Everyone in Valea knew where success lived.
Above the clouds.
Their grandparents had needed to reach the first ridge.
Their parents climbed to the second.
Then schools improved.
More children learned to climb.
Soon thousands reached the second ridge.
The people at the summit became worried.
“If everyone reaches us,” one said, “how will anyone know this is the summit?”
So they built another mountain on top.
The new climb required special equipment.
Families bought ropes.
Tutors taught children how to climb efficiently.
Wealthier families purchased houses halfway up.
Poor families started from the valley as before.
Still, people climbed.
Eventually the new summit became crowded too.
So another peak was constructed.
Then another.
A young woman named Aven spent twenty six years climbing.
Nobody in her family had ever passed the second ridge.
Aven reached the fifth.
She expected celebration.
Instead she found builders.
They were constructing Peak Six.
Aven approached the foreman.
“Why?”
“Too many people reached Peak Five.”
“Isn’t that good?”
The foreman laughed.
“If everyone can reach it, it cannot demonstrate excellence.”
Aven looked down.
Thousands were climbing.
Some carried children.
Some carried debt.
Some had guides.
Some had servants carrying their equipment.
“What happens when everyone reaches Peak Six?”
“We build Seven.”
“When do we arrive?”
The foreman finally looked at her.
“When fewer people can.”
Aven descended.
People thought she had failed.
She did something nobody expected.
She opened a workshop in the valley.
Applicants did not need climbing certificates.
They had to demonstrate that they could do the work.
The workshop became successful.
Other businesses copied it.
The mountain remained.
People still climbed.
Some genuinely loved climbing.
But a new question appeared throughout Valea:
Are we climbing because the view is valuable, or because height has become valuable only when somebody else remains below?
How Much Is Enough?
You are hiring one person. Your task is simple. Decide what somebody must prove before you will consider them good enough.
Community Project Coordinator
Organise projects, communicate with people, solve practical problems and keep work moving.
What should applicants need?
Start with a basic qualification relevant to the work.
Basic qualification required.
Seventy two applicants still qualify.
That is a lot of people to compare.
Advanced qualification added.
The candidate pool looks more selective.
But perhaps qualifications alone do not distinguish excellence.
Prestigious training added.
Now the shortlist feels exceptional.
Eighteen applicants remain.
Unpaid experience added.
Nine applicants remain.
The summit is becoming easier to see.
Special certification added.
The summit is beautifully exclusive.
Almost everyone else is below it.
Their ability did not necessarily decrease.
Every additional requirement made the successful candidate look more exceptional.
It also made access to the summit dependent on an increasingly specific collection of opportunities, credentials, time and resources.
A higher summit does not necessarily produce a more capable person. Sometimes it simply produces fewer people who are permitted to stand there.
