If there is
something that I would like a lot of people to understand about
achieving their is the following: In life it is not how you start the
race but how you finish it. There is nothing wrong with a good start
because a good start set the pace for the race but it does not mean that
the pace-setter will win the race.
I can remember when I was in high school (many moons ago) I made it to the regional athletics championship and that day I had to ran two races. The first one was the 5000m and the second was the 1500m. The first race went well and I win the race but the second almost gave me a heart attack.
If you are familiar with the 1500m you know that you start 300m and once you have finish that you still need to finish 3 more laps. So, when we started the race I was nervous and did not know what to expect and decided not put everything in the first 1000m. For those that know athletics a bell usually rang to announce the last round and it is also where you increase your speed and push yourself pass your physical and mental limits.
So, when there was two laps left one of the athletes accelerated insanely and left us all behind. When I saw this I became worried because with his pace he will break the SA schools record and I am not close to that record. I was tempted to follow him but I decided to keep to my original plan.
When we reached the 100m before the last lap this guy already created a gap of 80m. So when we got to the 80m mark before the last lap this guy just crossed the finish line and suddenly decrease his pace. I became clear to us that this guy thought he finished the race and as expected the bell rang as he was first passed the bell. We could see how shocked and demotivated he was.
We catch up with him at the 200m mark and when we finished the race he was not part of us. The important thing is we finished the race and he did not. So what can we learn from this?
Firstly, plan effectively. I had a plan before the race started and a strategy during the race. Secondly, stick to your guns. If someone is speeding away and it was not part of your plan to accelerate at that point do not do it. Resist the temptation of running someone else's race, run your own race. Finally, completing the race is the most important thing. A mentor of mine believe that the person that is second is not the loser but the last person or the person that do not finish the race is the loser. So if you came second great stuff.
But remember the basis for finishing any race is preparation. They say when you are tasked to cut done a three in an hour use the first 30 minutes to sharpen the axe because a sharp axe makes your work easier. Do not just start cutting blindly. So, how is this applicable to you?
If you writing an exam, a test, running a race, starting a business or starting a community garden please remember this: it is not how you start your goal but it is how you finish it that counts. But for you to finish the race, remember to plan/prepare, stick to your guns and do everything in your power to finish it.
I can remember when I was in high school (many moons ago) I made it to the regional athletics championship and that day I had to ran two races. The first one was the 5000m and the second was the 1500m. The first race went well and I win the race but the second almost gave me a heart attack.
If you are familiar with the 1500m you know that you start 300m and once you have finish that you still need to finish 3 more laps. So, when we started the race I was nervous and did not know what to expect and decided not put everything in the first 1000m. For those that know athletics a bell usually rang to announce the last round and it is also where you increase your speed and push yourself pass your physical and mental limits.
So, when there was two laps left one of the athletes accelerated insanely and left us all behind. When I saw this I became worried because with his pace he will break the SA schools record and I am not close to that record. I was tempted to follow him but I decided to keep to my original plan.
When we reached the 100m before the last lap this guy already created a gap of 80m. So when we got to the 80m mark before the last lap this guy just crossed the finish line and suddenly decrease his pace. I became clear to us that this guy thought he finished the race and as expected the bell rang as he was first passed the bell. We could see how shocked and demotivated he was.
We catch up with him at the 200m mark and when we finished the race he was not part of us. The important thing is we finished the race and he did not. So what can we learn from this?
Firstly, plan effectively. I had a plan before the race started and a strategy during the race. Secondly, stick to your guns. If someone is speeding away and it was not part of your plan to accelerate at that point do not do it. Resist the temptation of running someone else's race, run your own race. Finally, completing the race is the most important thing. A mentor of mine believe that the person that is second is not the loser but the last person or the person that do not finish the race is the loser. So if you came second great stuff.
But remember the basis for finishing any race is preparation. They say when you are tasked to cut done a three in an hour use the first 30 minutes to sharpen the axe because a sharp axe makes your work easier. Do not just start cutting blindly. So, how is this applicable to you?
If you writing an exam, a test, running a race, starting a business or starting a community garden please remember this: it is not how you start your goal but it is how you finish it that counts. But for you to finish the race, remember to plan/prepare, stick to your guns and do everything in your power to finish it.
This is an interesting piece of advice.Thank you for sharing this Jacob.It surely helps to clearly think about what you want to achieve in life.Meaning that you have to clearly stipulate your goals that you want to achieve toward reaching your dream.That will include short and long term goals - the steps taken toward achieving the dream.The challenge is to not abandon your dream in the middle of the building or shaping process that will take you from the beginning to the end because that is where your ability to endure will be tested (the middle of the race). I fully agree with what you said about running your own race and not that of someone else because it is so easy to feel intimidated, lose focus and become distracted. If you know your ability and stay focused on your dream it is possible to achieve it.For nothing is impossible to them that believe if your faith in the Dreamgiver, yourself and your dream is your foundation on which you build.
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