Responding
Mike Tyson once said that ‘everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.’
Everyone gets punched in the mouth at some point.
You’re running in the State Championship XC race and you get tripped up and fall.
Responding at the Leadville 100 in 2019 at the Hope Pass aid station and headed inbound.
You forget your nutrition with your crew at an aid station as you head out on the crux of a 100 mile race.
You set your backpack down and it rolls over, falling down a scree field into the river below.
You get laid off.
Your partner leaves you.
A pandemic shuts down the entire country…
How are you going to respond?
We all can react instinctively but often times that reaction may not be the best course of action. Sometimes we can get in our own way: we panic, we lose hope, and we give up, we react in a way that just isn’t helpful and just makes things worse.
Or we might react in a way that makes us feel better temporarily… you find a job that is still in a toxic environment. Get into a new relationship with someone who just isn’t a good fit because, well, it’s comforting. You sprint to catch up to the other runners and burn all your matches along the way.
The challenge is in responding in a way that is congruent with your values and goals, responding in a way that is meaningful and congruent with your standards of how you want to show up. Responding in a way that includes a growth mindset - the idea that our abilities and intelligence can be developed and improved over time, as opposed to the idea that our abilities are fixed traits and can’t be changed.
Responding in a way that we see the punch as a challenge, not a threat.
Slow it down for a moment. Take a slow deep breath, refocus to the present. Notice and feel the emotions that you’re experiencing, they’re normal, they hurt. The pain sucks. It will be uncomfortable. Accept and open up to the discomfomfort compassionately.
Now lean in, process, plan and respond.
It isn’t easy. Practice it. What are your values? What are your goals? What gives you meaning? What do you see yourself doing that’s going to be congruent with how you want to show up, everyday.
Shit happens and your plans may have been derailed… but how do you want to respond.