Christopher went on his first D of E hike this weekend.

Getting him kitted out for it was a powerful reminder of how far hiking has come in the last 30 years.

You see, I did Silver and Gold D of E, in Cyprus and the UK. I walked a lot of miles.

A lot.

Most of the time I wished that I was carrying less weight. My pack was SO heavy.

So when it was Christopher’s go, I was determined to minimise weight.

But guess what? As a 14 year old teenager he knew better!

So the new walking boots I bought him 3 weeks before the walk? No need to walk them in Mum, they’ll be fine. I won’t get blisters, I know I won’t.

Lightweight sleeping bag (as ours were bought for warmth not weight)? No need, I am strong enough to carry it.

Hiking water bottle? No need, let me take my trendy but heavy insulated water bottle that I take to school everyday. It’ll be fine.

I overruled his objections, bought lightweight stuff anyway, and he had a successful hike.

But it got me thinking about how this applies to business.

What software and processes are you still using that are more “weighty” than they need to be nowadays?

Have you embraced the new, or should you be looking around your business and dragging it into 2018, with all of the new tech and innovations that can make our lives easier and more productive.

What weight could you remove from the business (and I don’t just mean staff!)?

P.S. And of course there was no acknowledgement of me being right about the weight!