Day after day, day after day,
We stuck, no breath no motion;
As idle as a painted ship
Upon a painted ocean.
– (Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Rime of the Ancient Mariner)
Sailors know doldrums well – persistent stillness and lack of wind that prevents movement. They were the bane of ancient mariners, without benefit of auxiliary power or rigs that worked in light air. Spanish sailors transporting livestock to America were often becalmed around the 35th parallel north or south, severely prolonging their voyage. Those regions became known as the “horse latitudes” because it was where severe water shortages necessitated heaving horses overboard.
Today we can experience doldrums of a different sort, periods in our professional lives when forward momentum seems to cease. We might be clipping along at a great pace, 
confident of reaching our destination, when inexplicably momentum and forward progress stop. It may not bother us at first; in fact the quiet and inactivity might initially be welcome in contrast to periods of hyperactivity. After a lengthy time in our own “horse latitudes,” however, energy, activity, prospects and confidence decline. We wait and hope, then wait and hope more for that next breeze or gust of wind. Ships that are stagnant for long periods develop different problems than wear from activity create, including rusting cables, mildew, rot and barnacles that will slow progress if winds resume. In addition to any of his own personal doubts and demons, a ship’s captain has the additional burden of not showing his doubts or fears; that would only aggravate those of an already restless crew.
Here are some strategies for navigating personal and professional doldrums:
- Move; do something. A friend recently reminded me of a scene in the 1935 movie “Mutiny on the Bounty.” When the HMS Bounty is becalmed for days, her
ruthless Captain Bligh (Charles Laughton) commands her crew to man the lifeboats, attach lines and begin towing the mega-ton ship. It reminded us that sometimes in the doldrums, it’s a good idea to just move, to do anything that at keeps us active and seemingly taking charge of our situation. There’s a Russian proverb that comes to mind: “Trust God, but row to shore.” Even if we’re just treading water, it beats sinking. - Do things differently. Stuck on a sand bar in the Apostle Islands once, we freed ourselves only after trying many different ways of breaking loose. Our last and successful effort required some ingenuity; you can read about it in my August 2009 newsletter, “In Praise of Outsiders.”
- As Stephen R. Covey put it, use the time to “sharpen our saws.” If we’re trying to fell a large tree, taking time to occasionally sharpen our saw will save time and energy when we resume. We just saw Robert Redford’s new movie “All Is Lost.” When “our man’s” (as Redford’s character is named) sloop capsizes after colliding with a shipping container, he takes to his life raft and spends days aimlessly drifting in the Indian Ocean. He uses the time attempting to learn celestial navigation using a new, boxed sextant with instructions that he hurriedly threw in his raft. That kept his mind engaged, and was certainly effort that could pay dividends when lost at sea.
- Stay alert. The biggest potential breaks or opportunities can arrive in the midst of doldrums, after allowing ourselves to be lulled into inattention. In “All Is Lost,” “our man” awakes from slumber just as the aft section of a giant freighter passes close by. Had he been more alert, he might have succeeded capturing its attention.
- Get and provide support. In personal or professional doldrums, we are usually surrounded by potentially useful and supportive others, even if it doesn’t feel that way; many would be happy to lend support if we reached out. It is
important to tap resources already available, and to position ourselves where new resources might present themselves (e.g. networking.) If we’re part of a team experiencing the doldrums, especially if we are its leader, it is important to reach out and provide support to each other. - Take stock. We seldom take time on our own for self-reflection; doldrums might be the universe’s way of suggesting that we slow down. We can use that time to literally “take stock” (as “our man” in All Is Lost did with supplies.) We might also use the time for objective evaluation of what contributed to our doldrums and how best to navigate away from them. Kevin Cashman’s book The Pause Principle is a wonderful guide for how to use “taking stock” time.
- Navigate. Even if unable to move at the moment, planning and charting our course for when winds return pay dividends. It may not, or perhaps shouldn’t, be our original course; circumstances or motivations could be very different than they were. Last month’s newsletter about “Persistence – Is It Always Good?” offers some guidelines for determining when pressing on is admirable and when it might be just stubbornness or counterproductive.
- Stay positive. ‘Easier said than done of course when we’re in the doldrums. Nevertheless the reality is that maintaining a positive outlook and not abandoning hope are among the strongest factors contributing to survival in any disaster situation. I’m all for authenticity, but sometimes to escape a funk we need to act our way out of it; if we’re part of a team, that’s usually contagious.
I hope that these reflections are useful should you find yourself in the doldrums. May you pass little time there, and make the best of it when you do.
Fair winds!
“Greatness is not where we stand, but in what direction we are moving. We must sail sometimes with the wind and sometimes against it – but we must sail, and not drift, nor lie at anchor.”
Oliver Wendell Holmes
“There are some things you learn best in calm, and some in storm.”
Willa Cather
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