Whilst in Alaska, Shepherd works at one of the most successful racing sled dog kennels. She cares for 60 dogs, cleans out their poo in the yard and trains the young puppies. During those three months she spends in Alaska, it is winter there, a hostile environment with temperatures up to minus 50 degrees and only three hours of daylight a day.
"Life still has to go on at 50 below, you just have to do things a little bit differently. That was probably the biggest learning curve for me. How to deal with three hours of daylight at 40 below", she told the New Zealand website.
After each visit she applies ideas she has learnt from the dogs into teaching humans and every year she acquires new lessons from the animals. The workshops that Shepherd has developed are based on the sled dogs’ behaviour and how humans can learn to be better leaders from them.
Her business Sled Dog Life Lessons uses examples of how the dogs naturally work together as a team and do that without thinking about it. “Latest science tells us our brains become more active and ‘alive’ when telling or hearing stories,” Moira Sheperd writes on her website. That’s why she uses story-based presentations that illustrate the leadership and teamwork model she wants to convey.
Here are two interesting lessons that can be learnt from the dogs.
- Sled dogs have an older dog running with a young dog and the older dog is teaching the younger dog how to do it. "In one particular instance we had a very young dog in her first race, running with a very, very experienced dog. The going was getting a bit tough and the little one was a bit worried and you noticed the older one would just reach over and bop noses with her, kind of like saying 'You're OK, it's fine, I'm here'. This translates to mentoring which is a great way of educating the young leaders of tomorrow.
- Sled dogs always pull in the same direction if they want to achieve their goals.This translates into how a leader of a human team needs to be able to trust their staff to get on with their job until they need support.
Find full reports here:
Inglewood woman teaches people to be more like Alaskan sled dogs
Sled Dog Life Lessons
Sled Dog Life Lessons - Nz on facebook