Charge for the Challenge
Do you get yourself into crazy things and then wonder what you were thinking? Because I do that all the flippin time! Most of the time it’s good. But every now and then I give myself a challenge that is just painful!
Back in Feb 2021, my sister-in-law suggested that we run a marathon together. Like… a whole flippin 26.2. I wondered if I could do that and how cool it would be to say I did. So with only 20 weeks until the race, I started training! The thing is, I hate running. I like how I feel at the end. But running is not my favorite thing. So training was extra hard. I really just wanted to see if I could do it! I spend three days a week running 2-8 miles. I spent every Saturday running 10 miles or more. And 2 days a week cross-training. I felt like my whole life was in this race. And while I did obvious physical work, this was not something I could have accomplished on my own.
I needed my husband to kick me out of the house, my sister-in-law to help keep me on track with our goals that week, and several trainers at the gym who gave me advice. There was one particular Saturday I had to run 18 miles. I was beat. I wasn’t sure I could walk the half mile back to my car from there. I was about to call my husband to come get me when from around the corner of the sidewalk I heard shouting! He knew where I was planning to end running that day and he and the kids had parked to cheer me on the last few feet. I collapsed at the car and we had our teen drive my car home. We then went out for much-needed burgers.
This week in class we talked a lot about challenges and discovering problems. We learned how to think about the root causes of a problem. We learned about how there will always be challenges, especially in business! Challenges can feel like something to complain about, but they can also be what helps us learn to do better and what drives us forward. The struggle can be what makes you take a step back to see why you are doing what you do. Struggles help us know ourselves better.
As for the marathon, I completed it under my goal of 6 hours! Not fast I know, but my goal was to finish. I know I can put one step forward, even when it’s hard and I may not hate it. I know that when I create good goals that are worth it, I can push forward to the end. I don’t have to quit. I can keep on running. There is always help and happiness ahead if you are willing to take challenges and use them for good.
