Lessons in Leadership from the Single Track: Grit and Determination

“Consistency of effort over the long run is everything.” – Unknown

"It's after midnight and the pain is almost unbearable. Every postural muscle in my body is on fire.?My lower left back feels like someone was taking a dull knife and stabbing me repeatedly.?The back of my neck is tired and sore to the point it takes a conscious effort to hold my head up.?My hands are cramping, and my knees are screaming in pain.? I'm thirsty, cold and hungry. Worst of all I can barely tolerate sitting down anymore because of the highly inflamed and irritated area around my sit-bones.?I still have 10+ hours of this hell to endure before it's over. I just want to quit, but I have my goal and I'm determined to reach it."

Welcome to a glimpse into my mind at the 24 Hours of the Old Pueblo Mountain Bike Race in Tucson, Arizona this weekend.

I’ve been an Ultra-endurance athlete ever since my first Ironman-distance triathlon (2.4 mile swim / 112 mile bike / 26.2 mile run) way back in 1990 in Lake Sunapee, NH.?Some 30+ years and over 100 races later, I still use ultra-endurance racing to push beyond my comfort zone, hence the 24 Hour MTB racing where you try to ride as many laps or as far as you can over a 24 hour period in the Sonoran desert, just north of Tucson, AZ. It's an iconic event in the MTB community attracting athletes from around the world.

I’ve done several of these now, and this year I competed again in the Solo, Single-Speed Division, where you ride a bike with only one gear throughout the race.?This ‘purist’ style of riding makes it a little more challenging as you’re stuck with the same gear no matter the terrain.?Big hill??Grind it out.?Rollers… vary your cadence.?Flats… spin to win.?

I don’t race to win anymore as I used to back in my 20’s as a professional triathlete.?Nowadays, I’m a weekend warrior with very limited training time, and ultra-racing is more about personal internal competition and keeping myself from getting too comfortable.?I also enjoy getting my family involved and the lessons it teaches them about teamwork (They are my AWESOME crew.) and perseverance.? Honestly, I couldn't do it without their support.

To be clear, my competitive desires haven’t disappeared and it’s still very satisfying to beat someone half my age, but it’s more about ‘me vs. me’ these days. I still enjoy "the suffer" like the best of them!

During this year’s race, I tried to stay focused by ignoring the nagging pains mentioned above by repeating a mantra over and over again… “Just grind it out. It's a process. Just grind it out. It's a process.”.?This helped because every pedal stroke took me closer to the finish and closer to my goal.?It was about consistency of effort, not about going fast and ‘flaming out’ on a section of the course with a burst of speed.

Ultra-Racing can teach you many lessons about leadership.?In my Executive Coaching and Leadership training practice, I teach about Self-Leadership, and how the First person you lead is you.? Here are a few to consider.

• One element of self-leadership is to have Grit and Determination when dealing with adversity.?Being able to push through the hard times and not caving under pressure is a true test of a leader.?
• Another important lesson that Ultra- Racing teaches you is about the importance of team work.?Sure, 24-Hour MTB racing is a solo event (You can ride on a relay team), but you must have the support and buy-in from your ‘team’ in order to reach your goals. Without that support from your team (your spouse, family, friends, etc.), you’ll be limited as to how far you can go.
• Ultra-Racing shows you how pushing outside your comfort zone leads to new growth in who you are and what you can become.?As a leader, cultivating a ‘growth mindset’ by pushing yourself is a model for those on your team and cultivates innovation.
• Slow and steady wins the game...be consistent. With most things in life, good things come to leaders who are measured and steady in their approach, and who look at the big picture. This certainly counts in the world of Ultra-racing. Sure, sometimes you find outliers who accomplish great things overnight, but that's the exception.

Of course, you don’t have to do extreme endurance events like 24 Hr. MTB racing to push outside your comfort zone! You can leverage the benefits of endurance racing in other ways too, like taking online course to further your education, enter into new business markets or speaking on a topic of expertise in front of an audience.??The possibilities are endless.

In summary, there are many ways to ‘push yourself' and it’s up to you to discover what works best.?The key is to be intentional about it. Find that thing that scares you, and go do it anyway. Something that truly challenges your resolve and forces you to dig deep and find out what you are truly made of.?

Once you do, you’ll see others in your orbit elevate as well as you set the example.

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Troy Jacobson is head coach of the Jacobson Leadership Academy based in Tucson, AZ where he coaches leaders and teams to optimize their performance. To learn more and to schedule a free consultation, visit www.troyjacobson.com