Ben Saunders: goals are not impossible.

Ben Saunders

Youngest person to ski to the North Pole and back.

‘During my 2004 solo North Pole expedition, ice and weather conditions were so bad that several independent experts declared it “impossible” that I could reach the North Pole. I reached the Pole anyway, after 68 days alone and 1,000km on foot, and perhaps the biggest realisation from that experience was that the word “impossible” is nothing more than someone else's opinion. My tip is this: no matter how far-fetched your goal seems, ignore the naysayers and (as Goethe said) “begin it now!”’

Pen Haddow: enthusiasm.

Pen Hadow

Trekked to both Poles without air support inside 12 months.

‘There is only one thing more infectious than enthusiasm and that is a lack of it. The starting point is enthusiasm and passion. Without it there is no chance of setting your team members ablaze.’

Robert Swan

First to walk to both Poles.

‘Stop to celebrate success however small it may be for you and your team.’

Tom Avery

Youngest Brit to the Pole in fastest time ever.

Tom Avery: fear of failure.

‘During the darkest days of our journey to the South Pole, when pretty much everything was going wrong and we were on our last legs, my mind was consumed by failure. I was terrified of not making it, of letting down all those who had helped me to get this far and of having to tell the press that we had failed.

‘I did not want to have to come back to this God-forsaken place. But it wasn’t until that fear of failure was replaced by a will to succeed that I found something deep inside that I never knew I had that would ultimately carry me to the bottom of the world.

‘It has taught me that by staying positive, there’s no limit to what we can achieve.’

Sir Ranulph Fiennes: aim for smaller goals.

Sir Ranulph Fiennes

The world’s greatest living explorer.

 ‘To avoid being crushed by the very thought of all the difficulties and hazards of the task ahead, divide your target up into a number of much smaller goals and think of them only one at a time.

‘At the same time, beware of putting successful competitors on a pedestal, feeling inferior and believing them to be invincible. This will lead to a loss of the self-confidence you will need to battle on.’

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