by Amy Slattery
One of my 'dare to dream goals' over the past couple of years was to complete a marathon (yep I know what you are thinking...why!!).
I had this crazy idea that I was destined to be a 'runner', I was going to be one of those people that just loved to go running, and at the drop of a hat (or crack of dawn alarm) they would bounce out of bed in the morning throw on their amazing running gear (which included some sort of high tech running app) and just start the day with a lazy 10kms. This was a nice dream, however like most dreams it kept nudging me in the back of the head that running could be my 'thing'.
So one day enlightened by a couple of friends at the gym I signed up for my first 1/2 marathon (it still counts!), honestly thinking that with such a big goal locked in I would surely follow the training required to complete the 21km run.
Now I know you are thinking that I was extremely dedicated and started following the plan and began a running regime to rival Kathy Freemen...unfortunately not the case! I did try, I had 3 runs leading up to the big day with 1 around 11kms that felt pretty good (I'm not completely crazy I do keep myself relatively fit with netball and crossfit) however I decided I just wasn't going to think about the run until the day...and I couldn't get out of it, as with all things I try to multi-task and had managed to raise around $600 for Muscular Dystrophy - yep no getting out of it now!
So on the day I really made sure I had my head right with self talk such as "you are going to be ok...you wont die", "you can walk if you need to", "you can cry all you want" and "you can ask for help". So with all this positive reinforcement I got started...and guess what...I didn't die!! In fact I actually enjoyed it, finished in 1/2 hr earlier than I thought and didn't suffer too badly over the next few days!
I even learn't a few things along the way:
1. Plenty of time to think of hilarious hashtags
A couple of hours really does give you some time to think about what's been going on in your life and work. What is the next move, what other goals can you reach after this. What I wanted to focus on or revisit in my life and the business, I can relate the to meditation - giving yourself that time for thoughts to float in and out.
2. Your mind is crazy powerful!
I really did talk myself into getting this run done! I made a decision that I was going to finish the run...and I decided that I wasn't going to stop or walk any of it. I visualised myself finishing the race and celebrating with my friends and husband (even images of his smiling face proud to see me at the finish line), I have done this before with all kinds of goals and situations and I am still surprised at how well it works.
3. Music is a great distraction.
Talk about a distraction - a good playlist is the ultimate distraction! It got me thinking about distractions in general - positive and negative, if a good playlist could pass 2 hours then what were the other distractions in my life that allowed time to fly by? Is television, social media, tiredness, fear for example a distraction that stops you from getting where you want? Or is that playlist, the one that keeps repeating in your head not such a good one and it's holding you back?
4. Gratitude
Needless to say I had a fair amount of time to think - so I spent some of it just going through the things I was grateful for, sometimes I don't do that enough (when I have so much to be grateful for).
5. Dreams do come true
It might have seemed pretty crazy to jump into a big run with little to no training, but I knew in my gut I would be ok, I knew other things I had done in terms of fitness would get me through. So while I believe in setting goals, evaluating risk and having a rough plan in place, sometimes you have to just go with blind faith and see what happens!
6. There are times when you want to stop
We ALL have moments in life - whether a split second or longer that we just want to stop, stop the merry go round, stop the roller coaster, just STOP! Sometimes we do need to stop, take a moment and get back on track. However the main thing to consider is why do you want to STOP...is it coming from a place of fear? If that fear is real and not just False Expectations Appearing Real then of course stop, but if you are honest with yourself and at that moment you are behaving out of fear then ask the tough question...WHY?
7. The Ultimate Confidence is what you have in YOU!
I believe this is the key, if you think you can't...you are right, if you think you can...you are right! If you find yourself lacking in confidence then focus on what you can do to build that within yourself.
So the new dare to dream goal is a Full Marathon....one day!
Live life by design...not default!
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