Last week, when I caught up with a friend and colleague, Amanda, we started discussing all things leadership. She reminded me of the story of when Ernest Shackleton, the Antarctic explorer, had to choose who would join him on an 800-mile lifeboat journey from Elephant Island to South Georgia Island; a desperate mission across the Southern Ocean to get help for the rest of his stranded crew.

Instead of picking only the easiest, most agreeable crew, Shackleton deliberately chose some of the more challenging personalities, the ones who had clashed with him in the past. He knew that if he left them behind, their behaviour could fracture morale and undermine the crew’s survival. By taking them with him, he believed he could manage the risk directly.

Now, Shackleton didn’t make this choice because he was a micromanager who needed to control others, nor was he rewarding poor behaviour. His decision was purely strategic. He understood his people, the risks they posed, and the impact they could have on the rest of the crew. By bringing the more challenging personalities with him, he knew he could minimise potential disruptions and protect the morale of those left behind.

That level of decision-making doesn’t happen by accident; it takes awareness, insight, and the discipline to pause and think about your people. Shackleton knew his crew well enough to predict how each person would respond in different situations. He understood their strengths, their pressure points, and the ripple effects they could create.

My experience has been that many leaders rarely make that space. But if you want your team to succeed, you have to step back from the busyness and look closely at the individuals in front of you – who’s adding to the team’s strength, who’s quietly draining it, and where you may need to step in before minor problems turn into bigger ones.

I encourage the leaders I work with to build this into their rhythm, taking time once a quarter. Often, when they’re working on their 90-day plans – to step back and assess.

And if it’s not something you’re already doing, I encourage you to give it a go. It creates clarity about where your team is strong, where they need support, and where action is required to prevent issues from growing. It also gives you the confidence to make decisions based on insight rather than assumptions.

Also, when you do this, don’t stop at simply spotting patterns. Turn those observations into a plan for the conversations that need to happen — the encouraging and acknowledging ones that reinforce the right behaviours, and the honest, sometimes uncomfortable ones that address what needs to change. Both are essential if you want to build and maintain the team you need.

As always, I trust this has been helpful in some way, shape or form.

Until next week, be well and lead well,

Kylie