Shackleton: the moral strength of optimism

Map of Antarctica by Bobtokyoharris Shackleton: the moral strength of optimism by Eric-Jean Garcia1 - Nov 01, 2019 I n December 1914, Sir Ernest Shackleton and 27 crewmen left South Georgia Island in the South Atlantic aboard the Endurance ship. Their main goal was to be the first humans to trek across the Antarctic. But the expedition turned into an epic struggle for survival after their ship was crushed by the ice, leaving the crew cut off from the rest of the world with only 3 lifeboats, a few essential items and some food saved from the wreck. For more than a year and a half, they fought together against blizzards, hunger, exhaustion and frostbites. Average temperatures in this region of the globe range from - 85 ° F in winter to - 18 ° F in summer. It was in these extreme conditions that the whole Imperial Transantarctic crew managed to survive, thanks to, among other things, Ernest Shackleton’s discerning mind and contagious optimism making his leadership legendary and inspiring for so many of today’s leaders in a variety of fields such as sports, politics, education and business. Throughout the journey, Shackleton negotiated each of the many physical and psychological challenges faced with a form of humanistic intelligence characterized by an unwavering commitment to saving each single life of his crew. In fact, Shackleton knew that the constant and sincere manifestation of optimism is simply a vital quality when the situation becomes perilous. Here are a few emblematic manifestations of Shackleton's optimism: First of all, Endurance officers agree that as soon as he is at sea, Shackleton reveals an endearing, extroverted and spontaneously jovial personality as well as a witty sense of humour. Such an attitude 1 contributed to generate an upbeat atmosphere in stark contrast with that of the other leading polar explorers of that time who typically adopted a rather rough, authoritarian and distant behaviour towards all crew members. In addition, Shackleton showed an outstanding sense of collective action, which began in London with the way he recruited each member of his crew, seeking to build a team that brings together not only an indispensable amount of skills but also an incredible set of characters ready to face the most inhospitable region of the world. At sea, whether in calm or stormy weather, he always had this lucidity of judgment on people that naturally fosters trust and confidence. But Shackleton’ sense of collective action was seriously challenged when the ship sank, a situation from which he took full responsibility. From there to the end, Shackleton managed to preserve the morale and loyalty of his men notably by refusing the classic adage that survival must go to the strongest. Instead, he constantly strove to protect the weakest in priority. He was also gifted at encouraging others by finding the right words that comfort and by being exemplary in all possible ways, including the accomplishment of difficult or ungrateful tasks. Also, he treated without delay and with the appropriate firmness, any conflict likely to degenerate. Eventually, he is a remarkable strategist in crisis situations: Although the initial goal of the expedition has been a blatant failure, by no means the crew would have survived without an impressive succession of judicious decisions echoing the famous precept attributed to the General Carthaginian Hannibal Barca: "Find a way or make one". It can therefore be said that Shackleton's optimism is neither a form of blissful hope nor the expression of childish enthusiasm. It is in fact quite the opposite of discouragement peculiar to the atrabilious and other irascible people easily overwhelmed by the discontents of life. In fact, Shackleton's optimism is a true act of leadership, considered as an exemplary moral duty to which any leader of a group of people must be compelled by seeking, whatever the circumstances, the best opportunities for the common good. Now, it is worth noting that Shackleton's leadership emerges from a small group of people that he himself carefully selected from over 5,000 candidates. This is an important point to emphasize, because in most organizations, we do not fully choose all the people we work with. This, in no way disqualifies the importance of optimism in organized social life, but perhaps contributes to explain why this quality doesn’t spread easily despite the indisputable benefit of its effects on collective action. 1 Dr Éric-Jean Garcia holds an MPhil and a PhD in Higher Education & Leadership Development from the Institute of Education, University College London (UCL) together with an MBA in International Business from the University of Dallas (Texas, USA). Éric-Jean is Affiliate Professor of Leadership at Sciences Po, Paris (France), where he leads several leadership programs in Executive Education. In addition, he is keynote speaker for business and public organizations as well as the author of two award-winning books: Leadership (De Boeck, 2011) and Le génie du leadership (Dunod, 2013). His latest book Global Leadership Perspectives: insights and analysis (Sage 2018) co-authored with Simon Western provides the reader with an unprecedented approach to leadership challenging the dominant western-centric literature by revealing a rich, contextualized, diverse and culturally informed set of leadership themes and approaches. Through his work, Éric-Jean seeks to foster critical thinking, challenge taken-for-granted assumptions and beliefs, reveal dilemmas of leadership and advocate the development of contextually and ethically relevant organizational strategies 2