When Ernest Shackleton was recruiting men for his expedition to the south pole in the early 1900s he put this add in the paper:
"Men Wanted: For hazardous journey. Small wages, bitter cold, long months of complete darkness, constant danger, safe return doubtful. Honour and recognition in case of success."
His recruiting effort, by design, brought in the right kind of men for what would prove to be a historic expedition across the south pole.
After a great presentation on capacity building in Afghanistan I asked our last speaker how he would spend his first thirty days in country if he went to my district. He looked at me kind of funny and I could tell what was coming next. So I finished his thought out loud, "Just wing it then, got it." 50 hours of discussion on Afghanistan provided by three star generals, retired ambassadors, premier COIN thinkers, and a few daring adventurers and my best conclusion is to wing it. That's how complex the problem is. It reminded of Shackleton's quote. There's a lot of work to do, glad I get to be a part of it.
"Men Wanted: For hazardous journey. Small wages, bitter cold, long months of complete darkness, constant danger, safe return doubtful. Honour and recognition in case of success."
His recruiting effort, by design, brought in the right kind of men for what would prove to be a historic expedition across the south pole.
After a great presentation on capacity building in Afghanistan I asked our last speaker how he would spend his first thirty days in country if he went to my district. He looked at me kind of funny and I could tell what was coming next. So I finished his thought out loud, "Just wing it then, got it." 50 hours of discussion on Afghanistan provided by three star generals, retired ambassadors, premier COIN thinkers, and a few daring adventurers and my best conclusion is to wing it. That's how complex the problem is. It reminded of Shackleton's quote. There's a lot of work to do, glad I get to be a part of it.
Thirty days of intent observation with no overt actions could be significant to long-term gains. I'd actually extend that observation to a year if you had that luxury.
ReplyDeleteI'm praying for safe return though!
I will also be praying for that safe return.
ReplyDelete