Previously, I’ve talked about Arnold Schwarzenegger’s book, Be Useful; it is one of my favorites for guided book studies that I run at work. The second chapter, Never Think Small, is particularly good and I think about it a lot as it applies to all parts of my life. Never think small is a critical mind set that you need to adopt for how you think about things that are truly important to you; things that are central to your vision. It is what drives me from when I accomplish a goal, to going after another bigger one. It is that constant pursuit of that next thing.
There is a very practical skill to develop when you are always chasing that next thing, goal setting. Picking good goals is a must. They have to be aligned with your vision obviously but they also have to be small enough to allow for meaningful iteration. Achieving a goal in my world isn’t actually hit the next big thing. It is what I learn in the process of doing the work, all the small steps. That allows for course correction as well as discovering small serendipitous steps that I might not have otherwise found. When you are thinking big, you have to be realistic about your goals. Decompose them down into smaller practical ones that have a feedback loop. It is these small steps and feedback that help you grow.
That means there is always more to do. MORE!
I honestly love it. Never being done. It is a life long commitment to doing more that has taking me on an amazing roundabout journey with running.
Running has been a constant
It has been one of the few things that has stuck with me since my time in the Army. The reasons I have done it have evolved over time. They have ranged from mental health, discipline, identity, but most importantly joy. Running has given me a great many things and is core to who I am today.
My vision over the years has grown and sharpened or zoomed out and zoomed in as Schwarzenegger says in his book. It has also been a lot more than just races and big miles. There have been ups and downs along the way. When I started out, there were times I got hurt; there were a couple races I DNFed; and of course there were long runs I just gave up on and walked home. Successes and failures are all part of the journey but the key is that you never give up. You lean. You learn. You adapt.
Always being race ready
When I reflect on things, I am pretty sure that my starting point was a couple half marathons a year and just being out there for fun. I was enjoying racking up miles for races. Naturally, things got easier and I started to think bigger.
What if I was always half marathon ready?
That basically changed how I thought about running and when I stopped being casual about it. I changed how I trained and ultimately my lifestyle to just always being in a state where I could show up and run a half. That meant half marathons needed to stop being a big distance which meant more mileage. That is how I started loving big miles, the grind. I had non-negotiables though; things core to my vision.
- Injury free
- Joy
I focused on carefully adding mileage, always listening to my body, and taking care of it. I got more strict about stretching and disciplined about hitting the gym specifically for injury prevention. I was very intentional about add things that allowed me to build that mileage. Eventually always being half marathon ready became my new normal.
Goal achieved
Big mileage was starting to be interesting to me but it wasn’t fully in focus yet. I did however set my sights on marathons. I was a little nervous about that one because I tried before and got hurt. However, I was crystal clear about one thing.
I will run a marathon injury free
I didn’t care about time. It was all about completing injury free and honestly seeing how much mileage I needed to do that; the grind was now coming into focus. I remember trying to figure this out and rejecting virtually all the training plans I found. They focused on pace and speed. That was and still is counter to my philosophy on running. I listen to my body. If I can comfortably go faster, I go a little faster. If I need to go slower, I go a little slower. If I need to walk, I walk. I did my first marathon and it was injury free. With that, I achieved my goal.
New vision unlocked: the grind
Accidentally discovering speed
While on this quest for injury free big mileage, something unexpected happened. I was proudly not giving a damn about pace or time. I became an eater of miles. I loved doing volume. Then at one of my local half marathons… I earned my first age group podium.
Surprise achievement: 3rd place
I was completely shocked. I can still remember the last half mile… wow, a lot of folks here are cheering me on. These peeps really dig their local races. I crossed the line and was curious about my time. They handed me a 3rd place medal at the timing tent.
Mind… blown
Speed was literally never in the plan. I actually kind of bucked at it because I thought it required fragile training, weight loss, and reckless intensity; all counter to my run forever lifestyle. I remember taking a selfie and sending it to my parents, thinking, I guess I am fast now.
New goal: see how fast I can get while staying injury free and keeping high volume
I’m not chasing VO2 max or short unsustainable blocks. I still firmly believe in grinding big volume and being highly durable. I am now experimenting with training sessions that push my speed and don’t screw any of that up. That is why I’ve only incorporated continuous tempo blocks. I am focused on how my body feels and letting speed emerge on its own. I’m trying to prove to myself that it is possible to have a running lifestyle that centers around:
- Joy
- Injury free
- The grind
And now
- Speed
Small steps
You don’t need to be a runner for this to apply. I talk about running a lot because that is apart of who I am. However, never think small is how we should all think about our visions. It is about one goal after another. It is the never ending cycle of achieving and growing. When you achieve a goal, celebrate the win. Then set a new one.
There is something to be said about setting smaller achievable goals. I vastly prefer them as I can nail them off in quick succession instead of big monster ones that take forever. They let me iterate, course correct, and measure progress more easily. I love taking tons of small steps for that reason. Plus they often have me discover things along the way; smelling the roses so to speak.
Struggling with goal setting is common. If you are, then try the following:
- Check that your goals align with your vision. Good goals aren’t about achievement. They are about growth that aligns with your vision. If you have a goal that you aren’t motivated to achieve, guess what? Chances are it doesn’t support your vision. Toss it out because it is getting in the way of a goal that does.
- Decompose your goals into smaller ones, small steps. Focus on the steps that come first. If you want to run longer but can’t then take walk breaks. Walking isn’t cheating. Small steps aren’t cheating. They get you to the next step which gets you to the next one and the next.
The size of the step doesn’t matter. Each one is growth.
Push Pace 