Proceed!

Do you have a life strategy? Do you think it's a good idea to have one?

How about this for a life strategy? One word: “Proceed!”.

Yes, this is my life strategy. And it seem to work.

Ernest Henry Shackleton never made it to the South Pole. He made four attempts and failed in all of them. In his first attempt, he was as a member of the expedition of Robert Falcon Scott. But Scott and Shackleton did not get along, and so Shackleton was forced to leave the expedition, and became its only member who survived. His second attempt was as the head of a research expedition in the ship “Nimrod”, but Shackleton cancelled the expedition before it reached Antarctica, due to logistics problems.

The third and most famous attempt, was the trans Antarctic expedition of 1914. Shackleton and his crew set sail in the Ship “Endurance”, with the aim of crossing Antarctica from side to side, through the pole. But the Endurance got stuck in the Antarctic ice and was eventually crashed by it. Shackleton and his crew were left in the frozen continent, completely disconnected from the rest of the world. And yet, after an epic journey that took 22 months, the entire crew returned home safely. Shackleton made another attempt to head an expedition to the South Pole, but he died of a heart failure while preparing.

So here is a man who failed to realize his life mission, and yet he is considered a great leader, revered as a source of inspiration for other leaders in times of crisis. When one of his crew members was asked, how did they made it out of Antarctica, he answered: “In one word - Shackleton!”.

The Trans Antarctic expedition was launched, few days before the beginning of World War I, and when Shackleton heard about the war, he sent a telegram to Winston Churchill, then First Lord of the Admiralty, and suggested to abort the mission so that the Endurance and its crew can join the war effort. But Churchill replied with one word: “Proceed!”.

Life is a journey towards the unknown, with twists and turns that seem to shred any plan to pieces. But what if something is still left? If so, then maybe that something, no matter how small, is the true life strategy?

I choose to learn from leaders like Shackleton and Churchill who were far from being superheros and yet, they were able to lead their people to victory against enormous odds, by taking responsibility and showing the way forward. No matter how much my life is different than theirs and although my challenges are much simpler. I believe this one word life strategy is correct and important - “Proceed!”.

(Source of image: Wikipedia)