Have you ever experienced a moment when you think – ‘oh, I’m never going to get there, it’s too difficult’, or ‘I am afraid it’s not going to work, I’d rather not try it’?
If yes, I suggest you take a step back and look to others who faced problems and dilemmas but did not give up – learn from how they forged ahead, faced their fears, used all their mental and emotional strength in the face of adversity, quickly recovered from misfortune or failures and turned their dreams and visions into reality. And in many instances, these individuals have had a great impact on mankind.
Allow me to introduce one such fearless person – the sixth in my Idol Series I have been publishing on LinkedIn since last year. In this blog, I want us all be inspired by the life of an explorer, a scientist, a diplomat, an inventor, a lifelong learner and a humanitarian … Fridtjof Nansen.
There are very few people I can think of who have been champions at skiing and ice skating, was one of the first people to cross Greenland, studied oceanography and zoology, came up with a new insulating design for polar clothing, helped a number of refugees including heroes such as Marc Chagall, received the Nobel Peace Prize and then got on a moon – by having a crater named after them. It’s exhausting just reading about all his accomplishments – how can one person achieve so much?
Let me start answering this with a short quote from Nansen that captures his personality and fearless attitude:
“The difficult is what takes a little time. The impossible is what takes a little longer.”
So, what did he do to be in a position to make such a strong statement? Let me give you two examples.
First, in 1888 Nansen led a group of five people, over 40 days and 650 km to ski across Greenland, crossing peaks up to 2700m high This expedition helped him prove that the whole of Greenland is covered by an ice sheet. He managed to successfully lead and complete this expedition because he was well prepared – at a young age of 21 he was employed by a whaler to explore and learn about the icy conditions around Greenland.
And the second example is another expedition he undertook to the North Pole. To prepare for this, he envisioned the need for a special boat that would be carried by the sea, using the movement of ice floes as a means of transport. His idea and request for support was denied by Geographical Society in Norway as well as in the UK. It was only later on that he received support from the Norwegian government, the parliament and King Oskar II. himself. He started sailing and drafting in 1893 and after two years of being in extremely difficult terrain, he finally reached a record northern latitude of 86°14′. This specially designed ship ‘Fram’ was then later entrusted to Roald Amundsen for his expedition to the South Pole.
While these accomplishments never cease to amaze me, for Nansen these were just some of his many, many achievements. Being a truly multi-talented and multi-faceted person, he also got himself actively involved in many diplomatic and humanitarian activities working closely with the League of Nations, the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation created after the World War I.
And in this part of his life, he empowered, saved and influenced many lives – thanks to the ‘Nansen Passport’ – an initiative that allowed refugees without documentation including famous personalities such as Marc Chagall, Igor Stravinsky and Anna Pavlov to get out of Russia.
And, this is not all that Nansen managed to do during his life – there were many more inventions and innovations that he came up with. For more than a century a special metal container he devised –– called the ‘Nansen Bottle’ –– has been used for sampling ocean water. And the Nansen Stove is a cooker used to heat Artic explorers’ food whilst simultaneously melting snow to water. And, the list of his inventions does not end there. He is also recognized as the founder of modern neurology and as a sports apparel revolutionist –– he was the first to start using layers of lightweight materials as a new layering principle in polar clothing.
These words from Nansen so beautifully describe the fortitude, resilience, passion, grit and whole life of learning and giving whereby he lived his life:
“Have you not succeeded? Continue! Have you succeeded? Continue!”
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Nansen, the true explorer – not only of a nature, but also new knowledge and ways of adding value in whatever he did.
How amazing would it be to travel back in time and meet Nansen! I’d love to learn more about his fascinating life, what motivated him, what kept him going without fear.
To me, he had to be a really courageous person, which he also indirectly admitted in another sentence that I consider a powerful motivational quote:
“Never stop because you are afraid – you are never so likely to be wrong.”
Let’s remember: we do not need to be a Polar explorers and break world records like Nansen. The mundane tasks, big or small, that we undertake day-to-day, sometimes require us to be fearless too – tasks that at the end of the day, make a difference to the world and to others.
What motivates you to keep working on your dreams and goals? And how do you cope with a fear of a failure, if you have one?