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Rules of Thumb for

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Rules of Thumb for Mineral Exploration Success
Are the Bulls Getting
Ready to Run?
By: Erik Ronald, PG
Thoughts and
Mining Geology HQ observations from SME
and early news out of
16 February 2016 PDAC 2017

Borates in a Nutshell
Id like to share a list of what I feel are fundamental attributes for success in
mineral exploration. This list is compiled from a variety of publications from
successful explorers, especially David Lowell and Dan Wood, in addition to Previous Articles
my personal experiences from exploring for a variety of commodities in the
western U.S., central Mexico, and Australia. May 2017

April 2017
1. Discovery-focused culture It may sound like a chapter from an
March 2017
introductory MBA course, but setting company or exploration team
culture is probably the most critical. A discovery-focused culture February 2017
means supportive and strategically oriented management, January 2017
openness to challenge geologic/deposit dogma, acceptance that
November 2016
dry holes will be frequent but beneficial, willingness to have a go,
and passion for geology. Its rare to find all of these traits in an October 2016

exploration team these days due to budget constraints, a what September 2016
have you done for me lately attitude in companies, or a few toxic August 2016
personalities which can quickly erode a team.
May 2016
2. Good science Im not talking about loading a team full of PhDs

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constraints, economics, metallurgy, and being able to apply the
February 2016
scientific method of formulating a hypothesis, experimenting,
testing, analyzing and repeating.
3. Diverse team Ive found that the more diverse the team, the more
diverse the theories, ideas, and solutions that will be generated. An
exploration team composed of both deposit experts and multi-
commodity experience will nearly always produce better results
than a room full of commodity-specific people. Additionally, people
from different schools, countries, cultures and even an equal mix of
male/female will typically result in more varied and diverse ideas.
4. Drill As much as Im a fan of geophysics, obscure chemical
analyses, and the latest 3D software (all of which are useful!), ore
bodies are found by drilling. Typically lots and lots of drilling. If your
ore body had a surface expression, chances are it was found
sometime between the ancient Egyptians to the early 1980s.
Unfortunately, these days we tend to be hunting in covered or
complex areas which require healthy drill budgets. It may be 1000
aircore holes or 1000 deep diamond drill core holes but either way,
you must drill to find.
5. Separation from the corporate culture The corporate culture
of today is littered with business improvement, short-term quarterly
focus, cost optimization, KPI targets, and a general culture of
endless meetings with little action. These aspects have merits in
particular industries but they tend to hinder creativity and the long-
term thinking required for exploration success. LEAN and its cousin
six-sigma are wonderful productivity tools if youre say, Toyota or
making washing machines. These tools do not foster creative
thought. Additionally, when your KPI focus is on maximizing
productivity or drill meters or coststhats what youll get, not the
next discovery. Exploration is more equivalent to mining R&D.
Letting creative, curious, and scientifically minded people work on
their own terms tend to yield better results. If youre in doubt, just go
ask Google, Airbnb or Uber.
6. People who have made discoveries before, will likely do it
again Theres not too much to say here other than if you work
with one of these people, listen to what they have to say! Certain
human beings possess the unique combination of intelligence,
intuition, passion and luck. Others do not.
7. Ability to leave your ego at the door Theres nothing wrong with
being proud of your experience, education or career. The problem
arises when you think that awkward graduate summer student or
driller cant teach you anything. Realize the old adage of the
geologist who sees the most rocks wins, so go visit the rock quarry
down the road to learn more about the geology, do as many site
visits as possible and always keep an open mind. This is all about
the ability to learn, work with others, and realize every single person
you meet or every mine you visit can teach you something, if youre

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Thanks for reading. I hope you find these rules helpful, insightful or
conversation-starting. Id enjoy hearing from explorers and promoters out
there on their thoughts, what I may have missed or additional rules. Cheers!

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