What they taught me at the Rich Man’s Footrace
Perhaps it was my recognition of several esteemed tech titans in the crowd that led my brain to generate career-oriented observations half-way through the Hillsborough 10K Fun Run last weekend. With muscles burning and Blues Traveler blaring from a faraway finish line, it dawned on me that the same strategies I needed to finish the race might translate to my day job.
At the finish, I found a crayon and jotted down some thoughts on a crumpled paper bag. So here now- like a delirious 3AM dream transcribed at bedside- are three lessons for finishing that run and competing in the rat race.
Set the pace.
When the starting gun went off, every Type A this side of El Camino was perfectly amped and ready to WIN. You would have thought it was the final regional Olympic qualifier, considering the speed and crazed pace of the assembled pack. But after a mile or so many of the adrenaline juiced super moms and muscled graying bros couldn’t keep it up. Scores of them were fully spent and had settled into a slow, joyless death march. A cautionary tale.
I took a sweet job at PeopleSoft years ago. I was so fired up that I volunteered for just about every project that came my way. After six months I won a company-wide award given by the CEO (yes, a humble brag — please pause to reflect on my accomplishment).
I was also completely exhausted.
The next year I decided to leave the company, in large part because I was no longer willing to prioritize the job above all else to maintain the pace I had set.
Choose your pace carefully — keep the long haul in mind and save the satisfaction and glory for the finish rather than the start.
Claim (momentary) defeat.
I didn’t train on hills. So the monster hill in the middle of this race was an unpleasant surprise. After every flight upwards I anticipated reaching the top only to see more brutal uphill. My legs burned and I’m sad to admit my mind screamed hysterically.
So I did something I wouldn’t have done as a younger man. Two times, I walked for a brief stint. The acid cleared from my legs, the crying in my head subsided, and I was able to resume my steady climb to the top. Because of these breathers, I had enough energy and enthusiasm to fly back down the hill, making up for lost time.
At one time or another we have all felt like I did on that hill in a work scenario.
Once, early-on at my current job, several projects turned sour in the same afternoon. I intended to work until midnight that evening after the kids were asleep. But the stress level and fatigue made that impossible. So instead I put on the headphones and walked around my neighborhood for two hours, leaving my work mess behind for the time being.
You know what, things turned out OK.
It is amazing how taking a breather from whatever consistent pressure you are under can refill the tank. So don’t let your pride get in the way — step aside for a moment and rejoin the fight when you are ready.
Forgive those who get in your way.
A teenager with bright shoes and all the gear weaved through the crowd oblivious to the rest of us, focused on getting ahead of the pack. He almost tripped me, and I wanted to grab him by the scruff of his neck and yell “get in your lane, asshole” Dirty Harry style. But I’d likely get in trouble with his parents, the authorities and the kid himself, which would present a problem once he had grown into a full grown man seeking Godfather-style revenge on my older and feebler self.
And of course, yelling at this kid would have taken me away from the mission at hand — competing in this race.
Yes, definitely better to be courteous and patient with this guy and with those fresher faces we all work with from time to time. And to be honest I was just as erratic in my earlier years. And to be doubly honest, statistics show most teens will become minecraft-oriented social media billionaires. — so you better be nice.
OK, that’s it. Enjoy yourselves out there. Strap on the Walkman and hit the open road with new confidence. With these tools you WILL be promoted to assistant sales manager within 36 months.
