“A man must shape himself to a new mark directly [once] the old one goes into the ground.” ~Ernest Shackleton

I love the story of Ernest Shackleton. An Antarctic explorer who never made it to the South Pole.

He returned from a failed quest only to see someone else make it to the pole 3 years later. Undaunted, he set out in 1914 to cross over Antarctica via the South Pole.

Quickly his journey ran into trouble. His ship was icebound, and he abandoned it before the ice crushed and sank it. For the next 73 days, he leads his crew across floating ice until he finally attempted a 1,300-mile open water journey in a lifeboat to get help to rescue the remaining crew.

Not a single man was lost.

Shackleton was a hero in the midst of a terrible defeat.

When it became clear that his ship was icebound, he knew that he would not make it to the pole. So he changed his objective to returning every member of his crew alive.

He threw his whole self into his new mission, keeping his crew focused and motivated in the midst of a harrowing situation.

What if you aren’t achieving your goals?

Maybe you aren’t feeling like your efforts over the last 2 years have gotten you to the goal you set out toward. You are not alone!

What new goal could you set out for?

Given the facts of the situation, what do you want to create?