On Saturday, June 4, 2016, I ran a 10km race.
Poorly. Unrefined. Awkward. Flailing. You get the idea.
However, I walked away (okay, so it was more of a crawl) from that run with some great insights on life that hit me in the face, kinda like the pavement at the end of the race… so I share:
1. You Have to Keep A Leader to Follow
I can’t lie. I was in a bad mood before I started the race because they said the participants could not wear headphones. I freaked out. THAT IS MY SECRET SAUCE to running long distances: Music. Getting lost in slow country songs. No, Yeah, I’m weird. But I’ve learned high vibe songs wear me out super fast, and after all, I’m running longer distances, so I listen to slower paced, deep feeling and deep thinking songs, usually about lost love, lost dogs and lost trucks. It works for me, helps me keep the pace, and above all, helps me not hear myself breath. Yup, that’s the real secret. Music loud enough that I can’t hear myself be out of breath which tricks my brain into thinking that I’m not actually working hard or out of breath. Naturally, having to run without music was crappy; I had to improvise. So, I picked a lead. A leader to follow with my eye who was just about 5 feet ahead of me that I could keep up to and follow and if that leader dropped out or fell behind, I picked a new leader.
Life is similar that way. You have to have AMAZING leaders in your life every day. Someone to follow. And now, with books, audiobooks, podcasts, blogs, etc. You really can have amazing, brilliant, successful leaders speak into your life all the time.
2. You Have to Train
Not only do you have to train, but you have to take responsibility for your training or lack of training! Let’s be real. Last year, I ran a half-marathon and this year, I can barely run 10 km. Yup, you got it. Lack of daily training. Somewhere after my half-marathon, I stopped training and running. Use it or lose it, right?! And so, you have to keep on keeping on, even when you forget one day, you gotta get back on the horse. I take full responsibility for my lack of training and probably came in close to last. So, next time, I need to up my game and keep training.
Life is similar that way. You have to keep doing the small little things every day to maintain continuity and grow. It’s the small little consistent actions that you need to take every day to achieve results with your business, your health, your relationships, everything – including your finances!
3. You Have to Keep Going
When all else fails, and you feel like giving up, you need to keep going. Tell yourself whatever BULLSH*T you need to to keep going, but keep going. Don’t give up, don’t stop. When you are in the middle of the race it feels like you will never see the finish line, but then magically it appears. You will reach your goals. You will finish the race. You will be stronger for it. This week in business, and even during the race, I had moments where I felt like throwing in the towel. I think we all do, but obviously, the people that make it across the finish line (the WINNERS) kept going.
Life is similar that way. Keep going and finish the race strong. Reaffirm daily, hourly, moment-by-moment positive affirmations to make it through the inevitable SH*T SANDWICHES you will have to eat to get to where you want to go. (Read more about Sh*t Sandwiches in Elizabeth Gilbert’s book, Big Magic – best book for any creative soul!) P.S. The same goes for your finances, you have to keep going!
4. You Have to Show Up
Not everybody shows up to the race. As a runner in the race, you feel like it’s you and the whole world. Truth be told, just for showing up (even if you walk the WHOLE WAY 😉 ) you are a FREAKIN’ WINNER! Why? Becuase most people are too lazy to get out of bed on a Saturday morning to put in the effort to get their butts to the race and actually run the freakin’ race! (Clearly, you can see I’m passionate about this point, more so in real life than for actually running, however, I do know that if I can do this, so can you!)
I was running the race and even though I was not in first place – or even close – I didn’t care. I felt like a million dollars that day. My body loved me. I was running on a gorgeous sunny day, taking in my town, with a BIG SMILE on my face, and I was proud of myself. I could have stayed home on the couch. I could have slept in.
Life is similar that way. It’s true when they say 90% of success is just showing up. In my town of 26,000 people, 400 people showed up to run the race. That’s 1.5%. Okay, so I’m not really saying everyone is lazy, but I’m trying to prove this point: the ladder of success really isn’t crowded at the top! (Thanks Napolean for that quote!)
My point is this: even though it feels hard, and feels like “everybody” everything is competition, it really isn’t that way in reality. Just remember there is no real competition in the world. The sooner you embrace that, the sooner you know that everybody can win. The world can really be a win-win-win-win-win ad infinitum place to live and thrive and everybody can cross the finish line to the race they set out to win.
BOTTOM LINE: Find a great leader to follow, don’t forget to train, never give up and keep going, and don’t forget to SHOW UP!
