What Matters Most?

Last month I read Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage, by Alfred Lansing

In 1914, as WW1 was beginning, Ernest Shackleton left with a small crew to cross the Antarctic continent. Only a few weeks in and they became stuck in the pack ice many miles from the shore. For nine months, through the Antarctic winter, they huddled together on the frozen ship. As spring came and the pack ice melted, the ship was crushed by the moving flows and the men were forced to abandon ship and camp directly on the moving ice. For six months they sledged life boats across the ice, living off of hunted seals and penguins. Finally in April of 1916 they made it off the until the finally found open water and made it to a small island. Then, led by the captain of the expedition, Ernest Shackleton, a few men took one lifeboat 800 miles to find help. After nearly 2 years at sea, the entire crew was rescued—not a single man was lost.

The story of survival and grit is incredible, but I marvel more at the leadership of Shackleton and the bond of the sailors who clawed and fought, sometimes for inches a day. Ernest Shackleton told his men,

"Superhuman effort isn't worth a damn unless it achieves results."

Their mission was to survive, and that meant removing any dead weight that kept them from their goal. Are we sometimes too worried about being busy and feeling good about our efforts that we loose sight of what really matters? In our personal lives, it might be more time with our families and serving our communities. At work, it could mean cutting out projects that don't align with vision and strategy. I've been wondering for weeks now, how I can do this for myself and my team at work.

I'd love to hear your thoughts! How do you stay focused and help your team simplify to focus on what matters most? What strategies have worked? What hasn't?