What Really Gets You to the Finish?
For a change, this post isn't about me. It's about you.
Laura V. is the author of a book and blog about productivity and also is a runner, the kind that apparently is fit enough to run through pregnancies and start up again within weeks of giving birth. One of her recent posts asks people to consider how they are motivated and uses marathons as a metaphor. Basically, she boils marathon training and race day strategy into two camps: those who prefer to turn inward and those that gravitate toward external sources to get them to the finish line as fast as they can.
And a marathon is a great example because shorter races require a different strategy, but regardless of how well you plan to run a marathon, there are more variables. Even the elites blow it if the weather isn't right, their nutrition or hydration backfire or an injury flares up.
So here's my question: Which is more important to you - being motivated by the clock or being motivated by other people? You can't say "both." Think of what gets you through the last sprint in a 5k or the final 6 miles in a marathon - where is your head during this critical time? And do you prefer to train alone or with a group? Is it more important to beat your own time or your rivals' in a race?
Laura V. is the author of a book and blog about productivity and also is a runner, the kind that apparently is fit enough to run through pregnancies and start up again within weeks of giving birth. One of her recent posts asks people to consider how they are motivated and uses marathons as a metaphor. Basically, she boils marathon training and race day strategy into two camps: those who prefer to turn inward and those that gravitate toward external sources to get them to the finish line as fast as they can.
And a marathon is a great example because shorter races require a different strategy, but regardless of how well you plan to run a marathon, there are more variables. Even the elites blow it if the weather isn't right, their nutrition or hydration backfire or an injury flares up.
So here's my question: Which is more important to you - being motivated by the clock or being motivated by other people? You can't say "both." Think of what gets you through the last sprint in a 5k or the final 6 miles in a marathon - where is your head during this critical time? And do you prefer to train alone or with a group? Is it more important to beat your own time or your rivals' in a race?
