This executive trip to China which we call the Survive & Thrive Trip to China Program is designed to build up your entrepreneurial spirit and team-building skills. We will take you on a 4-day trip to Tianmu Mountains (天目山, tiān mù shān), which is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and Biosphere Reserve.
What makes this the ideal destination for you?
Well, it’s a treasure trove of untouched wilderness, giving you a true getaway from city life. Did you know that there are more than 2,000 species of plants that grow on Tianmu Mountain? One of them is the last surviving wild population of Gingko trees, also known as the maidenhair tree, on West Tianmu.
In the vast mountains, you’ll also find giant Japanese cedars, waterfalls, Tianmu tea, bamboo shoots, temples, and nunneries. A famous type of Japanese cedar is the “Giant Tree King,” which can grow to an astonishing 26.5 meters (86 ft 11 in). Tianmu Mountain is also home to hundreds of species of living creatures, 39 of which are listed as endangered or protected species, including the clouded leopard and the black muntjac.
Specifically, we’ll bring you to Lingfeng Mountain Forest Park (灵峰山森林公园, líng fēng shān sēn lín gōng yuán). Lingfeng Mountain is a branch of Tianmu Mountain. It rests 6 kilometers southwest of Anji Country, Zhejiang (安吉, 浙江, ān jí, zhè jiāng). In ancient times, the Lingfeng Scenic Area was also known as “the treasure of geomantic omen” due to the fact that the shape of the mountain resembles a grandmaster chair, emitting a peaceful and stable aura.
Building Trust Without Distractions
The Wilderness Survival for Executives program focuses on Trust, which is broken down into 3 sections.
Impact 1: Trust in Self
You’ll be pushed outside your comfort zone on this trip and do things that you’ve perhaps never done before. The type of self-confidence that this creates is inherently tied to your holistic self-identity than your work persona.
Impact 2: Trust in Teammates
Once you’ve achieved trust in yourself, you can form trust in your teammates. We’ve designed this program to help you create a unifying group identity.
Impact 3: Trust in the Mission
This executive trip to China program ends with a mission session, which should compel you to ask yourself why you do the work you do, your fears and ambitions, how you define success, and what your roadblocks are.
Orientation & Orienteering
After you arrive and check in on day 1 of this executive trip to China, you will participate in an individual storytelling and goal-setting session, which involves free-writing about what led you to this point in your life and writing down 3 things you would like to achieve during this trip. Once you’ve done that, your WildChina trip leader will take you in groups to different locations around the Tianmu Mountain area. You will be given a map, compass, GPS (for safety reasons), snacks, and water. You will use what you have to arrive at a secret meeting location within a limited timeframe.
At dinner, you’ll be able to relax and enjoy a delicious local meal and get to know your fellow participants. You’ll then engage in a reflection session on your day. How did you feel about not having the privileges and tools you’re used to having? You were lost, then you found your way. How does it compare to what you wrote about in your free-writing session?
Reaching New Heights
Bright and early the next morning, you’ll do a morning mindfulness exercise. You’ll be doing this for the rest of your executive trip to China to really learn to start every day anew, leave your worries behind, and stay grounded in the present. After all, this trip is a getaway from your usual routine as an executive.
You’ll embark on a hardship hike to the top of one of the Tianmu Mountain summits and eat packed lunches as you enjoy what you’ve accomplished. Later on in the day, you’ll get a work break to check your email and get any urgent work out of the way to prevent distractions. In the afternoon your WildChina trip leader will give you a budget of 10 RMB per person to shop at a local market and cook your meal outdoors. You’ll get a chance to figure out how to start a fire in a traditional Chinese oven, which is harder than it looks, and use limited utensils to make your own meal.
Once again, you will have some time for a reflection session after dinner. How did the mindfulness skills you learned that morning benefit you during your hike? How did you feel when you were told that you only had 10 RMB to buy groceries? You will be tested in new ways each day on this executive trip to China.
Building a New Home
After another morning mindfulness exercise on day 3 of your executive trip to China, you’ll take a work break. You will then be given limited resources, including rope and tarpaulin, to build a functioning wilderness shelter with your fellow participants. The goal is to create a shelter that your entire team will be able to fit into by sunset. It also has to pass the minimum long-term outdoor survival standards. You’ll have to decide with your teammates what long-term survival means before making decisions such as division of labor, location, structure type, etc. In the middle of your construction project, you’ll get to enjoy a picnic right there in the middle of the forest.
In the afternoon you will take a DISC communication style test. The four main communication styles it denotes are Dominant, Influential, Steady, and Conscientious. Before you get to see your test results, your WildChina leader will have you assess your team members on what you think their style of communication is while you work on your shelter-building project.
That night you’ll have a sumptuous catered dinner including free flow with a local twist. The third reflection session on your executive trip to China invites you to ruminate on your project as well as how well you worked with your teammates. How and why did you assign your teammates to the DISC categories that you did? If a teammate assigned you to a different DISC category than the one you are in, why do you think that is?
Understanding & Commitments
Your last morning mindfulness exercise will be followed by sharing the story you wrote on day one with your fellow participants. You’ll be encouraged to share your fears along with your ambitions in a safe space. As a team, you’ll also discuss what you’ve learned throughout your week and assign accountability statements to each other before your final local meal together.
Survive & Thrive With Us
As one of Asia’s most established educational travel companies, WildChina has led countless life-changing programs for students, executives, and leisure travelers across the world. We’d love to take you on this journey of self-discovery. If this sounds like a trip you’d benefit from, feel free to reach out to us via phone or email. We’d be happy to answer any questions you have. We could also discuss other executive trips to China programs to find the right fit for you.
Sources: A Survive & Thrive Trip to China for Executives
- Executives Survive & Thrive Program CHN & ENG_pitch pack.pdf
- https://www.womenofchina.cn/womenofchina/html1/In-depth/exclusives/2204/3443-1.htm
