"The Martian": five lessons to survive in the Corporate world

Please raise your hand if -at some point in your work life- you wondered whether you had landed on Mars. As I shared with my Team the other day, when I watched "The Martian" movie with my husband and kids, I realized that the Mars landing, masterfully portrayed by Matt Damon (astronaut Mark Whatney) and crew, can offer some powerful pieces of advice to survive in the Corporate world. And truly, in the world in general.

1. Knowledge is power:
Mark Whatney is a scientifically savvy and daring MacGyver, version 2.0: he creates water and ignites a rocket out of carbon dioxide, grows a potato crop with the help of his and his companions' (once neatly compacted) smashed excrements and digs out a decaying radioisotope source as a heating unit. If this wasn't enough, he manages to re-purpose some solar panels to boost-charge his rover and march farther and farther in discovering a beautiful and solitary land.
For us STEM graduates, new scientific discoveries represent the hope that our children and the generations to come will have a better world to live in. It will all depend on how fast and ingeniously they will be able to sort through terabytes of mental information and connect them in such a way, that arid formulas, theories and e-chapters will be made simple, applied, converted and re-invented as daily instruments.

2. Discipline and resiliency:
Captain Whatney is religious, almost obsessive, in rationing and planning his meals, keeping his daily videotaping journal, and acknowledging every single day spent in his abandoned space ship. I suppose it is fairly easy to lose track of time, when you are left alone in another planet with not much to look forward to, except dying for lack of oxygen, nutrients, hypothermia or a combination of the three. But not for once he seemed to fall into the trap of self-commiseration, depression and resignation: instead, new challenges tricked this modern pioneer's brain circuitry for unorthodox ways to survive and explore the new frontier. Recognizing that not every mind is meant or capable of such processing, perseverance is what makes it or breaks it in any enterprise or assignment.

3. Pride and communication:
Astronaut Whatney creates a small ceremonial out of every step toward survival and takes pride in stating the obvious: of course he is the first man in the planet to ever have grown a potato crop, of course he is the only one driving a solar-powered machine all over Mars, and the list continues. What is beautiful and insightful is how he uses this as a technique to recharge and self-propel his sense of self-worth. He also believes (and depends on) the power of communication: first rudimentary and fragmented, then faster and more sophisticated. Yet, very humanly, you grasp that -in the exchanges with his Team- few words are really needed: the shared experiences and sense of belonging to a tight circle of elected individuals do the rest. There will always be a few people with whom mutual understanding naturally and instinctively happens...but that builds up with time and willingness. For all other relationships, never assuming or forgetting to clearly communicate ideas is probably a good norm.

(Exactly my point in sharing this post.)

4. Expecting the unexpected:
Interestingly enough, the glorious proposition of sending back the spaceship to save Captain Whatney using the earth as a sling-shot, comes from a sleepy yet mentally svelte astrodynamic student, belittled at the beginning and then swiftly brought in as part of the saving crew, together with a mixed group of characters, including a Chinese Prime Minister.
We live in the land of opportunities: if MLK's dream was embraced by millions of people in a pre-viral tweeting era and Cuba opened its doors to the Pope, we have to be comfortable and ready for the unexpected, be open to new ideas, regardless of social rankings and no matter where and whom they come from.    I listen to my kids and am fascinated by their outlook of life: they don't know that I learn from them, as well as from anybody I work with, more than what they can ever absorb from me. And as long as they can grow believing that we were all placed in this increasingly small world to leave our (hopefully minimal in carbon) footprint, I will have accomplished my personal mission.

5. Sense of humor:
In this day and age, where human atrocities, bombs and natural disasters make the headlines and sell in movie theaters, it is uplifting to see that, despite all odds, astronaut Whatney never stops finding the humorous side of things and keeps a healthy, self-deprecating attitude. That is what helps reframing issues and creating the proper distance, which allows us to preserve our minds and souls. As I keep telling myself and anybody that I am blessed to have around, there is always a reason to have a good laughter and celebrate...and if you can't find one, you simply have not looked hard enough.

As a side note, in case you are wondering why the astrodynamic student remains a student and does not get rewarded for saving the full Mars mission, why the project director that supported a successful expedition is sent to forced retirement (although happily spent golfing), or why the indecisive -and at times cowardly- NASA Chief keeps his job and takes full credit for the happy ending....it will be up to the new generation of leaders to challenge the status quo. In the meanwhile, this movie provides a good survival kit for anybody that ever felt as landing on Mars, giving inspiration and hope that anything is possible, if we face one obstacle at a time. 

Corn crops in Pluto, anyone interested?

Any view or opinions presented in my note are solely mine and do not necessarily represent those of my employer.