Facing Our Own Ocean
"That is where the explorer Vasco de Gama learned to sail.” My friend told me that as we looked down on a small sandy bay filled with colorful fishing boats in Sines, Portugal. Later that day, we traveled north to Lisbon where the Sea Discoveries Monument honors the voyagers who, 500 years earlier, departed Lisbon harbor and set-out in search of places no European had ever been before.
No other professional has faced more risk and uncertainty then an explorer. Considering what these travelers faced can give us insight for our own challenges. So what were the obstacles faced by Columbus, de Gama and the other explorers?
We all sometimes feel like a small ship on a big ocean. Columbus’s favorite ship Nina was only 65 feet long. That’s only a few feet more than the distance from home plate to a pitcher’s mound. Columbus also faced some significant obstacles:
- Not enough money. If not for the King and Queen of Spain, Columbus’s journey would never have happened.
- Lack of provisions. An explorer's first expenses went toward obtaining ships and crew. Whatever was left was used to purchase food and drink.
- No maps. That’s right…nobody had ever been there before.
- Productivity lost to sickness. Cramped quarters were stressful and promoted a breeding ground for disease.
- A frightened crew asking questions like, "So Captain, since you’ve never been there, how will you know you're at the right place when you see it?”
- Crew revolt. Months of not seeing the fruits of success made for tense times to say the least. Mutinies or near insurrections were not uncommon.
Each of the obstacles that were faced by these voyagers parallels the challenges we encounter in our personal life planning, starting new ventures or growing an existing organization.
“Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal.” – Henry Ford
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