The Annual Long Beach Marathon

What I learned from the half Marathon this weekend compared to the Marathon I ran last year and the parallels to the world of business:
1: Planning and preparation are keys to success. If you don’t prepare for a presentation or a meeting and if you don’t practice the key items before meeting with a group or a client, then you have set yourself for potential failure.
2: You must have the will and courage to show up and be on time. Taking initiative in doing anything and starting it requires discipline, courage and determination. Starting a project and taking initiative as they say is half the battle. Showing up on time is just as important. If you show up late to a race, the horn has already sounded, and hundreds of people have gotten a head start on you…that is if they let you participate at all. The same is true when you show up for a zoom meeting or an in-person visit with a client or a business associate!
3: One might think that a half Marathon is half as difficult as a full Marathon but on the contrary, running a half is much easier than running a full. The level of difficulty, endurance and hurt increases exponentially during the later miles and it takes even a greater determination and courage to actually finish when every bone in your body is telling you to quit. This is probably most true in the world of business- Showing up on time and starting a project is half the battle, having courage and determination to endure weeks and months to complete a project is extremely important and crucial, but finishing a project with success requires unshakeable resolve, mind over body strength and courage to endure those later miles and cross the finish line!