Couch to 42k: Professional Parallels

In early 2016 I succeeded in my applications to two life-changing experiences: the 2017 London Marathon and a position within a fast-growth startup firm. Being as sports-phobic as I have peers working for large banks and consultancy firms, both were equally alien and, as I have discovered, similar in their journey.

Just Do It

Pablo Picasso once said, “I am always doing that which I cannot do, in order that I may learn how to do it". As I quickly discovered, taking risks and going out of your comfort zone is the best way to challenge your own perception of what you can achieve as well as learn a lot in the process. Whether taking that first step is literal (step one of fifty-five thousand) or figurative (pitch one of fifty-five hundred), the end-goal of success remains the same and requires courage from kickoff to closing. 

Every Little Helps

Nothing worth having comes easily and the road to victory can be as painstaking when generating new leads and following-up with prospects as it is training for a 26.2 mile run. The important thing to remember is that overcoming even the smallest milestone brings you closer to triumph than you were before. This sounds obvious, but it is something I have often forgotten along the way. In fact, my biggest wins on both sides occurred as the result of persevering with a series of smaller ones over a longer period of time. For example, the closing of my largest deal and convincing a celebrity to donate memorabilia for me to auction as part of my fundraising.

Impossible Is Nothing

To be truly successful at anything, even that which seems impossible, there has to be an energy bigger than exercise and a meaning more powerful than money pushing you along. Just as when things get challenging at work I am driven by my desire to be crucial to the company's growth, it is the support that the NSPCC gave me growing up and continues to give vulnerable children across the UK that will see me to the finish line on April 23rd.

~ Please consider donating to the NSPCC ~ https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/couchto42k