'I went six years without a new personal record in a race.'
I was sitting at an awards show for high school student-athletes when Michael Phelps, the most decorated and accomplished athlete in Olympic history, made that stunning statement. He was the keynote guest and his 45 minute Q & A session in front of the audience was fascinating. He followed up that jaw-dropping statement by sharing with us that the six years of toil preceded the breakthroughs that we all know him for.
I don't know what to think about that. Insane? Committed? Delusional? Relentless? It's probably 'yes' to all of that and a whole lot of other descriptors. Six years is a long time to train with little evidence of improvement.
We are entering a very unique time in our nation's history. Coronavirus has us all semi-relegated to our homes. We have unusual amounts of down time and we might be filling it with worry and angst. You may have had a goal, degree, relationship, or project you were working on and it may seem a little pointless as we enter the wasteland of social distancing. You may think or will soon be thinking, 'what's the point?' Let me give you some quick recommendations that may help you emerge from this unique time in our nation's history closer to a personal breakthrough than when this all began.
Make a new plan for your progress. You may have had a great plan in place and it may be totally useless now that our circumstances have changed. Don't let the discouragement of that keep you from making progress. Make a new plan!
Do not break from your routines. There may be parts of your plan that can still be effective, but you'll have to fight through the stress of the unknown to stick with them. Do not break from you routines. There's a great Zen saying, 'before enlightenment, chop wood and carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood and carry water.' In the Zen belief system, enlightenment is the pinnacle of human existence. And yet, Zen masters believe that even the enlightened should do their daily tasks well. Stick with your routines.
Double-down on the things you know work. The apostle Paul told readers of the Bible to 'make use of every day..' (Ephesians 5:16). For many of us, our days are a little slower now which means we have additional time to spend on what really matters. Eat dinner with your family every night. And dessert! I've decided that I will work out twice per day. I'm reading a ton every single day. Double down on the things that work!
Someone out there needs to read this and be encouraged to just keep going. Just. Keep. Going. Breaking through happens. And when it does, watch out.
I was sitting at an awards show for high school student-athletes when Michael Phelps, the most decorated and accomplished athlete in Olympic history, made that stunning statement. He was the keynote guest and his 45 minute Q & A session in front of the audience was fascinating. He followed up that jaw-dropping statement by sharing with us that the six years of toil preceded the breakthroughs that we all know him for.
I don't know what to think about that. Insane? Committed? Delusional? Relentless? It's probably 'yes' to all of that and a whole lot of other descriptors. Six years is a long time to train with little evidence of improvement.
We are entering a very unique time in our nation's history. Coronavirus has us all semi-relegated to our homes. We have unusual amounts of down time and we might be filling it with worry and angst. You may have had a goal, degree, relationship, or project you were working on and it may seem a little pointless as we enter the wasteland of social distancing. You may think or will soon be thinking, 'what's the point?' Let me give you some quick recommendations that may help you emerge from this unique time in our nation's history closer to a personal breakthrough than when this all began.
Make a new plan for your progress. You may have had a great plan in place and it may be totally useless now that our circumstances have changed. Don't let the discouragement of that keep you from making progress. Make a new plan!
Do not break from your routines. There may be parts of your plan that can still be effective, but you'll have to fight through the stress of the unknown to stick with them. Do not break from you routines. There's a great Zen saying, 'before enlightenment, chop wood and carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood and carry water.' In the Zen belief system, enlightenment is the pinnacle of human existence. And yet, Zen masters believe that even the enlightened should do their daily tasks well. Stick with your routines.
Double-down on the things you know work. The apostle Paul told readers of the Bible to 'make use of every day..' (Ephesians 5:16). For many of us, our days are a little slower now which means we have additional time to spend on what really matters. Eat dinner with your family every night. And dessert! I've decided that I will work out twice per day. I'm reading a ton every single day. Double down on the things that work!
Someone out there needs to read this and be encouraged to just keep going. Just. Keep. Going. Breaking through happens. And when it does, watch out.
‘Bite Down and Don’t Let Go’ is a collection of writings on
being intentional about life in a way that produces great persistence. Read
about it more here.
Dr. Chris Hobbs is an educational leader and Director
of Athletics at The King’s Academy in West Palm Beach, Florida. He’s earned a few
degrees and won some awards. He’s happily married to his high school
sweetheart and they have three teen age children. Life is messy and complicated
most of the time. You can follow him on Twitter
for all sorts of inspirational thoughts and good laughs.
Comments
Post a Comment