Shackleton’s Way – Margot Morrell and Stephanie Capparell

A book as much about Adventure as it is about Leadership !

In 1914 the British explorer Ernest Shackleton set out with a team of men to sail to Antarctica on board the ship Endurance. At the time,  Antarctica was one of the last unexplored corners of the world. Only months before it was reported that the Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen had successfully made it to the South Pole and had  returned to Tasmania – at the same time another explorer was also attempting to become the first man to the South Pole, there was no sign of the English explorer Robert Falcon Scott.

Shackleton assembled a varying group of 27 individuals. Some with essential skills involving running and navigating a ship, scientists, a surgeon, carpenter and others purely based on their enthusiastic response to the ad “MEN WANTED FOR HAZARDOUS JOURNEY “. The renowned Australian Frank Hurley was also part of the expedition as the official photographer. Hurley in his own right was already quite an adventurer being the official photographer on Douglas Mawson’s 1911 Antarctic expedition and went on to cover World War One in Belgium.

As a side note, if you ever have the opportunity to view the Frank Hurley collection of photographs relating to the Shackleton expedition, it is a fascinating glimpse of what it was like. Without the high tech equipment and clothing that would be a part of any current Antarctic expedition makes this an even greater story.

 

 

 

 

 

 

This was Shackleton’s third trip to Antarctica. The first being a failed attempt at reaching the prized South Pole in a team led by Robert Scott, the second in 1908 was another failed attempt under his own leadership to be the first to reach the South Pole. This was very much a sought after prize ! With Amundsen’s recent success his dream to be the first to the pole was not to be. The goal now became to be the first to cross the frozen most southern continent.

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Similar to my recent review on the story of Abraham Lincoln “A Team of Rivals”, this book is a great insight into individual goals involving total commitment and ultimate responsibility . Furthermore from a business perspective, the management of a team, particularly in difficult times, makes this a great study on leadership.

There is no doubt Shackleton was an extraordinary individual. His near obsessive commitment to his dreams and goals cost him dearly in his home life and possibly his choice on when to push onto Antarctica maybe questioned. His ability in such extreme conditions to keep his crew focused in believing that they would prevail by selecting the right man for each quantum task and then aligning those individuals with the different strengths and weaknesses from the remaining subordinates to create core groups who knew what they had to do and remain stoic in the challenge of survival was impressive to say the least. Shackleton also identified the laggards that would be a toxic influence by managing them to ensure others were not dragged down ! In fact, the expedition team was later awarded the “Polar Medal”. Shackleton denied this award to four of the men as he thought they had not contributed to the level required in such a dire time.

For ten months with a crew of twenty seven men they stayed with “Endurance” before it was crushed by the constricting ice. They then survived for a further five months on an ice flow, then seven months on Elephant Island. Shackleton never lost one man – they all survived.  His decisions in selecting the right man for the task and maintaining motivation is hard to describe. Although he sought opinion, he always made his final decisions on his own.     

              

Keeping in mind World War One was now in full swing, Shackleton reached the decision they were not going to be rescued. He knew he had to make a move. By selecting leaders within the group to sustain the bulk of the group, he took to a lifeboat with a chosen few including the captain of Endurance Frank Worsley, in search of a whaling station that he knew existed on an island off the other side of the frozen continent. This alone became one of the most extraordinary voyages of survival. For seventeen days in the most treacherous waters in freezing conditions, with relatively primitive protection and navigational aids along with minimal food and fresh water, they finally reached the whaling station to raise the alarm. It took Shackleton a further three attempts in donated ships to rescue the bulk of the crew that they had left behind.

Imagine the elation in seeing “the Boss” return to collect his team and his elation that all had survived !!

I recently commented on how it is that one man struggles to get out of bed each day and another climbs Mount Everest.

If you are interested in human endurance, motivation and performance albeit in day to day life or in developing business, sporting or teams in general, this is another great read that provokes thought and questions what would you do in this situation and how would you react. Definitely a must for all managers, leaders and aspiring adventurers. – RD

 

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