Shackleton's Way: Leadership Lessons from the Great Antarctic Explorer

Heard the taped version of SHACKLETON'S WAY: LEADERSHIP LESSONS FROM THE GREAT ANTARCTIC EXPLORER by Margot Morrell and Stephanie Capparell . . . thiswas the perfect companion to the recent documentary I saw on the same subject, THE ENDURANCE . . . it enabledme to better appreciate how Ernest Shackleton and his mensurvived the wreck of their ship with no means of communicationand no hope for rescue . . . the amazing thing was that notonly did every man survive--but did so in both good health and spirits.Shackleton was clearly ahead of his time . . . he led his menfrom 1914 to 1916 using some techniques that are now accepted by all, but I imagine were revolutionary at the time . . . for example, the book's authors noted thathe believed in the following:A good boss will make a burden of work seem lighter.One person can change an entire work environment.It was better to replace a failed goal with a more ambitious one.Chip-in sometimes with the work you are having others do.In trouble, danger and despair, never give up hope. The worsecan always be got over.

As a busineses executive for over thirty years, I have seldom read any business book which tells a story and helps to make the lessons so simple to understand and apply. If I were still running a large organization, this would be the book I would buy for the entire organization to inspire and teach useful lessons for those responsible for leading people through good times and bad in 2001 and beyond. While the Shackleton story has been told elsewhere, the applicability of his beliefs and behavior has never been so clearly described for all to understand and apply.

In 1914, Ernest Shackleton and 27 others started on a journey to be the first people to cross the Antarctic Continent. Their ship was caught in the ice, eventually crushed, and the story of how they all survived has become a classic. In this book, the story is retold with new insights and information. The authors focus on Shackleton as leader. The conclusions are very well drawn, and the connections and insights regarding "leadership" are true, valid, and extremely worthwhile. They make sense, they are useful, and they work! I've been to South Georgia and Elephant Island, and thus have some appreciation of the difficulties Shackleton and his men faced. His leadership skills came through for his team then, and the lessons learned are more than appropriate for leaders of today.

This book gives a beautifully pared-down account of an extraordinary story and provides remarkably appropriate analogies in our present day. It should inspire many to read more on the subject of Shackleton and the Endurance expedition,particularly Endurance by Alfred Lansing.Whether you are a leader or among the led in any facet of your life there are lessons to be learned and remembered here. They are laid out in a clear and concise format and illustrated by the ongoing saga of Shackleton and the amazing group of men he brought through an unbelievably harrowing adventure. The book reminds us of the power of good, of compassion, perseverance, and honesty. It is well worthwhile reading for anyone interested in a marvelous story and how it relates to all of us in the here and now.