People who rock

Rebecca Stephens MBE was the first British woman to climb Everest and scale the 7 Summits. And 26 years later, the mountains are still calling...

We talk to Rebecca Stephens, the first British woman to scale Everest

Being the first British woman to climb Everest and complete the 7 Summits has changed my life a lot more than I would have admitted when I first climbed them. Climbing was a hobby really, but people were excited by the idea of the first British woman, and the label has kind of stuck. The fact is that women are just as able to climb Everest as men, but culturally we came to the game much later. I think I was pretty lucky in that it never occurred to me that I couldn’t do something because I was a woman – why would one think that? That moment high on Everest’s south-east ridge, kicking steps in newly-fallen snow, stays with me still.

Sherpas Ang Passang (a pace in front of me) and Tchering Zhambu (a pace behind), not another person in sight. The three of us would succeed together, or fail together – I hadn’t felt a part of such a close-knit team before and haven’t since. The joy of the mountains is they strip away any superficialities, revealing that which matters – namely head, heart, and values. For me personally, Everest served to teach me a lifelong lesson about teamwork – and that has helped me value people and relationships in all aspects of life, including business. Trust is the glue that makes teams amazing. It has led me to write a book, lecture and run a leadership development business. I also lead treks, usually in the Himalayas, but next November I am leading a trek for World Expeditions to the Simien Mountains National Park in Ethiopia.

The mountains there are strikingly beautiful. Dramatic and precipitous with enormous cliffs and escarpments, but not as high as the Himalayas – the highest peak we’ll climb is Ras Dashen at 4533m. Above: Rebecca on Everest at 7100m in 1989. Left: Her next destination – Ethiopia.

The intensity of the shared experience when leading a group is something I rarely come close to in everyday life,

and as well as the beauty of the mountain wildernesses and the wonderful people met along the way, there is the sense of well-being: the simplicity of camping and walking, the freshness of the air and the strengthening of the limbs. I feel fitter and happier than anywhere else.

The South Downs near where I live are my refuge, solace, outdoor gym and daily touch with the Earth and nature.

Mountains are where I head to on family holidays, and I still believe Scotland’s west coast to be the most beautiful place anywhere in the world.

I honestly believe the mountains are the greatest teacher of the human condition,

of leadership and of working together as a team. Looking at work issues through the lens of a mountaineer can really throw light on a situation so that people can resolve their own issues back in the workplace. The mountains offer an extreme and sometimes hostile environment in which we are tested and learn fast, but the human condition is the same wherever we are. It is just the backdrop of the mountains and the office that is different.