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Are you the type of person who wants to be 'rich' in life values? There are two invaluable lessons ​​in life that guide me to feel like a complete human being: intelligence and wisdom.

Intelligence can be taught through education and experience.; but what is intelligence without wisdom? 

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In this piece, I will share how I find 'wisdom' in my life, which makes my life principles firm, and how I find it in every trail that I visit. 

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Riza Annisa Anggraeni is an Indonesian Mountaineer who has hiked 4 of the 7 Summits of Indonesia. She has been an ambassador for the World Trails Network since 2022, and this year she was selected as a member of the Mountain Youth Hub, the UN partnership program to achieve sustainable development around the mountain regions. 

1. Embrace the mountains and the valleys.

One way humans find fulfillment is life is with a goal: what we want to achieve in a certain moment. In determining a goal in life, one must measure one's own capacity and abilities. For this reason, we should be honest with ourselves first about what can be achieved and what cannot. 

Have you ever failed to achieve what you want? What makes it fail? Is it because of the existence of other people, or is it because of other things that are delaying the achievement of your goals?

Pursuing goals and achieving dreams is not easy. Imagine that the goal is a 'mountain', and the stages that must be passed to reach that goal are 'valleys' or 'hills'. This analogy reassures me that nothing is instant in this world, especially when achieving life goals.

There is a reason that makes me analogize mountain trails - not beaches, nor educational degrees or career milestones - to achieving life goals in the process of my search for the value of 'wisdom'. 

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The stages of hiking a mountain in Indonesia begin from the jungle gate to post 1, then to post 2, until the final post to reach the peak, which have different levels of difficulties. Steep routes especially are challenging, and I’ve often slipped and fallen on many large rocks. A route full of challenges may be difficult, but I love myself when I can get through it all with my own hands and feet.

A better life will not be achieved monotonously and without challenges; there are rocks and steep paths that must be traversed.

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This analogy also helped me understand that my goals were flexible. What makes me wise is the 'process' of achieving my goals and how I proceed from time to time in achieving those goals.

Winning or losing doesn’t exist in mountaineering. Mountains are not a place for competition, either between fellow hikers, or to conquer the mountain itself. Humans don’t have to compete to achieve their life goals and feel fulfilled. 

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Sometimes, we think we have selected the right mountain and chosen the right path, but at last, we fail.

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Navigating failure or conflict requires patience and wisdom in decision-making. 

Failure to reach the top of the mountain can occur due to the arrival of a storm, bad weather, or any obstacles like when a hiking partner suddenly becomes ill on the way to the top. Nowadays hikers usually have to be prepared to sacrifice a plan for the safety of themselves or others. 

2. Determine focus and priorities in achieving life goals.

Humans were not created to balance all things equally. Some things require more focus and intensity to make them happen.

To climb mountains, there is a consistency and commitment that must be firmly embraced at all times. 

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A mountain range can only be called so if it has valleys and hills; likewise, life goals can become achievements if they undergo a process. So, you can be sure that with every fatigue, despair, and obstacle you encounter, it will definitely get harder; but it shows that you are getting closer to the point of achievement you want to reach.

Or, maybe you will find another mountain after the hills you have passed?

We never know, if there is another brilliant opportunity waiting for us, right? That’s where wisdom and well-placed faith comes in. 

3. Learn from the consequences of your actions: positive and negative.

Have you ever regretted something about a decision you have taken? Have you ever thought, "If only, if I didn't do this, it wouldn't be this complicated."

Do nothing in haste. This is a principle that I often embed deeply in every decision I make.

Rushing will not bring efficacy, but enjoying the process will make us more grateful.

When hiking a mountain, every hiker must tread very carefully. If we slip, it could lead us into the abyss. For this reason, there are many cases of hikers going missing, being found dead, or even not being found at all, their bodies disappearing silently into the mountain.

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Every mountain always has a different trail route or path. For example, Mount Cikuray, as the roof of West Java, has four trail routes, namely via Cikajang, via Pemancar, via Pangiang Village, and finally via Bayongbong. Whichever route you choose will take hikers to one peak. There may be different points, but they are not much different between each peak.

Similar to life goals, in the first step, we may be presented with various options for achieving life goals.

Think about the options you will take in the future, which you might be able to accomplish and persevere with. Identify and try to be critical of yourself.

Like in the mountain, the closer you get to the peak, the narrower the available path. Hikers must be increasingly critical in each step, so as not to injure themselves or other hikers. Remember that the higher you go, the narrower the options presented. And, believe that only your commitment and consistency in choosing this path will be able to bring you to the point that you hope for.

4. Keep fighting!

Despair cannot be avoided.  It is a phenomenon and definitely happens on every hike, especially if you are running out of energy, and the days are getting darker and colder, so sometimes the plans that should have been neatly prepared turn out not to be as expected.

Making the decision to keep going even when things don't allow it is naive. It is naive but not infrequently many hikers still do it. The result is certainly bad; either the other hiking partner is exhausted, or experiencing hypothermia. 

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Do you realize that taking a rest doesn't mean that you stop fighting?

Taking a short break does not mean that you stop fighting, but rather a process of reflecting on every step you have taken and what you will do next.

It is the process of reflecting on mistakes and being optimistic about new steps. The process of seeing where we lack and how we can achieve our goals with those shortcomings.

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Because deficiencies cannot be changed, we can only complement them with a mindset that is changed according to the conditions that allow it at that time. This is what is called being flexible. Being flexible is a pearl for every human being, because this is when we are invited to change and accept it that comes into our life.

Believe that change is also an invitation to let go.

Let go of our selfishness and accept change in finding new doors to explore more deeply our true identity.

5. Enjoy the simple things

In 2016, my third mountain was Mount Semeru, the roof of Java Island. I was asked by the other hikers I met at Ranu Kumbolo before the jungle gate. At that time I was with my brother and his friend. 

"What are you looking for going up the mountain?" asked another hiker we met.

My brother answered, "The Top", then his friend answered "Go home safely."

I then answered, “The process. The journey.”

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Maybe some people don't think the same as me. I enjoy everything I find on the hiking trail, from animate things to inanimate objects; such as birds chirping, greetings from other hikers, “warung” by local residents, the sound of water sources, gusts of wind, and help from tree roots on steep paths.

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"Thank you Roots," I said every time a strand of root was able to help me through a fairly steep path. 

I enjoyed it, and I am very grateful for every part of the process.

Thus, in the process of achieving life, enjoy all the processes, fast or slow, of course nothing will be detrimental. Believe that all the steps we take in this life are certainly valuable and have a meaning behind. As long as you believe in your own abilities, and never complain about your own shortcomings, let alone blame others.

Because, in the end, even though you can reach the goal you have set, what you will remember is only the experience you went through to climb the mountain.

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——— End.