“If you see me running, you had better start running too!”
As a Massage Therapist, I have had many clients that were runners and joggers and they would tell me about their experiences and races they signed up for and gear they had bought. And while I was interested in what they were saying, the thought would cross my mind “Why are they doing this to themselves? Don’t they like themselves? This seems like torture!” Even though I have always been active, I have never really considered myself a sporty or athletic type. I did not play for any real sports in school (except that one time I played T-Ball). And I could not possibly wrap my head around why ANYONE would consider running if there wasn’t anything chasing them.
Around late 2010, early 2011, I was having lunch with my favorite goal setting partner, Jen, and we were making lists and discussing the goals we wanted to set for ourselves that year. I believe very strongly in having accountability partners when it comes to goals.
As we were setting our goals, I asked her if she had ever run a 5K. When she said no and asked me why, I stated “I have told myself my whole life that I could never be a runner. I have said – out loud – that I could not even run to the mailbox if I wanted to. If I could train for and complete a 5K, that would prove that little voice in my head wrong. And if it could be wrong about that, what other things could that little voice be wrong about?”
Right away we decided that we should find a fun place to run our first 5K. And we should schedule spa services to reward ourselves afterwards too! We had been to an amazing spa at the Boca Raton Resort in Florida for a FSMTA Convention a few years prior, and thought that it would be the perfect place to start looking for our first race. (For perspective, Boca is about 4 hours away from where we live.) We searched online, found a race called the Rock and Roll 5K and signed up, giving us 3 months to go from non-runners to runners.
Once we committed to the race we started looking in to scheduling our spa services (3 months ahead, yes I know.) This is a pretty expensive resort, especially coming from a massage therapists pocketbook, so our intention was to get a hotel close by, and go there for spa treatments. There was a glitch in my plan, however. It turned out you could only book spa services if you were staying at the resort. So now our whole reason for going to Boca to run this 5K was going to cost us a lot more money.
When I broke the news to Jen she laughed and said “That seems like an excessive reward for just a 5K.”
I replied “It’s not the 5K we are rewarding. It’s the re-wiring of a belief. It’s challenging the voice that holds me back. It’s a substantial shift that deserves a substantial reward.”
We ran, we spa day-ed, we conquered. It was a fantastic experience that fueled several more races, and even bumped me up into half marathons. I can honestly say that was a game changer for me. The moment I realized that I did not have to believe what that little voice was telling me, was so significant to other ways I had been holding myself back in business. I started making better decisions with more confidence. I started getting into the habit of challenging that voice every time it told me I could not do something.
It was running for me, but it could be painting or singing for you. That voice spends the same amount of energy discouraging small goals as it does to big ones. It’s our perspective that makes them bigger. It’s the same voice that says “I could never leave my hometown. I could never start my own business. I could never go back to school.” Yes you can.
What ever it is, it is possible.
What has the little voice in your head been saying that holds you back? What are some beliefs you have that feel real, but maybe with a little effort and vulnerability, they are not? Pick one, right it down. That voice in your head that tells you all the reasons you can not do something … is a liar. Find out the truth for yourself and see what happens next.
Chase your dreams and send that voice running!
Love your attitude! It’s so easy to say “I can’t do that”, but it is so much better to think “how can I do this”
Positive attitude, love that you have such an encouraging friend and that you are squashing that negative voice in your head!