Be a Dig Deep Team Leader - "You could never regret it!"
Updated: Sep 19, 2023
This blog post was written by Ashleigh Key, former Dig Deep Team Leader for Team Bath. To apply to be a Team Leader like Ashleigh click here.
When I first applied for the Team Leader role for the Dig Deep Kilimanjaro challenge, I never could have imagined just how much it would impact my life.
I decided to take it on as a personal challenge, not only conquering the largest free-standing mountain in the world, but also juggling this important role around my many other commitments at Bath Spa University. But I loved it.
It helped me get my life in balance, helped me learn prioritisation, time management, organisation, planning in advance etc. This is just the one piece of a much larger picture.
The Team Leader role also gives you the responsibility of recruiting people like yourselves to climb the mountain with you. Then, once you have that team of willing adventurers, you need to be their point of call, the calmness to their erratic and fearful thoughts, their motivator and mentor through their fundraising struggles.
If you are interested in following in Ashleigh's footsteps by becoming a Team Leader, apply by clicking here.
What I loved most about my Team Leader role is that I got to know each one of my team members individually, building that friendship and trust, before sitting back and just witnessing how your team, day by day, gets closer, stronger and develops a true, life-long friendship. You can look back and review how well you did at the role, or how you could have improved, but I won’t do that. I wouldn’t change my journey with my team for anything. We all built a really strong connection and have made true friends within one another for life.
Following the end of my Kilimanjaro adventure, I reflected on my experience and where I wanted it to take me. I can honestly say that the experience of being a Team Leader helped me get the job the job that I am in today.
After graduating I became a Fundraising Volunteer Coordinator for a local charity in Birmingham. I manage a team of over 150 volunteers and support them, recruit new volunteers, design, plan and deliver my own fundraising campaigns and so much more. I love my job. I remember from my interview, when my now manager was asking me about my experiences that can demonstrate, X, Y and Z. I used examples of different experiences I had during my Team Leader role for Dig Deep. And now I have the job and am absolutely loving it.
I could not praise Dig Deep enough for the support they gave me during my time as Team Leader and I encourage anyone considering this role to take it before it’s too late! You could never regret it!
If you would like to become a Volunteer Team Leader for an upcoming challenge then head to www.climbforcleanwater.org/leadateam to apply.