| Sometimes it is better to just get on with doing | | | | Amundsen's crew were not at all happy with their |
| something rather than thinking and planning for too | | | | long stay in Arctic conditions while Amundsen learned |
| long.Philip Humbert makes an interesting evaluation of | | | | from the Inuit.Sometimes action is king. You can |
| the race for the South Pole by the Norwegian Roald | | | | always learn as you take action and create your own |
| Amundsen and Robert Scott (Scott of the | | | | mistakes and successes. Eva Young sums up this |
| Antartic).Scott spent days in planning and preparation | | | | point cleverly:"To think too long about doing a thing |
| for the trip whilst Amundsen set off quickly with far | | | | often becomes its undoing."Another succinct |
| less preparation. Not only did Amundsen get to the | | | | comment on the same point comes from a minister |
| South Pole first. He arrived back safely.Scott reached | | | | called Vance Havner:"The vision must be followed by |
| the pole second and was hit by cold weather on his | | | | the venture. It is not enough to stare up the steps - |
| way back. He and his brave band of heroes died | | | | We must step up the stairs."If we spend too much |
| eleven miles from their home base. If Scott had set | | | | time thinking about our potential we may never turn |
| off earlier he might have missed the cold weather on | | | | that potential into reality. Fear often makes us pause |
| the way back.Another key factor was Amundsen's | | | | and cogitate for too long before taking action.Michael |
| reliance on dogs for pulling his sledges; Scott did not | | | | Dell of Dell computers puts his success down to the |
| use dogs.I do not entirely agree with Philip Humbert's | | | | fact that he was not afraid of making mistakes.He |
| assessment since Amundsen had already done his | | | | did not wait for perfection before he took action to |
| preparation some time before his assault on the | | | | produce and sell his computers. He took far more |
| South Pole. On his successful trip to find the North | | | | action than most people and made more mistakes |
| West passage through the Arctic seas north of | | | | than most but he learned from the mistakes and |
| Canada some years before, he had spent over a | | | | corrected things as he went along.If we are following |
| year living with the Inuit.They showed him important | | | | a how to do it manual, it is probably better to read a |
| tips like how to coat the runners of his sledges with | | | | bit and then put that bit into action before going on |
| ice so that they would slide easily over the snow and | | | | to the next bit. Few people can read a manual |
| help the dogs to make fast progress.He learned on | | | | straight through and, if they do, become so bored or |
| the job and not by reading and planning from a | | | | overwhelmed with information that they lose their |
| distance and he did prepare in the best way possible | | | | focus and enthusiasm for implementing it.In life we |
| in the type of freezing cold environment he would | | | | can both think and do. Most of us spend too much |
| later face in the Antarctic. He did his planning and | | | | time thinking instead of doing.Instead of thinking too |
| preparation by learning from the experts who actually | | | | much, let's do some preparation and planning and |
| lived in a freezing environment.However, planning and | | | | then just get going and take action. We need to |
| preparing for too long can allow negative thoughts to | | | | step up the ladder to success and not just look at it. |
| creep in. And negativity can kill off any project. | | | | |