Methodically facing big challenges
There is a legendary rock climb named “Epinephrine” in the Nevada desert, just outside of Las Vegas. It has earned this status for a variety of reasons; the quality of the rock is exceptional, the difficulty is moderate, the location is stunning, and it scales the entirety of the varnished, 2,000+ foot wall deep in Black Velvet Canyon. Adding to its illustrious history, the seemingly modest difficulty of the climb lures countless underprepared climbers to test their mettle, often with sub-optimal results. The unique style of the climbing (with nearly 600 feet of it inside a deep chimney that requires you to press your feet on one wall and your back on the other), the length of the route, and the difficulty in finding the descent route, has led to countless parties spending an unplanned night in the high desert.
The key to efficiently completing long rock climbs (and not spending unplanned nights out, or worse) is to break it down into a series of problems to be solved sequentially and then to solve each of those problems in turn. As a leader on a climb, you are concomitantly solving two types of problems — upward movement and technical systems to protect yourself and your partner. An abundance of information (known colloquially as “beta” in the climbing world — because climbers in the 1980’s began recording themselves using Betamax format video cameras) can be found about this particular route, but until your feet leave the sandy creek bed, it remains theoretical (to you). And even with the volume of publicly available information, uncertainty remains. To complete the objective, you have to be willing to move upward in the face of uncertainty, using accumulated skills and good judgement. As you move into the terrain, your focus narrows to the immediate task at hand — where is my next handhold, my next foothold, my next gear placement, how much gear do I have left to reach the anchor (where you reset and start the process all over again). If you solve enough problems at a sufficient pace, you get to the summit of Whiskey Peak and then begin the next challenge of navigating the descent back to the trailhead.
Successful development and commercialization of biotechnology products are achievable if you take the same approach. The objective is defined and there is plenty of information to assist in planning, but it remains theoretical (and daunting) until you begin upward movement. It should be viewed as a series of problems to be solved, each addressed using sound scientific principles and good judgement. The resolution of each sequential problem moves you closer to achieving the objective. If you solve enough problems at a sufficient pace, you get to reach the summit and begin the next challenge.
The mantra was perhaps best articulated by the character of Mark Watney in the 2015 film The Martian:
“At some point, everything’s gonna go south on you and you’re going to say, this is it. This is how I end. Now you can either accept that, or you can get to work. That’s all it is. You just begin. You do the math. You solve one problem and you solve the next one, and then the next. And if you solve enough problems, you get to come home.”
