You are capable of more than you think.
I am in the later training for my sixth marathon as of writing this and am running twenty miles on my long days. This training schedule has taught me something that will help you get an extra measure of a breakthrough in your life.
Bonus joke: How do you know if someone has run a marathon? Just wait five minutes and they will tell you.
In the past, I have trained to finish the race. The end. However, this time I am training toward a PR (personal record). As I have pushed the pace, I have shaved almost two and a half minutes off my per mile pace in a short period of time.
Okay, enough about me and my running. Training for pace has helped me accomplish more in my writing; (15,000) words each week for the last two weeks and in all areas of my life. So, if you want better results dreamer, follow these simple (not easy) truths.
Belief
The first thing that is required is belief. You need to believe that it is possible for you to do more than you are currently doing. If we are honest, we like to focus on our excuses instead of believing that there are areas in life we could improve. I know you have great excuses. You know how I know? Because I have great excuses and if I obsess over them, I fall to a victim instead of a victor. If you are breathing which you are, and if you have a pulse which you do, you have more in you than what you are currently giving to this world.
Don’t be a trial lawyer of excuses, instead become a detective of what can be changed in your life to make progress toward whatever goal you have.
Pain
Hooray! Pain sounds amazing doesn’t it? Well, I could shoot some fluffy feelgood lies to you, but why not give you the truth that is actually helpful? To get to the next level, pain is required.
We are hardwired to avoid pain though, so it will take you focusing on the pleasure you will get on the other side of the pain. Basically, why do you care? If you truly don’t, you won’t push through and you will stop short and pull back.
Write a list to make it more real. Here are my reasons for going through pain and pushing my marathon pace. 1. I will have time to do other things because training takes less time; 2. I work better with goals; 3. My wife looks at me differently when I run faster (I want to be her hero); 4. I feel better about myself. Those are four simple things that are personal to me that make me push through pain.
Face into pain and there will be a reward from it!
Joy
On the other side of pain is joy, with the right perspective. As I started running faster and focused on the pace and not the pain, joy increased. I started to see traction in areas I cared about which added to my joy meter.
Joy is on the other side for you as well. If joy does not come after the endurance of pain, this is where you re-evaluate. Sometimes it’s a goal we actually don’t care about, but others have said it’s important so we do it. Sometimes it’s because we are so focused on the pain instead of the progress. Sometimes we are just grumpy and we need to let it pass.
Why are you downcast? Is it temporary or constant? Joy is the indicator; it’s like a check engine light on the car. Dig deep and figure out why you aren’t joyful and make some changes. Joy is a Fruit of the Spirit and when it is missing we are in works of the flesh. Find out where you wandered off and get back on the joy wagon. Sometimes you need an outside perspective. Ask someone that you will listen to.
Once you start to make progress in one area, you will see that it spreads into another. Momentum and habit have a way of building on themselves. Focus on one area at a time and you will see a whole new level of potential in you that you didn’t even know existed. The world needs you! You were built to dream; just make sure to bring your family with you.
Questions to ponder:
What area of your life do you want to see progress?
What pain do you need to push through to make it happen?
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Originally published on Zechariah Newman
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