Winning Contests
"Winning races is nice, but it was never transformative. The pleasure doesn't come from running the fastest you've run, it comes from just the experience of very moderately testing yourself. I find that kinda nice"- Malcolm Gladwell
This weekend during a visit to my favorite bookstore in Houston I read an article on Malcolm. Since I was reading his new book it made sense to get to know a more personal side of this brilliant thinker. I learned things that surprised me.
One of the things that surprised me was how great of a runner he was when he was young. He even won races and championships in Canada. Pretty impressive for someone that looks like he would be afraid to step onto a track.
The quote teaches us why he excelled in this sport. It seems that Malcolm realized that incremental improvements and tests are necessary to transform one's performance. He had used the process to become the best he could be as a racer. What is interesting is that once he realized that he could no longer be the best he moved on. He knew that his body could not take the punishment and that he had no Olympic hopes. To me that is wisdom in knowing when you have reached the peak of your potential and need to move on to something else.
Today's question is:
"Do you know when you have reached the peak of your potential and need to move on?"
"Winning races is nice, but it was never transformative. The pleasure doesn't come from running the fastest you've run, it comes from just the experience of very moderately testing yourself. I find that kinda nice"- Malcolm Gladwell
This weekend during a visit to my favorite bookstore in Houston I read an article on Malcolm. Since I was reading his new book it made sense to get to know a more personal side of this brilliant thinker. I learned things that surprised me.
One of the things that surprised me was how great of a runner he was when he was young. He even won races and championships in Canada. Pretty impressive for someone that looks like he would be afraid to step onto a track.
The quote teaches us why he excelled in this sport. It seems that Malcolm realized that incremental improvements and tests are necessary to transform one's performance. He had used the process to become the best he could be as a racer. What is interesting is that once he realized that he could no longer be the best he moved on. He knew that his body could not take the punishment and that he had no Olympic hopes. To me that is wisdom in knowing when you have reached the peak of your potential and need to move on to something else.
Today's question is:
"Do you know when you have reached the peak of your potential and need to move on?"
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