Hiking my way out of labels on a trail to the true me

During my solo hikes and ventures into the wild, I have excavated deep within myself - step by step and layer by layer - to understand, let go of, and evolve the labels I use to articulate my identity.

Recognizing the person you knew ten years ago isn't who you are now and who you won't be in a decade.

While hiking through the snow to Bear Peak in Colorado this spring, I thought about how constraining labels can be. When we release narrowly defined labels and instead articulate our underlying values and beliefs, we free ourselves to move through a world of possibility.

For over a decade, I labeled myself a "runner." Almost all of my outdoor activities and exercise were running in some form. I didn't carve out time for hiking (too slow) or other activities because I'd have to trade off running. Running was my identity. Freedom and expansive thought came as I stepped into the mindset of being "an explorer." I love to experience the natural world, see awe-inspiring vistas, and test the limits of what I can do through evolving pathways.

The shift from being "a runner" to "an explorer" expanded my outlook, and I didn't even realize it until recently. Across the seasons, I still snowshoed, skied, went to the gym, ran, hiked, and cycled as forms of exploration. By articulating that all-encompassing, broader mindset, I freed myself to evolve through the many ways one can embody it.

And it's been beautiful to experience.

Other labels have confined me in the past. Through mental exploration, I asked myself, "What does it mean to be a man? What does it mean to be human?"

What happens if we imagine who we could become before expectations were imposed and our possibilities limited? Before, we felt like we had to "cover" parts of ourselves byhiding, filtering, or maskingto be accepted, valued, and respected.

I've done much to reflect on my journey and uncover my queerness, joy, and voice. I've worked piece by piece and adventure by adventure to make visible the hidden parts of myself. I've asked myself, if I leave the labels behind, what is left?

Or rather, what can I become?!

This past year brought much clarity. I meditated to understand our interconnectedness and my role within it. I explored the intersection of the physical and the awe-inspiring. I found fertile ground for growth in asking questions and entering the unknown.

Through this ongoing process, I finally released another one of the labels that constricted me. What is it to be a "man," I asked again.

There are as many definitions of gender as there are people on this planet. If I span the masculine and feminine and everything beyond, is that a label I believe in or claim for myself?

Finally, during a hike in the wilderness, the answer came forward quietly yet firmly.

No, for I am human. That encompasses it all.

These revelations, this synthesis, are like delving into the filing cabinets of my mind and pulling out dusty files labeled "man" and "runner." I opened them to find that the contents were outdated and based on faulty research, with pages of contradicting edits in pencil and red ink. I slid them into the recycling bin, creating space for new files and new mindsets to fill that void.

At each turn along life's many trails, remember to dream expansively and take ambitious steps forward. Remember that your very presence shifts spaces, energy, and minds. Know that transformation is possible and can be experienced everywhere we go—if only we are open to it.

Josh Miller, MBA is a queer changemaker, public speaker, photographer, and outdoor explorer. Described as a "force in our community,” they co-founded IDEAS xLab and (Un)Known Project, and were honored with the 2022 Nonprofit Visionary Leader Award from Louisville Business First and featured in Business Equality Magazine’s Forty LGBTQ+ Leaders under 40 and Louisville Business First's Forty under 40.A two-time TEDx speaker, Josh has inspired Fortune 500 companies and international audiences alike. They were a 2022 Soros Equality Fellow, and their work has been featured by The New York Times, the Aspen Institute, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Connect with Josh on LinkedIn or at @joshmillerventures

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