The last chapter in the book analyses the qualities of Scott, Amundsen and Shackleton. They are very different in style and while the book emphasises the importance of Shackleton, we can learn a lot from the failures of Scott and some positive aspects of Amundsen. Scott did not only lose in the race to the South Pole but he made major mistakes in leading the expedition. He adopted a hierarchical system which separated the team members, and made decisions without listening to others' advice. He did not collaborate with the team and so the expedition fell apart when disaster struck. On top of that, the goal was incoherent as Scott sought both to make scientific discoveries and to reach the South Pole. Also when he realised that Amundsen had reached the Pole first, he lost faith and wrote, "Now for the run home and a desperate struggle. I wonder if we can do it." It must have been a devastating situation but as a leader he should have remained determined and positive. From looking at all his faults, we can learn what not to do and that it is crucial to unify the team, focus on the goal and be mentally strong.
Amundsen can be considered a successful leader in that he achieved his goal of reaching the Pole. His single-minded obsession towards this goal led him to succeed, and while he was criticised for being unyielding, it was the sort of mindset that was needed to accomplish this mission. He was actually open to new ideas as opposed to what the critics were saying, and used skiing as a method of travel. Moreover, he incorporated other solutions fit for polar life, merging together various ideas to create an effective approach, and this made it easier for the expedition to proceed. This was something that Shackleton was not so great at and it is a skill that we should imitate in order to make the process of our 'expedition' more efficient.
Ultimately, it is not about who was successful and who was not but what we can learn from them. Each of these leaders has something to tell us through their episodes and I feel that this book illustrates those messages well. Of course, the main point is to integrate the leadership skills shown by Shackleton but Scott, Amundsen and other leaders introduced in the book all help us to expand our perspective on leadership and to know how to act when it is our turn to lead. It has been an eye opening experience reading this book and I hope that through understanding the concepts of good leadership, I will be able to put it into practice and really make a difference in the world.
Finally, I want to say a big thank you to Ken and all my stream 1As for being so amazing! Good luck and see you around!
