Marathon
“Life is a marathon, not a sprint; pace yourself accordingly!”
This month has been a busy one for me and in a good way. I’ve taken up a legal consultancy assignment that will last until the end of the year. It is one that challenges and stimulates my legal brain. I am excited about it and at the same time, there is apprehension given that it is taking me outside my comfort zone. We all know that growth happens there! This does not mean that I’m putting my coaching business on hold. On the contrary, I’m very excited about its growth as I am coaching more clients now, diverse individuals from various industries. Quite of a number of them are introverts and I’m inspired to journey alongside them to enable them to see introversion as a strength and not as a sign of weakness.
I’ve also been appearing as a podcast guest in more shows and have just created a new page in my website - see “Media” above. You can listen to all the episodes I’ve recorded there and I hope you will find one that is insightful and helpful for you. In my conversations with some of the podcast hosts, I’ve been asked/challenged by 3 hosts so far to launch my own podcast. Hmmm…food for thought for next year, perhaps?
With all the happenings in my life this month, I’ve been reflecting that I am working at a pace that is more of a sprint than running at a steady pace. As my new assignment requires me to be at the office of the organisation fortnightly, I’ve had to adjust my coaching schedule, my time with my husband and kids and not to mention the endless household chores. I’ve also reduced time for myself significantly and convinced myself that when I coach, that’s my “me” time as I love coaching. I took some time off last Sunday to rest and reflect on the past few weeks. Is the pace that I am keeping sustainable? It’s exciting, yes! It’s rewarding, yes! Can I keep this up for the long run? The hard truth is no.
This is why I am writing this post to share my thoughts on making sustainable changes in your life.
“Life is like a marathon, not a sprint. You have to train for endurance, not speed.” - Unknown
We live life with endurance and resilience. I looked up websites on how to train for a marathon. The lessons I gleamed there can also apply to how we live our lives.
Start small
Before you run a full marathon, run shorter races to get an idea of the level of your stamina. Similarly, with any new venture in life, start with preparation. Do your homework. Do you know how much you can take on in this season of your life? Don’t go in too soon and too fast without knowing what you really want.
Seek out counsel from those who have run ahead of you. What words of wisdom do they have for you that can help you prepare for your run in life?
For this phase of my life, I consulted friends who have been doing legal consulting work for years and obtained their advice on how to succeed in such roles. They helped me stayed grounded while framing my thinking in the right perspective and not get carried away.
Know your base mileage
All marathon runners have their base mileage that they commit to run at weekly. One must be disciplined to keep this routine of running 3-5 times per week. They review their base mileage regularly and increase it by 10% from week to week to push themselves. Do you know what your base mileage is? It’s where you are confident and comfortable at what you’re doing. You do it well and you can do it consistently. That means you are in your comfort zone. What do you need to do to take yourself out of it, just by 10%? Discover what that is and start doing it.
Practice the long run
Once you know your weekly base mileage, practise the long run. This is to build your stamina for the marathon. It is during the long run that you run slower, allowing your body to adjust to longer distances and teaches your body to burn fat for fuel. This is a timely lesson for me as I tend to push myself and meet deadlines way ahead of when they are due in my previous employments. Now, in this role, I remind myself not to rush and pace myself. Yes, deadlines need to be met but I am more mindful and present when I am doing the work at hand. Do you take the time to think about the pace that you put yourself in at work? Are you allowing time to adjust to new tasks and responsibilities or are you constantly fighting fire? Ask yourself - which approach is more sustainable?
Rest and recovery
Sure, there will be moments in your life where you have to sprint. The main thing is to realise that it is only meant to be for a short time and not for the long run. Marathon runners know the importance of rest days - days when they do not run. They allow their muscles to rest and recover from the aches and pains. The best way to prevent injury is rest. Likewise, the best way to prevent burnout is rest. Are you resting enough, mentally and physically? Is your mind constantly racing with checking items off your to-do list? What would your life look like if you intentionally take the time to pause, rest and recover from the hectic pace?
I protect my Sundays religiously (no pun intended!). I don’t do any legal drafting or research and I also don’t coach. I admit that there are times when I have had to work and I’ve been tempted to schedule a coaching session on a Sunday as I want to accommodate my clients’ schedules. When that happens, I stop myself and think - is this what I really want? Is this sustainable? The answer is always no as I need my Sundays off. It’s a non-negotiable for me. What are your non-negotiables?
Take this time to pause and reflect on your personal marathon. Do you have a sustainable plan? What would that plan look like if you have a coach running alongside you?
Speak to me to find out more about partnering with me as your coach!
