Quotes From This Episode

• “I can’t think of another human activity in which one person’s success stands so far above that of all the other contenders…he is the absolute superstar. He’s the outlier in terms of polar exploration.”
• “The other thing I’d say about historical cases is often we can be more accurate in assessing the role of the leader versus contributing factors in the successful or unsuccessful outcome. Because we have the perspective of time, so we have a more neutral mindset. But in many cases, there are also better sources available. And we’ve had time to look at those sources. And we can see the long term implications of the decisions that were made.”
• “When we think of expeditions, we think of the leader standing at the helm, shouting directions and waving at his crew as the ship weaves in and out of the ice. We think of movement and danger and split-second decisions. In navigating the Northwest Passage, the real challenge was wintering. You know, this waterway froze solid. There are only about one to three months, if you are lucky, where you can move. So you had to expect to spend nine to 11 months frozen in place.”
• “He made a point to avoid what he called irksome discipline. And he picked individuals who had particular skillsets so that they could have a sense of autonomy and ownership over a particular domain of the expedition. So one of the guys he took with had no meaningful arctic skills. But he was super jolly and he was a great cook.”
• “And when we look at what he does, he’s an authentic leader long before this becomes an ‘in’ concept. And he knew that he would be stuck with these men in this cramped space for years. So they were not just his subordinates and his employees, they were his friends. They were his family.”