Elias Torres

One Step at a Time

By 29029 Everesting

February 14^th, 2020

Uplifting

Standing on the start line at 29029, I had a single thought.

One step at a time.

I wanted to do one climb to see how it felt. I wanted to see what I could do for myself and knew that I had nothing to prove. The first summit was hard, but it gave me confidence.

You see, I'm a tech guy -- I don't do sports! Years ago, I did a couch to 5km race, and that is the extent of my endurance sports history. So the thought of climbing the equivalent of Mt Everest was crazy to me. Before the start, I looked around, I saw ultra-marathoners, I saw people who had spent months training for 29029. And I was a little intimidated.

Then I remembered. One step at a time. You versus you.

As I made my way up the mountain, those faces I saw next to me became people. People with real stories and feelings and fears, just like me. I met people with backgrounds and experiences that are very different from my own. And they shared with me and encouraged me, I couldn't help but feel like I was a part of something special.

When I did the 5km race in the past, everyone focused on themselves and their own times. It was different at 29029, everyone was helping each other. The coaches, staff, and other participants were an incredible resource, offering feedback and support throughout the weekend. It's anti-competitive and an uplifting community.

The American Dream

I'm a first-generation immigrant from Nicaragua. I came to this country to pursue the American dream. Nicaragua is a very poor, third world country. It was a tough place to grow up.

For me, the American dream meant that someday I would have a job. That I could pay for my own place to live, to have a car, and a TV. We started from the bottom. We lived in subsidized housing, on food stamps. It was hard.

I earned my way into college and developed a real affinity for computers. I studied business with a focus on computing and knew they'd play an essential role in the future. After some internships, I ended up working for IBM. I was there for 10 years! My American Dream had become a reality.

And yet, I wasn't quite satisfied.

Entreprenuership

I was at an interesting point in my life. Over time, I realized that my dream was never about money. Of course, we all need to cover the basics, but for me, my drive came from wanting to have an impact. I wanted to be around people who made a difference, and were passionate. I had a need to work alongside people who were working towards a clear mission.

So in 2008, I quit my salaried position at IBM to jump into the startup world. My wife and I had just had our third child, so it wasn't an easy choice to make!

My co-founder at Drift, David Cancel, and I started building a business together. He's been an amazing mentor and coach to me along this journey. He's taught me to apply technical skills to business. And how to build a product that people need, that they're willing to pay for, in a scalable way.

David and I have worked on four companies together, and we've learned a ton along the way. I guess you could now say I'm a tech entrepreneur.

Drift

Our latest company is Drift. It's a conversational marketing company. We focus on the buyer experience for B2B companies. It is so cumbersome for companies to buy from each other. You go to a website, and usually the only way to connect with them is through a contact form. It's slow, prone to having your request fall through the cracks, and quite often, you never hear from anyone. We've created a new category, designed to educate businesses to become more conversational. And to be more accessible to their customers.

As a consumer, you can do business, ask questions, and transact in a frictionless environment. Think about a company like Airbnb. I can use my app to book a stay, ask questions of the owner, and buy with ease. That's the type of experience we're creating at Drift.

David and I have been working together for 10 years in this space, looking at mega-trends. We're building something new, and we know that we have a long way to go. This is a problem that will take 100 years to solve, and that is what excites me. While we are in the infancy, we've seen tremendous growth, in first three years over 50,000 businesses have started using Drift. It's an exciting time.

People first

A friend and fellow 29029 participant, Scott MacGregor, has a saying. People over everything. That's an approach we focus on at Drift. It's a realization that not everyone works in the same way, and you need different voices around the table. We've learned this the hard way and now see the importance of focusing on the people within our business.

Personally, I need to verbalize ideas and bring them to life outside of my brain. I have to talk! I talk about a problem in one meeting and then brainstorm with a different group in the next conversation. It helps me to clarify and evolve ideas.

We also focus on coaching - not just talking to a coach over the phone, but really involving them in our work. At first, it was tough to give up the perfect act. When someone is in the room watching you and taking notes, it's a new feeling. It's a great addition to our workplace. It allows me to receive real feedback from the coaches and from my colleagues. It's not only helped me. It's helped shape and foster our culture, which is one that I am very proud of you. Growing a business is hard, going from 2 people to 50 to 300. It's essential to focus on ensuring we develop our people. Grow the company and continue to deliver value to the customer.

I'm coming back

"Just turn right."

When Jesse said that at the beginning of the day, it resonated with me. It reminded me of my entrepreneurial experience, in that you have to find a way to keep moving. I was not prepared enough to reach 17 summits, but I was proud of what I was able to achieve. It was such an encouraging environment that I lifted to another level.

I felt accomplished by reaching one summit, then I went and did it again. Came down, turned right, and did it again. I pushed, and I did more than I've ever done before.

I was thrilled to reach Kosciuszko - the first cross on my bib. Over time, my lack of preparation started to surface, I felt so much pain in my knee. And by the time I got to 5 summits, I had to stop. I am proud of getting that far, but I've been thinking about it ever since.

What if I'd done one more? Or tried a night hike? What could I achieve with more focus on the training? Maybe 17 summits isn't possible on the second try, but perhaps the third? I've set new goals for myself, and I want to continue to develop my physical wellbeing.

One thing is for sure, I will be back. It's such a unique event. I don't know if there's anything in the world quite like it. It's 100% worth it, the 29029 team is so professional and well organized. And I know for a fact that I would have never been able to achieve what I did, on my own. The support and community allow you to do more than you ever thought possible. It's an amazing experience, and next time I'll train a little beforehand!