Man in the State of Nature

Deep in the recesses of my mind, buried somewhere in between college memories of fraternity basements, cocktail parties, far away ski races, and introductory lectures on Buddhism, lies some rudimentary understanding of the competing theories of man in the state of nature. The great philosophers of the Enlightenment, Voltaire, Rousseau, Locke, even Machiavelli and Calhoun, all began with some premise of what mankind's natural social state would be if left undisturbed. (Undisturbed by what, I do not know. Aliens maybe? That information is lost in my brain somewhere in the shadows cast by too many macroeconomics lectures.). In general, the question the Enlightenment thinkers sought to answer is whether man is by nature a rugged individualist, hunting and gathering for his own welfare and that of his offspring; a hierarchical social being, falling into a rigid structure of division of labor; or a truly social being, doing work for the benefit of all members of an interdependent community. Bear with me here, believe it or not I do have a point to make about the ski business.

The ski business is at its core a people business. Parking attendants, equipment rental staff, ticket sellers and checkers, lifties, baristas, patrollers, everyone contributes to the nature and quality of each guest's experience by the way in which we behave and present ourselves, the way in which we interact with each guest. At Treble Cone, each and every season pass holder, every local, and all of the staff have intense feelings of loyalty and even ownership of the place. At TC we approach guest service with the mindset of being stewards of the mountain itself, with the obligation to care for it, to welcome others, and to share it with them as though it is our own. At Okemo, the nature of the feelings underlying our guest service may differ slightly but the central importance and emphasis on guest service, and the energy and enthusiasm we put into it, is the best in the business. If welcoming Treble Cone devotees is like throwing an open-fire lamb roast in a remote spot open to Zealots only, Okemo is more akin to welcoming good folks and their families to our nice neighborhood for a home-style BBQ. In each case, the end result is the same. In each place, it's about group effort, group commitment, and collective experience. Good service from all corners of a resort provided to guests of every sort is what makes the experience of skiing and riding at the two resorts where I work so valued by our guests, and it is what distinguishes both places from our competition. Yes, the terrain at TC is incomparable. Yes, the grooming, snowmaking and lift systems at Okemo are the best in the business. Yes, those elements are what may bring first-time guests our way. But it's the experiences our guests have while there that really differentiates us in both cases, our service makes them feel differently about their time with us than they would elsewhere. It's as though the resorts articulate their concept of man in the state of nature (how people behave, what they want / need, how they experience their environment) and establishes its ethos of guest service accordingly, making sure the entire staff drinks the Kool-Aid, so to speak.

Management consulting-type platitudes and far-fetched academic analogies aside, developing and maintaining a consistent ethos of service is the essential ingredient of having any successful guest-centered approach to a business. It also makes for a very intense social environment for those of us working in it (that's social as in interactive, not social as in a non-stop Happy Hour). Ski and snowboard instructors, as an aside, have a role unique in that our time with each guest tends to be far longer, far more personal and detailed, and far more interactive with each guest we encounter. An instructor's business is not merely about guest service, it's about guest relationships – our relationships with our guests, with their families, with their love of skiing and riding, and with their enjoyment of being active outdoors in the mountains. It's great but it is very, very intense. Thankfully, now that my Southern Winter season is over and I have a little over a month before the next season begins, I get a good, long break in the action.

If, as in the case of most social theories that generalize human behavior, the reality of man's natural social state is a hybrid of those Enlightenment theories, in this shoulder season I definitely move from being in a state focused on other people to one that clearly is more focused on my needs. It's about me for a change. Actually, it's more about those people for whom I care a great deal in ways beyond mere enjoyment, conscientious teaching and a professional sense of responsibility. Do not misunderstand me: I greatly enjoy working in a guest service business; I derive enormous satisfaction from getting to know my students and other guests and from working to enhance their experience, forging relationships unlike anything else in the resort business. It's just that it's really nice to turn the switch off, to interact with people (or not) on a purely personal level. Novel enough, I even get to be the recipient of guest service from time to time. I eat, sleep, bike, socialize, collect my thoughts, heal my body, rest my mind and remember why I'm here in the first place.

Long before Okemo's November opening, I'll have had enough 'me time' and I'll be ready again to find the joys of working so hard for everyone else's ski experiences. My down-time, my shifting to ruggedly individual hunter gatherer / cyclist / sloth for a while will, I hope, better enable me to devote myself fully to the rest of society when it appears in Ludlow, Vermont en masse for the holiday season. Besides, six weeks without skiing is enough. Bring on the next season!