Seven Lessons Learned from George Donner:

Act with humility, admit error and accept adjustment:  It takes courage and character to admit we are wrong.  Perhaps C.S. Lewis said it best when he wrote, “We all want progress, but if you're on the wrong road, progress means doing an about-turn and walking back to the right road; in that case, the man who turns back soonest is the most progressive.”  Pride is the biggest culprit in our dogged bullheaded tendency not to adjust.  If the Donnor Party had only gone back and taken the road “most” traveled…if only.