Step Up To Success

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