It's a new year, so many of us have declared our intentions, set fresh goals, dare I say it, Made Resolutions. Now it's mid-January. Those promises come home to roost, and our good intentions are just that, intentions. We need some inspiration, perhaps a good example to get us back on track.
Who better to emulate than Jennifer Wilford? Jennifer is a certified distance running coach*. Her ability to say YES to the challenge and NO to distractions is nothing short of astounding.
Jennifer has run fourteen marathons, including the last five Boston marathons. She's a poster girl for discipline, self-control and willpower, running almost 2,500 miles last year.
I recently interviewed Jennifer to learn her secret power source. What drives her to persist in something so difficult, so often, for so long, and with such success?
Her first answer, I admit, was disappointing.
"Because I love it," she said. "To me, running is like breathing."
(Hm. Not really what I was looking for.)
After some discussion, I urged her on. "But Jen, what do you do when you DON'T WANT TO RUN?"'
"I always want to. "
(Wow.)
Where does that leave US -- the unmotivated, the disheartened, the ones who aren't naturally driven, who are in need of a shot of willpower for things we want, but don't always feel like acting upon: to lose weight, save money, stop smoking, drink less, exercise, pray, give, and love more?
_________
Later that same day, Jennifer sent a follow-up email to our conversation. After some thought, she admitted that she doesn't always love getting up at 5:30am. She doesn't care for extreme heat or pouring rain and loathes the beating of "The Dreadmill."
(Hurray! There's hope!)
On the days when the idea of running is less than palatable, she does it anyway. . .
. . . "because, in the end, I'm always glad I went."
Jennifer uses her knowledge and experience of past successes to motivate her to action.
She knows that once she gets started, she won't regret going. And Jennifer knows that the end result of getting up and out on the road will be much more gratifying than an extra hour (or two or three) of sleep or anything else she might do with her time and energy.
Stephen Covey popularized this idea in his widely-read book, The Seven Habits of Highly Successful people. His Habit #2, "Begin with The End in Mind," encourages us to clearly visualize what we want before we start working so that we:
1. Fully understand what accomplishing the goal will mean to our lives and. . .
2. . . .can get excited about it!
Some examples might be:
- A cute picture of yourself in those favorite jeans, taped to the fridge
- Planning a vacation to take with the money you'll save quitting cigarettes
- Imagining a peaceful, fun family weekend where everyone gets along
What positive scenarios can you visualize to motivate you to succeed this month? We'll focus on this and other strategies for strengthening our willpower at this week's LifeInspired free group session (see sidebar). I hope you can join us. It's always a good time. :)
*If running better, farther and faster is one of your goals for 2013, you ought to check out Jennifer's website, www.yougogirlnow.com. I tell you, she's a boss!
