On a random tweet today, someone was asking what to look for in a climbing partner. I think that’s a fantastic question. I think climbing is a great analogy for life (hence our name Redpoint) and the qualities of your belay partner are the same qualities you’d look for in any relationship… trust, dependability, familiarity and enthusiasm. Let’s look at each of these qualities a little closer.
Trust
Before I even head out to the cliffs, I need to have a level of trust and rapport established with my partner. If I even have the slightest inkling that I’ve made a potentially bad choice of a partner I’m not going to tie the knot to my harness. The same goes for Redpoint. We’re not going to tie our “rope” to just anyone off the street and we don’t expect our clients to either. It’s very important our clients understand our level of commitment and likewise we understand their level of commitment to us.
Dependability
Once the trust is established and the climbing begins I need to know my partner is going to catch me… every time. Are they going to be distracted with everything else that’s going on? Was the rope they brought properly stored? Can I really depend on this person devoting all of their attention and energy to me? …especially when things get hairy? Every client is important to us and deserves our full attention… every time.
Familiarity
Now things are moving at this point. I’m making progress. I’m feeling comfortable and the last thing on my mind is my partner not catching me during a fall. Over time my partner starts to understand my climbing style and can begin to predict my next move. They know what moves I’m confident in and which ones they need to hold the rope a little tighter on. Unfortunately this trait takes time to develop but when it does the dividends are endless. Every client has a style and we strive to recognize and embrace it early in the process.
Enthusiasm
Lastly is enthusiasm… the fun part. At this point all is good and I’m contemplating a giant dynamic move. Should I go for it or not? What if I miss? If I’ve properly chosen my partner they’re going to push me to be better and to take chances when it’s safe to do so. We see this a lot in design. We know when it’s time to push a little bit and take some chances with our client’s designs. As long as we’ve established trust, dependability and familiarity with our clients more often than not are going to jump for it! And more often than not they’ll reap the rewards.
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