In our modern world of convenience, there is something about marathons. People choosing the hard road, putting their physical and mental endurance to the test, is increasingly rare. With the Comrades season coming up soon, a few surprising parallels emerge for leaders. Read on to see what you can learn about excelling at your business from experienced marathon runners.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s no such thing as a quick win<\/strong> Many leaders want to impress shareholders, loved-ones and clients by being a rapidly rising star and getting enormous successes right out the gate. Unfortunately, those who pursue this usually neglect family, run roughshod over colleagues or staff who don\u2019t want to work fifteen-hour days and even sacrifice their own health and sanity to achieve a hollow prize.<\/p>\n Marathon runners know that any true victory is made in the long haul over months and years of training without any recognition. Good leaders know it too.<\/p>\n Fortune favours the well-prepared<\/strong> But ultramarathon runners have been doing this for years with one simple tool: visualisation. An experienced runner will not only physically prepare for an arduous race, but mentally will imagine in detail the exact moment when it seems their legs are about to give way or they think of quitting.<\/p>\n They then prepare a strategy of exactly how they\u2019re going to keep themselves going. It\u2019s a great lesson for business leaders too. Don\u2019t just imagine the day when the champagne and bouquets are passed around, imagine the 4am worries and the crippling doubts and get a strategy to deal with it before it happens.<\/p>\n Uncommon leadership advice: be here<\/strong> Instead, Comrades runners need to learn to plan for the worst but, once they\u2019re in the race, just focus on putting one foot in front of the other. How do you climb a mountain? One step at a time. Same with marathons, same with leadership.<\/p>\n Another benefit of being present as a leader is being more engaged with your team. It\u2019s tough for someone thinking of 11 months\u2019 time to ask themselves how their staff are doing right now and what they need to put in their best performance. Be present, but also think about others\u2019 present states. A happy team is a productive one, after all.<\/p>\n Have a great week and remember – life is about the journey and not the destination. Focus on running well, leading well, and you\u2019ll be just fine.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In our modern world of convenience, there is something about marathons. People choosing the hard road, putting their physical and mental endurance to the test, is increasingly rare. With the Comrades season coming up soon, a few surprising parallels emerge for leaders. Read on to see what you can learn about excelling at your business […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3121,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,27],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-3099","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"hentry","7":"category-blog","8":"category-life","10":"post-with-thumbnail","11":"post-with-thumbnail-large"},"yoast_head":"\n
\nPerhaps you could put it down to our easy 21st-century existence, but we all want success yesterday, not ten years from now. But for those of us who aren\u2019t Bruce Fordyce, slow and steady really does win the race, in leadership and in life.<\/p>\n
\nIt seems counter-intuitive, but many otherwise rational leaders start a new project or a new business without ever really planning for the possibility that it might fail. It seems like negative, counterproductive thinking, right?<\/p>\n
\nForward thinking can only rake you so far, and many marathon runners will tell you that it\u2019s not always the best idea. Think about it – you\u2019re on the starting line, the gun goes\u2026 and you envision the hours and hours of hell ahead of you. It\u2019s enough to make anyone turn around and go home.<\/p>\n