Organizational Learning Lessons Found on the River: Watch for Rising 2025
August 6, 2025 | Swan Valley, Idaho
The morning clouds were just starting to burn off over the South Fork when Brittany saw the first rise. A quiet ring expanded across the glassy water - the ripple you know to look for when trout feed on the surface. Decades of fishing have taught me that moment matters. You can cast in a hundred beautiful spots, but if you aren’t where the fish are rising, you’re just practicing your casting form. (Yes, we’ll get to nymphing without rises in another post.)
That same lesson has followed me from my waders and the drift boat to my work with organizations - nonprofit, school, higher ed, and fast scaling companies. Whether you’re chasing trout in Idaho or opportunities in your business, the principle is the same: watch for rising.
On our right-before-school-starts trip to Victor, ID and Jackson, WY (Jackson Hole), we fished the Snake River, the Teton River, and the South Fork of the Snake - three fisheries I’ve had my eyes on since I first learned to work a line. On this trip, I was reminded over and over that leadership is a lot like fly fishing-
-a lot like mending line,
-and being patient,
-and learning to act decisively…before a reaction (late) had time to occur.
“Watch For Rising” is the heartbeat of John Sullivan Solutions. You can read lots about it on our webpage and blog. It has everything to do with building capacity in your organization. This post particularly expands the ideas into smaller segments that I’ll elaborate on more in additional posts. There is a key leadership principle to be found in each section below. Don’t miss them. They just might be the very concept you need in your organization.
Timing and positioning - be where the rising happens when it happens.
On the Teton River, I waded into a side channel just as the sun cleared the ridge behind us. We were a few miles outside of Driggs with Grand Targhee to our backs. For about 15 minutes, the water came alive - rings and splashes everywhere. Then, just as quickly, it went silent. If I’d been to that spot ten minutes later, I would have missed it entirely.
***Note: If you’re unfamiliar with it, trout fishing is drastically different from what many have experienced - hook, worm, red & white bobber, something cold to drink, 2000’s era Kenny Chesney songs blasting on a Bluetooth. It turns on and turns off. Fish change their food preference several times every morning and afternoon. Like a toddler, they’ll gorge what they want and won’t touch the things they don’t. And then they’ll change their minds.***
Anyway, in organizations, timing and positioning matter just as much. You have to be in the right place - physically, relationally, with capacity, and strategically - before the rise happens. By the time the opportunity is obvious to everyone, it’s usually too late to take full advantage. That’s why WATCHING is so critical.
The insect hatch is exactly like your key leadership indicator.
That same morning on the Teton, a massive hatch of Tricos brought every trout in the river to the surface.
The hatch was the signal - the “go time” indicator. If you didn’t notice it (which was impossible with a hatch this large), you wouldn’t understand why the river suddenly exploded with life. Sometimes, the hatch is more subtle - pale morning duns or even caddis flies. Even a “small” hatch can be a HUGE indicator of where to be and what to do.
In leadership, your “hatch” might be a surge in customer interest, an emerging donor trend, or a shift in community needs. You will only see it if you are looking, asking, showing real interest, and observing the things you don’t and can’t control. Learn to recognize your version of the hatch, and you’ll know when to act decisively.
Getting in position to reach the fish rising to the surface is only the first step.
Hooking into a big cutthroat feeding in the current is exhilarating - we caught at least a dozen. But anyone who’s fished long enough knows: getting a fish to rise is not the victory - it’s the opening act. You still have to set the hook, dance with the fish (letting her lead most of the time), and land it without losing the connection.
In organizational leadership, spotting the opportunity is just the beginning. Execution, follow-through, and delivery are the real tests. You have to find the balance of both spotting opportunities, casting vision, and executing your decision. This is the scaling organization's ideal metric.
Most leaders excel at 2 of the three. Occasionally, a leader has all three - but most are really strong in 2. That’s why we advise leaders to fish as teams: a guide, front of the boat, back of the boat. If a team of leaders each has 2 of the 3 key pieces of the metric, you’ll cover the water with healthy overlap.
Smart fish will investigate without committing.
On the South Fork of the Snake River, I made a perfect cast (followed by a perfect upstream mend) into a seam where a large trout had been rising. Now in the strike zone, the fish nosed the fly, flipped its tail, and cruised away. No bite. No bad words either. Just a nod of respect from man to fish. “You win this one.”
In your organization, you’ll present ideas, proposals, and opportunities that seem perfectly aligned - but not every team, investor, board member, client, marketing lead, donor, or strategic partner will take it. Stakeholders may show interest without committing. That’s not failure; it’s part of the process. We like to remind our clients that there is a significant amount of distance between general agreement and financial commitment. Keep casting. Keep mending. Stay resilient.
Patience and resilience are the most underrated tools.
The most important piece of gear in the boat wasn’t my rod, reel, or flies. It was patience. Patience is the ability to keep working the water when nothing is happening. It is the willingness to reposition, re-cast, and try again after a missed strike. It is trusting what you see happening while committing to your training that taught you what to do.
Leaders who endure setbacks with resilience - who stay in the game when results are slow - are the ones who eventually land the big opportunities. They persist. These leaders don’t just keep their head down and grind (though that is important); they also keep their eyes up observing, their perspective clear for evaluating, their mind open for thinking, and their instinct sharp for deciding what to do next. They don’t abort what they know to be true -rather they are creative within what they know to be true.
Watch for rising.
Whether you’re standing in a river or sitting in a boardroom, these truths apply: be alert for the subtle signs, position yourself well, act as soon as the moment comes, and have the patience to keep going when the bite slows.
Because when the rise happens, and you’re ready, the reward is worth it.
Fishing Teton Valley and Swan Valley.
This trip was a bucket list trip for me. It was my second trip to blue ribbon waters and it did not disappoint. We came away with lots of recommendations for guide services, lodges, fly shops, dining, and travel. Please don’t hesitate to reach out with a DM if you want our perspective.
We caught some very nice fish, including my #2 and #3 pb.
22 inch lean Brown Trout on a sz 18 frenchie
21 inch thick Brown on a fly that the guide only called “Petey.” It was a nymph of some pattern.
19 inch Cutthroat Trout on a stonefly that jumped nonstop to try to get off
19 inch Rainbow Trout in the riffle on a trailing emerger (PMD cripple)
Several 16-18 inch Cutbows, Rainbows, and Cutthroats on hopper and rusty spinner patterns on the Snake and SF
About 90 fish in all over 4 days and 3 rivers
Many thanks to Fly South of Nashville, WorldCast Anglers of Victor, South Fork Lodge of Swan Valley, and our very nice AirBNB hosts. The product placements on these photos aren’t intended (except for the Vandy tumbler - showing love to my Alma Mater) but matter very much. We had excellent gear and continue to believe in the companies that are experts in that field: Simms, Maui Jim eyewear, OnX, Fishpond, Fish Hippie, Orvis, Hardy (Pure Fishing), Yeti, and Columbia.
