Darwin’s Determination

I recently returned from a spring break trip to the Galapagos Islands. I am proud to say that, despite the business of life, I was able to cram in a few very important books about or related to Charles Darwin before the trip, including “Darwin in Galapagos” and “The Beak of the Finch.”  

“Darwin in Galapagos” is an easy read by two naturalists/scientists who have devoted their lives to following and researching Darwin. (I was fortunate enough to get to spend time with them on this trip.) The other book is about a couple, Rosemary and Peter Grant, who took Darwin’s work a step further by proving that the finches on Galapagos were evolving and adapting to the conditions on these isolated islands in a short period of time. Over the 30+ years that they studied the finches they saw evolution unfolding in front of their very eyes.  

Our trip included several ornithologists and scientists from Yale University and their amazing Peabody Museum. As a businessperson and entrepreneur, I was out of my element travelling with people who have devoted their lives to being scientists and naturalists. I knew they would “nerd out” on every animal, plant, and rock formation under and over the water. 

I won’t bore you fellow businesspeople with too much science, but what I will say is that whether you are Darwin, a business leader, or a top scientist studying birds, determination is the key to success. Some examples:

• Darwin was beyond determined on his mission to the Galapagos. His famous “voyage of the beagle” was extremely difficult and unpleasant at times, but he pushed on. As the authors of “Darwin in Galapagos” wrote, “Indeed, determination was clearly the hallmark of Darwin’s character, the force that forged his success as an explorer and theorist. It was determination that gave Darwin the resilience to endure miserable sea journeys, a crippling illness after the journey, and the prejudicial fury unleashed upon him with the publication of his theory of evolution. Best of all, it was determination that got Darwin to the Galapagos Islands.”

• One of the ornithologists on my trip was on a quest to spot every specific bird he could. His goal was to hit his 5,000th unique bird sighting on the trip. This quirky man woke at 5 a.m. each day and didn’t quit until the sun went down, scouring the bushes, grasses, lava flows and skies for every bird he needed to sight and photograph. His determination was both exhausting and exhilarating to watch. Although he couldn’t be further from my field of work, I admired his determination.

• One of the last stops of our trip was one of the most awe-inspiring.  Our boat circumnavigated the island Daphne Major where Rosemary and Peter Grant had done their research on finches in the Galapagos for over 40 years. They lived on this barren rock of an island, often for 3-4 months in tents and caves. They took saltwater baths, fished in the sea for food, and battled the elements to study the finches.  Many times, they had their two young kids on the small, desolate and lonely island, and they made their family work.  To me, the Grants define the words determination and resilience. It’s probably why the book about them, “The Beak of the Finch,” became a best seller and won the Pulitzer Prize. As the book states, “the Grants have shown the evolutionary process not through fossils but directly, in real time, in the wild, evolution in the flesh.”

There were so many takeaways and major reflections for me during the trip.  From a business standpoint, I saw how many different forms resilience and determination can take.  I was constantly reminded that no one gets to the top of their field – whatever that is – without them. 

From a personal standpoint, I reflected on how grateful I am to my father, a science teacher from Brazil, who inspired my love of nature and sense of adventure. And I was grateful to my 17-year-old daughter, Scout, for her determination, during her junior year of high school with so many responsibilities, to get scuba certified so we could dive with the hammerheads, rays, sea lions and penguins. If you are adventurous, resilient and determined, I highly recommend this trip to the epicenter of evolutionary theory. Yet again, the natural world delivers.