Catalyst Strategic Consultants

I wrote a while ago about getting involved, getting engaged in the fall.  It’s the natural season for activation after the lazy summer.

I want to tell you about a project I’ve gotten hold of: or rather, it’s got hold of me.  And Bob.  Bob Carrothers from Denver is my partner in crime.

Some may remember Bob as my co-venturer when we walked together 350 km of the pilgrimage trail across northern Spain to Santiago.
Aside from the purpose and serenity of that Very Long Walk, we experimented with pilgrim interviews.
Bob is a Vistage Chair, so, like me, is no slouch at getting people to talk deep early.  Not that it’s hard on the Camino.  Everyone – generally – is so far past the superficial that little effort goes into small talk.  We go straight to the heart.

We found ourselves with two fresh German young professionals nearing  completion of the arduous Norte route.  We started talking.  It occurred to me to turn on the ipad. We were recording the moving stories as they flowed.

Later, sitting at the picnic table in the early June evening warmth with laundry floating over the back garden of our Arzua hotel, four men began to talk about their lives and the unexpected impact this journey was having on them, individually and together.  Bob drawing them out was seeing mastery on the hoof.  We didn’t record that one, but I wish we had.  Hearing people transform in front of your ears.  Magic.

Couples firming up their commitment through shared blisters.  Young women enhancing their conviction to life.  Elders proving they’re not dead yet!

Holding court with grateful soreness on the roiling street in front of the Rua Vilar at our destination, as joyous pilgrims coursed back and forth over the ancient cobbles in the slanting gold sun, we met again many with whom we’d walked – and recorded a few of those.  Still early days, those results.  Affecting, but not ready for prime time.
This got us talking.  Well, scheming.  A plan, tentative at first, but gathering form and substance, hatched.

Fast forward to this Wednesday.  Bob from Denver, me from Calgary, board British Air, meet in London and proceed to Santiago.  In our packs are [or will be!]:

• two video cameras
• tripods and photography accessories
• business cards saying “The Camino Channel”
• Assorted cables, memory cards, batteries and chargers
• microphones
• publication releases
• laptops with extra storage and video editing software

The Camino Channel is on the move!

We’re on our way to do 10 days of interviews.  I promise they’ll be heartfelt, full of adventure and story, and show sides of people who’ve chosen to change their lives through a deep and challenging experience. We intend to sit beside the trail and ask people to share the impact the journey is having.  I know it’ll be good.  I’ve watched Bob open people up and I can do it too.  We’ll have a pisspot of purposeful fun doing it.

Some have asked how we will make money at this.  No plans for that so far.  It’s a labor of love –  done for the pure joy of following through with an idea, a plan.

Many have interesting suggestions:

• interviewing the same people as they start and later after they’ve walked a distance.
• Developing themes.

Good ideas.  Not this time.

The project is at the “proof of concept” stage.  We’re packing our aging heads full of the obtuse science of creating interesting video, capture and production, mic’ing speakers, shooting interviews, posting to YouTube.
And dealing with our anxiety about how all this will be carried off and received once we’re there.
I’m pretty sure it’ll be fine.

I’ll be blogging about this trip.  Dispatches will go to my Travel list subscribers, so if you haven’t received accounts of my past jaunts, the Black Hills most recently, you can hit “reply” to this and Suzan will add you to those who will receive updates.  Otherwise, you won’t be troubled.

And, you can subscribe [Please do!] to The Camino Channel on YouTube.  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCL7j0lHQEiPc9Gr6fGB37kg,  It’s early yet – there’s not much there, some early rough attempts.  But patience!  More will come as fast as we can produce and post them.  And with greater subscriber numbers comes elevated exposure and status on YouTube.  Just search for The Camino Channel and our giddy faces will appear:  Hit Subscribe.

That’s it for now!

To my comrade, Bob, I was moved to write this:

So glad you have answered this call with me.  Really looking forward to the sheer joy and fun of doing this, once all the logistics and material side are more contained.
The most regretful people on earth,” Mary Oliver wrote in her beautiful reflection on the central commitment of the creative life, “are those who felt the call to creative work, who felt their own creative power restive and uprising, and gave to it neither power nor time.”

Bob replied:  Me too,  I look forward to the joy of creating something with you.

The urge is upon us.  And we’re givin’ er!

 

Sincerely,
Doug Bouey
Catalyst Strategic Consultants Ltd.