Surname: ADMUNDSON OR SCOTT 1
Admundson or Scott
Student’s Name
Institution
ADMUNDSON OR SCOTT 2
Admundson or Scott
In the story of the two explorers who were racing to the South Pole, I select to be
Amundsen and regard myself as possessing personal strengths that liken those of Amundsen,
including creativity, wisdom, courage, teamwork and love for learning based on the following
core skills, Fanatic Discipline, Empirical Creativity and Productive Paranoia (Boe & Bang,
2017). Empirical creativity refers to a blend of creativity and Discipline, described as
organizations that destroy the status quo based on continual observations and experiments.
Companies make bold and creative moves based on sound empirical observations and experience
in an empirical approach. Fanatic Discipline is when organizations, including their owners and
their staff, have unbelievable consistency with core goals, methods, values and performance
standards. Productive Paranoia refers to the ability of an individual to be hyper-vigilant about
potentially harmful events that can affect their organization.
Individuals develop the ability to turn that fear into an opportunity and conduct
preparations ahead of the action. Productive Paranoia, as developed in the book Great by
Choice, states that the only mistakes an individual learns from are the ones they survive.
Therefore, I use creativity to develop new ideas and approaches to problems. I also apply my
strength in creativity to think outside the box and enable myself to approach an issue from
diverse perceptions, helping me reach the most appropriate decisions. In addition, I use courage
to build up the self-confidence required to face difficult situations. Courage is also essential in
making tough decisions regarding a controversial issue, which may lead to mixed reactions.
Teamwork also remains one of the most personal strengths I rely on in decision-making since I
prefer a collective approach. However, the foremost opportunity that I have always considered is
ADMUNDSON OR SCOTT 3
the love of learning new things and exploring. I apply the opportunity in decision-making to
identify new areas that have not been explored before to conduct my research studies.
My decision-making style is analytical since I collect and analyze information, problem-
solve and make decisions. I can apply analytical skills when detecting patterns, observing,
brainstorming, interpreting data and making decisions on diverse options available to me, which
is similar to the decision-making style applied by Amundsen in his journey to explore the South
Pole (Okili & Watt, 2018). I am the kind of person who takes time to process big life decisions
by conducting necessary research and homework, like Amundsen. Amundsen did research
before planning to explore the South Pole. Amundsen had previously planned to explore the
North Pole but, while doing his research, realized that the North Pole had already been explored.
In addition, Amundsen also came to notice that Robert Falcon Scott planned to explore
the South Pole. Therefore, the research Amundsen conducted enabled him to explore the South
Pole before his competitor Robert Falcon Scott, hence making the record of being the first
individual to visit the South Pole. Amundsen also formulated the most appropriate strategy to
travelling to the South Pole through his research (Collins & Hansen, 2011). Amundsen was able
to realize the shortest route to the South Pole, hence beating his competitor, Robert Falcon Scott.
It was wise for Amundsen to the harbor in Wales, which gave him an advantage since it was a
shorter route than Robert Falcon Scott’s route, hence being the first individual to reach the South
Pole. Therefore, the analytical style is an appropriate decision-making approach since it enables
an individual to embark on the most achievable option.
ADMUNDSON OR SCOTT 4
References
Boe, O., & Bang, H. (2017). The big 12: the most important character strengths for military
officers. Athens Journal of Social Sciences, 4(2), 161-174.
https://www.athensjournals.gr/social/2017-4-2-4-Boe.pdf
Collins, J., & Hansen, M. T. (2011). Great by Choice: Uncertainty, Chaos and Luck-Why some
thrive despite them all. Random House.
http://dspace.vnbrims.org:13000/jspui/bitstream/123456789/4892/1/Great%20By
%20Choice%20%CE%93%C3%87%C3%B4%20Thriving%20in%20Uncertainty.pdf
Okoli, J., & Watt, J. (2018). Crisis decision-making: the overlap between intuitive and analytical
strategies. Management Decision.
https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/MD-04-2017-0333/full/html
