We Are All at Patience Camp

Lessons in Crisis Leadership from Shackleton's Expedition

We can't predict the future, but the challenges we are confronting today—ambiguity, uncertainty, and inevitable change—are much like those faced by Sir Ernest Shackleton's expedition at Patience Camp. And one of the most memorable moments in Shackleton's Antarctic expedition occurred at that remote outpost in the Weddell Sea, Patience Camp.

The Crisis Leadership of Ernest Shackleton

The story of Shackleton's Endurance expedition is familiar to many who have heard our Leadership At The Edge presentation. It is a source of inspiration whether you heard it in a keynote or as part of a leadership or Base Camp program. Shackleton's goal of leading the first overland crossing of the Antarctic Continent was lofty, but he believed it could be done.

Shackleton and his crew sailed from South Georgia Island on December 5, 1914, with extra clothing and a great deal of apprehension. They knew that conditions would be difficult. They didn't realize just how challenging their ordeal would become.

Forty-five days later, on January 19, 1915, disaster struck. The ice of the Weddell Sea had moved farther north than usual, and the pack closed around Endurance like a vice. The expedition was stuck some sixty miles from the Antarctic Continent.

Trapped in the ice, the crew found themselves isolated on the ship for months. Their quarantine ended in disaster. After 327 days trapped in the ice, Endurance was lost. The masts toppled, and the sides caved in as shards of ice ripped strong timber to shreds.

Shackleton proposed heading toward open water by undertaking a march across hundreds of miles of solid pack ice. The crew began pulling the lifeboats in harnesses on sleds that weighed almost 1000 pounds. The task was gruelling, and, after two days of hauling, the team had covered less than two miles.

Realizing that it was futile to go on, the men found a large floe more than half a mile in diameter, made camp, and decided. They agreed to stay on the floe until the drift of the ice carried them closer to open water. They sat at Ocean Camp from October 30, 1915, until the end of December.

More than a year since they had set sail from South Georgia, Shackleton's leadership had kept the team intact. But morale was understandably low. He realized that something had to be done to combat the growing sense of futility.

On day 384, though still a long way from the sea, they once more attempted to drag the boats across the ice. This second sled march was no more successful than the first. Exhausted and discouraged, the expedition again made camp, Patience Camp. They continued to deal with the anxiety of waiting, hoping to drift to open water.

As their food supply dwindled, there were occasional moments of excitement, but mostly they waited. It was a difficult time for "The Boss," as Shackleton was affectionately called. His expedition sat on a dwindling cake of ice, buffeted by wind and weather and threatened by collision and heavy swells. Their fate remained uncertain, and Shackleton felt a heavy burden of responsibility. But he took heart from the optimistic spirit of the team and, in return, Shackleton's presence and demeanour engendered optimism among his crew.

Does this sound like 2022 for you and your team?

1. Pursue engaging distractions.

Shackleton kept the group engaged with lively discussions about the prospect of a future expedition to Alaska! The idea of another polar undertaking could have seemed preposterous for a group stranded in the middle of a frozen Antarctic sea. But the prospect provided an engaging alternative to dwelling on their predicament or thinking about the potential dangers ahead.

Planning an expedition to Alaska was clearly a method for entertaining the expedition during the long empty hours. In this sense, it was an engaging distraction. But it was more than that. It provided a future focus and a promise that there would be other adventures—with the obvious implication that they would triumph over their present situation. It represented just one way in which the culture of the expedition encouraged confidence and hope.

2. Reinforce the message of team unity.

In addition to instilling a spirit of optimism, Shackleton established a sense of shared identity from the beginning. This sense of team unity, which began with cheerful social events before Endurance sank, was only to grow as their adventure continued.

During sled marches, the group advanced in relays to ensure that the party would remain together if cracks appeared in the ice. At Patience Camp, the team kept the tents together. Still later, during the open boat journey to Elephant Island, the lifeboats stayed in constant contact.

3. Create a culture of "sharing your milk."

This sense of unity was remarkable. Crew members often performed acts of caring and self-sacrifice for each other, showing a concern that rarely occurred in accounts of other expeditions studied.

In one of the most dramatic moments at Patience Camp, the food supply had dwindled to dangerously low levels. They had less than a week's supply. Conditions were so dire that the waste meat generally used to feed the dogs was examined for any edible scraps, and several of the crew had tried eating frozen raw penguin meat.

Under these desperate conditions, and after a wet, sleepless night, an argument broke out among four crew members. Caught in the middle, Greenstreet, the First Officer, spilled his tiny ration of powdered milk. 

They were on the verge of starvation, and it was a tragic moment. 

The loss was so monumental that Greenstreet seemed almost at the point of weeping. Without speaking, one by one, each crew member reached over and poured some of their milk into Greenstreet's mug. They finished in silence. Emulating the caring behavior that Shackleton had modelled, the bonds of teamwork held in the face of death and starvation.

4. Demand courtesy and mutual respect.

Another important method for creating mutual respect during the expedition came from insisting on common courtesy. Under extreme conditions, it might have seemed unnecessary. There were conflicts, of course, but the crew managed to maintain a sense of civility. Shackleton reminded the crew on more than one occasion that "a little thanks will go a long way." And so will "please," "excuse me," and the other familiar phrases that supports social interaction.

What type of leader do we want to be when things get bad? 

Living conditions at Patience Camp continued to deteriorate, and there were more dangers ahead. It would be almost four months before Shackleton was able to reach the whaling station at Stromness Bay on South Georgia Island. And it would take another 128 days and four separate attempts for him to reach the expedition members left behind. But he never gave up hope, and every member of the Endurance expedition survived. 

So, the familiar phrase –– We are all at Patience Camp –– reminds me of our current situation. We are living in a pandemic. We don't know when we will reach open water, and we don't know what lies ahead. We may have to sail through the waves of the Scotia Sea and climb the uncharted glaciers of South Georgia Island to reach Stromness.

But we can look for engaging distractions. We can find things to celebrate. We can recover from conflict and say "excuse me" when tempers flare. And we can share our milk, even after a heated argument. 

We are all, in the end, on the same expedition.

We must choose our own adventure.

Adapted with permission from the article, "We Are All at Patience Camp: 4 Lessons in Crisis Leadership from Shackleton's Expedition” by Dennis N. T. Perkins. The Syncretics Group, USA