What Is Success?
A young runner I know recently raced the mile. When I asked how it went, they said “it was terrible. I blew up in the last lap.”
The race was on an indoor track, which means it was 8 laps to a mile.
Then I asked “how did the other 7 laps go?”
The race had been going really well until that last lap! Sadly, runners are way too hard on themselves. A race can go 7/8 GREAT and all we see is the 1/8 that wasn’t great.
This is easier to recognize now that I’m a coach, but I was once an athlete myself and I get it. The world doesn’t really care about anything except the last lap and there’s no glory for “almost.” Falling short of our goal often feels like failure.
But the truth is, the opportunity for success in racing is so much bigger than a PB, a win, or hitting the goal time.
I learned this lesson from my sport psychologist years ago - she helped me see the all the potential success that I overlooked in the goals that have nothing to do with ability: choosing to be optimistic, following the race plan, remaining mentally engaged even during rough patches, committing to finishing strong, not giving up.
Also Success:
Not giving up
Executing the race plan
Executing part of the race plan
Finishing strong
Getting to the start line healthy
Getting to the finish line healthy
Remaining optimistic
Emptying the tank
Success:
PR
Win
These goals are not a matter of “can I do it?” but “will I do it?” They depend on courage, grit, and focus. I believe that runners are already successful in many of these goals but do not value this success. However, if we prioritize these goals, we give ourselves the best chance of reaching our best performance. We give ourselves many more opportunities to be successful regardless of what the final outcome is. We can expect to succeed.
Expanding our definition of success in’t meant to take away the importance of winning, getting that BQ or a shiny new PB - these are great goals. This isn’t a strategy to deny the disappointment in the times we fall short of a big goal, but it is important to see the difference between disappointment and failure. They’re not the same!
When we have a bigger view of success it means we can see the whole race now, all 8 laps instead of just the 1 bad one. We learn to acknowledge what we are doing great even when there are things that went wrong. We have a different view of ourselves, a more hopeful one. If we can ace 7 laps today, why not all 8 tomorrow?
Nicole Sifuentes is a full-time Running Coach for adults of all ages and abilities. She is a former professional runner and 2-time Olympian, and Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist. Read more about her services, and schedule your free coaching consultation.