Overnight Success

A few months ago we had a mandatory division meeting at work. Our VP read a blurb to us from Jon Gordon's blog. I listened to every word she read, and of course, my mind related every single word to running. (Yeah I focused on the work part too… ) I posted the segment on Instagram, and immediately had a flood of other runners ask if they could re-post. I’m sharing it again, and relating it back to my running… 

“You work really hard for 10 years.” Ok, more like a year…
 
“You show up every day. You do the work. You see yourself as an artist dedicated to your craft with a desire to get better.”  Every day… 5 AM. Cross training, weight training, core training. Every workout has a purpose, and that desire to get better is more like a FIRE. I WILL get faster and stronger!

“You try new things.” Lots of new Mizunos! Pro Compression. Foam rolling. Stretching. TEMPO runs! 

“You fail.” Many a failed workout. And that stinger…one failed marathon attempt…
 
“You improve.” Oh my gosh, YES! I PR’ed my last half, I ran a 1:10 15K, I’ve gotten faster, stronger, and SMARTER just within one crazy year! And I’m very proud of that.

“You grow.” I’ve learned a lot of tough lessons, accepted things for what they are, and I’ve grown up! 

“You face countless challenges and tons of rejection that make you doubt yourself and cause you to want to quit. But you don’t.” HIP INJURY. 

“You keep working hard, you stay positive and persevere through it all with resilience, determination, and a lot of hope and faith.” Some days I didn’t stay so positive. I got pretty down on myself. But ultimately I did keep working hard. Really hard actually. I was just SMARTER about it. I was determined to get back out there and run faster and better than ever. And I DID! I am proud of the PR I accomplished in Omaha. I had a friend ask how I managed a 4 minute PR. I said train for a marathon, not be able to do it, get a big chip on your shoulder, and go crazy. Very scientific. 

“Then you make it.” 

Every runner, or athlete, out there knows there is no such thing as an overnight success. And when it really comes down to it… why would you want to be? Shouldn’t the journey and the chase EXCITE you?! What motivation would you have to put in the work if you could really just go to bed one night, and wake up the next morning and run a BQ race without ever putting in a single, sucky training mile? If success really happened overnight, would we do the rest of the time? We all want to “make it” and be a “success” but I think it’s more about the road, the journey to the success than it is the actual spot at the top of the mountain.