Running Lessons for Running Business

For the past few months, I have been training for my first marathon.  When I successfully complete the Big Sur marathon in 2 weeks time, I will have many new friends and mentors to thank from the Kstar running club.

Long distance running has been a very positive habit that I have added to my life.   While I am a good athlete, I did not take to long distance running easily.  My mental mindset has always been oriented towards sprinting.  Long distance running has taught me to better appreciate the “experience of running.”    It has me appreciate the talents of focus, discipline, and understanding of planning and achieving long term goals.   I believe the gifts from my long distance running experience have many parallels that are equally true within a business context.  Here are a few I found to be meaningful:

• Find your own joy in the training/preparing process - Running long distances is demanding.  There are many variables you will encounter in preparing yourself - which is another way of saying - there will be many negative experiences as part of your journey.  Overcome negative variables by making sure you understand and reward yourself with positives during the training process.  Fellow runners at Kstars rewards themselves through all types of different methods:  Large breakfasts after runs, charging hills, music inspired workouts, being inspired by the tiny technical details of running (time, weight, form, shoe technology), or being free spirits and taking pause breaks from atop vistas or doing lots of yoga, etc.   My joy:  Running from the SF Ferry Building to Tiburon! (twice and counting)  I like impressing myself with these long distance and inspiring “monument” running adventures and then bragging about them later to friends and family!
• Test yourself monthly, but only once a month - If you go full effort for every training run, you are guaranteed to be “out of the race”.  On the flip side, if you never take an accurate measure of your ability, then you will never maximize and develop your potential.   Runners spend most of their training time preparing. As part of that process, it is a good habit to test your abilities once a month, but only once.  Over time, those “tests” may likely evolve.   For example, in the first few months of marathon training, a hard high paced run for 5-7 miles may be an appropriate test.   But after 4-5 months of continued training, a 12-15 high paced run may be feel like more of a test.   This isn’t an insight about pushing your limits.  This is an insight about giving yourself the space to prepare so you can improve.  The tests are there to measure the improvement.  This mindset applies to business as well.    Constantly pushing the envelop, without preparing, is a great way to destroy motivation and risk your organizations long term success.   At the same time, when businesses stop finding ways to add new value or improve upon existing capabilities, they will become stagnant and loose their competitive edge.
• Don’t wish for success, plan for it (but be an extreme realist) - I have been humbled on the training running course by women, the elderly, and others I have underestimated athletically.   Distance running is a great equalizer for athletic potential.   Age, gender, and muscle mass are a lot less important than mental discipline, breathing, form, and training context.   Here is an example.  One Thursday I ran 4 miles in the morning.  At the time, I thought it wasn’t a very long run.  That evening I participated in Track workout that was structured around 7 medium distance sprints (400m - 800m).  The first two or three sprints I was a leader amongst the group.  I pride myself on being a fast sprinter and expected to continue to winning the exercises [remember that pride comes before the fall]. This was ego at its worst as there were no medals being given out at this training practice!   I ignored feeling of tired legs for the first 2-3 sprints.  Then my legs gave out.   The final 4 sprints had me struggling to finish.  I was lapped by everyone including a 78 year old man.   I wished for a good outcome, but didn’t apply rationale planning to my task.  If you aren’t realistic about your potential at the start of 26.2 miles or even 15, then the odds are likely you may not finish the task.  Experience is what we it when we don’t get our way.  Testing yourself, setting a realistic plan, executing the plan, and then testing again is runner’s way for achieving performance over time.
• “Healthy” change only occurs as a matter of degrees (10 - 30%)- People can wake up one day and go for a 26.2 mile run.  They will hate life for long period of time afterwards, but it is possible to complete distance without training.  A responsible person realizes that building a distance running talent only happens with patience by a matter of degrees of change.  During my training, the advice I have received is the body can only support ~20% increase in mileage per week.  This puts the ideal “minimum” marathon preparation plan at ~4 months.   I think responsible business managers should be in tune with the limits of change imposed into their organizations.  It is troubling when business leaders don’t believe they have enough time to implement a change right, but they have enough time to do it twice (or 4 times)!  Building talents that are worthwhile, happen by a matter of degrees and that process should be planned for - unless you are okay with the idea of hating life for a period of time after your “quick fix” change has been implemented (see point #2).