part of leader development”

To learn more about Alison’s theory, check out her article about complacency: Fear is fine. But complacency will kill you.

Alison Levine on Leadership

• “Leadership is everyone’s responsibility. It is not solely the responsibility of the C-level executives or the management team within an organization. We are all in a position to proactively work toward having a positive effect on the people around us. Everyone in an organization is responsible for helping to move forward with the mission; but in addition, all employees/ teammates/ people must realize it is also their responsibility to look out for the people on either side of them.”
• “You want to get out on the route with people who are better and stronger than you are; you yourself can become better and stronger by observing others who are more experienced and more skilled.”
• “Weak colleagues are not hard to identify. I don’t want to be cruel here, but let’s face it: there’s always that one person who seems to show up on every team — you know, the person everyone else secretly wishes would quit, transfer to another division, or get trapped under something heavy. These people, to put it bluntly, are liabilities in terms of the job you are trying to do. They lag behind, drag everybody else down, and hinder progress.”
• She continues, “If only they could perform at a higher level, or be smarter, or work more efficiently — or, even better, just go away — the entire team would be so much more productive. And happier! And although it may be painful to even imagine this, there could even be a time when, in fact, you might be the one who can’t cut it — when you are the person everyone else wishes would just go away, even if you are trying your hardest.”

Wrapping It Up

These quotes just scratch the surface of the energy, enthusiasm as well as brilliant insight that Alison offers in her book.

Rather you are climbing new heights, tackling tough challenges, or seeking exciting adventures, Alison Levine delivers outstanding guidance and advice on how to reach success.

Bottom line: we strongly recommend grabbing a copy of “On the Edge” today!

After reading this amazing book, you will be motivated and equipped to conquer whatever goal you set for yourself.

By the way, Alison suffers from Raynaud’s disease, which causes the arteries that feed her fingers and toes to collapse in cold weather. This leaves her extremely susceptible to frostbite.

Think about that for a minute. So what does she do? She simply becomes one of the greatest extreme weather adventurers in American history. Well done Alison!

Lastly, to keep up to date on her adventures, follow Alison (& Trooper — her beautiful black lab) on Twitter.

Thank you for reading our post.