Karly Rager is a structural engineer turned climbing coach, and the founder of Project Direct Coaching. We talked about Karly’s background and what led her to start her own coaching business, being a female in two male-dominated industries, mental strategies for developing focus and overcoming fear, transitioning between climbing disciplines, using injuries as opportunities, cultivating longevity in our climbing, valuing coaches more highly, and much more.
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Show Notes:
thenuggetclimbing.com/episodes/karly-rager
Nuggets:
0:06:11 – Literature, poetry, and public speaking
0:10:07 – Engineering school, and rediscovering art
0:11:37 – Karly’s background, studying engineering and working as a structural engineer, and discovering climbing
0:15:48 – How climbing connects with the engineering and the artistic parts of the brain
0:19:11 – Mentoring friends, and becoming a climbing coach
0:21:52 – Mental strategies for developing focus, and being an observer of your own mind
0:25:53 – Making mental training measurable, and mindfulness practice
0:28:31 – Starting her coaching business (Project Direct), and figuring out which lever to pull
0:31:58 – Developing skills, emersion, and learning vs. performing
0:36:41 – The “Trenches of Transition”, and my (Steven’s) transition from Smith Rock to steep cave climbing
0:39:26 – Having different grade pyramids for different styles of climbing
0:43:51 – Karly’s 4 Pillars, and questions to ask yourself if you are considering getting a coach
0:48:24 – How to get initial coaching experience, Karly’s leap from engineering to coaching, and recommended certifications for climbing coaches
0:53:43 – Stacking her resume, and being female in a male-dominated engineering world
0:58:23 – Being scrutinized as a female climbing coach, standing up for herself, and letting her guard down
1:01:49 – Using respectful language, and Karly’s tip of pretending your email is addressed to a male recipient
1:07:18 – Setbacks in climbing, breaking her leg, and the finite number of tears we have to cry
1:14:30 – My (Steven’s) first finger injury, and the wisdom I got from my roommate
1:17:45 – Using injuries as an opportunity
1:22:47 – My (Steven’s) favorite climbing areas right now, and favorite crags in St. George, UT
1:26:45 – New rock types take time
1:33:01 – Trying to onsight ‘The Rainbow Wall’
1:40:41 – Placing more value on ourselves as climbers and coaches, and being paid based on the scarcity of our skills
1:48:12 – How we value overworking in western society, and why we should be encouraged (and paid well) to do work we enjoy
1:52:56 – Karly’s “zone of genius”
1:54:51 – Cultivating longevity
1:59:36 – The eye contact drill
2:01:50 – Give each skill 8-10 weeks of focus
2:02:35 – Our body’s ability to remember skills and movements
2:04:51 – Different learning styles, using imagery, and using video as a tool
2:12:22 – Karly’s strategies for keeping her coaching businesses sustainable, having set days for specific tasks, and taking time off
2:20:13 – Making coaching more accessible while paying coaches well, and other ways to pay it forward
2:28:00 – Being a mentor and a mentee
2:30:33 – How Karly is currently being a mentee
2:33:46 – Karly’s hope for the climbing industry
EP 225: Steven Gets His Dream Home Wall! | ft. Tony Bell and David Bress, Founders of Revival Climbing Coalition
EP 224: Jana Švecová — Pushing the Limits of Female Bouldering, Finding Silver Linings When Injured, and Chasing a Lifetime Goal
EP 223: Aidan Roberts — Navigating Pro Climbing, Establishing His Two Hardest Boulders, and Glimpsing Mastery
EP 222: Paul Houghoughi — How to Bulletproof Your Knees, Strengthen Your Shoulders, and Maintain a Happy Neck
EXTRA: Keenan Takahashi — Mustache Q&A, Highballing Near Misses, and Japanese Climbing Culture
EP 221: Keenan Takahashi — ‘The Gold Standard’, Learning From Limit Moves, and the Origin Story of ANTIGRAV
EP 220: Alannah Yip (Olympian) — Alopecia, Finding Power Beyond Hair Loss, and Her Fight Against Disordered Eating
EP 219: Fitz Cahall (The Dirtbag Diaries, Climbing Gold) — A Lifetime of Storytelling, Taking Authorship of Your Time, and Being Pro But Not Fancy
EP 218: Mat Wright — Sending One of the World's Hardest Trad Climbs, 'Rhapsody' E11
EP 217: A Masterclass in Relieving Stress, Sleeping Better, & Improving Focus Using Self-Hypnosis — Dr. David Spiegel (Stanford Psychiatrist)
EXTRA: Maddy Cope — A Masterclass in Endurance Training
EP 216: Maddy Cope — Erase Your Bucket List, Embrace Discomfort, and Discover the Joy of Missing Out
EP 215: Nathan Williams — Lessons From 100+ Days on a V17, the Simplest Way to Get Strong Fingers, and Static Shenanigans
EP 214: How to Find Contentment in Your Climbing, Banish Shame, and Send Harder Than Ever — Neely Quinn (TrainingBeta, Life Coach)
EP 213: Simon Lorenzi — Three V17s, the Fascinating Story Behind ‘Soudain Seul’, and Dream V18 Projects
EP 212: Filmmaker Carlos Mason on Creating SENDING — A Look Behind the Scenes at One of My Favorite Climbing Films
EP 211: Davis Ngo (dr.climb) — Blowing Up on Instagram, Why Pro Climbers Deserve to Get Paid, and Overcoming Fear After Injury
EP 210: Stefano Ghisolfi — Chasing the Impossible, Using Humor to Send, and Two Drills for Legendary Endurance
EP 209: Graham Zimmerman — Going to the Mountains to Learn, the 100-Year Plan, and Imperfect Advocacy
EP 208: Jesse Grupper — Optimistic Training, Last Place to Olympian, and Leveling Up His Bouldering
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