5 things I learnt to avoid hitting ‘The Wall’

My name is Amber Marriott and I’m an Innovation Engineer in RoomY, the John Lewis Partnership’s innovation studio.

This time last year, I had just begun training for the London Marathon — an immense physical challenge that, quite honestly, seemed close to impossible. This year, I have embarked on an equally taxing challenge with an entirely different dimension; working in RoomY as a graduate on my development rotation. At first glance, these two tasks couldn’t seem more dissimilar, but on reflection both have one fundamental trait in common; the fear of hitting ‘the wall’. This post will take you through my key learnings from the 2017 London Marathon, with advice on how best to avoid ‘the wall’, which can be applied to any new challenge — including coding!

1. Desire to succeed

Possibly the most important question to ask yourself at the start of any new challenge is: “Do I want to succeed?”. If the answer is yes, you’re already halfway there.

When I recieved my acceptance letter from the London marathon ballot, there were a lot of things that made me doubt whether I could do it:

Will I have enough time to train?
How will I deal with the stress of the training plan alongside a new job?
Will I ever be fit enough?
26 miles…REALLY?

But despite the minefield of uncertainties there was one thing that I knew for sure — I wanted to succeed. With any new opportunity comes unfamiliar ground, and whilst this can be daunting, if you want to see it through, then that will take you far further than you think.

2. Tools for the job

So in marathon terms we’re talking about a pair of durable, well-fitting trainers, running clothes, energy gels (for when times get tough), plenty of water and, of course, plasters! Down in RoomY, the most fundamental tools for learning Javascript have been Codecademy, Stack Overflow and JSFiddle. Understanding which elements can help you on the path to success is imperative, and investing in these will make the journey a much smoother ride. Of course, tools do not do the work themselves; if you are committed to investing time and effort along the way, you will be rewarded.

3. Nurture yourself

This might sound like a strange one, but it absolutely should be a priority if you want to avoid hitting ‘the wall’. For a marathon runner, nutrition and hydration can quite literally be make or break in determining whether or not they make it through the race. For me, this perfectly indicates why the wider context of a challenge should be considered in order to fully understand how to achieve the end goal.

Take a step back for a moment and think about the things that relax and refocus you. This might be your family, your friends, plenty of sleep, or a nice calm environment…knowing these simple comforts can make a whole world of difference when you have faced a difficult day, or purely need to take a timeout from the challenge to refresh your mind and approach things with a clear head.

4. Support network

Another fundamental component to success is having a solid support network that you can rely on. During my training, this was hands down the predominant thing that kept me going when I was feeling defeated. Of course, running for a charity went hand in hand with this, as it widened the support network available, whilst also reminding me of the worthwhile reason to run.

In RoomY one thing that I have actively embraced is asking questions to more experienced Partners in the Partnership (remember — they started somewhere like you!). I am lucky enough to be working with a very experienced programmer who is incredibly supportive and willing to invest time in my development.

With any goal, understand who you can reach out to for guidance. Be clear on what it is you need, and try to determine the different people you can go to. More often than not, you will find that others are more than happy to help, and this network plays a crucial part in maintaining momentum towards the end goal, preventing you from ‘hitting the wall’.

4. Perseverance

Running can be a great opportunity for some thinking space, which is fantastic if your thoughts are in a good place. However on those days where every stride is a struggle, a run can be both physically and mentally exhausting leaving you feeling defeated. It’s important to understand that days like this happen, and that each small distance you travel is a building block to the final journey. Learning how to put the voices telling you to stop to the back of your head and driving yourself forwards is something that takes real resilience when times get tough. I’m not just talking about running here… this applies to any challenge you might face. With my recent coding experience, there have been countless occasions where I have had to Google the answers or ask for help, which can feel really demoralising. But I’ve started to accept that this is a part of the process, and learning the syntax will become easier with time.

It’s extremely difficult to keep motivation high when you feel so far from the final goal. But the hardest part of all is to start again once you lose momentum — so remind yourself of the reasons you began, and persevere until you see the results you want.

“ All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.”
Walt Disney

5. Go get ‘em

Whether your challenge is sticking to a four month marathon training plan to crossing the finish line, or going from idea generation to actually having your prototype ready to test, when it comes to the big day make sure you enjoy it. Reflect upon the journey that you’ve made and the effort that you’ve exerted to get this far. Trust in the knowledge that you have gained from the process, and consider any learnings for next time. When the time comes, look forward to setting yourself a new challenge, which may be something equally far from what you imagined possible.

As far as I’m concerned, I couldn’t have had two contrasting challenges in the past year, but that is what keeps life exciting and I wouldn’t want it any other way.

I hope you have found this post interesting and, hopefully, even helpful. Please follow Room Y and clap this post. Thank you!