Meet Elisabeth Barton

We were lucky to catch up with Elisabeth Barton recently and have shared our conversation below.

Elisabeth, first a big thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts and insights with us today. I’m sure many of our readers will benefit from your wisdom, and one of the areas where we think your insight might be most helpful is related to imposter syndrome. Imposter syndrome is holding so many people back from reaching their true and highest potential so we’d love to hear about your journey and how you overcame imposter syndrome.

Oh man, this is probably the hardest question to answer, but is the most important part of my professional discovery.

So, for context, I am a loud and gregarious female who has an opinion on or a solution for everything! I have also worked for 25 years or so to not be a loud and gregarious female who has an opinion on or a solution for everything. Instead, I wanted to be a mindful listener who allowed everyone in the room an opportunity to exercise their ideas before I gently aided the group into a consensus. That is how I pictured a successful manager and so I worked tirelessly to become that. If I didn’t live up to my exceptions then I would beat myself up for being too stern or too excitable.

Early last year I went to this workshop offered by the UC Davis Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship and noticed something different about the speakers. They were big talkers who would interrupt the interviewer and would stand up to emphasize a point. They used wild hand gestures and could throw their excitement into a completely different gear without provocation. They were loud, creative, and unapologetic; it was beautiful!

From that day on, I have stopped trying to mold myself into a “manager”, because I am an entrepreneur, a creative problem solver, an excitable innovator. When I look at myself that way, I don’t have to apologize and I don’t need to change.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself.

I moved to the Sierra in 2009 as the Director of Recreation for a major resort. I became enamored with the industry, but I quickly found that it was not a sustainable career. The vast majority of these guide services or recreation programs across the US are seasonal and they are made of predominately white men and women in their 20s. Once these kiddos start thinking about buying a home or having a family, they leave and find a real job. Eventually, at 35, I found myself in that same category and realized the only hope I had to stay in this industry was through a corporate job with Aramark or Veil Resorts.

Instead of finding a real job, I found others in the industry who were as fed up with the exploitation and lack of diversity. In 2016 we formed Echo Adventure Cooperative, a worker-owned guide service. This was incredibly successful until 2020 when the grand opening for our retail and hospitality expansion was cancelled due to a mysterious illness. We barely made it through the pandemic, and in the years that followed, we experienced mudslides, fires, government shutdowns, a massive increase in guide fees, and road closures. Each time we would pivot, and each time we would reopen with less staff and less capital.

Early in 2022, I leaned back in desperation and whispered, “It’s not supposed to be this hard”. My husband overheard me and encouraged me to either let Echo Adventures go or find the solution. “Stop treading water”, he said, “Either dive in or get out and dry off.”

I took that advice and in March 2024, I will graduate from UC Davis with my MBA. I am looking forward to the next chapter of Echo Adventure Cooperative and our newest venture the Yosemite Basecamp!

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

– Don’t be afraid of the outcome. Be mindful, of course, but never afraid. Even if you fail, which you must, you’ll gain 40x more from that failure than you will from any success.

– If it doesn’t serve the greater goal, get rid of it! That goes for employees, procedures, and ideas. Learn to fire, learn to pivot, learn to rebuild. You and your ideas will be better and stronger if you do.

This last one is not for everyone but may be particularly important for women or minorities and those in the LGTBQ community.

– Don’t try to be someone that you are not. If and when we try to wear a white male persona, we overlook our strengths and don’t thoughtfully address our own weaknesses.

One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?

Black and indigenous adventurers! Hands down, no question!

There is a huge disparity in the outdoor industry and the only way to correct it is through black and indigenous ownership and minority-led initiatives. This is one of the reasons we created Echo Adventures and we are excited to see a day with new leadership, new stakeholders, and new perspectives!

Contact Info:

Suggest a Story: BoldJourney is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
Productivity
Beating Burnout

Often the key to having massive impact is the ability to keep going when others

Leadership Development
Where does your generosity come from?

Over the years, we have consistently been blown away by the examples of generosity we’ve

Productivity
From Burnout to Balance: The Role of Self-Care

Burning out is one of the primary risks you face as you work towards your