Running and Management
It has been a long time since my last post. I fell away from writing as I fell away from running long, bu for different reasons. I tried to start writing again several times only to stop abruptly because I wasn't writing about something I love. I love to run and enjoyed my stories of running in a variety of places and talking about the people who I have met and who inspired me while running the miles.
This weekend, I was just beat by late hours and could not get out of bed to run the Mountain Goat training run so I forced myself to run ten miles on Sunday morning. I ran a solo ten miles of hills and flats. I even doubled back to run a steep incline and a long gradual incline to "pretend" I was running up the short hill in Hiawatha Park and the long gradual, and final incline of Thorndon Park; if I hadn't done this, I would have felt guilty. There were several times I wanted to quit. My legs were burning and my mind was bored. Yet, I trudged onward, finishing my own training run.
I think of many things while running alone. I think of friends past, running mates whom I haven't run with since my back surgery in 2010, and all the things I hoped to accomplish, but haven't. Hence the reason why its so critical that I run and finish what I start. Running, unlike work, places only one obstacle before me, me. There is nothing out of my control once I head onto the asphalt. I can control my mind, my pace, my breathing, and my desire to finish. In work there are too many obstacles, too many people who interfere or just get in the way, too many managers who believe good management is molding everyone to them when they should be managing talents toward their strengths. Running allows me to manage my talents to my strength, running fast down hills and slow up hills while maintaining a consistent and engaged pace on the flats. I know my weaknesses and I know what hurts. I have only had one manager who understood that... But that another story about successful management best saved for another blog that may be worthy of creating.
Todays weekly run take homes for me are the following:
1) Run and finish what I start.
2) Find someone to run long with so I can generate more endurance and better stories.
3) Do not expect a manager to manage you toward your strengths, only I can do that for myself.
See you on the road.
