Finding the winning formula within you

 

Making our dreams come true is never easy. The good news is that the answers are characters we have played many times in our lives.

Here is how life seems to go for me when all is right with the world. I go from being the Adventurer to the Rock, the Realist, the Grinder, and finally, the Triumphant.  

The personas we encounter along life’s journey are valuable assets when pursuing a challenging goal. I like to think my past characters are the ones I meet and use when running a marathon. The secret is to recognize them and put them to use.

 

The Winning Formula

The Adventurer

 

Think back to your early years, a little more difficult for me at my age, but childhood was all about adventure. Seeing and doing things for the first time was thrilling, even if it seemed everyday life at the time. Despite the difficulty that comes with doing things the first time, the willingness to go for it and look beyond the problem made one “alive.” The road was never direct; many things got in the way. But you came to understand that life is a process with no shortcuts. But when one stuck to it, the reward was always there. To achieve, you learned to veer right, left, around, and sometimes through to reach your goals. Success came through trying things and adjusting.  

 

Race-day Use

 

To be among many marathon runners, who are as excited as you are to begin, is a rush like opening presents on your birthday. The first running lesson is to make sure the excitement does not get the best of you. Your training has taught you that you will never finish if you go out too fast. Another realization is that you start out believing you must run 26.2 miles but soon realize that you must travel much further. Many people are in your way, and the path is not straight. Getting from A to B requires some unwanted maneuvering which adds to the distance.

The Rock

 

Enthusiasm and confidence rule the day at the start of a new adventure. The mind rush of excitement and fun at the beginning makes one feel invincible.  “I got this” is a great feeling. It may blind one to the difficulties ahead, but that’s OK; to have this amount of confidence feels amazing.    

 

Race-day Use

Once the congestion thins, you settle in at a comfortable pace. The body feels great, and the mind is saying, “This is the day; I will run my personal best, and the marathon distance is not as tough as it is made out to be.” Your confidence is sky high, and you believe nothing can stop you. Enjoy why it lasts.   

The Realist

 

It doesn’t take long for overconfidence and false hope to backfire. You begin to realize achieving a goal is a long and humbling experience. Self-doubt at such times is inevitable. The secret involves two thought processes—one to keep an even keel by never getting too high or low. Two, having a deep-down belief that things work out for the best.

 

Race-day Use

The adrenaline and exhilaration have worn off, and reality takes over. You have been running for a couple of hours, and there is still a couple to go. You begin to understand just how far a mile is. Every time I see a mile marker in the distance, I believe I have run at least two or three more miles. No, the sign shows it has been just one since the previous notice. You want to swear, but you do not have any extra energy to waste. The whole body begins to feel the pain, and it starts to affect the mind. The key is to stay focused on just running one mile and not thinking of the whole, which is a formidable task.

 

The Grinder

Accomplishment is all about keeping moving and seeking improvement each day. When things get tough – “settling” for less than all you have, makes finishing without regrets impossible. If you run the race with perseverance, the reward of saying “I did it” is fantastic, and if you don’t, the bonus of saying “I gave my all” is the same.

Race-day Use

Your whole body screams. You cannot allow yourself to listen as the mind pleads with you, “It’s time to stop and walk for a while,” but deep down, you know that it is not OK. Every ounce of the competitive spirit is necessary, now. The best part of being an athlete – the mind goes into the “not finishing is not an option mode.”

 

The Triumphant

 

Reaching the end is what’s important. You may not have reached the ideal destination but completing a task to the best of your ability allows you to sleep at night. There is always someone better, but recognizing it is the journey that counts is satisfying. The work put in to complete the trip makes an effort worthwhile.  Reaching the end is worth celebrating; knowing the challenges you overcame makes you a winner no matter what.

 

 

Race-day Use

 

The mind considers a finishing kick, but the body says, “No, not today.” You think of the winners. They have run 26.2 miles, showered, had lunch, watched a movie, and you are still on the course. No matter, finishing is what counts. Any journey where one displayed courage and perseverance is worth celebrating and just as satisfying as the winner’s feelings.

 

The Analyst

After any quest, analysis is unavoidable. You know much time and sacrifice went into reaching the dream, and you may wish you could do it all over. You may even wonder if all the work was worth it. Here’s the thing, if it was your best at the time, it was, and one should rejoice and look for the next hill to climb, if not the same one.

 

Race-day Use

The finish line brings a relief that is hard to describe. The mind no longer shouts, “Why did I ever think to do this?” but calmly says, “A job well done.” When one thinks about it, that’s about the best thing one can ever say to themselves or others, “A job well done.”

 

Finally, trying and doing it with perseverance is always a winning formula. Life is short – go for it.